With NHS strikes having been in the news recently, I think it’s good for us to keep stretching our thinking about the issues involved. I’m going to do this over a few articles. My reason for doing so, is that I think Christians should be concerned about what happens in terms of society around us. … Continue reading Starting to think through the UK healthcare crisis from a Christian perspective
Category: ethics
Free from anxieties
In 1 Corinthians 7:29, Paul says “From now on, let those who have wives live as though they had none.” What does he mean by this? Well, we know from the rest of the chapter that he cannot mean either that they should separate from and divorce their wives or that they should commit to… Continue reading Free from anxieties
What do you think about strikes and industrial action?
I’ve been trying to do a little bit of ethical and pastoral thinking around the question of industrial action and strikes recently. Whilst this was a significant issue during the 1970s and 80s, it really slipped down the agenda over the following decades. However, it looks like we are entering a period where we can… Continue reading What do you think about strikes and industrial action?
What does 1 Corinthians 7 actually say about slavery?
In amongst what Paul has to say about singleness, celibacy, abstinence, non-Christian partners and divorce in 1 Corinthians 7, he talks about the situation that slaves find themselves in. Whilst our focus has been understanding the issue of sexual ethics, I want to pause on this particular example because the question of Paul’s attitude to… Continue reading What does 1 Corinthians 7 actually say about slavery?
How do we think Christianly about the junior doctors dispute?
After Easter, Junior Doctors in the NHS went on strike as part of an ongoing dispute concerning pay and working conditions. I appreciate that there will be diverse and passionate views about the strikes among my readers. Those views will reflect personal experience of the NHS, whether or not you personally know junior doctors. My… Continue reading How do we think Christianly about the junior doctors dispute?
What does 1 Corinthians 7 actually say about marriage to unbelievers?
I’m continuing my little series of articles looking at what 1 Corinthians 7 actually says about sexual ethics. Remember that the starting point has been a question about abstinence. Is it a good thing for men to abstain from sexual relations with women? It is In this context that a question comes up about situations… Continue reading What does 1 Corinthians 7 actually say about marriage to unbelievers?
Out of scope? Do your beliefs affect your views on controversial issues like Strike action?
This last week, Junior Doctors have been on Strike over pay and conditions. This is against a backdrop of significant and increasing industrial unrest not seen in the UK since the 1970s and early 80s. We’ve seen teachers, train drivers, bus drivers postmen and nurses take or consider industrial action. More strikes and other forms… Continue reading Out of scope? Do your beliefs affect your views on controversial issues like Strike action?
What does 1 Corinthians 7 actually say about singleness?
Previously I wrote about what 1 Corinthians 7 has to say about marriage and sexual abstinence. The chapter is a key passage for our understanding of relational and sexual ethics in the light of the Gospel touching on marriage, sex, singleness and divorce. It’s often cited but I’m not sure that it is always fully… Continue reading What does 1 Corinthians 7 actually say about singleness?
Why getting our theology around sex and marriage is important but difficult
A few weeks back, controversy erupted around The Gospel Coalition publishing an extract from Josh Butler’s up and coming book, Beautiful Union. Recently, Preston Sprinkle hosted Josh along with Sandy Richter, an OT scholar and Brenna Blain, an advocate for abuse victims on his podcast to discuss the book and the controversy. You can watch… Continue reading Why getting our theology around sex and marriage is important but difficult
Who were the legalists? 1 Corinthians 7 and ascetism
In response to my little series of articles on 1 Corinthians 7 and sexual ethics, I’ve been asked about why I suggest that the Corinthians may have been attempting to take an ascetic route of self denial and abstention which Paul might have had to correct. Surely, the problem in Corinth was the opposite. The… Continue reading Who were the legalists? 1 Corinthians 7 and ascetism
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