Me
Books I read in 2020
For the fourth consecutive year I’ve kept track of the books that I’ve read. My favorite non-fiction books this year were Marsden’s biography of Jonathan Edwards, and Marvin Kamp’s history of the revival of the Dutch church in “1834.” My favorite non-fiction book was George Eliot’s “Silas Marner.” The average rating of books has increased …
Maple and the Three Bears
Our daughter Maple is “almost 2” and tells of Goldilocks and the three bears.
Books I read in 2019
For the third year, I’ve kept track of the books I’ve read and have chosen a favorite and least favorite. I managed to read 91 books in 2019, down considerably from last year but still a substantial number. Here are links to the previous two years: https://www.douglasdouma.com/2017/12/23/books-i-read-in-2017-and-a-favorite-declared/ https://www.douglasdouma.com/2018/10/13/rating-100-books-ive-read-this-year/ In 2019 I finished re-reading the complete …
The A. Donald MacLeod Award for Presbyterian History
I’m quite happy to have received the A. Donald MacLeod Award for Presbyterian History at the Presbyterian Scholars Conference earlier this week. The award was given to me for my book The Presbyterian Philosopher. At the conference I gave a speech I titled “The Grand Old Doc.” It was quite the crew of participants in …
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Announcement
I’m glad to announce that First Presbyterian Church at Unionville, NY has left the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) and joined the Bible Presbyterian Church (BPC). The Great Lakes Presbytery of the BPC has examined me and approved my transfer from the denomination in which I am ordained, the Reformed Presbyterian Church – Hanover Presbytery. …
A Village without Mailboxes!
My family and I are working on getting settled in Unionville, NY, a trail town along the Appalachian Trail. Unionville is so small, in fact, that it is not a town but a village! It does make for a nice stop for hikers with an Italian restaurant, a general store, a post office, and a …
New Adventures in New York
Readers of my blog might be interested to know that I have accepted a call to be the pastor of First Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Unionville, New York. As Unionville is a trail town on the Appalachian Trail, moving there (in a couple months) well-positions us to expand our mission work to hikers with Sola …
Performances at L’Abri 2016
I stumbled upon these videos from a few years ago recorded on my phone and they are too good to let disappear into the past. These are of very dear friends that I met in Switzerland in 2016. And, incidentally, I just painted this Swiss flag:
That’s Not My [Detroit] Lion[s]
One of my daughter’s favorite books is called “That’s Not My Lion.” It has cartoon drawings of lions and has pieces of fabric to feel on each of the pages. The words go like this: That’s not my lion … its not is too fuzzy. That’s not my lion. Its ear are too soft. That’s …
"The Presbyterian Philosopher" – International Sales
I’ve recently ordered an additional 100 copies of my book “The Presbyterian Philosopher” from the publisher and am for the first time now willing to ship internationally. If you are outside of the United States and would like to order a copy (or copies) of the book, please let me know and I’ll give you …
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The Christian Observer
My article “Using God’s Money for Man’s Kingdom” has been covered in the Christian Observer. Check it out: http://christianobserver.org/using-gods-money-for-mans-kingdom-a-short-history-of-a-financial-scandal/
State References in Townes Lyrics
Singer-songwriter Townes Van Zandt hailed from Texas, but often spent time in Colorado, Tennessee, and other U. S. states. Liking his music as I do, I’m apt to recall his lyrics whenever I travel to a state he mentions. So I’ve looked through his lyrics to find his references to various states. Here’s what I’ve …
Historical Research Oveturns the Legend of Spanish Cave
While a student at Sangre de Cristo seminary I often ventured into the mountains of the Sangre de Cristo range. With my trusty Bernese trail dog, Henry, I explored trails with names including Rainbow, Horn Peak, Venable, Comanche, and the Phantom Terrace. While I never made it up Marble Mountain to Spanish Cave, I heard …
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Practical Apologetics
“Practical Apologetics” by Rev. Douglas J. Douma Keynote Speech given at The Geneva Institute for Christian Thought, July 18, 2018 When one hears the word “practical” he might be inclined to think of the philosophy of pragmatism. Pragmatism assesses the truth of a belief in terms of the success of its practical applications. The pragmatist …
My visit to the PCA GA 2018
For the second straight year I attended the Presbyterian Church in America’s General Assembly. This year it was in Atlanta, GA while last year it was in Greensboro, NC. While it is a national denomination, its history is largely Southern and the center of mass still resides in this region. Because of that, the GA …
I grew up in a place that does not exist.
I grew up in a place that does not exist. Not that it was in the Twilight Zone, but rather just a non-descript zone unsure of its identity and location. While our address said Grand Rapids, technically we were in the city of Walker. And our school district—Grandville—somehow crossed over from that neighboring city and …
My Interview on "Research and Religion" Podcast
Check out the Research on Religion podcast where I was interviewed by Dr. Tony Gill, Professor at Washington University: http://www.researchonreligion.org/practioneers/doug-douma-on-gordon-clark-and-a-christian-hiking-hostel
My Baptism in the LCA
From the time I was five years old until my college years I attended with my family a Lutheran church (Holy Cross) in Jenison, MI. As this was a member of the conservative Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS), I’ve long assumed that the previous church we attended (Faith Lutheran in Grand Rapids, MI) when I was …
Geneva Lecture 1: What is Religion? – On the Importance of Definitions
[This summer I’ll be giving three lectures and a speech at the Summer Studies in Christian Thought program at the Geneva Institute for Christian Thought in Elizabethton, Tennessee. (http://genevainstitute.org) If you are a junior or senior in high school or are in college, I recommend you check out the program and contact the institute if …
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Some Old Books
I recently acquired a great donation of a number of books ranging in date from 1647 to 1935. These will be added to our growing collection for the library at our ministry, Sola – Appalachian Christian Retreat. If there is some volume, however, that you are particularly interested in, let me know and I may …