It's right to challenge Christian ideas of purity but wrong to deny the virgin birth

Some years ago, the BBC chose Christmas time to create a documentary arguing that Jesus was the result of Mary being raped. They did not bother to clarify the sources and only did so when responding to my indignant letter of complaint that, at the one time of year our faith takes centre stage, they felt it appropriate to question some of the most fundamental areas of belief for us – that Jesus, born in human flesh in the brutal and humiliating setting of a lowly stable, was the son of God, born to Mary as a miraculous intervention by almighty God above, beyond and outside of the norms of nature.
The BBC argued to me that, if Jesus were the son of a Roman soldier, or indeed the son of St Joseph, it didn’t necessarily alter his fully divine nature. Except, of course, that it would have, for as St John’s Gospel reminds us during the Christmas lectionary, he came about through the will of God, not the will of the flesh.

Fast forward over a decade, and it’s not the BBC airing such insensitive nonsense, but a man of the cloth: Rev. DR. Giles Fraser, who wrote a robust attack on the virgin birth narrative in his Guardian column this Christmas.

Cinema ban on Lord's Prayer advert is deeply offensive – here's why

I’m just trying to imagine what it might say and who might indeed have written the letter of complaint that the Digital Cinema Media agency expected to receive when it decided to ban in all major cinema groups the screening of a 60-second advert from the Church of England, showing groups of people in different circumstances, praying the Lord’s Prayer – a prayer that believers and non-believers alike will, undoubtedly, know so well from their school days.

Doctors' strike: it's patients who come a distant last

Forget greedy tube drivers striking despite being paid a small fortune and having the kind of holiday entitlement the rest of us can only dream of. Now, it’s one of the most respected groups in society that, under the leadership of militants, is set to strike – junior doctors.

I'd rather be a red Tory than a wet Tory

Every party is a coalition. No party is illustrating that more explicitly at the moment than Labour, though commentators, journalists and politicians alike have ideologically categorised the British Conservative party’s different wings in a lot more detail and with a much wider degree of specificity. I’m the kind of Tory sometimes pejoratively but, I’d like to think, nonetheless affectionately labelled ‘red Tories.’ Others describe themselves as “Ken Clark Tories.” Whatever!

Lords, tax credits and those point-scoring Lib Dems

Confused as to why a debate on tax credits has become one centred on the very British constitution itself? You’re in good company, so here’s a rather excellent guide to help you understand it.
With that out of the way, we should be absolutely clear that if a fatal motion succeeds against the statutory instrument through which the Conservative government seeks to implement its tax credit changes, it will raise serious questions about the political legitimacy of the House of Lords.

This hard-working mother shows us why changes to tax credits are fair

This is the moment a mother-of-4 confronted Tory minister Amber Rudd on the BBC’s Question Time last week, and she turned away in shame.

The equality-obsessed left will never understand grammar schools like poor, bright pupils do

As a Sevenoaks resident, I am simply relieved that the grammar school campaigning has now been put to bed after considerable dithering and delaying on the part of Nicky Morgan, Education Secretary. Today’s announcement might be headline news for most, but for us locals this row has dragged on for years. Notwithstanding the obvious political difficulties of sanctioning the creation of some 450 extra grammar school places, irrespective of whether the school calls itself an ‘annexe’ or not, Morgan dragged this on long enough before doing the right thing.

Conservative Party: an inspiring conference and a vision for the future

The pictures couldn’t have contrasted more. On the one hand Conservatives young and old, smartly dressed, filed in to a packed venue in Manchester. On the other, a mob of spitting, bottle-throwing louts shouting “Tory scum!” One 18 year-old eruditely described on last night’s Question Time how she was called a “paedophile and child murderer” as she attempted to enter the conference. This is the last gasp of a political left that has truly and utterly taken leave of its senses.

Nigel Farage: the last gasp of a desperate, discredited leader

Nigel Farage, who famously resigned and unresigned within days as party leader, is a born showman, but even his speech to the UKIP conference in Doncaster sounded like a broken record that’s seen better days.

Home Mission Sunday: we've forgotten that our lives our our most powerful witness

It was 5 years ago this weekend that the Pope made his visit to Britain and was jubilantly received by British Catholics. Today, it’s Home Mission Sunday – a day to remember the evangelising mission at home in England and Wales. It is my sincere belief that our country is one of the battlegrounds for faith and secularisation, even more than France and other countries you might think of. It’s Britain that is one of the most challenging arenas for the Christian mission.

Corbyn's first PMQs: a joyless spectacle

Jeremy Corbyn’s first performance at Prime Minister’s Questions was bland, boring and uninspiring.

Jeremy Corbyn: the triumph of easy answers, dangerous ideas and the one-party state

There is no sniff of smugness coming from the Tories over yesterday’s victory of Jeremy Corbyn as the new leader of the Labour party. Writing in today’s Telegraph, Michael Gove has written persuasively of his belief that Jeremy Corbyn actually poses a real, serious risk to the security of this country – a line repeated by Michael Fallon and Priti Patel on news programmes yesterday; there will be other voices repeating much the same message from the big guns of the Conservative party.

A society that protects the vulnerable can never allow assisted dying

The challenging subject of assisted dying is once again back on the public agenda, with an all-important debate to take place on Friday in the House of Commons on a private member’s bil tabled by Labour MP Rob Marris.

Cameron is isolated at home and within Europe, he must relent and welcome refugees

David Cameron is, ultimately, a thoroughly decent man. When he muses on the human tragedy that lies behind the ‘migrant crisis,’ it is clear to see that he genuinely means every word and is not playing the part of a politician faking sympathy and sadness to please a public increasingly horrified by the images plastered on its screens and all over the newspapers. But, this good man has a punishing tendency to make life extremely difficult for himself, running scared of the right, Eurosceptic elements of his party, and the kind of Tory voter that would be readily persuaded to switch their support to UKIP, especially in European elections.

Grown-up thinking is required when it comes to the NHS, but don't hold your breath

We really need to have a difficult conversation about the NHS. No, not you and I, dear reader, but as a society. The NHS is rightly praised because it achieves well when it comes to the most difficult balancing act in healthcare: combining quality and access in the right combination.

I'd like to thank our MPs, and I'd like you to join me

Picture the scene. There you lie on your hospital bed, oxygen mask on, drugged up to the eyeballs, with a team of people fussing around you and saying all manner of things you don’t understand. All you know is that it’s serious, and the sense of imminent disaster is palpable. Why? Because you are in Accident and Emergency at St Thomas’ in London, and you are having a heart attack.

I'm sorry ladies, but Labour thinks you're second-best

I’m sorry ladies, but Labour thinks you’re second-best. Yes, that’s right: Labour is the party that has a problem with women.

Ian Duncan Smith wants to know if I'm fit for the workplace, but is the workplace fit for me?

Ian Duncan Smith’s (IDS) one-man mission to get Britain back to work continued apace yesterday when he provoked debate about whether there are individuals who could do some work for their benefits. I applaud his efforts.

I hate cheating, but not as much as a failure to forgive

Originally written for Dear Cupid – the free relationships advice site

IT’s been the story that hasn’t gone away all week. Ashley Madison sent journalists in to a spin trying to access the 9.7 gb of data leaked on to the internet, trying to find any public figures who may be embroiled in the scandal. Suspicious spouses have been trying to get at it, to find out whether their other half has been up to no good. Relate has been rather busy taking calls from scorned women, and the Daily Mail this week reported on the first British case of divorce proceedings being started as a result.

Labour: and so the disaster continues

Labour is now so gripped by paranoia that it’s gone on a purging frenzy so sudden and aggressive that even the most hardened Soviet apparatchik would probably tell this lot to calm down and have a few slugs of Vodka to steady the nerves before continuing to rigorously investigate who gets rejected and whose vote should retrospectively be cancelled.

British education and how I would fix it

In a previous article, I used the BBC’s 3-part documentary series chronicling an experiment in which Chinese teachers took on a class of British kids for a month, to describe the ways in which I believe British education is broken. As the series concluded, we saw that the Chinese teachers, despite battling nothing short of mutiny among their students, achieved results 10% above the rest of the year group in examinations set by an independent research body. It was a slap in the face to the previously uber-confident headmaster Neil Strowger, who predicted the failure of the Chinese school with alacrity. His response summarised everything objectionable about education today.

Dear Labour, you were once a formidible foe

Dear Labour,
My o my. What a pickle you are in. One should not only gently try and guide a friend heading down a calamitous path, but should be generous enough to do so also to a respectable foe, which you have proved over the years.

Sir Edward Heath: a name ruined for nothing

Operation what? Myra Ling-Ling who?
The Ted Heath saga continues as the mystery deepens.

British education and how it is broken

Why has it taken a BBC documentary, and a group of visiting teachers from China to bring their brand of education to Hampshire-based Bohunt School, to show us why our education system is so utterly broken? Why don’t we get it?

Forget DAB: the future of radio is on-line

This week, as debates start about how the BBC starts to live more within its means, discussion returned to the subject of digital radio (DAB), and its potential to replace FM. Some years ago, people thought this would happen by 2010, and DAB would be the standard mechanism through which Britain would listen to the radio. It could even replace FM altogether.

Analysis of Labour leadership debate: a hopeless horror show

On Sunday, the BBC gave the 4 Labour leadership hopefuls the opportunity to compete in a televised debate on Sunday Politics. My view: it’s looking really bleak for Labour.

No decent Tory should play their part in the ruin of Labour

It started as a bit of a joke. It was a hyped but misplaced story planted by a few mischief-makers, but now the Telegraph has published a step by step guide on how to sabotage the Labour party by registering as a supporter, paying a mere £3 and returning a vote for socialist firebrand Jeremy Corbyn.

So complete is our moral collapse that we now have an app for consent

The smart phone has well and truly colonised the dating game. First it was apps like Plenty of Fish, which brought long-standing websites on to the mobile platform.

Then, it was Tinder, the app that lets you decide whether you like or dislike some-one based only on a photo (a fine basis for an introduction). Its developers boldly claim: “It’s like real life, but better.” I certainly hope that’s not true.

Why might Atticus Finch be a racist?

IT is a literary classic, taught to generations of children as a powerful testament to the consequences of bigotry and hatred. But have we got To Kill a Mockingbird all wrong for all these years?

I'm a Christian who welcomes more Sunday trading, and so should the church

Everyone’s been making a lot of fuss this week about Sunday trading. Since Sunday is the day of rest, and I’m going out, I’m writing about it on Saturday, okay?

The Greek pantomime is now truly unbelievable

Here’s the thing they don’t tell you about referendums. When you vote in a referendum, you don’t get a change of government. What that means is this:

The Tories must now hound out the hunting issue

Amid the flurry of excitement that accompanied the budget, yesterday, the announcement by the government of a free vote on changes to the hunting laws got little attention.

This is, perhaps, because people wearily remember 10 years back to the weeks and weeks of parliamentary time this took up. It even resulted in the invocation of the Parliament Act, so controversial it proved.

My memories of 7/7

It is often said that one always remembers what one was doing when something big happens. It’s true. People even now can vividly recall the events of President Kennedy’s assassination.

Though only 7 years of age, I can remember in great detail the day of Princess Diana’s untimely death. The same is true of the terrorist attack 10 years to this day.

Childless by choice: please, stop judging us

Originally written for Dear Cupid – the free advice site.

This morning, as usual, I was perusing the questions on Dear Cupid, when I stumbled across a question from a woman regarding her feelings about not wanting a child. Although I gave a comprehensive answer to the question, it touched a nerve with me, sufficient to make me write my thoughts down in an article.

Greece must leave the Euro. Please, stop this nonsense now

So, the results are in. Surprise surprise, the same Greek populace that elected the left-wing Syriza party, has voted decisively to reject the EU bailout, with some 61% voting no in yesterday’s referendum.

Athens yesterday was the scene of jubilant celebrations, and citizen after citizen rushed to tell a fascinated media that they had voted for such things as ‘standing up’ and ‘freedom.’

Russell Brand misses the point, but on the minute of silence he is on to something

Anarchist sewer mouth Russell Brand has hit out against today’s minute of silence in remembrance of those who perished in the dreadful Tunisian beach massacre last week. In a video on his YouTube channel, he describes it as an “empty gesture,” and “bullshit.” I think he is missing the point, but he might be on to something.

Greece and the folly of the EU

The Greek crisis shines the clearest spotlight yet on how utterly economically unwise this European Union can be.

The thank you note that made my day

I was touched this morning when, through my letter box, arrived an envelope addressed to me, in what my mother described as “beautiful hand writing.” Inside was a note, in the same equally neat writing, expressing thanks for a donation I had made back in April to a locally-based charity.

A victory for gay marriage, but this was no victory for democratic politics

President Obama today said that the ruling of the US Supreme Court which asserts gay marriage as a right under the constitution, therefore legalising it throughout America was “a victory.” A victory for who, exactly?

The Queen spoke of friendship, not politics

It gets my back up when people have a go at the Queen. I’m not out for republicans, only those who can’t show this lady some respect whilst the institution she represents continues to exist.

The Left and the politics of anger

To a Tory crank like me, left-wing politics is a confusing business. Most of my friends and acquaintances, thoroughly decent people indeed, hold left-wing views, but much as I’ve tried, asking questions and carefully listening to the replies, I just don’t get it.

An Islamic awakening: British Muslims take the fight to the extremists

David Cameron has made a controversial speech this afternoon, suggesting that elements of the Muslim community quietly condone Islamic State, the barbaric terrorist organisation that is becoming a global force, as it fights to control territory in the Middle East and attracts fighters from across the world, including this week 3 sisters from Bradford, who fled to Syria with their 9 children, leaving behind their devastated husbands.

Farage's kingdom is falling apart, it's time he abdicated.

If those wishing for a British exit from the EU want to front a decent campaign, they’d better get their act together. Leave it to Nigel Farage, and it’ll be an absolute disaster. Why?

Death: the great taboo

When I read the news on 4 June, I had a strange sense of déjà vu.

Now I know these things happen sometimes, but this sense wasn’t a mere figment of the imagination with all its irrational peculiarities and vagaries. “Will you die in the next 5 years?” The headlines challenged.

We deserve better than this farce of a contest

It’s been a funny old week at West Minster. It began with David Cameron apparently issuing a clear warning to his ministers: back me on the EU, or face the sack.

Yes, alcoholism is a disease, and this debate is pointless

Its depressing predictability in no way reduced the sadness of the news, which emerged at the end of last week, that Charles Kennedy’s untimely death was clearly linked to his on-going struggle with alcoholism.

We are all to blame for Britain's fat kids

I have a little sympathy for 34 year-old unemployed mother Liz Thomson, who has written to the health secretary requesting government support to send her overweight daughter to a 5-week fat camp, at a cost of £4,250, which she cannot afford.

Only an epic battle to shape its future can save Labour

As well they might, the Mail and Telegraph are getting rather excited about Yvette Cooper’s statements today, chiefly that Labour has to articulate a vision for the future, not end up “swallowing the Tory manifesto or looking back to our past.”

It’s believed the reference to the past was a swipe at Andy Burnham, whilst reference to the Tory manifesto is a dig at Liz Kendall, though Ms Cooper didn’t actually say this at all.

Mayor Galloway? Perish the thought

Few political figures can be more revolting than George Galloway.

The former Bradford MP today announced he would stand for Mayor of London 2016, a frightening prospect indeed. Fortunately, it is a prospect that’s as improbable as terrifying.

The Long Road Back for Rome: where next for the Catholic church in the West?

When I think about Ireland, I cannot separate that from thoughts of the Catholic church, a church which, though far from perfect, I love dearly.

I don’t often find, in that most Catholic of countries, more in-depth theological knowledge than that of Catholics elsewhere, or even full agreement with everything the church says and teaches, but a Catholicism routed in everyday lives, with religious references peppering many a conversation.

It’s ingrained, deep in the Irish consciousness. Or is it?