Tag: Life

Signs of the times 1

(August 14, 2019)

On the wall at our local shopping mall. “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Romans 12:2

The word “religion” can have different meanings. At its simplest, it means “belief in and worship of God or gods” (Oxford Dictionary). But more precisely, religion is often seen as a designated set of beliefs and rituals by which people relate to a god. Thus religion (implying dogma and restrictions) is often contrasted to spirituality […]

Modern western evangelicalism – easy religion for comfortable christians?

(May 3, 2019)

I’ve been thinking for a while about modern western evangelical christianity. Not what some people may see as the worst of this belief system – televangelists, conservative politics and a focus on sexual ethics – but the mainstream. My initial christian experience was in this culture and belief, and while I have moved on in […]

Is this the most important thing you could do as a christian?

(December 13, 2018)

Thirty five years ago my life was changed after listening to a talk on prayer and spiritual warfare. I had been converted as a teen in a Presbyterian church where doctrine was regarded as the most important thing and God was known to be sovereign, ordaining everything according to his good purposes. But this doctrine […]

"Just because you know something doesn't mean you have to say it!"

(November 12, 2018)

I was raised in a family of four noisy boys. As we grew up, we became quite opinionated, and often argued, quite amicably but noisily, about religious, political, ethical and a thousand more trivial issues that interested us. When each of us found girlfriends and eventually wives, they didn’t always find our loud and rambunctious […]

Following Jesus in 2018

(September 11, 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.

"Because of her, we can"

(July 18, 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 […]

Grasstree Gathering: surely it's time for recognition, unity and respect?

(March 22, 2018)

Grasstree Gathering Australia’s indigenous peoples form a small minority (2.8%) in the country they once had to themselves, and have suffered significantly since white colonisation (which can reasonably be seen as an invasion). About three quarters identify as christian. They tend to be a spiritual people, but it can be difficult for them to meet […]

Patriarchy, headship and equality

(February 12, 2018)

It hasn’t always been comfortable being a man during these #metoo days. Men we might have thought could be trusted have been accused, and often admitted to, all manner of unacceptable, sexually predatory and abusive behaviour, mostly against women. For me, it became most pointed when this last weekend I read a long article in […]

When churches lose sight of their core

(December 27, 2017)

Child sexual abuse is a terrible crime and rightly loathed by most people. And churches have, tragically, been home to some of the worst offenders. The Australian Government set up a Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse almost 5 years ago. (A Royal Commission is a judicial process that has wide powers, […]