Logan Martin Isaac

coursework

“War Without Eschatology: Apocalyptic Instincts in Christian Ethics”

Long before Oxford ethicist Nigel Bigger ‘reacts’ against the “wishful thinking” of Christian pacifism in his 2013 monograph, In Defence of War, pacifist John Yoder lampooned so-called Christian realism as “pie in the sky” for its failure to articulate an eschatologically realistic cosmological perspective. Who was the hopeless idealist

coursework

“Illuminating this Present Darkness: Paul’s Armor of God in Ephesians Across Church History”

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For our[a] struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but

coursework

“Maximos’ Promising Difficulties: The Origins, Trajectory, and Potential of the Confessor’s Ambigua”

In the following paper, I set out to describe the significance of the Ambigua of Maximos the Confessor in terms of his own oeuvre and career, theological development before and after its composition, and finally as an example for doing theology today. In the first section, I outline Maximos’ overall

coursework

“deus, ergo supplico: The Primacy of Prayer in Christian Belief”

The Latin phrase lex orandi, lex credenda roughly translates as “the law of prayer is the law of belief.” This phrase evokes the complex relationship between piety and doctrine, between experience and intellect. Does one precede the other? Do they exist inextricably as a symbiosis, as eternal equals? This is

coursework

“As We Have Heard, So We Have Seen: Pulling Political Theology from the Psalms”

Probably because of their place in the liturgy and contemporary reception of them as worship songs, the Psalms are not thought of as “theology” proper. The experiential value too often out weighs the intellectual work to which they can call us. Extensive interpretations of other books of the Bible exist,

coursework

“How Realistic are Christian Politics? A Case for Eschatological Realism”

In theological ethics, two opposing schools of thought dominate the question of war and peace, each with their corresponding intellectual heavyweights. Following WWII, the conversation was dominated by Reinhold Niebuhr’s “Christian realism,” itself a reaction against Walter Rauschenbusch’s Social Gospel movement that found popular support in the early

coursework

"Catastrophe Repeated? A Theological Review of Alasdair MacIntyre’s After Virtue"

First published in 1981, Alasdair MacIntyre's After Virtue is the first work of his "mature" period, at the age of 52. A beautifully crafted argument with clear transitions between individual claims (and chapters), its clarity certainly contributed to its wide readership and critical acclaim. Though it

Public Writing

Advice to Seminary Professors

*Originally published on June 30, 2015 by Faith and Leadership. A Christian combat veteran offers guidance for seminary professors whose students include veterans. July 4th, 2015, marks my ninth “rebirthday” – the anniversary of my baptism, which triggered a chain of events that culminated in my honorable discharge from the Army.

Public Speaking

How Realistic Are Christian Politics?

On May 31, 2015 I presented a conference paper at Ontology and History: A Challenging and Auspicious Dialogue for Philosophy and Theology International Conference at the European Cultural Centre of Delphi in Greece. The paper was based on a graded paper of the same name for Alan Torrance’s Theological

Public Writing

The War Cry

*Published on May 19, 2015, in Coming Home: Ministry that Matters with Veterans and Military Families by Chaplain Zachary Moon (Chalice Press) The centurion had heard about a local healer who could work miracles. He had been told that a few of his men had stolen away one day to

Christian Century

“Soldier saints, then and now”

*Originally published on November 6, 2014, by The Christian Century. It has since been removed. From All Saints until Veterans Day, I’m posting a blog series on soldier saints at Centurions Guild. “Ten Saints, Ten Days” explores ten lives, their context, and their relevance to soldiers today. In the

ACADEMIC

SECSOR: Moral Formation and Reintegration in United States Service Members and Veterans

Academic paper presented at the American Academy of Religion's Southeastern Commission on the Study of Religion (SECSOR) Annual Meeting on March 8, 2014 in Atlanta, GA. Since as early as 2007, it has been public knowledge that the United States military and veteran populations have been experiencing an

Public Speaking

Duke Divinity: "Those Treading in Darkness have seen a Great Light"

The following guest lecture, for Warren Kinghorn Trauma and Theology course, was delivered as a sermon on March 4th, 2014 at Duke Divinity School. Page references are to Bill Mahedy's Out of the Night; The Spiritual Journey of Vietnam Veterans, which seminarians were to have read prior to

Huffington Post

Celebrating Martinmas on Veterans Day

*Originally published on November 22, 2013 by The Huffington Post. Last year, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops approved a nation-wide collection to benefit the Archdiocese for the Military Services, to be garnered “every three years proximate to Veteran's Day or a similar strategic date beginning

Huffington Post

Veterans at Duke: Optimistic Face Masks a Troubling Reality

*Originally published on November 11, 2013, by The Huffington Post. As I prepared to head to Duke University, as the first person in my family to pursue a masters degree, I felt I had made a great choice. Besides funding my education, my experience as an Iraq War veteran was

Christian Century

A Christian and a soldier

*Originally published on November 1, 2013, by The Christian Century. It has since been removed. Growing up in my Presbyterian youth group, we read about the Bible’s centurions with the assumption that they’re the antagonists. They help arrest Jesus, nail his hands and feet to the cross, mock

Red Letter Christians

Sergeant Francis

Posttraummatic stress created the saint we know today.

Public Speaking

FUMC Ann Arbor: Feast of St. Maurice

The following sermon was preached at First United Methodist Church of Ann Arbor, MI on September 22, 2013, for the feast of St. Maurice of Thebes. May the words of my mouth and the meditations of all our hearts be acceptable to you, oh God, our rock and our redeemer.

coursework Featured

MTS Coursework

Thesis: "What Terrible Wisdom, That Awe-ful Power to Unmake: Surveying Moments of Moral Identity Amidst War" with Warren Kinghorn Gender, Theology, and Ministry Thesis: "The Irony of Heroic Masculinity: An Exploration of War and Cinema" with Amy Laura Hall Semester 1 (Fall 2010) Old Testament

Public Speaking

Greenbelt: Modes of Moral Health

Presentation given at the Greenbelt festival in Cheltenham, UK, on August 25, 2013. Very recently, a number of VA clinicians in the United States conducted a study and coined the term moral injury. Several years before that, back in the seventies, the term moral pain was coined, though it wasn&

Members only

coursework

"What Terrible Wisdom, That Awe-ful Power to Unmake: Surveying Moments of Moral Identity Amidst War"

Public Speaking

Notre Dame: Summer Scholars keynote

That was very nice. Thank you. I'm always amazed at what things stick out to people about my story. What I've prepared for today is, inversely to the book — on the back you'll find, in big, bold letters, "This isn't a

Red Letter Christians

Why I Am Against "Gay" Marriage

And you should be too.

ACADEMIC

“Minding the Prophet Margin: Just War, Accountability, and the Private Military Contract(or)”

Transcript of an academic presentation given for the Business of War panel of the Christian Scholars Conference at Lipscomb University, Nashville, TN (June 2013) We’ll start with our expectations low. I did not write a paper, I wish I could have, but I ran out of time. The manuscript

coursework

"The Irony of Heroic Masculinity: An Exploration of War and Cinema"

Submitted on May 15, 2013, to Amy Laura Hall in partial fulfillment of the Gender, Theology, and Ministry Certificate. It was pa On November 17, 2004 I walked into the chow hall of Forward Operating Base McHenry in Northern Iraq, near the city of Hawijah. In the wee ours of