Advent Reflection: Post-Christian Britain now needs a Christian minority fuelled by the audacious hope of the gospel

The recent revelation that the 2021 census revealed Christians to be a minority for the first time really should not have been met with the flurry of news headlines that it was.

Advent Reflection: grief and the Christmas story

Last Sunday was the third Sunday in Advent, known within the church as Gaudete Sunday (rejoice Sunday).

In the chosen reading from Philippians chapter 4 (4-7), Paul writes, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Advent Reflection: saying yes to God

When we read through the Christmas story, what is striking throughout the narrative, pulled together from the gospel accounts of Luke and Matthew, is the constant theme of men and women chosen to play an integral part in the story, saying yes to God, affirming their trust in him.

Advent Reflection: hope in fearful times

This reflection for the first week of Advent will invite you to consider 3 important questions: In what do I hope? On what do I depend? What do I love most?

Living Christian: responding to things our non-religious friends say

 

In this first article exploring the challenges of living our Christian faith today, I want to look at the things our non-religious friends say.

Easter Reflection: the metaphor of light

Written for LinkedIn: view the original here.

 If these were ordinary times, tonight for many Christians would be the Easter vigil service. This takes place between sunset and sunrise the next day, and is the service of anticipation of the resurrection of Christ.

Noah and the great flood: the story of an evil god?

A friend of mine, firm and devout in her Christian faith, asked my view on a tricky moral dilemma, relating to the biblical story of Noah and the great flood.

I found the question so fascinating, and indeed hard to answer myself, that I’ve decided I would rather share it, and the answers I’ve come up with, for anyone interested in Christianity, or simply debates and arguments about religion.

Opponents of abortion need to show people that you don't need God to see why it is wrong

The US state of Alabama has become the latest to pass a bill banning abortions in all cases except where the mother’s life is at serious risk. This is, of course, to be welcomed. Abortion is one of the most grave evils of our day, but it is hard to be an opponent of abortion. I think that is because the topic is so bound up with religion, and opposition to abortion is always assumed to be motivated by religious beliefs, and grounded in religious arguments.

Letter on Good Friday: the limitless love of God

“After this, when Jesus knew that all was now finished, he said (in order to fulfil the scripture), ‘I am thirsty.’ A Jar full of sour wine was standing there. So they put a sponge full of the wine on a branch of hyssop and held it to his mouth. When Jesus had received the wine, he said, ‘It is finished.’ Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.”
(John 19:28-30).

Dear Reader,
Good Friday is, undoubtedly, a difficult day. I have been moved to tears before on this day. It is difficult because we are forced to confront the hardest truth of our Christian faith.

Letter on Sunday: learning from an adulterous woman

This Sunday’s readings are:
Isaiah 43:16-21, Philippians 3:8-14, and the Gospel of John 8:1-11.

Dear Reader,
We all know the story in today's reading from John's gospel, of the woman caught committing adultery, in which Jesus invites whoever is without the first sin to cast the first stone, thereby setting the condemned woman free.