Warhorn Blog Posts

Excerpt: But let us keep in mind the point of this article. President J. Oliver Buswell Jr. had founded the Department of Anthropology at Wheaton way back in 1937 when Anthropology was the "principal science concerned with race," and this Wheaton College Statement on Race Relations produced by Wheaton's Department of Sociology and Anthropology was the fruit of President Buswell's opposition to rac...

Excerpt: President Phil Ryken along with his Trustees and employees have judged President Buswell uncharitably, and this is sin. If any of us were to put ourselves in President Buswell's shoes, we would easily see ourselves doing as he did. If President Ryken and his Trustees were to put themselves in President Buswell's shoes, they would easily see themselves doing as he did. With them, we would...

Excerpt: The final two decades of Joe Sobran's life, Fran Griffin did us kindly by serving as Joe's publisher. Before then, for many years Joe had been published by National Review, but Buckley began pressuring Joe to shut up about Israel. * * * Support Warhorn here . Music is Rise Up, O Lord, a recording of Psalm 10 by My Soul Among Lions .

Excerpt: T his picture is dispositive evidence that President Phil Ryken and his Trustees’ denunciation of President Buswell is a lie. * * * Support Warhorn here . Music is Rise Up, O Lord, a recording of Psalm 10 by My Soul Among Lions .

Excerpt: If in vitro embryos are now protected under the rule of law, in utero embryos are also protected. * * * Support Warhorn here . Music is Rise Up, O Lord, a recording of Psalm 10 by My Soul Among Lions .

Excerpt: Now is the time to be wise as serpents. Many of the men who, in your hour of need, will present themselves to you as so-called "conservatives" in the PCA, yet they have managed to continue within the post-Revoice PCA without making any fuss noticeable enough to get the powers-that-be angry at them. How does that work? Hasn't your congregation had enough of so-called "conservatives" who hi...

Excerpt: Mom, you especially have been an example to me. I know I kid you frequently about your frugality; but even more frequently, I see how you are able to help us all when we have needs, because of your own selflessness. Plus, there is no mistaking who Mary Lee’s mother is. When I interview candidates for our church and talk with other pastors... * * * Support Warhorn here . Music is Rise Up,...

Excerpt: Finally (and maybe the very worst thing about the Report as a report), is that G.R.A.C.E. in their Report neither recommends not brings any accountability to Tenth's pastors and elders who sinned so flagrantly against their flock. Really, it would have been better if the Report had not been written than to write it using nostrums like the need for better communication and "transparency."...

Excerpt: It's been seven weeks since G.R.A.C.E. released their Report documenting the betrayal of the souls of Tenth Presbyterian Church by their pastors and elders. This betrayal is most visible in the G.R.A.C.E. Report , starting with the facts they record concerning Sr. Minister Phil Ryken leading his elders to cover up the homoerotic assaults against young men committed by Tenth's choir direct...

Excerpt: Below is the transcript of the statement the Session of Tenth Presbyterian Church wrote and posted on Vimeo, explaining why they cancelled the congregational meeting they'd called for this past Sunday, January 7, 2024. In this article, I make some comments hoping they will be helpful to those involved in the mess, helping them to see why the session must resign and presbytery must send in...

Excerpt: The Session of Tenth Presbyterian Church (Presbyterian Church in America) has betrayed their trust to guard their sheep. For them to present themselves now as "lovers" of their sheep and the adults in the room who can be trusted—making this claim in the wake of (only) their most recent scandal of Goligher's abandonment of his call—is ludicrous and should immediately be shut down by both t...

Excerpt: Christian organizations and church officers often take down statements they have, at first, made publicly. Thus during conflict, they control information. For the permanent record then, this is the transcript of the statement the Session of Tenth Presbyterian Church just posted on Vimeo . Here their spokesman explains why he and his fellow elders cancelled the congregational meeting they...

Excerpt: Since my shepherd keeps watch over my soul as a man who will give account to the Chief Shepherd, I recommit myself to submit to him, seeking his growth and wellbeing, and thereby our flock's growth and wellbeing. To that end, I make the following resolutions: * * * Support Warhorn here . Music is Rise Up, O Lord, a recording of Psalm 10 by My Soul Among Lions .

Excerpt: Since I am called by God to feed and protect His sheep, knowing well my weaknesses, fears, and temptations, I recommit myself to zeal in my pastoral duties. To that end, I make the following resolutions: * * * Support Warhorn here . Music is Rise Up, O Lord, a recording of Psalm 10 by My Soul Among Lions .

Merry Christmas!

(A modern Christmas story by Joe Bayly, printed in The Gospel Blimp (and other parables .)

Excerpt: What started it all was a group of students who called themselves "the collective of BIPOC [Black, Indigenous, and People of Color] students and alumni of Wheaton College" demanding the "immediate removal of President James Oliver Buswell’s name from the college’s library."  As it turned out, full submission to their demand of "immediate removal" took Wheaton's trustees and administration...

Excerpt: GRACE is a crisis management company frequently hired by Christian churches who have attained public notoriety for various forms of abuse of women and men, girls and boys. GRACE is brought in to manage the crisis by investigating the bad actors, then make recommendations for cleaning up the church's public image. GRACE sells itself as an impartial business that can be trusted to root out...

Excerpt: What is critically important to recognize at this late date is this: the abuse of authority committed by shepherds who refuse to defend such victims from their predators is more evil than the terrible abuse of the predators themselves. Why? * * * Support Warhorn here . Music is Rise Up, O Lord, a recording of Psalm 10 by My Soul Among Lions .

Excerpt: Seventeen years before President Buswell was hired, Wheaton College had suffered a scandal that reached national proportions. This scandal started with President Charles Blanchard accepting a Black female applicant for mid-year matriculation, Winter/Spring Semester of 1909. This young woman's name was Nellie Bryant, and her application to Wheaton was the result of her being expelled from...

Excerpt: Kevin DeYoung recently wrote a piece critical of Doug Wilson and the “mood” in Moscow, Idaho, center of Doug’s burgeoning movement. Kevin’s piece has fallen flat, leading (if Twitter responses constitute a representative sample) to more criticism of Kevin than Doug. I suspect Kevin, essentially an irenicist and a generally reasonable guy, can’t comprehend why his criticisms of Doug and th...

Excerpt: There are a host of circumstances that may complicate the presbytery's debate and vote on the termination of a pastor's call: Does the congregation want the pastor's call terminated or not? Does the session want the pastor's call terminated or not? Does the pastor want his call terminated or not? Is there sin or violation of proper process on the part of any or all three of the parties—th...

Excerpt: Irony is mentioned here in connection with the explosion of our usage of "authentic" because an ironic age is an age lacking in directness, truthfulness, and courage. It winks rather than smiling. It crosses its fingers behind its back. If you catch a man lying and point it out, he responds that he was being ironic. The ironic man extends by just a few seconds the moment when he has to co...

Excerpt: The Task Force did not review any Wheaton-related activity after the year 2,000. President Ryken and the Board directed the Task Force to review the years 1860 through 2000, but I consider the year 2000 an arbitrary cutoff date. There is no legitimate reason to exempt President Ryken or the Trustees from examination and criticism. President Ryken's actions in 2015-2016 in the Dr. Hawkins...

Excerpt: The good scholar anticipates lines of argument contrary to his thesis, raising them himself, then responding to them in a way that defends his own conclusions. The good scholar improves his opponent’s arguments for him, demonstrating his commitment to the pursuit of truth. This is “steel-manning,” the opposite of “straw-manning.” No one familiar with the Report is surprised that the anti-...