Turretin’s Citation of Bellarmine on Scripture, Corrected If you find yourself seeking to locate the citation of Bellarmine given by Turretin’s editors regarding the distinction of Scripture’s authority “as to itself” (quoad se) and “as to us” (quoad nos), you may encounter some difficulty. Both the publication date and chapter title are incorrect.
The original citation given in Institutes vol. 1, p86, is:
Bellarmine (“De conciliis Auctoritate,” 2.12 in Opera [1857], 2:61)
Preparation for Holy Communion A prayer to be used every day in the week before you receive the Holy Communion
O BLESSED Lord Jesus Christ, Who dost bid even me, unworthy, to come unto Thee in the Blessed Sacrament of Thy Body and Blood, prepare my soul and my body, I pray Thee, to receive Thee. Give me true sorrow for my past sins, faith in Thee Who didst die upon the Cross to save me, firm purpose to keep from all that displeases Thee, and charity to forgive all who may have vexed me.
Socrates in Acts 5 The Apology of Plato1 is the defence given by Socrates at the trial which condemned him on the dual charges of disbelieving in the gods of the city, and corrupting the youth. The defence is found in three sections, the first being his defence proper, the second his proposal for what his punishment should be, and the third his speech after having received condemnation.
In his first speech, Socrates makes one apparently sarcastic appeal which would seem to undermine his case, making it as though he was not truly taking proceedings seriously.
Early Church on Friday Fasting It’s common to view Friday fasting, especially from meat, but also a 3pm fast, as Romanist. However, I’m not convinced it’s entirely so simple. Fasting from meat on Fridays has been fairly constant throughout Church history (not to validate it), and is common in both East and West including the Lutheran and Anglican traditions.1
John Wesley would not ordain a man to the Methodist ministry if he didn’t fast till 3pm Wednesdays (Christ’s betrayal) and Fridays (His Passion).
Notes on Illustration in Preaching Following are notes from a seminar on the use of illustration in preaching.
Illustration is the art of illumating a thought by means of allusion to something already familiar to the hearer. Illustration in preaching is not essential – that is, preaching can be preaching without any explicit illustrations – but the lack of it will almost certainly impoverish any spoken message. Some contexts where illustrations may be less needed are discussed towards the end of this session.