Steve Chalke: the wrath of God and the experience of Grace
Steve Chalke tweeted about the wrath of God which is apparently often heaped on his head by 'Church people' (as opposed to Christians?), compared to the grace he experiences directly…
New Testament
Met Police confirm that criticism of Islam constitutes ‘Islamophobia’
The Metropolitan Police Service report 'Hate Crimes against London's Muslim Communities' was published five years ago, and it outlines the everyday nature of Islamophobic incidents: The Islamophobic incidents reported to and recorded by the Metropolitan Police Service generally occur as…
Centenary of the Battle of the Somme: yesterday's youth died so that today's youth might be free
They didn't really stand a chance. They were sons, husbands, fathers, friends and boys – some as young as 18 – ordered over the top into the direct line of…
The Home Office's shameful treatment of Christian asylum seekers
A few years ago we had a popular children’s song at my church that started like this: You won’t get to heaven on the back of a camel, And…
Cameron's Christian values are devoid of liberty, spirit and truth
At least No10 bothered to issue an Easter greeting this year. Last year they omitted to do so, and then refused to reply to a number of the politest…
The Kingdom of God is within you, but it is also a future promise
Where is the Kingdom of God? Does it matter? How can it be both within you and yet still to come? Or has it already come? And if it…
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).…
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…
Welby: "Christians are not saints"; Cranmer: "O yes we are"
"Christians are not saints," tweeted Lambeth Palace, apparently quoting from a sermon by the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby. "They are sinners calling other sinners to know and love…
The apocalypse of Islam and the signs of the times
The Temple of Baalshamin predated Mohammed by six centuries. It was a cultural jewel in the Syrian desert, revealing to the world a glimpse of the pre-Islamic religions of…
Against heresy: if Jesus called God 'Father', who are we to conflate Him with Mary?
'For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist' (2Jn 1:7). The…
Voting is a moral obligation, but praying for those in authority is a divine command
On Saturday in The Times, Graham Tomlin, the widely respected principal of St Mellitus Theological College, wrote a profound article on the relationship between the authority of our political…
Church of England mistakes mission for the management of decline
One of the best things Christians are doing all over the country at the moment is organising and hosting General Election hustings for their local communities. Last time round,…
Welby: "Europe as a whole must rise up and seek to do what is right"
"What is your response to this, then?" barks BBC journalist Lyse Doucet, in the wake of hundreds of migrants drowning in the Mediterranean, with dozens of rescue boats now…
What are 'Muslim values', Lady Warsi?
The problem is her article's timing, and that when David Cameron stretched out his hand in friendship and promoted and indulged her time and again, there was impatience, irritability…
Rev'd Libby Lane to become Church of England's first woman bishop
The Bishop of Chester, Peter Forster, cast his eyes over the male applicants for the vacant See of Stockport in Greater Manchester, and despaired. He'd rather wait for a change…
Rochester & Strood: the Christian case for supporting Mark Reckless
According to the latest opinion polls on the wacky race for Rochester & Strood, the suave, educated, cultured and erudite Peter Perfect Mark Reckless is blazing ahead for Ukip,…
Welby: we wrestle not against ISIL, but against Jihadi principalities and powers
We are, once again, a nation at war. And, rather like World War I, it won't be over by Christmas. The Prime Minister has identified our target: "We should be…
AC Grayling's call to abolish RE in schools is dangerously ignorant
A couple of weeks ago I was in a conversation with a BBC producer discussing faith schools and their admissions policies. We talked about the possibility of my appearance on BBC1's Sunday…