Category: Uncategorized

In the face of climate change – what is our greatest need?

This week, world leaders have flown into Glasgow for the COP26 summit on the environment and combatting climate change. Two Christian responses to the summit raise some questions and challenges, First of all, a church in Glasgow responded by displaying this banner saying The World’s most urgent need is churches preaching Christ crucified, not climate… Continue reading In the face of climate change – what is our greatest need?

vaccine hesitancy and vaccine denial

Back in 2011 we were looking at the possibility of moving to two Sunday morning congregations. I’d personally been convinced by the passionate persuasion of a couple of leaders, however there were still some members that were unsure and some that were outright opposed. At one point I was even accused of personally seeking to… Continue reading vaccine hesitancy and vaccine denial

How Theological College helped prepare me for Gospel ministry

Originally posted on Faithroots:
I’m republishing some articles I wrote a little while back about training for urban ministry. I want to share a few thoughts here about the positives of formal theological education and why I recommend it.[1]? There’s a temptation to see training as primarily academic and therefore irrelevant to the day to…

escaping the (and avoiding a future) fuel crisis

What seemed to spark the fuel  crisis over the weekend was some choice statements from the petroleum industry and road hauliers with leaks and briefings to the media. Over the past 18 months we’ve noticed particular hiccups in the general supply chain and these appear to have intensified over the past few weeks. As I… Continue reading escaping the (and avoiding a future) fuel crisis

Reforming Theological Training

Originally posted on Faithroots:
This is an article from my previous blog that I wanted to reschedule to keep focus on this priority People who know me well will know that I have a particular concern for encouraging good quality theologically training, especially when it comes to potential pastors and planters in urban contexts. To…

The righteous neighbour

Reflecting on the parable of the Good Samaritan the other day, I was struck by one particular thought. I’m not saying that this is the only, central or primary point -just something of interest.  For the man seeking to justify himself (prove his own self-righteousness), the question “who is my neighbour” was crucial. Now actually,… Continue reading The righteous neighbour

COVID-19 and the ethics of mask wearing

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