Is the Church of England doing religion without the Holy Spirit?
Much has been written about the Holy Spirit, or the Holy Ghost, or the Paraclete; the third person (hypostasis) of the Trinity. In fact, so much has been written over…
Applied Theology
Politics is too important to leave to politicians
"The Archbishop's platitudes do far more to divide the country than unite it" wrote the Telegraph's Charlotte Gill in a piece headed: 'Justin Welby has no business using his sacred office to pontificate about Brexit'. Unfortunately she had got the…
Hurricane Harvey and the $50m mega-church pastor who wouldn’t shelter flood victims
Texan mega-church pastor Joel Osteen is reputedly worth $50million. That's his personal wealth. He leads a church of some 16,000 (ie a 'mega-church') which gathers in the Lakewood Church, Houston,…
Theresa May did not instruct the CofE to allow gay marriage
'Prime Minister: The Church should "reflect" on allowing gay couples to marry', declares the Telegraph; 'Theresa May Suggests Churches Should Consider Conducting Same-Sex Marriages', says Huffpost UK; 'May: Church should…
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…
Same-sex marriage: what does Athens have to do with Jerusalem?
This is a guest post by the Rev'd Dr Gavin Ashenden, sometime Chaplain to the Queen. ___________________________ ‘Archbishop Cranmer’ has written a balanced and generous analysis of the House of…
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,…
There is neither Leaver nor Remainer; for you are all one in Christ Jesus
Leavers are xenophobic, insular, narrow-minded, self-regarding, racist, confused, brainless, extremist, hateful, economically-illiterate, un-Christian little-Englanders and swivel-eyed conspiracy theorists. Remainers are sneering, aloof, arrogant, vicious, supercilious, evil, unhinged, hypocritical, ageist,…
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…
Migrants, refugees, dead babies and 'virtue signalling': WWJD?
This is a guest post by the Rev’d Stephen Heard – Assistant Priest at St Mark’s Church, Enfield. He is a former civil servant with a background in political and…
The social gospel is a legitimate child of evangelism
"I am so tired of hearing this social gospel held up as the true Gospel of Jesus Christ. The reason the Church pushes this social gospel is because by…
Clerics for Corbyn: Bishop of Willesden comes out for 'Alice in Wonderland' politics
Pete Broadbent, Bishop of Willesden, has joined the Rev'd Giles Fraser and finally come out for Jeremy Corbyn. This is that same Jeremy Corbyn of whom Tony Blair says…
Cecil the Lion – a lesson in animal theology
A dentist called Walter Palmer has killed a lion called Cecil. Cecil the lion is now dead, and never has the world been so united in grief. Well, perhaps…
Jeremy Corbyn's path to power is more plausible than people think
Usually somewhere between three and 30 people avail themselves of the #Amen prayer facility at the bottom of this blog's Home Page. Since it was installed, the most believers…
"Thatcher Rest In Hell" – Durham Miners' Gala rejoice over Thatcher effigy in coffin
"The Durham Miners' Association has been shocked and saddened at the news last week of the death of three stalwarts of the socialist and labour movement," wrote the Friends…
Votewise 2015: a biblical case for localism, subsidiarity and restored national sovereignty
Over the last couple of months this site has covered some of the most prominent publications that have sought to define an appropriate form of Christian engagement with political…
Let’s stop reviling Islam with ‘Islamism’, and call the cult what it really is
Rather like the Naming of Cats, the classifying of Islamic sects is a difficult matter, and it’s certainly not just one of your Eid-Al-Fitr games. As we’ve witnessed the…
Giles Fraser: Would Jesus vote? Yes, but absolutely not Conservative
Anyone who thinks that Christianity and politics should never mix must be highly irritated at the moment. A week doesn't seem to go by without some form of conference, event or…
#PastoralLetter (2): Visions, dreams and nebulous notions of detachment
Having responded to the Preface of the Pastoral Letter from the House of Bishops "to the people and parishes of the Church of England for the General Election 2015",…
See how these Christians hate one another
In the darkness of disagreement and dispute, there must be grace, peace and love. It is what ought to distinguish the differences and debate of Christians from the squabbles…