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James Cawdell writes: In today’s world, we often find ourselves caught between two cultural poles when it comes to power: one that celebrates dominance and control (often caricatured as the ‘red pill’ mindset); and another that views all power as inherently oppressive, associated with so-called ‘social Marxism’. Christianity, however, has never sat comfortably with either. … Continue Reading
Andrew Goddard writes: Sometime this week those tasked with nominating a new Archbishop of Canterbury will be meeting for the first of at least three scheduled meetings (the next are in July and September). It is most likely that the person chosen will be a current (likely diocesan) bishop serving in the Church of England … Continue Reading
John Smith writes: My wife sent me a text message a few months ago: ‘Could this be a possibility?’ Attached was an advertisement for a teaching post at a theological college. She thought that here was an opportunity, in that the college was giving preference to candidates who were female, from a non-white ethnic background, … Continue Reading
Dear Stephen In our working relationship, I have always sought to be open and honest with you. I have also always sought to follow Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 18: if you have an issue with a brother, go to him first privately, and only if he will not listen should you then go to others, … Continue Reading
The NT epistle for Epiphany 3 in this year C continues reading 1 Cor 12.12–31a. Here, Paul expands his themes of unity and diversity of ministry, but shifts the register from ‘gifts of the Spirit’ to ‘members of the body’. In doing so, he makes surprising use of an existing metaphor from ancient politics, but … Continue Reading
I wrote a first version of this article (revised in the light of comments) five years ago, in response to people posting online the list on the right. Surprisingly, this is still being reposted as an expression of New Year’s resolutions. When I gently challenging it, one friend said that it is a good antidote … Continue Reading
Andrew Goddard writes: This article, building on my earlier account, explores issues surrounding this week’s public meeting of the House of Bishops to consider the Crown Nominations Commission’s (CNC) discernment process for diocesan bishops. Although that meeting was welcomingly transparent, the discernment processes leading to the proposals supported by it were much less so. Four areas … Continue Reading
Not everything was bad at the session of General Synod last weekend. When someone asked me how I was, I replied ‘I feel like the violinist in the orchestra on the Titanic. The music is going very well!’ There was an important discussion about ‘rest periods for office holders’ (C of E language for vicars … Continue Reading
Andrew Goddard writes: Yesterday, the latest proposal as to the way forward in relation to Living in Love and Faith (LLF) appeared in the form of GS 2358, to be added to all the previous General Synod papers since January 2023. This 31-page paper provides the motion (p. 17) the House of Bishops will be … Continue Reading
Andrew Goddard writes: A new article by the Lead Bishop for LLF, Martyn Snow, offers some promising signals as to how the LLF “reset” is progressing, particularly in relation to the importance of doctrine and its relationship to the form of our unity, but it also leaves major questions unanswered. The following article explores six … Continue Reading
Summary Reviewing the development of Prayers of Love and Faith (PLF) reveals that it demonstrates an even more serious ‘PLF’ problem, one that is evident in other areas of church life as well: Persistent Leadership Failure. It first traces this failure back to the rushed origins of PLF in late 2022 and early 2023. These … Continue Reading
Ian Paul: theologian, author, speaker, academic consultant. Associate Senior Research Fellow, Kirby Laing Centre for Public Theology; Associate Minister, St Nic's, Nottingham; Managing Editor, Grove Books; member of General Synod and Archbishops' Council. Mac user; chocoholic. Tweets at @psephizo
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Gospel commentary index Lectionary Year A
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