Table Talk

John Witte, Jr., Table Talk: Short Talks on the Weightier Matters of Law and Religion (Leiden: Brill, 2023) (Open access) (Chinese translation, 2024)
Description

“Table talks” have long been a familiar genre of writing for jurists, theologians, politi­cians, and novelists. In this little volume, thirty sage reflections on how to thrive in law school and in the legal profession are offered: short commentaries on controversial matters of faith, freedom, and family; pithy sermons on difficult biblical texts about law and justice; and touching tributes to a few of his fallen heroes. Most of the thirty texts gathered here were made at seminar tables, academic roundtables, editorial tables, and Eucharist tables. Cast in avuncular form, these texts probe what makes life worth living, work worth doing, history worth reading, and Scripture worth heeding. They aim to provide inspiration and edification for readers at different stages of their lives.
Table of Contents

  • Preface and Acknowledgments
  • Introduction

Talks to Law Students
  • The Vocation of the Lawyer
  • Always Take a Day Off Each Week
  • Assists and the Legal Profession
  • Emancipation in Life and the Law
  • The Freedom of Silence
  • A Whale for the Killing
  • Beehive Republics
  • The Field of Law and Religion
  • The Song of the Law
  • The Cathedral of the Law
 
Talks on Public Issues
  • The Superstition of Separation of Church and State
  • Keeping the Commandments
  • Lift High the Cross
  • Scopes II and Beyond
  • Go Tell It to the . . . Mosque?
  • Why Monogamy Is Natural 
  • The Legal Challenges of Religious Polygamy
  • Unwanted Children
  • Sex May Be Free, But Children Are Not
  • Spare the Rod!
 
Talks from Pulpits
  • Our Twofold Human Nature
  • Christ the King
  • Compel Them to Come In
  • Resurrection Pluralism
  • Confessions of a Christian Historian
  • Christian Legal Studies
 
Words of Remembrance 
  • In Remembrance of Harold J. Berman 
  • In Remembrance of Alonzo L. McDonald
  • In Remembrance Johan D. Van der Vyver 
  • In Remembrance of Dad 
​
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Chinese Translation 2024