This is kind of a postscript or P.S following my two articles on Evangelical futures. There’s a further PPS to come in a few days where I want to talk about the positive aspects of Australian/Sydney Anglican influence on UK Evangelicalism. In this article I want to talk about two linked things that primarily are… Continue reading A genuine grace saturated culture? Don’t lose the challenge
Tag: Jonathan Fletcher
John Mark and the question of restoring fallen and abusive leaders
Here is this week’s podcast Audio Video
Sue Gray’s Report, Party Gate and church culture
We now have the Sue Gray report (or at least a heavily redacted version) available to read giving us a little bit more of an insight into Downing Street life and culture during the pandemic. One question that has come up as we’ve awaited Gray’s findings has been about the rights and wrongs of the… Continue reading Sue Gray’s Report, Party Gate and church culture
Our responsibility when there are accusations of abuse and bullying
Today I’m attending an online conference organised by Church As Refuge. The organisers want to encourage pastors and church leaders to think about how we make churches safe and welcoming refuges for victims of abuse. However, the context is also that sadly we have seen too many cases of abuse within the church. We’ve seen… Continue reading Our responsibility when there are accusations of abuse and bullying
Trauma, grief and response to abuse
Over the past few years, I’ve written and spoken quite a bit about the problem of abusive cultures particularly in the context of church life. First of all, my concern is to see us doing better in letting what we believe affect how we live so that doctrines of grace lead to cultures of grace.… Continue reading Trauma, grief and response to abuse
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
The Guilt Driven Church or the Grace Saturated Church?
Over the next few days we’ve something a little different on #TheDailyDose . I’m taking a break from working through a book in order to look at a mini topical series. Over the past few months, we’ve been challenged following the Fletcher, Smyth and Timmis scandals to look at our church culture. What kind of… Continue reading The Guilt Driven Church or the Grace Saturated Church?
Scandalised
One of the really sad things about recent abuse scandals in the church is the way they mirror some of the horrific things we see in the world around us. We should be able to respond and to offer something that is beautifully counter cultural. Yet instead, we are seen to ape some of the… Continue reading Scandalised
Responding to the abuse reports -what next?
We’ve been hit hard by a series of reports and investigations into abuse and bullying over the past few month including Acts29 and Steve Timmis, RZIM, John Smyth and Jonathan Fletcher. The response has been intense and emotional. It’s included a lot of good, helpful and right things Deep probing questioning as people have wanted… Continue reading Responding to the abuse reports -what next?
From the shadows
The Roys Report is a podcast run by Julie Roys with a particular focus on bringing abusive behaviour in the church into the light. Julie is doing an important job but even still she has a responsibility to get things right. I was among a few people who questioned her reporting of the Jonathan Fletcher… Continue reading From the shadows
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