Regular readers of Faithroot.com will have seen my occasional risk assessment and advice posts concerning COVID-19. In summary, my position through the summer has been that churches should seek to move cautiously towards full re-opening. In the short term this would mean Continuing to allow additional capacity to provide extra space for people to meet… Continue reading COVID-19 and the ethics of mask wearing
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John Piper on Jonathan Edwards and the slave trade
John Piper has come in for a little bit of stick for this article on Jonathan Edwards and the slave trade. See the twitter thread below as an example. In Piper’s defence it is worth noting that: His observation that he hadn’t been alert to Edwards’ holding slaves is not about a recent awareness but… Continue reading John Piper on Jonathan Edwards and the slave trade
More on not so obviously useful knowledge
The Education Secretary’s announcement that efforts would be made to encourage Latin in schools has divided opinion. Some people have immediately welcomes this as an important part of raising standards and removing the stigma of Latin as an elitist subject. Others have argued that this is a waste of time, learning a dead language is… Continue reading More on not so obviously useful knowledge
On calling people liars
Last week, MP Dawn Butler was removed from the House of Commons for calling the Prime Minister a liar. “What was the problem with her accusing him of lying?” you may well be asking. Isn’t Mr Johnson notorious for having a questionable relationship with the truth? Hasn’t that been the problem for him so… Continue reading On calling people liars
Use the delay to re-opening wisely
Many of us had pinned our hopes on June 21st being “Freedom Day”and so we may be feeling a little crushed and disappointed at the moment. Of course, the 21/06 was never really the make or break “Freedom Day” that the media had foolishly built it up to be. WE have already substantially unlocked the… Continue reading Use the delay to re-opening wisely
The (church) body keeps the score
I recently referred to the book “The body keeps the score” which talks about how mental health issues and in particular trauma related health is not just in the mind. The physical brain, nervous system and the body are affected by trauma, respond to it and keep score of the damage inflicted. So, I’ve begun… Continue reading The (church) body keeps the score
Finding the right hill to die on in practical pastoral leadership
I’ve been enjoying reading Gavin Ortlund’s “Finding the right hill to die on” about theological triage. The concept of Theological Triage was coined by Al Mohler to describe how Christians go about distinguishing first, second and third order issues. In other words, there are theological issues that are central to the Gospel itself, it is… Continue reading Finding the right hill to die on in practical pastoral leadership
Rivals for Creation (2) Evolution
We’ve looked at some of the ancient myths about the origin of the Universe. Now it’s time to come to the contemporary rival for creation: evolution. Note that there have been significant attempts to harmonise the evolution narrative with the Biblical one, just as there have been serious attempts among scholars to harmonise ancient myths… Continue reading Rivals for Creation (2) Evolution
Cancelled?
Sometimes a story can become about something completely different, it takes a sudden twist and turn. We thought that the story at the start of the week was about Meghan and Harry. Depending upon your overall sympathies, you thought that it was either about an unfair and inappropriate interview and the negative impact on the… Continue reading Cancelled?
Why I’m in favour of COVID Passports (with one essential provision)
The big debate over the past few days has been as to whether or not the Government should allow COVID-19 vaccine passports. In other words, should people be required to supply proof that they have received a vaccine before participating in certain activities. There have been three arguments made against this. The first is a… Continue reading Why I’m in favour of COVID Passports (with one essential provision)
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