The real presence of Christ in the community of the virtual Church
This morning I want to depart from our Lectionary readings to offer a text which inspired a first-class sermon which I once heard at Rochester Cathedral. A few years ago,…
Social Media
The Human Touch
This is the eighth contribution to His Grace’s emergency team ministry during the coronavirus pestilence. The author is a Christian and key-worker, who has had a busy week. Were it not for lockdown, then next week I would be…
CofE Social Media Charter neuters the prophetic and subsumes truth to ‘respect’
"I just signed up to #CofECharter," tweeted the former Times religious affairs correspondent (and quite delightful) Ruth Gledhill, precisely 48 seconds after the Archbishop of Canterbury had announced his initiative…
Israel Folau – a fool for Christ’s sake
Israel Folau plays rugby in Australia. He plays at quite a high level, actually, being paid around $1.6m per season. He is, however, considered to be worth every cent, not…
Online hate: Twitter speaks what the heart is full of
Life is a lot of bitterness and hate: there are oppressors and victims; struggles, dilemmas and protests. There is suffering and pain, anxiety and change. There are cries for vengeance,…
Bishop condemns Labour antisemitism and demands immediate expulsions
"For too many on the Left, Jewish suffering does not touch them the way Muslim suffering or gay suffering or black suffering touches them," wrote Stephen Daisley in 2015 on…
Welby goes to the UN to speak about ‘pre-emptive reconciliation’ (aka friendship)
Yesterday, Justin Welby became the first Archbishop of Canterbury to address the UN Security Council. His subject was mediation and conflict resolution (he sits on the UN Secretary-General's advisory board…
Uncovering the world of mediums, clairvoyants, empaths, shamans, psychics, and ghost hunters
The organisers wanted me to come with an open mind, but of course that was impossible. In the first place, I have never been convinced that the idea of an…
Justin Welby tweets the sermon of the year
Sometimes Twitter is like trying to bound infinite space in a nutshell. You can fiddle with words, abbreviate and cut commas, but still it lacks art, and if not art,…
Abuse victim: “The cruel and inhuman treatment I have received from the National Safeguarding Team in Church House, and others in the Church of England hierarchy, makes what Peter Ball did to me pale into insignificance”
It has not been a good week for the Church of England. We were warned as much by our Lead Bishop for Safeguarding, Peter Hancock, when he led the safeguarding…
Church spires to help spread pornography, blasphemy, gambling and fake news
And lo, the Church of England signed an accord with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport to permit church spires and bell towers to be used to house…
Corbyn Monoxide: why does the Left get away with anti-Tory hate?
It's supposed to be a joke, of course, and we're all supposed to laugh. But imagine – just try to imagine – if these students had written such vile comments…
If only the Trump Twitter feed had more soft words and gentle answers
There is a time to keep silence, and a time to speak, observes Qoheleth, the voice of the Book of Ecclesiastes (3:7). Proverbs talks about the wise man using words with…
Tory MP hates social media: “It gives a voice to people who don’t deserve one”
Gary Streeter is the Conservative MP for South West Devon. He is a committed Christian who helped found the Conservative Christian Fellowship. He now chairs the cross-party group Christians in…
Critic of Gay Pride police car gets reported for ‘Muslim mob’ joke
Inspector Mark Evans of Sussex Police is very proud of his new patrol car. So proud, in fact, that he tweeted about it, which is perfectly fine: it's a free…
Is it wrong to judge a blog by the comments it attracts?
"I guess I find it hard to take that particular blog very seriously really," wrote the Rev'd Canon Andrew Godsall, ministry development adviser in the Diocese of Exeter, of the…
Justin Welby takes to Twitter to teach us how to pray
And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray,…
Forget the Holy Spirit: the key to Church revival is Pokemon Go
According to the Daily Mail (please don't stop reading at that), something called Pokemon Go (or Pokémon GO for the accentually pedantic and orthographically precise) is set to bring…
Bastille Day terror: you can't counter Jihad with a Twitter Crusade
Here we go again. You clearly don't need a SIG Sauer MCX semi-automatic rifle or a suicide belt packed with explosives, ball bearings, nails, screws and bolts to massacre…
Brexit may have spurred a few racists, but the heartbeat of the nation is unity and tolerance
"How can you side with bigots and racists?" "How can you support the vile BNP agenda?" "You're a Christian, for God's sake, and here you are sowing division and…