In the month of September, and concluding on the feast of St Francis on October 4, many people focus on creation. A great starting resource for Christians and people of goodwill is the encyclical of Pope Francis, Laudato Si’. For Christians, creation is not merely an academic discussion about evolution or not – it is
Creation Season 2018 Read More »
Last week, the report from the Pennsylvania Grand Jury described the abuse by hundreds of Roman Catholic priests of well over a thousand victims, and the systematic ecclesial covering up of the abuse. This week Pope Francis has responded with a Letter to the People of God (full text). The systemic issue will need more
Pope Calls Roman Catholicism an “Ecclesial Community” because of Abuse Read More »
Pope Francis certainly stirred things up last week by changing the teaching in the Roman Catholic Catechism on the death penalty. It is now inadmissible in all situations. Some saw it as a great distraction from Cardinal Theodore McCarrick bringing the RC Church into the headlines for all the wrong reasons. [Others had tried different
Changing Christian Teaching Read More »
With yesterday’s editorial, Science vs Religion is back in the news: If you based your life around a belief system that includes an account of the world’s creation in one of its founding stories, does that mean you are confusing your beliefs with science? It is a timely question. Contrary to what radical celebrity atheists
Science Versus Religion? Read More »
Hidden in Plain View: Undesigned Coincidences in the Gospels and Acts Paperback – by Lydia McGrew I spotted this (newish) book in the public library and was intrigued by its concept. As its subtitle indicates, the book is looking for “undesigned coincidences” between the Gospels, and also between the Acts of the Apostles and Paul’s
Undesigned Coincidences Read More »
I was recently pointed to a helpful article by The Revd Philip Welsh, a retired priest in the diocese of London. The Church of England has moved from a single worship book (Book of Common Prayer; Alternative Service Book) to a shelf of books with, within each, a raft of options, templates, and patterns. The
There is plenty of debate whether Stephen Hawking believed in God or not. He used the word ‘God’ and spoke about explaining the universe as glimpsing ‘the mind of God’. But he didn’t use the word ‘God’ in the sense of a ‘guy in the sky’ – which is the way a lot of religious
Stephen Hawking Meets God Read More »
Fashion designers (and their supporting media), of course, want the focus of The Wedding to be on the dress. But, those watching The Wedding went from the dress to the preacher… and (I don’t think it is simply because I’m a priest) there continues to be a high focus on THAT sermon. And the preacher.
Preaching at The Wedding Read More »
No sooner had I written about the McCrindle report on Faith and Belief in Australia, and my hope that there might be similar report – including on New Zealand – and a reply to my post promised me NZ’s version on Friday 18 May. And here it is. The full report. A handy infographic. 16%
What Prevents New Zealanders Being Christians? Read More »
There’s a lot of heat being generated in Downunder Australasia with a Bible verse being bandied around by everyone from sports heroes to journalists saying that homosexuals will go to hell. But, what if the Bible verse they so casually quote doesn’t mention homosexuals at all? Are the journalists actually doing their job responsibly? Where
Bringing Some Balance to Israel Folau’s Reading about Homosexuals Read More »
