Good Friday: the death of the Messiah
'Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ' (Acts 2:36). 'Jesus died the death…
St Paul
‘Dear Patrick…’ Words of comfort for clergy who feel forsaken by mutual flourishing
Returning to the Church of England's gender wars and sexuality skirmishes (which never really went away), the Dean of Christ Church, Oxford, who advocates righteous discrimination against traditionalists who discriminate against women, responded with a tweet: "In the essay, poor…
Discrimination and discernment: an exercise in relativist supremacy
This is a guest post by the Rev’d Dr Gavin Ashenden, former Chaplain to the Queen. ___________________________ In the great amphitheatre of Twitter a gladiatorial combat recently took place between…
Is cohabitation still a sin, or is it an embryonic marriage with proof of love?
There are many who will guffaw at this very question: how absurdly old fashioned, not to say narrow-minded and bigoted of Christians to shame/alienate/offend lovely couples whose commitment to one…
The Church of England should not tear itself apart over homosexuality and same-sex marriage
The General Synod of the Church of England is due to 'take note' (or not) of the Bishops' report ‘Marriage and Same Sex Relationships after the Shared Conversations.’ In the…
Shared conversations: some came to seek truth; others to conquer. Why can’t we just be kind?
Commenting on the Bishops' statement Marriage and Same Sex Relationships after the Shared Conversations ("a gamma minus piece of drafting if ever there was one"), Canon Professor Mark Chapman prophesies…
Ashers Bakery ‘gay cake’ appeal judgment: 11% of Evangelical Christians haven’t got a clue about religious liberty
It was very tempting to go with the affirmatory '89% of Evangelical Christians support freedom of religion', which would have been the wholesome, encouraging, Christian thing to do, right? But…
Same-sex marriage/blessing confronts Church of England with "a structural flaw of fatal proportions"
We have reached Chapter 5 in the great Anglican sexuality saga: 'Church of England parishes consider first step to break away over sexuality'. It isn't clear what the dénouement…
Brexit, the Bible and democracy: the judgment of God is the voice of the people
As the dust settles... Perhaps that's a premature denouement. As the winds of Brexit crack their cheeks throughout Europe, and the refiner's fire purges the political parties – if…
Giles Fraser backs Brexit – and the liberal elite sneer at him for it
The Rev'd Dr Giles Fraser is one of the very few Church of England clergy who has publicly declared that he wants the UK to leave the EU. It…
TGI Monday: Near-death experiences and the mystery of the mind
Are near-death experiences just the mind "losing the plot" and "going a bit weird"? What is consciousness? How do we explain the thousands of out-of-body testimonials throughout all ages…
Does God still raise up prophets?
Prophecy is the most frequently-mentioned charism in the whole Pauline corpus: the role of the prophets is preeminent (eg 1Thess 5:20; 1Cor 11:4f; Rom 12:6; Eph 2:20; 1Tim 1:18).…
Church of England continues its decline – but is revival stirring?
The Church of England has published its attendance stats ('Statistics for Mission') for 2014. Don't yawn. Yes, the interesting Anglican stuff is leavening this week in a Canterbury crypt,…
Pope's preacher lauds the "great theological and spiritual enrichment" of the Reformation
When Fr Raniero Cantalamessa, Preacher to the Papal Household, was invited to speak in Westminster Abbey at the inauguration of the 10th General Synod of the Church of England,…
Rev'd Barry Trayhorn "forced to resign" as prison worker – for quoting the Bible in chapel
HMP Littlehey is a 'Category C' men's prison ("Those who cannot be trusted in open conditions but who are unlikely to try to escape") and Young Offender Institute near…
Divorce and remarriage: Catholic crisis, chaos, conspiracy, or just contextual theology?
The fallout from the XIV Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops of the Roman Catholic Church (aka 'Synod on the Family') has been considerable. Whatever the reported…
The Church of England is not dying – it is regenerating
It’s been well publicised this week that there are one or two Church of England congregations that aren’t exactly bursting at the seams. If you go to a Church…
Chartres' Lambeth Lecture: the Church must be "vision-led and not problem-led"
While the Archbishop of Canterbury pored over the Blogosphere on his iPad (to which he is apparently rather attached), the Bishop of London psyched himself up for the latest…
Court rules that white girls are worth less than Asians
Paedophilia, molestation, rape, grooming, 'white trash'.. Stories abound of the gangs of Asian (usually Pakistani) men preying on young white girls, believing them to be somehow worth less than…
Was St Paul wrong about the timing of the Second Coming?
If Jesus, being fully and infallibly God, was not wrong about the time of his Second Coming, what about St Paul, being fully and fallibly man? The whole thrust…