Ian Paul

Ian Paul is a theologian, writer and speaker. Associate Minister at St Nic's, Nottingham and Honorary Lecturer at the University of Nottingham. Mac user and chocoholic. Ian Paul on Google+

Is God a warrior?

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Events of recent weeks offer a serious challenge to our thinking about God and conflict. The video released by the ISIS group of militant Sunni Muslims fighting in Iraq included an British Muslim from Cardiff urging others to join him. In the video he makes three claims: that jihad (understood by some Muslims as a spiritual struggle) … Continue Reading

Work, power and fruitfulness

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Earlier today, I read a blog post which started by mentioning ‘one of the most powerful Christian leaders in the world.’ I don’t think I read much further. What on earth could such a comment mean? I was particularly struck by because of a conversation I had had a couple of weeks earlier. I visited … Continue Reading

Schools, faith and tolerance

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The case of the supposed ‘Trojan Horse’ infiltration of some Birmingham schools by ‘Islamic fundamentalists’ has, of course, generated more heat than light. And it was only a matter of time before the spotlight was turned on Christian ‘fundamentalist’ schools. On Newsnight last night (starting at 26:20 into the programme), Jeremy Paxman introduced the issue by asking: ‘Where does belief end and bigotry begin?’

God and grief

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Tuesday evening. The phone rings. My brother’s voice. ‘Joe’s been killed.’ Three words that change the world. I didn’t know what to say. ‘I don’t know what to say.’ That’s it. Do not go gentle into that good night…Rage, rage against the dying of the light. So wrote Dylan Thomas about his father dying in old … Continue Reading

Why we need feminism

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A recent Grove Ethics booklet, Women, Justice, and the Church: An Apology for Feminism, is a really compelling study by Kate Kirkpatrick from St Clare’s in Oxford. She wants us to move beyond current debates about women in ministry to ask much more fundamental questions about the place of women in society—and in particular to be alert to … Continue Reading

The power of biblical metaphor

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I recently came across a fascinating essay by George Orwell from 1946 on ‘Politics and the English Language.’ Orwell was such a remarkable character, with such insight, that anything he wrote is worth looking at. One of the most important things I did in my whole time in school was to have to read Animal Farm … Continue Reading

Do Christians grow more holy?

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Across the pond, another dispute has arisen and another split taken place, though it has not been much reported beyond narrow interested circles (fortunately). I have to admit to struggling to relate to this kind of debate, so you will need to look elsewhere for a better reporting of it (if you are interested). But it does … Continue Reading

Is baptism enough?

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Anglicans often get into difficulties with baptism. On the one hand, there continues to be a difference of view between those who are happy with the Church’s policy of baptising people of any age (i.e. including infants) and a minority who would take a more Anabaptist position and associate baptism with articulated profession of faith by the … Continue Reading