Postmodernity

Synod and the Nuclear Ban Treaty: the CofE would rather have sent Britons to Treblinka than annihilate Germany

July 17, 2018
Carl Jacobs
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The Church of England’s General Synod had to talk about something, I guess. It couldn’t talk about the pressing problems of the CofE lest it cause its nascent civil war to flash into armed conflict. Bishops may have principles, but…

Diocese of Bath and Wells to sell its 12th-century Grade I listed Old Deanery – in favour of ‘modern’, ‘welcoming’ and ‘spacious’ purpose-built offices

June 26, 2018
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The Old Deanery in Wells sits on the north side of Cathedral Green. It dates back to the 12th century, and comes with its own gatehouse and venerable boundary walls.…

Do we need a new public theology?

April 6, 2018
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"There's such a need for good public theology," tweeted Fr Gregory Platten, Vicar of All Saints Church, London, N20. "Increasingly struck by how much theology is written for theologians alone:…

Tory MP hates social media: “It gives a voice to people who don’t deserve one”

June 30, 2017
90 Comments

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…

For millennials, Corbyn came as Father Christmas; May as the Wicked Witch of the West

June 12, 2017
286 Comments

"What do the millennials want from policy makers?" asked a group called Common Vision (CoVi) in their 'Manifesto for Millennials'. Millennials are 'young people', who appear to have (uncharacteristically) turned…

BlessU-2: a robot priest and the parable of technological emptiness

May 31, 2017
131 Comments

"Bless me, Robot, for I have sinned." "Do you want to receive absolution in a male voice or a female voice?" The penitent presses a button on a touchscreen torso,…

If Philip North can’t be Bishop of Sheffield, the Church of England ceases to be catholic

February 25, 2017
620 Comments

The Dean of Christ Church, Professor Martyn Percy, has issued an ultimatum circumspectly entitled 'Questions of Ambiguity and Integrity'. It's quite long, but essentially it boils down to a choice:…

“Is Justin Welby not showing the world Jesus?”

November 10, 2016
116 Comments

Here follows Adrian Hilton's response to Martyn Percy's first letter: Dear Martyn, Thank you for your letter. I appreciated the account of your conversation with the “senior commentator on religious…

Donald Trump: the triumph of political incorrectness over incorrect politicalness

May 4, 2016
349 Comments

Unless the GOP does something silly – like steal the nomination in a contested convention by engineering a last-minute coup – it looks as though Donald Trump will be…

Pentecost evangelism? What is the gospel in an age of religious relativism?

February 29, 2016
534 Comments

The Archbishops of Canterbury and York have written to every clergyman and woman in England (all 11,300 of them, which is a lot of stamps), urging them to pray…

Elizabeth II becomes our longest-reigning monarch – God Save The Queen!

September 9, 2015
107 Comments

Today, 9th September 2015, sometime around 5.30pm, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II becomes the longest-reigning monarch in British history, beating the record previously set by her great-great grandmother Queen…

Tweeting the truth in love: Justin Welby affirms an unpalatable article of faith

August 11, 2015
280 Comments

We have a blogging, vlogging and tweeting Archbishop of Canterbury. He's on Flickr, too. Justin Welby has fathomed that the medium is the message: the social network is the…

Against heresy: if Jesus called God 'Father', who are we to conflate Him with Mary?

June 3, 2015
340 Comments

'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…

To preach Leviticus 20:13 now constitutes a public order offence

March 25, 2015
499 Comments

There is much to be mocked about street preachers. The world has become intolerant of compact megaphones in the market place, boorishly denouncing sin and declaring the coming judgment…

The Church of England exists for all people – not just Christians

March 20, 2015
177 Comments

According to Bishop Lesslie Newbigin, "there is not and cannot be a gospel which is not culturally embodied". He maintained that the missionary task of the Church is to…

#PastoralLetter (3): a plea for religious liberty in an era of secularity

March 9, 2015
157 Comments

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″;…

If we can 'pardon' past convictions for gross indecency, why not heresy?

March 5, 2015
870 Comments

The Royal Pardon is usually reserved for those who, having once been convicted of a criminal act, are subsequently discovered to have been innocent of the offence and so…

Surely Jesus would approve of 'Christmas with the Aliens'?

December 4, 2014
325 Comments

I distinctly remember my very first school Nativity play. Being a rather quiet and unassuming child, I was bypassed as the major roles were cast and left with the…

The Community of St Anselm – satisfaction and spirituality

November 25, 2014
172 Comments

A few months ago the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby announced a new initiative at Lambeth Palace: the establishment of the Community of St Anselm, the objective of which…

Justin wept over Church of England child abuse

October 28, 2014
260 Comments

The Archbishop of Canterbury gave a speech yesterday to the Parliamentary Press Gallery – a group made up of privileged journalists and reporters who mill around Westminster hour after…