I’ve written a little about Sunday and Sabbath recently. I don’t seem to be the only one talking about the subject. This article takes a different position to me, arguing that Christians are not under an obligation to observe Sunday as Sabbath. Like the author, Luke Plant, I don’t think that the question is of… Continue reading Is the Christian Sabbath unBiblical?
Author: faithrootsdw
How should you make best use of your Theological training?
Australian pastor, Rory Shiner has responded to a variation of this question. He’s specifically given his views on how to spend your last year at theological college. There’s some stuff I agree with in Rory’s comments but there are a few areas I would differ from him on. Perhaps that reflects my starting point which… Continue reading How should you make best use of your Theological training?
Do we understand the middle classes?
There’s been a lot of discussion and debate in recent years about Britain’s class structure. Most of the focus has been on analysing and understanding the phenomenon of a working class in society. This is to some extent for two main reasons. First, that much of the discussion happens in academic circles, and by definition,… Continue reading Do we understand the middle classes?
An excellent church (1 Corinthians 13)
At the end of 1 Corinthians 12, having talked about many of the problems and troubles in Corinth and having given some time to talking about things like gifts and unity, Paul says: “And yet I will show you the most excellent way.” Excellence is something we all crave. Schools covert the “outstanding” status whilst… Continue reading An excellent church (1 Corinthians 13)
How should we talk about the pastor’s role?
I’ve written a couple of articles disagreeing with a particular description of pastoral ministry. First, in response to Tim Suffield, I said “Yes and no” to the statement that as a pastor you don’t have a job. I said both “yes and no” because I agree that there can be particularly unhelpful connotations if we… Continue reading How should we talk about the pastor’s role?
There is more than one way to worship self
Celia Walden in the Daily Telegraph has joined those responding to a recent survey in the Times of CofE clergy. A lot of people have reacted to the survey’s apparent suggestion that churches and vicars should in effect just give up on the faith in order to fit in with society around. Walden particularly focuses… Continue reading There is more than one way to worship self
A Diverse Church (1 Corinthians 12:12-30)
Remember that one of the big problems in Corinth was the rivalry and tribalism among believers. They were in the habit of identifying themselves with particular leaders and seeing their tribe as better than everyone else. The same habit was at risk of infecting their attitude to gifts so that people would see their particular… Continue reading A Diverse Church (1 Corinthians 12:12-30)
How we talk about the pastor’s role matters
Last week, I engaged with Tim Suffield on whether pastors have jobs or not. Someone who engaged more supportively with Tim was John Barach. He tweeted: My response was that this is all sounds very pleasant but isn’t how Scripture describes the call to pastoral ministry. He responded by saying: In our conversation he developed… Continue reading How we talk about the pastor’s role matters
A receiving church (1 Corinthians 12:4-11)
Having discerned that it is God’s Holy Spirit at work and not an evil Spirit, we can move to see what the Spirit is doing and saying. One of the key things that the Holy Spirit does is to give gifts to the Church. Prioritise the giver (v4-6) We can become focused on the gifts… Continue reading A receiving church (1 Corinthians 12:4-11)
911 22 years on
Every September we are reminded of the passage of time as a new school year starts and Sarah realises that the new intake won’t have been alive at key milestones in our lives. If a former generation remember where they were when we put a man on the moon or when JFK was shot, for… Continue reading 911 22 years on
