A Note to My Readers

As you may have noticed last week I published a rather focused article in a very focused category (Marriage and Divorce, and Theology, respectively). That post, and the posts that are planned to follow every Friday, have been in the works for quite some time. Actually, just the idea. The articles themselves are written in an afternoon, but the idea of publishing my papers that relate to theology, church history, and the Bible has been something that I have wanted to do for quite some time, but I struggled with how to execute the idea. Last week I just ran with the idea, the smallest portion of it, and clicked “publish.”

Since then I have gained a few new subscribers (welcome!), and I assume this is because of their interest in the academic focus I have decided to take this website. As a result of the new readership, I have started another website for the random things that have found their way here for the past several years (pictures of coffee, cigars, random thoughts, etc). Now that this site has a clear purpose (well written and though provoking articles meant to ignite a passion for studying God’s Word, in one way or another), I feel that it will be best to not post the random pictures here, but on the site that I have created specifically for that reason.

Meet: The Finer Grinds. There you will find what I used to publish here. Consider this site to be the unfocused, unfiltered Aaron. So, if you enjoy drinking coffee with me, or at least seeing the coffee I drink, among other things, head over to The Finer Grinds and subscribe via email.

Thanks for understanding this move and I hope you will stick around on both sites for the content that I create for you.

Cheers,

Aaron

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Introduction to the Academic Papers

Beginning tomorrow the first “academic” paper is going to be published (read this post if you are clueless). This is not the first ever written, or the first that I wrote, but the first here (just to be clear). Before it publishes I want to let you know about a few things that you may want to take advantage of.

First, most of my papers are filled with references to Scripture. Lots and lots of references, in an effort to demonstrate that what I write is not based solely on my words, but God’s. That being said, not every verse is going to be explained, in the context of the paper or the verse it-self, so you will want to make sure to have a Bible nearby so that you can reference it easily. If you are a geek like me I recommend the YouVersion app (available in your browser and on your mobile device). I use the ESV most of the time, so keep that in mind as-well.

Second, in addition to having the papers published here I will also include a PDF of each article available for download. Use this as you see fit. You will have the option of downloading the file directly from the article, or from the corresponding “Downloads” page of the category of the article (i.e. ‘Theology’, or ‘Church History’). Feel free to share these with friends and anyone who you feel would benefit from, or appreciate, the article. This is also an easy way to print the article if you need a hard copy.

Third, below each article will be the standard comment box. I invite you to use this after you have read the article to do one of several things, or all of them: tell me that you read it, tell me that you did or did not enjoy it, give me your view of the topic at hand, etc. These articles are not complete, per se, and I know that we will all benefit from starting a discussion based on them.

Finally, every article (and the respective PDFs) are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License (follow the link for more information). Basically this means that you are free to copy and use these works, but under certain guidelines. If you need permission to use these beyond the scope of this license, you can get more information here.

As I have stated previously, I look forward to sharing my work with you. Please take advantage of the email subscription available so that you will receive the latest posts in your inbox (sign-up on the homepage), or subscribe via RSS.

Humbly,

Aaron
2 Timothy 3:16-17

Theology and Church History Papers will be Published Soon

As you may or may not know, I am a full-time student at Liberty University Online. I am currently focusing on a major in Religion and a minor in nothing at this point. As a student, and if you ever were one yourself you will relate to this, I have to write a lot of papers to complete assignments. Studying religion has forced me to take a hard look at where I stand on theological topics (such as marriage, women in ministry, evil, etc), look back at the history of Christianity (specifically after the first century) and take a good look at several key passages of Scripture.

Something that I have not done here in a while is posted anything serious. Lots of pictures, random thoughts on technology, but nothing really focused on my studies and what eventually hope to teach somehow: the Bible.

So, beginning this Friday, I will post papers that I write for my LUO classes here, to this blog. They will range from theological, to historical, to  exegetical in nature, and I’m sure if you have any interest in religion or Christianity you will enjoy these papers.

That being said, here are a few disclaimers:

• I will not publish a paper until it has been graded (this doesn’t really effect you, but just so you know)
• All of my papers have to meet certain word counts, some are shorter than others. For example, my theology papers are considered short essays, and they cannot exceed 800 words. They are also assigned in a question/answer format, but our writing cannot show that this is the case. As such, not every point in some papers will be “unpacked” as much as I would like. The beauty of publishing them here is that we can discuss certain points that you feel should be opened up a bit more.
• Your comments on my writing are appreciated but not necessary (especially if they are belittling). Although, if you consider yourself a good writer and have a few tips or advice, please feel free to share your thoughts.

My hope for this project is to continue the conversation that it started in my classes. Also, I hope to grow in my knowledge through interraction with some of you by discussing points and helping each other where we are weak in our understanding of God’s Word.

I hope that this is something that you will enjoy. I look forward to sharing my work with you.

Cheers,

Aaron
2 Timothy 3:16-17