Is the EU the ‘greatest human dream realised’?

Last Sunday the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, addressed the General Assembly of the Conference of European Churches (CEC) in Serbia, on the issue of continuing Christian witness in Europe. In his talk, he gives a brief overview of the history of Christianity in Europe, and makes some important observations about the role of Christian churches … Continue Reading

Was Jesus funny?

For some time, I have been intrigued by the question of whether Jesus was funny. In his teaching, did he tell what we might call jokes, and did his listeners find themselves laughing when they listened to him? There are many prima facie reasons why we might suppose Jesus was funny. If Jesus was fully human—indeed, … Continue Reading

Did Jesus want a fresh expression of Israel?

A couple of weeks ago, Angela Tilby (retired Canon of Christchurch Cathedral, Oxford) unleashed a peculiar diatribe against the upcoming prayer initiative Thy Kingdom Come, complaining that it was tantamount to an ‘evangelical takeover’ of the Church of England. The movement itself is interesting, in that I understand it to have been the personal initiative of … Continue Reading

Is there ‘new evidence’ of women in the Jesus movement?

I have just enjoyed watching Helen Bond and Joan Taylor presenting the Channel 4 programme ‘Jesus’ Female Disciples: The New Evidence’ (which you can watch on demand if you missed it). Both are widely respected professors in the academic community around New Testament studies, Helen at Edinburgh and Joan at King’s College, London. Joan has … Continue Reading

Should we believe in hell?

Last week the Pope garnered some unwanted press coverage (unwanted especially during Holy Week) when it was claimed that he had denied the existence of hell as a place of conscious punishment for the wicked. The words were reported in an Italian daily publication La Repubblica by its founder, Eugenio Scalfari, a 93-year-old atheist who … Continue Reading