Faith. Rebuilt
We are visiting family in the US right now, and the recent Presidential election is on everyone’s minds here. Reports are coming in that apparent white supremacists have been attacking, verbally or physically, people who belong to minorities such as blacks, Muslims and Latinos. Right wing christians are expressing relief that Hilary Clinton, who they […]
I came across a blog post today that summed up what I think has become a significant movement within christianity. Learning from a “hippie heretic” The post was This Nameless Movement of God on Chuck McKnight’s blog Hippie Heretic, and it was based on just one premise (taken from fellow blogger Brian Zahnd): “God is […]
As a christian, I find neuroscience research fascinating, especially where scientific discoveries seem to give support to my christian faith. This post continues the discussion of science and christian belief in my previous post, If evolution is true, how can consciousness and free will be explained?
So far I have looked at two doctrinal issues in this series – Three different views of the Bible and three different ways to read it and Three different views of social justice and the gospel – and each time I have concluded that the truth lies between the two more polarised views. It probably […]
Differences among christians We all know there are many, many matters on which christians hold different views. Many of them are merely matters of opinion and taste (though you would sometimes think they were highly important), but they include many important doctrines too. For many matters, there are a range of views, though often times […]
Difficult issues series Christians are often seen as conservative – about their beliefs, about politics and about ethics. The old joke asks “How many christians does it take to change a light bulb?” And of course the answer is: “Change???” So how do we know when to hold on to what we’ve got, and when […]
Book review I wonder what comes into your mind when you read the word “Anabaptist”? Or the word “Mennonite”? Perhaps, like me until a few years ago, you might remember these words from the time of the Reformation, when Anabaptists were a loose collection of idealistic “fringe” christians persecuted by Catholics and Protestants alike for […]
Spiritual Principles series There are several different types of prayer – several different types of conversations we may have with God, if you like to look at it that way. Sometimes we need to ask for forgiveness, sometimes we want to thank him or tell him we love him, sometimes we just want to meditate […]
Famous atheists have said that religion is harmful to the believer and to society. Religious belief is “poisonous”, making believers “delusional” and anti-social. And internet sceptics have followed them in repeating the allegations until they have some sort of authority. These accusations may trouble some christians. But the thing is, the scientific evidence shows otherwise. […]
I had never heard of this book or its author until a friend bought it for me as a present. (Thanks S!) But it proved to be a really worthwhile read.