Column: As It Is Written . . .
The Christian Sh'ma
by Patrick Henry Reardon
When the Apostle Paul addresses practical moral questions in his epistles, it is usually not difficult to detect the doctrinal—even dogmatic—basis on which his answer rests. Sometimes, indeed, he explicitly discloses that basis.An illustrating example comes to mind: Dealing with the moral dilemma of inadvertently eating meats from a pagan sacrifice, Paul reminds the Corinthians that pagan gods are not, after all, really gods. Consequently, he says, we need not give them much concern; we don't recognize them anyway.
Then, as though tossing out a parenthetical detail, Paul delivers one of the most solemn pronouncements in all of Scripture: "for us [there is] one God, the Father, from whom [are] all things, and we for him, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom [are] all things, and we through him" (1 Cor. 8:6).
THIS ARTICLE ONLY AVAILABLE TO SUBSCRIBERS.
FOR QUICK ACCESS:
Patrick Henry Reardon is pastor emeritus of All Saints Antiochian Orthodox Church in Chicago, Illinois, and the author of numerous books, including, most recently, Out of Step with God: Orthodox Christian Reflections on the Book of Numbers (Ancient Faith Publishing, 2019).
Get six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for only $39.95. That's only $3.34 per month!
Get a one-year full-access subscription to the Touchstone online archives for only $19.95. That's only $1.66 per month!
bulk subscriptions
Order Touchstone subscriptions in bulk and save $10 per sub! Each subscription includes 6 issues of Touchstone plus full online access to touchstonemag.com—including archives, videos, and pdf downloads of recent issues for only $29.95 each! Great for churches or study groups.
Transactions will be processed on a secure server.
more from the online archives
32.4—July/August 2019
Today's Culture Wars Are Both Ancient & Modern by Allan C. Carlson
32.2—March/April 2019
Misguided Mercy & Dante's Infernal Purgation by Joshua Hren
calling all readers
Please Donate
"There are magazines worth reading but few worth saving . . . Touchstone is just such a magazine."
—Alice von Hildebrand
"Here we do not concede one square millimeter of territory to falsehood, folly, contemporary sentimentality, or fashion. We speak the truth, and let God be our judge. . . . Touchstone is the one committedly Christian conservative journal."
—Anthony Esolen, Touchstone senior editor
