Thoughts on Ann and the ADL

In the wake of Ann Coulter's confrontation with the Anti-Defamation League it is interesting to read the comments of David Klinghoffer here at the Discovery Institute.

Being a Jew himself David disagrees with Ann that a Jew must accept the authority of Jesus as Messiah, but he acknowledges that from her perspective her statement was entirely correct.

He goes on the argue that there are two ways of being a Jew, the first being merely a matter of biology. That is, merely an accident of birth. The second, which he advocates himself, sees Jewishness being related to Torah which he sees as being of cosmic significance.

I can subscribe to this position, although as a Christian I would agree with Ann that a Jew should embrace Jesus to be perfected. David deserves credit for a nuanced and reasonable position that seems quite foreign to the Anti Defamation League.

Thoughts on Tabloid Theology

Michael Patton has some interesting thoughts to share on the subject of Tabloid Theology here.

In his words tabloid theology emphasizes sensationalist claims without criticism. This results in a theology that is very prone to being disrupted by encounters with cold hard reality.

In agreement with him I advocate a form of critical theology, where every claim is subjected to a high degree of scrutiny. Unlike Michael I am not a cessationalist, believing that the gifts of God's Holy Spirit are available to achieve His purposes today, but because of that we should be even more vigilant to ensure no false reports be included among our testimony.