Christ the Center

K. Scott Oliphint explores the issue of divine and human knowledge as it relates to the Clark/Van Til controversy. Dr. Oliphint is Professor of Systematic Theology and Apologetics at Westminster Theological Seminary and is the author of several books on apologetics including Reasons for Faith and The Battle Belongs to the Lord . Participants: Camden Bucey , Jared Oliphint , K. Scott Oliphint

Mark Garcia is pastor at Immanuel Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Coraopolis, PA. He is the author of Life in Christ: Union with Christ and Twofold Grace in Calvin’s Theology . In this episode, Garcia speaks about the reformed conception of union with Christ and how a reformed soteriology is distinguished from the salient features of the New Perspective on Paul and the Federal Vision. Issues...

Winston Smith joins the panel to discuss Christian marriage and his book Marriage Matters: Extraordinary Change through Ordinary Moments . Smith is a counselor and faculty member at CCEF , a ministry focused on biblical counseling. Participants: Camden Bucey , Jared Oliphint , Winston Smith

Carl Trueman comes on to discuss his recent book, Histories and Fallacies: Problems Faced in the Writing of History , and other issues relating to historiography and a philosophy of history. Participants: Camden Bucey , Carl Trueman , Jared Oliphint , Jonathan Brack

John Starke of The Gospel Coalition (TGC) visits the program to talk about their website, the TGC Reviews, the TGC conference, and how they see themselves in relation to the church at large. Participants: Camden Bucey , Jared Oliphint , John Starke

Ron Gleason discusses his new intellectual biography of Herman Bavinck. The book, titled Herman Bavinck: Pastor, Churchman, Statesman, and Theologian , is published by Presbyterian and Reformed Publishers. Links Grace Presbyterian Church, Yorba Linda, CA Ron Gleason’s Blog Participants: Camden Bucey , Jeff Waddington , Jim Cassidy , Ron Gleason

R. Scott Clark, Professor of Church History and Historical Theology at Westminster Seminary California , discusses his essay in Always Reformed , the recent festschrift for Dr. Robert Godfrey. The collection is edited by R. Scott Clark and Joel E. Kim and contains contributions from several noted reformed theologians. Dr. Clark’s essay, “Magic and Noise: Reformed Christianity in Sister...

Darryl G. Hart visits with the panel of Christ the Center once again. On this episode Dr. Hart speaks about his latest essay found in Always Reformed , a festschrift written in honor of Dr. Robert Godfrey. Links Old Life Theological Society J. Gresham Machen resources at Old Life Participants: Camden Bucey , Darryl G. Hart , Jared Oliphint , Jim Cassidy

Today we finish our third full year of Christ the Center episodes. And to date we’ve been able to bring you a new episode every Friday since we began three years ago. It has become our tradition to close each year with a brief selection of highlights from the year’s episodes. And so today we’re bringing you clips from eight different episodes that we think provide a decent repres...

Anthony Bradley discusses his book, Liberating Black Theology: The Bible and the Black Experience in America , which is a revised form of his dissertation he did while a PhD student at WTS. Dr. Bradley discusses Jeremiah Wright, James Cone, and concepts such as oppression and victimology that are key to understanding the black theology movement. We talk with Dr. Bradley about a Reformed understand...

Jeff Waddington speaks about Jonathan Edwards’ theological anthropology. He distinguishes Edwards’ approach from that of Thomas Aquinas and explains its significance for apologetics. Participants: Camden Bucey , Jeff Waddington

Christ the Center explores the incomprehensible and doxological subject of Trinitarian personality. Dr. Tipton previously discussed the subject on Christ the Center episode #49 . Participants: Camden Bucey , Carlton Wynne , Jared Oliphint , Jeff Waddington

In a call to our modern society to reexamine the fundamental presuppositions of the dominant worldview, the panel discusses the philosophy of science. post photo from NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center Links The Bavinck Institute Participants: Camden Bucey , Carlton Wynne , Jared Oliphint , Jeff Waddington

Jeff Waddington, Nick Batzig, and Camden Bucey engage in an open conversation about current issues in the life and understanding of the church. The discussion addresses multi-site churches, the culture of celebrity, social networking, and the democratization of information. post photo by Paul Watson Participants: Camden Bucey , Jeff Waddington , Nick Batzig

Christ the Center is pleased to welcome Kim Riddlebarger to the program to discuss amillennialism. Dr. Riddlebarger is senior pastor of Christ Reformed Church in Anaheim, California ( www.christreformed.org ), visiting professor of systematic theology at Westminster Seminary California, and co-host of The White Horse Inn . In 2003 Dr. Riddlebarger’s book  A Case for Amillennialism: Understan...

Several contributors to  Philosophy for Theologians convene to discuss the guidelines for formulating a Christian epistemology. As a starting point, the panel looks at the seminal work by Edmund Gettier Is Justified True Belief Knowledge? In 1963 Gettier published a 3-page paper that turned the philosophical world on its head by supplying counterexamples that challenged the common definition of kn...

Bill Dennison discusses the possibility of a personal acquaintance between J. Gresham Machen and Rudolf Bultmann. Both men are key figures in opposing wings of Protestantism. Machen being the figurehead of conservative Presbyterianism in the early 20th c. as he founded Westminster Theological Seminary and led the movement to begin the Orthodox Presbyterian Church . Rudolf Bultmann, on the other ha...

Dr. Carl Trueman, Vice President for Academic Affairs at Westminster Theological Seminary, and Dr. Peter A. Lillback, President of Westminster, discuss the proper relationship of Christianity to the political sphere. Dr. Trueman is the author of Republocrat , a new book that challenges the reigning partisan brand of politics in the U.S. Dr. Lillback is the other of Wall of Misconception , a book a...

John V. Fesko provides an historical, biblical-theological, and systematic view of baptism in his new book  Word, Water and Spirit . Dr. Fesko is the academic dean and associate professor of systematic theology at Westminster Seminary California. He is also the author of The Rule of Love and Justification: Understanding the Classic Reformed Doctrine . Rev. Fesko has appeared on two prior episodes...

Christ the Center discusses the developments in Roman Catholic theology that came with Vatican II. In this episode, we welcome an able panel including Nathan Shannon, who wrote a ThM thesis on Karl Rahner, Michael Matossian, PhD candidate at Marquette University, and Danny Olinger, who studied at Duquesne University. Danny has written a helpful  primer on Vatican II which appears in the lastest ed...

Christ the Center speaks with Dennis Prutow, Professor of Homiletics and Pastoral Theology at Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary , to speak about his book So Pastor, What’s Your Point? Participants: Camden Bucey , Nick Batzig

Jim Cassidy and Camden Bucey open the subject of Van Til’s criticisms of Karl Barth. Van Til was one of Barth’s earliest English-writing critics, and his criticisms are found in his books  The New Modernism and  Christianity and Barthianism . Van Til’s take on Barth has come under fire, but at least one noted Barthian, Bruce McCormack , has vindicated Van Til’s understandin...

Dr. Barry Horner joins the program to discuss John Bunyan’s classic The Pilgrim’s Progress . Horner has thought deeply on the subject and has written a book of his own titled The Pilgrim’s Progress: Themes and Issues . His Doctor of Ministry degree from Westminster Seminary in California focused on the biblical/theological content of The Pilgrim’s Progress as well as its va...

The idea of natural theology has been much debated. One’s understanding regarding the project of natural theology will inevitably impact substantially one’s apologetic methodology and epistemology. K. Scott Oliphint and James Dolezal visit the Reformed Forum studio to discuss natural theology. Michael Sudduth’s book The Reformed Objection to Natural Theology (Burlington: Ashgate,...

Fred Zaspel is the author of the soon to be released volume on the theology of B.B. Warfield, published by Crossway titled The Theology of B.B. Warfield: A Systematic Summary . He has also authored a recent timely article in Themelios on Warfield’s take on evolution. We discuss the background of his interest in Warfield, the great Princeton theologian’s take on evolution, and what we c...