The Institute for Christian Culture is one among a growing number of ministries dedicated to discovering and applying a consistent, Biblical worldview to every area of life. Our goal is to help Christians reclaim the heritage of our spiritual ancestors who proclaimed the crown rights of King Jesus and transformed the ancient world.

This site has essays, articles and commentary on a wide variety of subjects. Some are dry and academic, some are outrageous (and hilarious) but all are intended to help Christians think Biblically about every area of life.

A Christmas Compendium
Copyright © 2007, 2009 All Rights Reserved
The Reverend Brian M. Abshire, Ph.D.
Highlands Reformed Church
The Battle to “Save” Christmas. 2
Introduction: 2
Christmas is NOT a Biblical “Holy-Day” Colossians 2:26-29. 5
Is Christmas Even Worthy of Being Saved?. 7
Conclusion. 9
Rethinking the Pagan Origins of Christmas. 11
Historical Origins. 12
Christmas as the Creation of the Victorians. 17
Santa Claus or …

The Theology of Lycanthropy:
“Even a man who is pure of heart,
And says his prayers at night;
Can become a wolf,
When the wolf-bane blooms,
And the full moon shines out its light”
(The Wolf-Man-Universal Studios)
Far too many moderns lack a sense of history; and not knowing where they came from, inevitably are confused about where they are going,- …

The Ethics of Vampirism
Myths and legends are not just quaint folk-tales told for amusement-even in the days before television and movies, myths always served a higher function than mere “entertainment.” Invariably, behind those stories there exists an entire worldview that deals with the fears, anxieties, and darkest desires of a culture. A single myth can …

Of Ghosties and Ghoulies and Things that Go Bump in the Night
As far back as anthropologists can track human legends, the belief in ghosts and spirits is already present. From a humanist, materialist perspective, “animism” (the idea that rocks, streams, trees, etc. are inhabited by invisible “spiritual” entities) is asserted to be the first religion. …

Pseudo-Occult Claims and Christian Gullibility
“There’s a sucker born every minute…” P.T. Barnum
Table of Contents

Evaluation Occult Claims
The Lack of Empirical Evidence
Examples of Pseudo-Occult Phenomenon
Conclusion

Evaluating Occult Claims
I remember my first exposure to “magic” when I was a young child, watching a television performer pull a rabbit out of a hat. The “magician” then did all …

We are posting some chapters from one of our newer, smaller books that has generated a lot of interest from our readers. Email us to recieve the entire book in one easy to print document. And thanks for remembering us in your giving.
Table of Contents

The Nature of Occultism
How Authentic Is Occult Phenomenon?
The Bible and Ghosts
The …

Chapter One: The Nature of the Occult
 
The word “occult” means “hidden, concealed or secret” and refers to of such things as astrology, sorcery, magic, alchemy, etc that purports to give the practitioner esoteric knowledge; and with that knowledge, supernatural “powers.” Deuteronomy 18:9ff lays out God’s view of ALL occult activity, “When you enter the land …

Or, How Not to Die Friendless and Alone Because Nobody Can Stand Getting Close to You …
OK, two quick admissions; the first being that I blatantly filed the serial numbers off the title of a book I never read for the title of this chapter. Therefore for those chuckling at the sheer outrageousness of …