Words of Life

Steven Nemes

A philosophy and theology podcast, with Dr. Steven Nemes.

Episodes

  1. Deconstruction and Faith

    11/22/2021

    Deconstruction and Faith

    There has recently been a wave of “ex-vangelicals” who are publicly “deconstructing” their former faith and coming to new understandings of things. They are learning in real time that firm conviction does not always signal a perception of the truth. But I think the notion of “deconstruction” and its relation to faith has been very badly misunderstood, and in many places the discussion is dissatisfying. In this video, I am going to discuss the relation between deconstruction and faith. The “ex-vangelicals” and those riding the wave of “faith-deconstruction” misunderstand things in at least two ways. On the one hand, the situation is actually far worse than they take it to be. Not only is their former faith deconstructible, but in principle everything they believe is, too. On the other hand, this fact is not incompatible with Christian faith. Christian faith can be understood as a way in which living beings such as ourselves assert themselves and mold the world to a certain shape.    Dr. Steven Nemes received his PhD in Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary. His dissertation, titled “A constructive-theological phenomenology of Scripture,” was passed with distinction by Profs. Oliver Crisp, Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen, and Fr. John Behr. He has published a number of articles on a diversity of subjects in peer reviewed academic journals such as Journal of Analytic Theology, Journal for Continental Philosophy of Religion, Heythrop Journal, and Neue Zeitschrift für Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie.    http://stevennemes.com  http://christisforeveryone.com

    51 min
  2. Was Irenaeus a Roman Catholic?

    11/19/2021

    Was Irenaeus a Roman Catholic?

    Irenaeus is one very important figure from the early Church to which Roman Catholic theologians and apologists often appeal. They try to show that ideas such as apostolic succession, ecclesial infallibility, and even Roman primacy were known and wholeheartedly affirmed even as early as the second century after Christ. But does Irenaeus actually say the things that he is interpreted as saying? In this video, I provide a careful reading of Irenaeus's words in Against Heresies and put forth a Protestant response to the Roman Catholic theological and apologetic use of his ideas. I will try to show that, for Irenaeus, the true apostolic succession is doctrinal, there is no promise of infallible divine guidance applying to the teaching office of the Church, and the church of Rome has no special authority in theology simply as such. I will terminate with a consideration of the question: What would Irenaeus say about the Reformation?   “Ad hanc enim ecclesiam propter potiorem principalitatem necesse est omnem convenire ecclesiam, hoc est, eos qui sunt undique fideles, in qua semper ab his, qui sunt undique, conservata est ea quae est ab apostolis traditio.” (AH 3.3.2)   Dr. Steven Nemes received his PhD in Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary. His dissertation, titled “A constructive-theological phenomenology of Scripture,” was passed with distinction by Profs. Oliver Crisp, Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen, and Fr. John Behr. He has published a number of articles on a diversity of subjects in peer reviewed academic journals such as Journal of Analytic Theology, Journal for Continental Philosophy of Religion, Heythrop Journal, and Neue Zeitschrift für Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie.    http://stevennemes.com  http://christisforeveryone.com

    1 hr

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A philosophy and theology podcast, with Dr. Steven Nemes.