Author: faithrootsdw

The church is not undermining the Asylum System – The Home Office are managing to do that all by themselves

This is one of those articles where perhaps the headline says it all. However, for background, newspapers are reporting that the church are undermining the asylum system. The criticism comes in the light of the Clapham attacker’s case.  In his case, Abdul Ezedi professed faith and was baptised whilst seeking asylum.  Newspapers report that he… Continue reading The church is not undermining the Asylum System – The Home Office are managing to do that all by themselves

Does the parable of the prodigal son rule out penal substitution?

This was other “Threads take” that I referred to the other day. In the parable of the prodigal son, a father has two sons, the younger demands his share of the inheritance and then leaves home, wasting his share until famine hits and forces him to recognise his folly. He returns home to throw himself… Continue reading Does the parable of the prodigal son rule out penal substitution?

Paul and the supposed lost message of love

I promised that I’d pick up on the substance of a couple of recent social media debates. Here’s the secind one. Readers will recognise immediately that this is a pretty old misconception. It’s been doing the rounds as long as I can remember.  Some of my readers are significantly older than I am and I… Continue reading Paul and the supposed lost message of love

Memes and Piper

Talking of bad takes I’ve picked up in other places than the much maligned Twitter, here’s something else I came across on Threads. Why is this a bad take? Well, first of all consider the theology offered here as an alternative to Piper’s.  There are three things that strike me. First, what exactly is “a… Continue reading Memes and Piper

Can babies sin? Navigating a current controversy

Apparently, the latest dispute to occupy people’s head space and get a thousand fingers tapping passionately at their keyboards, is the question about whether or not it is possible for babies to sin.  The big claim has been that if you are reformed, then you should recognise that babies sin.  The practical focus seems to… Continue reading Can babies sin? Navigating a current controversy

Fairies in the garden?

The Humanists UK have been circulating this meme again recently. It occasionally does the rounds. On the surface, it seems quite witty and clever. That’s no surprise, Douglas Adams was a clever, witty author.  However, not all that sounds clever is wise and well-reasoned.  This is one such case.  We can of course forgive Adams,… Continue reading Fairies in the garden?

Do Complementarians have a “slavery problem”?

This was an argument I saw made the other day on social media.  It’s not a new one -and in fact is one I’ve interacted with in detail before.  The argument runs as follows. Conservative Evangelicals rely on the household code that Paul uses in Ephesians 5.  However, Paul also includes a code for Slaves… Continue reading Do Complementarians have a “slavery problem”?

Is the royal soap opera about certainty rather than drama?

In response to my article about speculation concerning the Royal Family and the Princess of Wales, one question that came back was whether I was sure that the motivation was to create drama and soap opera.   Isn’t it the case that people need certainty in life and without God, they desperately need something to fill… Continue reading Is the royal soap opera about certainty rather than drama?

Make sure that you aren’t gagging God

I’ve joked that in my twenties, the most owned, least read book among my conservative evangelical contemporaries was “The Gagging of God” by Don Carson. It was Carson’s take on the problem with post-modernism/pluralism.  By denying the ability of anyone especially God to speak clearly, truthfully and finally, Carson argued that our world had sought… Continue reading Make sure that you aren’t gagging God