Celebutantes

R. C. Sproul Jr. has taken a position on the “authorship of sin” which is getting some buzz in the blogosphere. Before we say anything further, let’s put this into perspective. R. C. Jr. isn’t famous in his own right. He’s not a great theologian like Calvin or Turretin or Owen or Bavinck or Cunningham or Warfield or Vos, &c.

R. C. Jr. is well-known for the same reason that Lisa Marie Presley is well-known. Celebrity children. People know who they are because they know who their parents are. Borrowed renown. If Elvis was the king, then that made Lisa the titular princess.

Just as no one would give Lisa Marie Presley the time of day were it not for her last name, so no one would give R. C. Jr. the time of day were it not for his last name. If he were R. C. Finkelstein, nobody would pay the slightest attention. He’d just be another schmuck like yours truly.

What R. C. Junior brings to the table isn’t achieved status, but ascribed status. Like the duke of Lichtenstein. Hereditary titles. A coat-of-arms. Same thing with members of a certain political dynasty who think name-recognition automatically qualifies them for high office (e.g. Caroline Kennedy).

This doesn’t mean we should dismiss their opinions out of hand. But by the same token, it’s not as if their opinions are entitled to special deference just because of who said it.

As for the substantive issue, I’ve already blogged on that issue, so I don’t have to repeat myself here.

http://triablogue.blogspot.com/2008/09/is-god-source-of-sin.html