What was ordinary life like in the first century?

Bruce Longenecker is Professor of Christian Origins and W. W. Melton Chair of Religion at Baylor University, Waco, Texas. He has a long-standing interest in the cultural context of the early Christian movement, and has just published In Stone and Story, an exploration of the Roman world of the first century, and how Christian faith engaged with, … Continue Reading

What is the biblical case for equality between men and women?

I publish here a review by Prof Dorothy Lee of a recent book by Kevin Giles, What the Bible Actually Teaches on Women. It is reproduced with permission from The Melbourne Anglican, February 2020.  This book by Kevin Giles is a biblically based and systematically argued exposure of the theological inadequacies of the so-called “complementarian” position on … Continue Reading

How should Christians clothe themselves?

  Frances Shaw completed a PhD in New Testament at Durham, and has recently published a fascinating book Wearing Well: Exploring the Biblical Imagery of Clothing. I asked her about the book—why she became interested, and what we can learn from the imagery of clothing in the Bible. IP: Clothing is clearly an important aspect of … Continue Reading

Should Christians be ambitious?

Emma Ineson was Chaplain at the Lee Abbey Community in Devon, then Principal of Trinity College Bristol. She is now suffragan bishop of Penrith in Carlisle Diocese, and has just published a book Ambition: what Jesus said about power, success and counting stuff exploring the issues around faith, vocation and the question of ambition. She kindly agreed to … Continue Reading

How do we make sense of the wrath of a loving God?

Kevin Kinghorn is Professor of Philosophy and Religion at Asbury Theological Seminary. He has recently published But What About God’s Wrath? The compelling love story of divine anger with IVP in conjunction with Stephen Travis, and I asked him about the book and the subject. Why is wrath a subject that needs further exploration? In what ways … Continue Reading

How should we treat Old Testament law?

Should Old Testament law be of value to Christians, and if so, in what sense? Dr Carmen Imes is Associate Professor of Old Testament at Prairie College in Alberta, Canada, and did her doctoral research on the understanding of the third Commandment ‘You shall not take the Lord’s name in vain’, published as a monograph … Continue Reading

How do the lives of earlier saints illuminate our path?

Richard Briggs, Director of Biblical Studies and Lecturer in Old Testament at Cranmer Hall, Durham, reviews Rowan Williams’ Luminaries: Twenty Lives that Illuminate the Christian Way (London: SPCK, 2019). In a little under 150 modest pages (small page size, large font), Rowan Williams takes us on a guided tour of 20 people whose lives have something to say to us. … Continue Reading

Am I just my brain?

Phill Sacre offers this review of Sharon Dirckx’s recent book Am I Just my Brain? published by The Good Book Company, 2019. 1. The issue A wise and learned philosopher once said, “We are living in a material world, and I am a material girl”. OK, those were the lyrics to Material Girl by Madonna … Continue Reading