So, the Prime Minister has announced the roadmap route out of lockdown, arguing that it is a cautious route but hopefully irreversible. Much of what he said had already been leaked in advance and that’s something we keep saying needs to change but is unlikely to. The leaking of actual measures was not helped by… Continue reading One step forward? Let’s hope it’s not two back
Category: Opinion
Is it too early to come out of lockdown?
Understandably, there is still some nervousness about whether or not we should be coming out of the current lockdown just yet or whether it is too soon. I thought it might be helpful to have a look at the available data. The key information is as follows. First of all, the rolling 7 day average… Continue reading Is it too early to come out of lockdown?
Confronting abuse in the church – reforming towards a culture of grace
I’ve written from time to time about the issues of bullying and abuse within the church. That is because recent serious scandals relating to high profile leaders that include sexual, emotional and physical abuse, and sadly the accompanying failure of the church to deal with such issues over many years raise challenges about church culture. … Continue reading Confronting abuse in the church – reforming towards a culture of grace
Long COVID and long lockdown
A number of people have reported long term symptoms after suffering from COVID-19. This has led to the term “long COVID” being coined. The symptoms observed include:[1] extreme tiredness (fatigue) shortness of breath chest pain or tightness problems with memory and concentration (“brain fog”) difficulty sleeping (insomnia) heart palpitations dizziness pins and needles joint pain… Continue reading Long COVID and long lockdown
We need a way out of costly social distancing measures, not just lockdown (open letter to Boris Johnson)
Dear Boris, I’ve written open letters to you throughout the pandemic. As we approach the end of what we all hope will be the last lockdown, I want to write to you again concerning some of the rumours and hints that are currently going around. Over the past few weeks, the narrative has built up… Continue reading We need a way out of costly social distancing measures, not just lockdown (open letter to Boris Johnson)
If RZIM is truly repentant then they need to disband
No parachurch organisation can presume that it will be permanently around. Indeed, even local churches cannot make that assumption according to the first few chapters of Revelation. Too often, institutions have focused on protecting their own reputation over and above the priorities of The honour and glory of Christ The Gospel Those who have been… Continue reading If RZIM is truly repentant then they need to disband
When the situation is complex, keep the Comms simple
I remember someone at the start of the pandemic who was in the know (genuinely in the know, not someone who knew a friend of a friend), sharing at a briefing to church leaders that when the Government said it was following the science, this included behavioural scientists. My initial reaction to that was “uh… Continue reading When the situation is complex, keep the Comms simple
When the pagans call us to prayer
Steve Kneale has written here with a typically robust response to the Archbishop of York’s call for a national day of prayer. In his article Steve rightly highlights the problems with such calls, that there is something peculiar about calling people to pray to a God that you do not believe in and that when… Continue reading When the pagans call us to prayer
Censorship, criticism and editing
Well, that’s twice in a row now! On two separate occasions I’ve been accused of trying to get someone censored. The first was when I challenged David Robertson’s Premier Christianity article about Donald Trump’s twitter account being suspended. The second follows my suggestions for a bit of editing to an article by John Benton for… Continue reading Censorship, criticism and editing
The problem with porous boundaries
I’ve argued throughout COVID-19 that in a pandemic compliance and non-compliance matters. The nature of non-compliance is important too. It is actually better to have a self-contained 10% of the population failing to comply if the other 90% are complying at 100%. However, if 100% of the population comply with 90% of the measures or… Continue reading The problem with porous boundaries
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