culture

Should we fix the date of Easter?

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I don’t really know Nick Holtam, Bishop of Salisbury (he was appointed after I left the diocese), but he appears to have a deep capacity for irony. Apparently he believes that fixing the date of Easter is going to be more complicated than agreeing on the status of same-sex unions: If the Primates of the … Continue Reading

Are we allowed to fear immigration?

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When you wake up to hear that the Archbishop of Canterbury is the lead item on the morning news, then you feel something has either gone very right or something has gone very wrong. That’s what I felt last Friday, and the comments that prompted the headlines were in Justin Welby’s interview with Parliament’s The House magazine. … Continue Reading

Do we ignore biblical teaching on usury?

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It is often claimed that contemporary Christians ignore the biblical teaching that prohibits usury—usually interpreted to mean either lending at interest or lending at excessive interest. This is significant for three main reasons: The suggestion is then made that in other areas of ethical debate (sexuality, divorce, gender relations, the Sabbath principle, other areas of … Continue Reading

The democratic deficit in the EU

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One of the central claims of those supporting leaving the EU is that the current arrangements represent an unacceptable democratic deficit. This is writ large over Boris Johnson’s Telegraph article announcing his support of the Leave vote. Above all, we will be told that whatever the democratic deficiencies, we would be better off remaining in because of … Continue Reading

Why labels are important

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Two years ago, we moved from a rather hideous 1970s breeze block house to a detached Victorian former farmhouse. It has lots of lovely features, one of which is a walk-in pantry off the kitchen. One member of our family (who shall remain nameless) has a thing about Tupperware, so several shelves of this pantry … Continue Reading

The Primates and Public Relations

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In my last post (I hope) on the Primates’ gathering, I want to reflect briefly on what has happened since in terms of public relations. Pete Hobson, Canon Missioner at Leicester Cathedral, commented on Friday last week: So this is the actual final Communique. A clear and strongly-worded challenge to homophobic violence and prejudice. A … Continue Reading

Is our culture biblically literate?

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[Stephen Wright writes:] Rethinking Biblical Literacy is a collection of nine essays from different authors, exploring ways in which the Bible continues to feature in contemporary Western culture. Noting the frequent complaints from interested parties about a ‘decline in biblical literacy’, the authors ask probing questions about what this phrase means and how accurate it … Continue Reading

Just war, theology and bombing Syria

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Discussion about Just War theory and bombing Syria last week mostly focussed on whether or not we should initiate war—though that was a moot point since we have been bombing ISIS in Iraq for more than a year. But it was assumed that we were considering the dimension of jus ad bellum, whether there was a just … Continue Reading

Should we bomb ISIS in Syria?

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I hesitate to comment on this, as the issues are so complex that it seems impossible to offer any clear opinion. But discussion and reflection suggest that we cannot ignore the following points. 1. The British public do not support it The Independent reports research by the Daily Mirror: The survey conducted for the Daily Mirror … Continue Reading

Is the Lord’s Prayer offensive?

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While I have been in the States for the weekend, I gather that back in the UK you’ve been experiencing a little local difficulty in relation to prayer, free speech, and the cinema. Digital Cinema Media (DCM), owned by Cineworld and Odeon and controlling about 80% of cinema advertising, decided not to screen a 60-second … Continue Reading