Some high profile cases of asylum seekers who have processed Christian faith and then gone on to commit serious offences have been used by politicians to question the genuiness of claims and to accuse the Church of complicity. In the light if this Tim Dieppe of Christian concern has written and suggested that a high… Continue reading Criminals, converts and asylum
Category: ethics
Should pastors let people know their political position?
I asked two questions on Twitter, the first was about whether pastors/elders should declare their political allegiance in terms of party. The second question was related but slightly different. It asked whether or not pastors/elders should express their political views. In both cases, the majority of those responding indicated that they thought that pastors should… Continue reading Should pastors let people know their political position?
Should we have locked down? And should the church have co-operated?
One of the big questions throughout COVID and since is whether or not lockdowns were the right response to the pandemic. It is important to distinguish lockdown scepticism from COVID-scepticism. Although many who were against lockdown were also sceptical about the threat from the virus, it was possible to be wary of the Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions… Continue reading Should we have locked down? And should the church have co-operated?
Cowardice, sin? Does the church need to repent over COVID?
We are now 4 years on from the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and 2 and a half years on from the full re-opening of life in the UK which effectively marked its end. The UK have been holding a public inquiry to learn lessons from the pandemic and some Christians have been encouraging the… Continue reading Cowardice, sin? Does the church need to repent over COVID?
Questioning authority
One of the questions that came up during the COVID-19 pandemic and has continued to be debated since has been over the extent to which the church should have complied with Government guidance and regulations. To some extent, the debate was about the extent to which Romans 13 and 1 Peter 2 applied in terms… Continue reading Questioning authority
Who is in the room and how does that shape the conversation?
I was reflecting further on the recent “Lesson learnt” Symposium on the Church and COVID and it struck me that one of the main lessons presented to us was unstated but highly visual for those who had eyes to see. You see, as I looked at my fellow panellists and as I watched the feed… Continue reading Who is in the room and how does that shape the conversation?
Embodied or virtual?
I would like to return to one of the big questions from the pandemic. What is embodied worship and does it really matter? As I wrote recently, there seemed to be an assumption in debates that there were those who cared passionately about Scripture’s injunctions to gather or assemble for worship, who believed that this… Continue reading Embodied or virtual?
The COVID inquiry should have been narrower and more focused … here is why
I’m not sure that the current COVID public inquiry in the UK is proving to be very useful. So far, we seem to have discovered the following big pieces of information. I say “seem to …” because I suspect that like me you are thinking “but we knew that already.” AS I’ve commented previously, the… Continue reading The COVID inquiry should have been narrower and more focused … here is why
Divorce and Re-marriage
One of the big questions I’ve been asked frequently is what the Bible teaches about divorce and what the implications are for divorced believers. This paper surveys the different approaches taken and offers some practical advice.
COVID, Judgement and letting God disagree with you
One of the questions that came up during the COVID-19 pandemic was whether or not the pandemic was an act of judgement from God. Some people suggested that God was judging particular countries such as the US and UK, others argued that we could at least see God using the pandemic to speak to, challenge… Continue reading COVID, Judgement and letting God disagree with you
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