James T

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Christ-centered, Reformed, Presbyterian, Calvinist-but-not-too-Calvinist; frequently liberal. I like to think of myself as ecumenically minded but am secretly suspicious of my own bias. I enjoy libraries and the books inside them. Also medieval history (esp. medieval reception of Biblical, classical and patristic sources, and the ways that their interpretations have persisted or been rejected).

My profile image is a raven from the Aberdeen Bestiary. Corvus in divina pagina diversis modis accipitur, ut per corvum aliquando predicatorum, aliquando peccatorum, aliquando diabolus intelligitur. (The raven is understood in a variety of ways in the sacred scriptures: sometimes it means a preacher, sometimes a sinner, sometimes the devil.) It reminds me that I am simul justus et peccator.

	6,905 reputation	bio	website		visits	member for	1 year, 8 months
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May 1	comment	Where does the idea of a water canopy come from in the Bible, and is there scientific evidence to support it? I hadn't heard this canopy theory. Is it related to the firmament? (I had thought of the flood passage as referring to holes in the solid firmament.)
Apr 12	comment	Why does Jesus speak of himself in the third person? Hello Corey and welcome to this site. Since you are new you might like to take some time to look over some other questions and answers, to see the sort of thing we are about. From what you have written here, I think you are confused about the grammatical third person versus the third person of the Trinity. This doesn't answer the original question.
Apr 11	comment	Should Christians marry non-Christians? Hello luksmir! This is an interesting point, though I see the text of your answer is gathering some downvotes. Perhaps that is because readers would like a little more detail. I know that I would be interested in having some of the gaps filled in, between your quotation and the conclusion - there is some reasoning there that you don't yet spell out, and it doesn't engage with the quotations in the original question. It might also be helpful if you could point to some outside source where the connection is made.
Apr 9	comment	What is a brief history on the idea that the Papacy is the Anti-Christ? @fredsbend, I wrote this a while back which might be helpful - christianity.stackexchange.com/a/9631/545. The quotes there are basically from "proto-Reformers" (Hus, Wycliffe, and the like), later than 11th C. but in continuity with the Reformation proper. I don't know about this 'even saints' business as calling the institution of the Papacy the Antichrist might just cause a hiccup in your cause for canonization. For individual popes, or a hypothetical pope, could be OK, and there are certainly 11th C. people who wrote about "What if the pope were a heretic?" in the abstract.
Apr 5	comment	In Theistic Evolution when do the genealogies in Genesis become real? I don't really know why you ask about "theistic evolution", which is purely about human origins. It seems like you are searching for a shorthand for "people who do not believe in a historical Adam" (which some theistic evolutionists do and some don't).
Apr 4	comment	Does intelligence or rationality belong to other animals by participation? Isidore of Seville wrote (Etymologiae 12) that some people thought apes (simiae) were so called because they imitate human reason (in eis similitudo rationis humanae). (The real reason, he says, is the Greek root simos, flat-nosed.) Hence also the modern English verb "ape", to imitate. This seems to fit the idea that their intelligence is a lesser, reflected version of our own.
Apr 1	comment	Is there a special name for the day between Easter and Good Friday? The name "Holy Saturday" has been used at least since the eighth century - the Gelasian Sacramentary has "Sabbato Sancto". It is likely even older than that.
Mar 29	comment	Should Christians be against the death penalty? I looked up the cited paper. It actually argues that the asserted figure (from a WSJ article) is not supported by the evidence. Moreover, the author acknowledges that even if it were true, there would still be substantial moral questions to answer.
Mar 25	comment	What is the significance of the burning bush? Chaucer uses this image in the Prioress' Prologue. I think the idea is that her virginity remains intact (not burned up). @Curious, perhaps you can elaborate?
Mar 20	comment	Does any faith dogmatically assert time-travel? I think it is sermon 23 on the OT but I don't have the books in front of me.
Mar 20	comment	Does any faith dogmatically assert time-travel? You may as well ask about conservation of matter when so many people are eating the same body. One of Augustine's sermons talks about the real presence as a word spoken once and heard by many people, without being "used up", but he's not really asserting or relying on anything about the physics of sound. Likewise I do not see why this belief should be read as asserting anything to do with time travel physics.
Mar 18	comment	Is there any connection between the country of origin of Popes and nearby large gatherings of Catholics or Councils? For a less positive example, Urban VI was elected because the cardinals feared the reaction of the Roman public ("large gatherings of Catholics"!) if they chose yet another French pope over an Italian.
Mar 17	comment	Can dogma ever be modified, and how does this relate to papal infallibility? I would just like to point out that this edition of the Catholic Encyclopedia predates Lumen Gentium, and some of its more speculative or polemical passages should be read in consideration of the historical context - there was not yet a definitive statement on the relation between papal authority and that of the bishops, in council or otherwise. The 1967 New Catholic Encyclopedia has a more complete picture, for example.
Mar 16	comment	Who was Thomas's twin? I was hoping for a bit more detail than this (thanks for the citation though). Any chance you can expand a bit?
Mar 14	comment	About statues and pictures There is a (closed) question whose answers probably cover most of this: christianity.stackexchange.com/questions/14615/…
Mar 10	comment	Is there any method to prevent an unbelieving pope from being elected? @Mike, you should look up the conciliar movement, which is what this canon is aimed at. There was/is a school of thought saying that an ecumenical council could (weak form) judge the pope in situations of schism or heresy, or (strong form) overrule him on any matter. The 15th century bull Execrabilis condemns any who appeal to a future council - ie, saying "we don't have to follow what the pope says, we'll wait for a council to decide".
Mar 5	comment	How do the vestments of the pontiff emeritus compare to those of a bishop emeritus? Thank you for this very helpful answer!
Feb 13	comment	What is the biblical basis for considering gender to be not merely physical/biological? A fascinating question, with big implications!
Feb 9	comment	Is Thomas More's reading of “This is my body” a literal one by modern standards? Thank you for this answer outlining the competing view, esp. the part that brings 'literal' into play for the physicality of the elements. I wonder if you have any thoughts on whether More's argument fails for moderns because (1) although it's a respectable literalist argument, the competing literalist arguments are stronger, or because (2) it is not a respectable argument because the supernatural claim (transubstantiation) is just too unbelievable / not otherwise justified ? (My impression is that it's sometimes thought OK to preserve literal readings by invoking a miracle, so why not here?)
Feb 2	comment	What is Augustine's original of Tolstoy's “Three Hermits” story? This makes sense: a story about Augustine as opposed to by him. There is enough similarity in theme to make me think that this is the one. Thank you!