The power of forgiveness
September 29th, 2018
Some readers may recall, 18 months ago, two posts about the long distance endurance cycling race, the inaugural Indian-Pacific Wheel Race, which tragically ended in the death of one of the leading contestants, Mike Hall. At the time I spoke of the grief many participants and followers of the race felt, and the very sensitive […]
"Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant" (Matthew 20:26)
September 27th, 2018
Did Jesus mean it to come to this? It is too easy to put words into Jesus’ mouth and say what he would or wouldn’t approve of. I won’t fall into that trap, but I will ask some pointed questions. If Jesus could have foreseen twenty-first century western christianity, what would he think? For instance, […]
Following Jesus in 2018
September 11th, 2018
The young adults in the group we lead asked us what it means to follow Jesus in 2018. The study and discussion took us in some interesting directions. This is what we learnt together.
Book review: Beyond the Texts
August 28th, 2018
You can find a lot of different views on the internet about the accuracy of Old Testament history and how archaeology does, or doesn’t, support the Old Testament accounts. Minimalist historians, and internet sceptics, will tell you it’s almost all invented myth, while maximalist historians and christian apologists will tell you that archaeology supports the […]
Fear and control – keeping a church on track or preventing maturity?
August 19th, 2018
Did Jesus mean it to come to this? I believe Fear and Control is one of the most insidious and harmful characteristics of many churches today. Read on to see what I mean, and why.
Urban tribes and the church (part2)
August 9th, 2018
The story so far ….. Last post (Urban tribes and the church) I discussed how on a recent holiday I was observing young urban Generation Z professionals, and musing what they might think about church, or at least most churches. I felt there were many ways that modern western christianity was an alien culture to […]
Urban tribes and the church
July 29th, 2018
We’ve just come back from a short holiday in Melbourne, Australia’s second largest city. We stayed in South Yarra, an inner urban and somewhat hip location which is noticeably different to the suburb where we live in Sydney. The obvious differences start with the dense inner urban environment of high-rise apartments and offices, the streetscapes […]
"Because of her, we can"
July 18th, 2018
Like many countries colonised by European nations, Australia has a sorry two century history of poor treatment of our indigenous peoples, resulting in a significant reduction in their numbers and the quality of their lives. But they have survived, their numbers are building again, and many indigenous leaders are become more forthright in their pleas […]
How many christian denominations? Who cares? And why do they care?
July 4th, 2018
Almost 6 years ago I posted on How many christian denominations worldwide. I had been asked this question by an internet friend (not a christian believer) who was tired of hearing unsupported claims. It has become my most visited and most commented page, accounting for almost half the visitors to this site. I can’t help […]
Have we really fallen this far?
June 22nd, 2018
Last week Fariborz Karami committed suicide. And I don’t think many Australians noticed. He was just 26 years old, and he had been held behind bars for 5 years without any hope of safe release. His mental health had been deteriorating for years. But I don’t think many Australians cared. Worse still, I don’t think […]
A list of all blog posts, in reverse chronological order, is on the Blog archive page.