Apologetics series Many atheists have alleged that great harm has been done by religion, christianity in particular. Even if they have overstated their case, we can, and must, still learn from their criticisms. And if the analysis is fair, we have all the more reason to listen and repent. Keith Parsons is a US philosopher […]
I was reading an article today by a christian minister who I respect, and he said: “Christians gather in order to listen to the Scriptures being read, and to the gospel being proclaimed.” It made me think ….. Why?
Albert Einstein apparently once said: “The significant problems we face can’t be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.” Churches in the western world are facing declining numbers and interest. Most of them are continuing to do the same things they’ve always done, hoping maybe to do a […]
About two years ago, this book was published. I reported on it here because I am one of 37 christians who relate some of their experiences of church in the book. (My chapter is copied on this site, at Church and me.) When I received my copy of the book, I read a number of […]
Most churches in first world countries employ staff these days. Small churches may have just a Minister or Pastor, but larger churches commonly have several pastors, an office secretary and a youth minister, and perhaps other staff as well. It is an obvious step and perhaps the only way to get things done, especially when […]
In a recent post I discussed a 2013 survey which suggested that more US christians behaved like Pharisees than behaved like Jesus. And I had to admit I didn’t score as well myself as I’d have liked 1. So what needs to change?
It is well established that lectures and sermons are poor ways to teach and to change – see Sermons – not how we learn best? A good sermon may encourage the congregation, but only a small percentage of people learn that way, and most don’t remember much, especially after the first 15 minutes. More research […]
When I was a young christian, most churches were part of a denomination and most people knew what denomination they belonged to, even if they never actually attended. People didn’t switch denominations very often. When they moved house, they would generally find the closest church of their denomination and attend it. Most new churches began […]
Martin Luther is examined for heresy. I remember about 40 years ago coming to the conclusion that the church in the western world was, in the next few decades, going to go through changes as significant as the Reformation. I felt we had got away from the truth in several important areas – introspective & […]
The Barna Group has recently released results of research into church attendance in USA, including information on “millennials” (under-30s). While this will have little relevance to other countries, there may be some similarities and thus things we may all learn