Back the other week, I was talking to some Evangelical Anglicans about the state of the CofE. I explained to them the problem. With their “stay in” strategy that it leads to people thinking they have to stay when their evangelical vicar is inevitably replaced with a liberal. One response was to the effect that… Continue reading The deficient shepherd culture
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Anti-Zionism, crowd safety -myths and the Maccabi Tel Aviv fan ban
In this article, I want to deal with two types of response to the Aston Villa decision to ban away fans for their game against Maccabi Tel Aviv. I’m dealing specifically with those responses here. I believe that the original decision was wrong, gives space to and rewards antisemitism but I’m happy to believe that… Continue reading Anti-Zionism, crowd safety -myths and the Maccabi Tel Aviv fan ban
More discussion on ministry pathways and training
Evangelicals Now have published two articles on ministry pathways and training recently. There’s this one by Clive Bowsher, Provost at Union School of Theology and this one by Carrie Sandom of the Proclamation Trust. Each article offers some helpful thoughts and reflection but also there are questions I would like to ask and challenges to… Continue reading More discussion on ministry pathways and training
More thoughts on the football fan ban
Since the decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from their game with Aston Villa, there has been much debate online. Some people have reacted strongly against the decision and even gone further, demanding that the communities in Birmingham linked to petitions and protests against the fans coming be deported. I’ve responded to that argument… Continue reading More thoughts on the football fan ban
Training and practice for worship leaders and teams
A lot of attention when it comes to both training people as worship leaders and when it comes to preparing and practicing as worship teams goes into making sure that the music is technically on point. That matters of course. The best thing that musicians can do to serve our corporate worship is ensure that… Continue reading Training and practice for worship leaders and teams
A shout out for Oldham Bethel
My friend, Steve Kneale, has written here about what his church in Oldham need. In short, Oldham Bethel have seen a lot of Gospel engagement and significant fruit in recent years. I suspect that if it fitted the right image, what is happening there would be described by some people as revival. I’m.not going to… Continue reading A shout out for Oldham Bethel
Please don’t play their game
I live what counts to me as walking distance of the Aston Villa football ground. It’s actually 50 minutes walk away from the ground. Where I currently live is predominantly but not exclusively white working class. However the next few streets along are increasingly Asian and whilst there is a Sikh Gudwara just round the… Continue reading Please don’t play their game
Why do I call ethno-cultural nationalism “idolatry”
I’ve stated previously that what we are terming “ethno-cultural nationalism” is idolatry, that it presents us with a false god and a false gospel. This is perhaps where I’ve had most push back and where I think other Christians, even those criticising marches and demos have been reluctant to tread. I’ve reflected in recent days,… Continue reading Why do I call ethno-cultural nationalism “idolatry”
When antisemitism went to the football (responding to the ban on away supporters for Aston Villa v Maccabi Tel Aviv
Aston Villa have announced that no away supporters will be permitted to attend their Europa league game with Israeli team, Maccabi Tel Aviv on the 6th November. The reasons given are that this is the Safety Advisory Group’s decision following advice from the police that they were concerned about potential safety concerns and their ability… Continue reading When antisemitism went to the football (responding to the ban on away supporters for Aston Villa v Maccabi Tel Aviv
Is there really a big problem with what Tommy Robinson says?
On the 13th September, a number of professing Christians, identifying as “Patriot Pastors” joined the Unite the Kingdom rally organised by Tommy Robinson with some participating from the platform. When other Christians have raised concerns about this, we received a lot of push back. Initially we told that these people were simply joining the rally… Continue reading Is there really a big problem with what Tommy Robinson says?
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