Nathan R. Hale

A personal blog

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  • A Study Bible by the Church

    J. Mark Bertrand has a typically comprehensive review of a fantastic new Bible design by the folks over at EvangelicalBible.com–one the best places to get high-quality editions of Holy Scripture. Their new Schuyler ESV Bible is clearly designed with care and precision, but it’s not just the goatskin cover and Jongbloed-printed text block that stand out with this edition.

    This volume includes the great ecumenical creeds and confessions of Protestant Christianity bound under the same same cover as the Biblical text. You’ll find:

    • Apostles Creed
    • Nicene Creed
    • Chalcedonian Creed
    • Athanasian Creed
    • Augsburg  Confession
    • Articles of Religion
    • Westminster Standards
    • London Baptist Confession

    What this amounts to a unique kind of study Bible I don’t think can be found anywhere else. I thought Bertrand’s take was insightful:

    Including these documents accomplishes a similar goal to that of a study Bible, with one significant difference: the views summarized are not those of an individual, or even a committee of scholars, but of a confessing church. They represent a collective endorsement and exposition of the faith contained in Scripture. While there is a great deal of consensus among the confessions, there are differences, too — and I think that’s helpful, as well, to those of us who want to have an informed view of what our fellow believers actually confess (as opposed to what they’re accused of believing, if you see what I mean).

    I absolutely love this idea. This also got me thinking about what a uniquely Anglican study Bible might look like–and I think it’d be similar, in that it would include the great creeds and the 39 Articles of Religion. I’d also like to see excerpts from the Church Fathers, the Book of Common Prayer, and the English Reformers.

    It seems that if you’re looking for the kind of Bible that has non-intrusive study helps that have endured the test of time, you could do a lot worse than the Schuyler ESV.

  • Illusions of Influence

    I think the Internet can give us a tremendous advantage when it comes to influencing people. We can reach so many with our ideas, thoughts, and motivations that we would have otherwise had no chance of approaching. And these dreams can spread like a virus, sometimes becoming reality. I don’t want to minimize the reality or importance of this power.

    On the other hand…

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  • Identity Crisis

    I am twenty-eight years old, riddled with angst about the person I should be but I’m not, dreams dreamt and not acted on, talents wasted along with time, wondering if the next step will ever seem to take me closer a life embedded in almost subconscious assumptions. Values compromised, stubbornness still in a tenacious grip, and a rather disappointing self-pity often seem to surface in my thoughts.

    Quarter life crisis is what they call it. I don’t want to sound self-absorbed, arrogant, or presumptuous…but I realize that’s what I often am.

    The problem with my quest for a satisfying identity is that I consistently seek to find it in what I do for living, how I spend my recreational time, what I own and what other people think. Seems like my identity should be driving and molding all of those things, not the other way around.
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  • Salvation by Faith and Works

    The Apostles Paul and James are often set against each other when it comes to roles of faith and works in salvation. It’s often asserted that Paul affirms a “faith alone” approach (Titus 3:5-6), sola fide, while James plainly says one cannot be justified by faith alone (James 2:24). Although there is certainly a noticeable difference in emphasis between the two Apostles, each author actually speaks of both faith and works as playing a role in our salvation (of course, we have to read these passages in context and not just the proof texts to find this).
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  • The ESV Single Column Legacy

    Many of you know that I’ve been on the quest for the perfect reading Bible. What I mean by “reading Bible” is a Bible I can sit down for long periods of time with, sans distractions, and simply soak up the text the way I would a good novel. Study Bibles and ultra compact editions are automatically out (although they have their purpose). Unfortunately editions suited for this kind of reading are relatively rare. So far my favorite candidates have been the ESV Personal Size Reference Bible, the KJV Clarion, and the NRSV Standard Bible. All are solid reading editions, but none were quite what I was looking for. In a perfect world, I’d have just the text of the Bible, in the English Standard Version, attractively presented with absolutely nothing else (no verses, chapters, headings, etc.).

    The ESV Single Column Legacy from Crossway may be as close as I ever get to my ideal, and thanks to the generosity of my family, I was able to obtain one for my birthday!

    The ESV Single Column Legacy truly is a Bible designed from the ground up for reading, and reading only. No cumbersome cross references, introductions, double columns, etc. This is simply the text of Holy Scripture, presented cleanly and with few distractions.

    The text is set up in a single column, like, you know, every other book that’s meant to be read. Double columns are cool and all because you can pack more text on a page, but they’re just not as comfortable for lengthy reading sessions. the 9pt font is super comfortable to read. Additionally, the layout is proportioned according the Renaissance “perfect page” ideal, so there’s plenty of space for your eye to actually rest on the text. The paper is the most opaque Bible paper I’ve seen, and the “line matching” feature that ensures the print aligns on both sides of the page really works to reduce “ghosting” (show-through).

    There’s the standard ESV Concordance in the back, and some maps. The top grain leather edition includes two ribbon markers (thank you, Crossway!), classic-looking raised bands on the spine, and it smells really nice. All editions have sewn binding.

    The ESV Single Column Legacy Bible is hands-down the most readable ESV edition on the market. At $30 for the TruTone edition, you can get this beautiful Bible (guaranteed for life by Crossway) and you may never need to buy another reading Bible again.

    Buy it on Amazon

    More on this edition from the Bible Design Blog:

  • Religion with Room To Grow

    One of the best things about classical Anglican Christianity is that it is a tradition where one feels they have room to grow.

    I can be more or less Calvinistic, adopt a higher or lower view of the Sacrament, change my stance on icons, discover catholicity, embrace my Protestantism, and refuse to conclusively define “Real Presence.”

    I don’t feel I have to stay exactly the same as my understanding of Scripture, tradition, and Church grows and deepens. Yet there are clear boundaries in our formularies (The Book of Common Prayer, the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion, the Ordinal) that guide me on this path and keep me from falling of edges of extremes.

    This is tremendously freeing and comforting.

  • Enough by Patrick Rhone

    I’ve followed Patrick Rhone‘s work for years now because he just keeps coming out with awesome. Also, he’s just a great human being.

    Patrick is one of only a few writers out there speaking intelligently and thoughtfully on how real people interact with technology. Equal parts philosophical musing and practical advice, Rhone’s most recent book, Enough, explores what it means to find that balance between too little and too much in life. You’ll notice this work doesn’t just address social media and gadgets; Patrick brings unique insight on existing mindfully into multiple spheres of life. Enough is as useful and applicable as it is a pleasure to read.

    Enough prompted me to pause and ponder the implications of what I have and what I need in new and fresh ways. I know it will do the same for you, too.

    Buy the book and find out more here.

  • Lancelot Andrews Press BCP

    Since we began worshiping with an Anglican church, I’ve been extremely interested in the history and various incarnations of the Anglican liturgical standard, the Book of Common Prayer. The definitive edition is the 1662 BCP, which also serves as the doctrinal standard for most orthodox Anglicans.

    Based on some recommendations by some fellow Anglican friends, I picked up the Lancelot Andrews Press Book of Common Prayer for a mere $15 shipped.

    This edition of the Book of Common Prayer is not authorized by any recognized Anglican body that I am aware of, but is an effort by the publisher to create a version of the 1662 BCP that is conformable to Orthodox theology. The target audience for an edition like this would be Orthodox parishes looking to worship with a Western liturgy, or Anglican congregations that find themselves leaning a little toward the East.

    First, let’s talk about the physical book itself. For a $15-$30 volume, I think you get your money’s worth. The soft cover is a nice, red “leatherlike” substance with gold accents. About the size of most standard thinline Bibles, the Lancelot Andrews Press BCP text block is trimmed in red. It’s a good looking book, and my washed-out cell-phone photos below don’t do it justice. On the inside, the paper is sufficiently opaque and the type is clear and easy to read. Rubrics are in red, and–although they border on being too light–are not difficult to parse.

    (EDIT: The book is now offered in hardback only)

    I’ve only really spent time examining the liturgy for morning and evening prayer, so I can’t comment on all the theological tweaks and liturgical alterations, but I can say this: except for the Marian hymns and prayers that are added, Evening and Morning Prayer are virtually identical to the classical 1662 forms. Readers will also find that the Nicene Creed is printed without the filioque, and the date of Easter conforms to the understanding of the Orthodox church. This edition does not include the Articles of Religion.

    This really seems like a great devotional resources for both Anglican and Orthodox Christians. The form factor makes sharing the book with someone else for prayers very easy. I also really like the simplified liturgies for family worship, and I find the Orthodox theological nuances educational, at the least, and edifying in many places.

    You can get one here.

  • A Talk From Francis Chan

    Yesterday I was present at a talk by famous author and pastor Francis Chan. His book Crazy Love changed the trajectory of my Christian life and ministry, so I was truly looking forward to hearing him speak. Here are some brief notes from the talk.

    Right off the bat:

    If you’ve come to hear from Francis Chan, and not God, you’re here for the wrong reasons. He is what we pursue.

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  • Why I Chose the ESV

    This blog post is pretty much inspired by Carson’s post on the NRSV, since he got me thinking about Bible translations, and why I’ve chosen the ESV. Although we have different preferences for our primary translation, I really appreciate the reasons he chooses the NRSV over the ESV, and in fact he’s the one that convinced me to buy an NRSV. It was my primary Bible for about six months, and I really enjoyed reading from it even though it didn’t “stick” for me. Without even really meaning to, I think I’ve kind of settled on the English Standard Verson for a while, and here’s why:

    1) It’s familiar. I’ve been using the ESV since before it was cool. In 2002, it was one of the only freely available modern translations on the Internet—which made it my default in software like e-Sword or Xiphos. Second, the ESV retains traditional phrasing that just sounds right to me like “…the valley of the shadow of death” in Psalm 23, and “deliver us from evil” in Matthew 6, for example. Most of Scripture I’ve memorized at this point (and that’s not nearly enough) is in KJV (just from hearing it a million times) or the ESV (which, conveniently, retains much of the same rhythm and structure of the KJV).

    2) Crossway is a not-for-profit publisher with a mission. This means that the license for using the ESV is extremely permissive. Like I noted above, it was one of the first modern translantions to be freely available on the internet, and Crossway still makes the digital version available free in a number of formats for smartphones, etc. I dig the open, missionary spirit, which seems quite contrary to how many other publishers approach their translations. Access to the ESV is ubiquitous and easy.

    3) The ESV Study Bible is awesome. Yeah, yeah, I know it has a bit of a Reformed bias and doesn’t really give women’s ordination or Christian Pacifism a fair shake (heck, I’ve complained about those things publically) but it does a great job of representing the classical/traditional Christian view of many issues and argues lucidly for them. Although I disagree on some points in the study articles, the vast majority of the content in the ESV Study Bible is high quality and academically very sound as far as I can tell. The exegetical notes are especially helpful when considering the historical, cultural, and theological context for a passage. Now, a great study bible doesn’t a great translation make, however it’s just one more thing that keeps bringin’ me back.

    4) There’s plenty(!) of editions to choose from. You’ve got evangelistic paperbacks, nice compacts, a beautiful online edition, and fantastic premium bindings as well. Pretty much every book Crossway puts out is solid quality—in general a step above comparable Bibles from Tyndale and Zondervan. The ESV is also going to be coming soon in a Cambridge Clarion format, which is pretty much a dream come true for me. Not very many other translations are there yet.

    5) It really is understandable and reliable. I know the ESV has its issues. There are some pretty opaque renderings, to be sure…but certainly no more than in any other major translation. And after 10 years on the market, the ESV still has a great reputation overall for both accuracy and readibility. I feel that I can trust it almost as much as the NASB in terms of its fidelity to the original languages, yet I can also be decently confident that it will sound okay (like the NKJV) when I read it aloud at home or in church.

    6) The ESV is standard in circles I run with. This one is pretty big for me, actually. My Anglican church preaches and teaches from the ESV. The friends I interact with on a daily basis mostly use the ESV as well. It’s nice to immediately be working with the same translation, whether that be at church or at work, or hanging out online. When I’m talking over a passage, I don’t have to bring up a different version on my phone or computer, although it’s nice to be able to do that pretty easily when I need to!

    7) There’s a growing eccumenical spirit surounding the ESV. The translation certainly didn’t start out as an eccumenical effort, and it clearly is still associated strongly with the Neo-Reformed internet rockstars. Yet, the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod has officially adopted the ESV, and I’m seeing many Evangelical Anglicans embracing it as well. The fact is that thanks to the excellent marketing efforts by Crossway, the ESV is pervasive—I think that it can’t help but move beyond Piper, Discoll, and Co.

    I realized a long time ago that there’s no perfect translation. They’re mostly all pretty good, and each has strengths and weaknesses. It’s really easy for a guy like me to sink way to much time into finding “the one” translation, and reading up on the nuances of the TNIV vs. the NLT vs. the NET vs. whatever the hot new translation is. The fact is, I now have on my hands a translation that is reliable, sounds decent, and has endured at least a decade. Plus it’s what my church uses and I’m now very familiar with it. Throw in my dream Bible, and it’s starting to make sense why I’m gravitating that direction.