Author Archives: Peter Van Kleeck Jr. Ph.D.

From what source does the divine authority of the Scriptures become known to us? (Part 2)

Beginning again with Turretin, “But although we do not deny that the testimony of the church has its own weight (as will afterwards be seen), yet we maintain that primarily and principally the Bible is believed by us to be divine on account of itself.” Francis Turretin, Institutes of Elenctic Theology, vol. 1 Second Topic,Continue reading “From what source does the divine authority of the Scriptures become known to us? (Part 2)”

Weekly Question – What is the difference between Confessional, Traditional, Ecclesiastical, and Standard Sacred Text?

If you’ve been around the “version debate” long enough and if you have read at least some of the relevant literature or listened to relevant podcasts you most likely have heard of terms like “Confessional Text position,” or “Traditional Text position,” or the “Ecclesiastical Text.” In today’s post I wanted to give a brief summary/definitionContinue reading “Weekly Question – What is the difference between Confessional, Traditional, Ecclesiastical, and Standard Sacred Text?”

The Prophet Jeremiah and Transmission

Today we return to our short series on Bibliology and the prophet Jeremiah. Taking a look again at chapter 36 we find at least four relevant themes: 1.) inspiration, 2.) transmission, 3.) textual criticism, and 4.) the status of the original. Today we will look at the theme of transmission. “Then Jeremiah called Baruch theContinue reading “The Prophet Jeremiah and Transmission”

The Foundation of Faith

“fundamentum fidei: foundation of faith i.e., Christ, on whom the faith and salvation of humanity rests. Richard Muller, Dictionary of Latin and Greek Theological Terms: Drawn Principally From Protestant Scholasticism, fundamentum fidei. The foundation of faith can be divided into three parts: “(1) the fundamentum substantiale, or substantial foundation, in Christ, the substance and objectContinue reading “The Foundation of Faith”

From What Source Does the Divine Authority of the Scriptures Become Known to Us? (Part 1)

We are now into the sixth question of Francis Turretin’s treatment of Bibliology. In a more everyday kind of way he asks, what source enables the Christian to know the divine authority of Scripture? The question may also be posed as, what source enables the Christian to know the divine authority of one book ofContinue reading “From What Source Does the Divine Authority of the Scriptures Become Known to Us? (Part 1)”

Do Real Contradictions Occur in Scripture? We deny. (Part 3)

In Part 1 of this series we discussed the nature and scope of the question, “Do real contradictions occur in Scripture.” In Part 2 we continued the discussion by examining Turretin’s argument in answering the above question. In this third and final part we now look at specific purported contradictions or errors which Turretin dealtContinue reading “Do Real Contradictions Occur in Scripture? We deny. (Part 3)”

Weekly Question – What is a Category Error/Mistake?

The term “category error” or “category mistake” is a philosophical term that was popularized by Gilbert Ryle in his rhetorical assault on Cartesian Dualism. Ryle’s famous example is that of a man who has never seen the game of cricket. After it is explained to him that certain teammates have the position of bowler, batter,Continue reading “Weekly Question – What is a Category Error/Mistake?”