hope

Inclusion and exclusion in Luke 13

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Sunday’s lectionary reading from the gospels is Luke 13.31–35, and once again the lectionary does us something of a disservice by cutting this short passage off from its surrounding narrative. That is not such a problem in relation to what follows, since Luke begins chapter 14 with a clear narrative break, ‘And it happened, he … Continue Reading

How Can Christians Think Hopefully about the Future at the Present Time of Crisis?

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Tim Howles writes: The French, would you believe, have two words for “the future”. The first is “l’avenir”. This word describes the sort of situation that would likely pertain were things to progress along the trajectory that is currently established. It’s the word we might use, for example, to celebrate the prospects of a young couple … Continue Reading

Living in Hope? The Church of England’s ‘Living in Love and Faith’ project on sexuality

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Andrew Atherstone writes: Evangelical friends have challenged me to give an account for my participation in the Living in Love and Faith project (LLF), which is currently advising the House of Bishops on ‘human identity, sexuality and marriage’. After 18 months spent discussing academic papers in four work streams (Bible, Doctrine, History, Science), the report drafting has … Continue Reading

How often should we be fasting?

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As we being the season of Lent, traditionally a period of discipline and denial, the subject of fasting naturally comes up. But before we think about fasting for ourselves, we need to ask: How often did Jesus and the first generation of his followers fast? Was it an occasional thing, focused on specific events or … Continue Reading

Facing death with courage and hope

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Benny Hazlehurst was raised in a liberal High Anglican family, but came to evangelical faith in his teens. He trained at Trinity College, Bristol before ordination, and a serious of encounters with gay Christians led him to change his view on the Church’s teaching on same-sex relationships, out of which he founded Accepting Evangelicals. Our … Continue Reading

Who was the first Immanuel?

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Richard Goode writes: The name Immanuel can be found in Matthew’s account of Jesus’ birth (Matt 1:23). Joseph has just learnt that, although they were still unmarried and before “they lived together” (sunelthein – lit. ‘come together’), Mary has been found to be pregnant (1:18). Matthew’s readers would have known that a circumstance like this placed … Continue Reading

What can we preach in moments of crisis?

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There are moments in life when everything suddenly stands still—moments when an item of news or something we have witnessed changes everything in us and around us for the worse, perhaps for a short time, perhaps forever. Some of these moments are inevitable, yet are still traumatic, such as illness and death, and others are … Continue Reading

What does it take to reimagine Britain?

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Justin Welby had already left a significant legacy from the first half of his tenure as Archbishop of Canterbury. The swift resolution to the inherited crisis of finding a workable settlement in relation to women bishops; the instigation of the Renewal and Reform programme; reorienting the Church’s administration and finances towards mission; the re-estalishment of … Continue Reading