A Crosser’s Guide to Apology IV (Part Four of Six)

Co-missioners, Today Paul Jaster walks us through a critical section of the Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Article IV. Here Philip Melanchthon discusses the relationship between faith and works, between trusting the Gospel and keeping the Law. This matter is as much in contention among Christians in 2023 as it was in 1530. That’s all the reason for …

Crossings 2023 Film Series: Carol Braun

Hear why Carol Braun makes time to attend the Crossings conferences each year (in fact, it is the ONLY conference she attends each year!) Carol also explains why Crossings is relevant to her and what the Crossings community offers to others. You can find these videos, links to our text studies, our Thursday Theology blog posts and more …

A Crosser’s Guide to Apology IV (Part Three of Six)

Co-missioners, We’re devoting this current stretch of weeks to guided tour by Paul Jaster of the Fourth Article of The Apology of the Augsburg Confession. When last Thursday’s installment ended, Paul was walking us through Philip Melanchthon’s take on the essential disagreement between Lutheran confessors and the papal theologians who opposed them. Today’s third installment opens with a …

A Crosser’s Guide to Apology IV (Part Two of Six)

Co-missioners, Last week Paul Jaster reviewed the events that gave rise to The Apology of the Augsburg Confession, touched briefly on its English translations, and discussed a key word in today’s standard translation that calls for the reader’s close attention. Today he begins his discussion of the Apology’s critical Fourth Article. You’ll want to keep your Book of …

A Crosser’s Guide to Apology IV (Part One of Six)

Co-missioners, Students of all ages are heading back to school this week in many parts of the U.S. It’s an apt time for Thursday Theology readers to do the same. With this in mind, we send you the first installment of a six-week-long introduction to one of the fundamental documents that Crossings-style theology takes its clues from. It …

A Refreshing Dose of Public Honesty

Co-missioners, Our editor ran across another article this week that he wants to tell you about. We also pass along that our next post will reach you on August 24th. Those responsible for getting them to you will be busy next week with our annual board meeting. Peace and Joy, The Crossings Community __________________________________________________________________   A Refreshing Dose …

A Bit of Gospel, A Bit of Law, A Bit of Astonishment. An Announcement Too

Co-missioners, We pass along four brief items from our editor. Peace and Joy, The Crossings Community __________________________________________________________________   A Bit of Gospel, A Bit of Law, A Bit of Astonishment. An Announcement Too by Jerome Burce Gospel I start this week with a passage from Robert Farrar Capon’s The Foolishness of Preaching: Proclaiming the Gospel against the Wisdom …

Lowdown Love: A Sermon on Matthew 15:10-28

Co-missioners, We’re four weeks shy of a Sunday that will rub our faces in Matthew’s tough account of Jesus’ back-and-forth with the Canaanite woman. Today we send you an example—in advance for once—of how this text can be tapped so that it gushes with Gospel for 2023. Feel free to borrow ideas, or even better, to improve on …

Johann Agricola’s Catechism for Girls

Co-missioners, Last week Carol Braun wrestled with questions about teaching children to pray. This week Paul Jaster draws from a little-known artifact of early Reformation history to imagine how today’s parents might anchor their children in some other essentials of the faith they get to use and enjoy. Peace and Joy, The Crossings Community __________________________________________________________________   Johann Agricola’s …

Teach Us to Pray

Co-missioners, Carol Braun reflects again this week on the challenges of faithful parenting. As she wrestles with the question of how to encourage habits of prayer in younger children, she’ll nudge us all toward a more reckless and joyful confidence in the praying we do. Carol and her family live in the Hudson Valley. You’ll likely have heard …