Faithfulness Matters, Social commentary

Beach-body ready or not, the real winners are the advertising industry

Photo by Nathan Cowley on Pexels.com Protein World’s ‘Are you Beach Body Ready?’ adverts have created a massive row. In among the countless adverts that commuters are pummeled by, these posters immediately struck me as unusually crass and objectionable. So I was not that surprised to see the furore that has developed this week in response.… Continue reading Beach-body ready or not, the real winners are the advertising industry

Social commentary

Making the world a better place, one commuter at a time

Anyone who commutes into central London can bear testimony to the daily struggle it brings. Packed trains, late cancellations and staff specially trained to make announcements as confusing as possible all contribute to the challenges.  My no.1 gripe is passengers who can't be bothered to move further up into the train which means that others can't even get on. Grrrr... This daily… Continue reading Making the world a better place, one commuter at a time

Sport

Pushy parents & competitive dads: when children behave better than adults

Photo by cottonbro studio on Pexels.com Every Saturday, my 10 year old son plays in a football team in a south London league. He is part of a great club, with dedicated coaches and he loves it. It is a very competitive league but over the course of the season, I have seen hardly any aggressive behaviour, bad… Continue reading Pushy parents & competitive dads: when children behave better than adults

Politics

‘He was so nearly a good man’: Tony Blair on Pontius Pilate

Tony Blair's Christian faith is most commonly associated with a comment which was not even made by him. It was Blair's press secretary, Alistair Campbell, who famously said 'We don't do God' due to his concerns about how the language of faith is so easily misconstrued. But, in contrast to the banal nonsense that David… Continue reading ‘He was so nearly a good man’: Tony Blair on Pontius Pilate

Politics

David Cameron’s Easter Message: wrong on so many levels

Photo by Harry Shum on Pexels.com David Cameron has written an Easter message to Christians. It has been published by Premier Christianity as 'an exclusive' which they summarise as 'Prime Minister David Cameron speaks up on the significance of the Christian faith.' Danny Webster, a moderate and sensible commentator on faith in public life, is savage in… Continue reading David Cameron’s Easter Message: wrong on so many levels

Films & music

‘It’s All About Me’: spiritual music to nourish the soul

I am really excited by this album of Christian worship songs that I have just discovered - check out this promotional video. It helps me focus on what is truly important - I would recommend it for anyone, but especially bloggers. Surely nothing could be a better in the week approaching Easter... Note: for those reading… Continue reading ‘It’s All About Me’: spiritual music to nourish the soul

Ethics & Christian living

‘All of humanity’s problems stem from our inability to sit quietly in a room alone’

Photo by Aidan Roof on Pexels.com Blaise Pascal (1623- 1662) was a French philosopher, mathematician, inventor and Christian writer. He wrote about faith in a highly skeptical time, just after the Thirty Years War where Europe had descended into brutality and chaos as Christians killed each other over doctrinal differences. Despite this disastrous religious violence, Pascal argued that the Christian… Continue reading ‘All of humanity’s problems stem from our inability to sit quietly in a room alone’

Politics, Theology

Personal and political: a basis for a more radical theology

1) The relationship between people and society This diagram shows the basic relationship at the core of all sociology: between people and the society in which they live. Each person is an individual who lives within a social environment. This is the way God created life to be, we are social beings made for community. The nature… Continue reading Personal and political: a basis for a more radical theology

Ethics & Christian living

‘Serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference’

Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko on Pexels.com At the church where my work is based, over 200 people come into the building every day  for 12 Step fellowship groups. The most famous of these is Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) but there is also Narcotics Anonymous (NA), Over-eaters Anonymous (OA), Debtors Anonymous (DA) and Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous (SLAA).  … Continue reading ‘Serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference’

Theology

This could Welby ‘the best decision anyone can ever make’

Photo by James Wheeler on Pexels.com Last week I went to a lecture given by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, at Lambeth Palace.  Since becoming the C of E’s top man, Welby has caught the public’s imagination and headlines through his attacks on pay day lenders, his concern for food poverty and his willingness… Continue reading This could Welby ‘the best decision anyone can ever make’