It was a great summer: the Jubilee, the London Olympics and my 40th birthday. The weather was not great but our family holiday in Costa Del Kent coincided with the hottest week of the year and my birthday picnic was only slightly dampened by a torrential downpour… But for me, the best week of the year… Continue reading The best thing I did last summer – Lee Abbey Camp 2012
Category: Ethics & Christian living
Why churches manage their staff badly
The other day I was talking with four friends, all of whom are committed to their local churches and also work for Christian organisations. As we chatted, someone shared a situation in their work where a blatantly unjust situation was not being tackled. She outlined the grief it was causing and her frustration about how… Continue reading Why churches manage their staff badly
Learning from those who never got there: what Bonhoeffer and King teach me about reaching 40
Last month, I was 40. It's a time to stand back, to reflect and take stock...and invest in moisturiser. Especially when one of my son's friends thought I was 60! In recent years, two of the biggest influences on me have been the writings and example of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Martin Luther King. In some ways,… Continue reading Learning from those who never got there: what Bonhoeffer and King teach me about reaching 40
‘Everyone can be great, because anyone can serve’
Photo by Hugo Magalhaes on Pexels.com ‘Long before and after Jesus, prophets and philosophers have been trying to reconcile the fullest individuality with the most just community. Greatness of servanthood may have been as good an answer as any ever found. The best woman or man was the one who did the most for the… Continue reading ‘Everyone can be great, because anyone can serve’
Which is more important: what is done on the pavement or what is said on the platform?
Photo by Steve Johnson on Pexels.com When I worked for Shaftesbury - now Livability - helping churches engage in social action, I had a boss who would often challenge our team with this question: was our work making a difference on the pavement or was it more about the platforms of church meetings and conferences? In other words,… Continue reading Which is more important: what is done on the pavement or what is said on the platform?
Sex and the Spa Town
Photo by Marina Zvada on Pexels.com In the last three months two nightclubs in my home town of Leamington Spa have applied for ‘sexual entertainment licences’ that allow them to run strip clubs and other ‘adult entertainment’. With the Green Party and others from across the political spectrum I've been campaigning to stop the licences being granted. Similar… Continue reading Sex and the Spa Town
Should Christians send their children to private schools?
Photo by Patrick Case on Pexels.com The Education Secretary Michael Gove, today gave a speech where he said that the segregation between rich and poor children was ‘morally indefensible’. The Evening Standard tonight quotes his comments at length: "It is remarkable how many of the positions of wealth, influence, celebrity and power in our society… Continue reading Should Christians send their children to private schools?
John Bunyan’s warning to bloggers
Recently I read John Bunyan's classic tale Pilgrim's Progress, published in 1678. Like some of the most powerful Christian writings, for example Martin Luther King's Letter from a Birmingham Jail, Dietrich Bonhoeffer's Letters from Prison and Paul's Letter to the Philippians, it is a book written from a prison cell. What makes it such a brilliant book… Continue reading John Bunyan’s warning to bloggers
The Church has forfeited the right to have a say on gay marriage
For as long as I can remember the church in the UK has treated people who are gay horrifically. We have denied, we have judged, we have excluded, we have hurt, we have silenced. The vicious aggression of the recent banned bus ads doesn't represent the approach of all Christians, but the church as a whole… Continue reading The Church has forfeited the right to have a say on gay marriage
Why I signed the ‘Coalition for Marriage’ Petition – by Lizzie Schofield
Photo by Megapixelstock on Pexels.com A week or so ago I shared a link on Facebook to the Coalition for Marriage Petition. Its aim is to preserve the ‘traditional’ marriage unit of one man and one woman. It’s a cause I support, and many of my Facebook friends oppose. I wanted to write this article… Continue reading Why I signed the ‘Coalition for Marriage’ Petition – by Lizzie Schofield
Grace + Truth 