True Magic

In the new cosmological order inaugurated by Christ, where all believers now serve inside the veil of the most-holy place, men should no longer cover their heads, but women should—and both for the same reason the priests of the Old Covenant did. In the case of men, there is no longer anything between God and them in the hierarchy; rather, man is the glory of God, and should therefore shine forth in the heavenly court. In the case of women, they signify their place under men by covering themselves—since they, as the glory of man, should not compete with God’s glory in the heavenly court.

Further reading:

A previous article on our broader hermeneutical strategy: Looking at the beam and seeing by the beam

An episode exploring the liturgical calendar as a reflection of new covenant cosmology: Xmas special #1: Impressing heavenly patterns into time

A sermon on the cosmological change that took place at the cross: What makes a church a church? Part 6: Christians as divine council members

A sermon for a deeper understanding of how God is summing up the creation hierarchy in Christ: Rightly ordered affections: natural vs covenantal identity

Having just seen the Lord of the Rings musical on stage, Smokey pontificates on the good, the bad and the ugly, giving it 4 stars for sheer audaciousness, and recommending you see it.

In which Smokey, driven mad by her great learning, rants with considerable erudition about how cooking is just as much a science as baking, baking is as much an art as cooking — and why it matters, and we should all be more like Walter White.

Superhuman machines have made us unprecedentedly wealthy…and the blessings of our forebears are now luxuries we cannot afford. When it becomes pointless to do anything yourself, you may discover that you yourself become pointless.

In this tweener episode, Bnonn lays some groundwork for episode 8 (head coverings) with a didactic overview of the biblical symbolism that unifies hair, trees, crowns, angels, and the glory-cloud of God.

The sermon referenced, on the connection between worship and judgment: https://redwoodchurch.substack.com/p/how-should-we-worship-part-13-the

What is the heart of marriage? What are its duties and obligations — and does being disabled prevent you meeting them? We look at historic practice and scriptural data to establish where the lines are…and where things get pretty gray.

While it’s true that a wife should be oriented toward her husband, her household, and especially her children, it is false that simply having a job ipso facto divides her loyalties. Employment under another man is not a covenantal relationship.

The article referenced in this episode: https://bnonn.com/works-righteousness-a-square-contractual-peg-in-a-round-covenantal-hole/

Smokey, in lieu of doing research for the next episode, instead regales us with wisdomous thoughts about how the character motifs in Jane Austen’s novels paint a bleak picture of a society starving for effective providers and protectors — with inevitable results.

If long hair is a woman’s glory, what does that mean for pixie cuts and bobs? We discuss the surprisingly recent history of short hair on women, the infamous Felicity chop, and whether consent nullifies shame.

Is the idea of a Sunday best biblical? If so, why is history replete with theologians telling people to stop dressing so fancy? How do we navigate between the ditches of immodesty and slovenliness when gathering in the heavenly court?

Resources mentioned in the episode:

John Wesley’s full sermon on dressing plainly: https://biblesnet.com/john-wesley-on-dress.pdf

Bnonn’s sermon on worship as a meeting of the heavenly court: https://redwoodchurch.substack.com/p/how-should-we-worship-part-12-worship