Both opponents and proponents of assisted dying need to be open about faith presuppositions

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The other day, I responded to Lord Falconer’s complaint that some MPs were bringing their faith into the debate on assisted dying. Today, Esther Rantzen has argued that opponents of assisted dying need to be open about their faith reasons. Well as it happens, I agree with her (kind of). You see, I’ve persistently argued… Continue reading Both opponents and proponents of assisted dying need to be open about faith presuppositions

1 Corinthians 7, marriage, sex, mutual submission and the complementarian/egalitarian debate

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In his book, Men and Women in Christ, Andrew Bartlett begins his Biblical assessment with 1 Corinthians 7.  He goes there before addressing the classic texts in the debate (Ephesians 5, 1 Timothy 2, 1 Corinthians 11 & 14 etc). He comments: “By far the longest and most detailed piece of writing in the New… Continue reading 1 Corinthians 7, marriage, sex, mutual submission and the complementarian/egalitarian debate

Leaving and cleaving: Reflections on questions that don’t seem to get as much attention in the current debate about Anglican futures.

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I posted this question on Facebook the other day Why is the case for evangelicals in the Church of England always put in terms of why they shouldn’t (or even sometimes, should) leave the Church of England and not why they should/shouldn’t join with other Evangelicals? I’m planning to write a bit more about this… Continue reading Leaving and cleaving: Reflections on questions that don’t seem to get as much attention in the current debate about Anglican futures.

Missing the Gospel in a response to the dropping fertility rate

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I was disappointed to read this article in Evangelicals Now about how Christians should respond to a drop in the fertility rate. Now, it certainly is the case that this has declined sharply over the years and that there are some reasons which we might be unhappy to hear. However, I don’t know whether that… Continue reading Missing the Gospel in a response to the dropping fertility rate

How novel is complementarianism?

I’ve responded to this question briefly before in response to claims made on social media that Complementarianism is novel.  I want to return to it again here in response to Andrew Bartlett’s book because one of his starting arguments is that both complementarianism and egalitarianism are novel positions.  Bartlett, offers a necessarily brief survey of… Continue reading How novel is complementarianism?

Who is imposing their religious views?

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The Justice Secretary Shabana Mahood has come out strongly against assisted dying. She has made it known that she has religious views that underpin her position. Lord Falconer who has himself attempted to bring an assisted dying law into force through the House of Lords has complained that people should not impose their religious views… Continue reading Who is imposing their religious views?

Assisted dying bill – why  I’m not signing the EA’s letter

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The Evangelical Alliance have produced a letter signed by some of the key lobbying groups such as Christian Concern etc and invited church leaders to add their names. I won’t be signing the letter and I thought it might be helpful to explain why, especially given that I’ve been trying to get people’s attention in… Continue reading Assisted dying bill – why  I’m not signing the EA’s letter

Why the next Archbishop of Canterbury shouldn’t matter anymore to Evangelicals

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The debate and speculation has now moved on to who the next Archbishop of Canterbury will be. I think the one rule of thumb is that they will probably not be one of the people who have been identified as a potential successor, especially if they are seen to have been maneuvering for the role.… Continue reading Why the next Archbishop of Canterbury shouldn’t matter anymore to Evangelicals

Talking to Andrew: The start (hopefully)of a conversation about complementarianism and egalitarianism

Earlier this week, I shared by review of Andrew Bartlett’s book “Men and Women in Christ.” AS I indicated in the review, I consider this book to be a good representation of a position differing to my own. I suggested that the best complement I could give it and the author would be to engage… Continue reading Talking to Andrew: The start (hopefully)of a conversation about complementarianism and egalitarianism