The Green Captivity of the Church
Even as I pressed the send button I knew it was a risky moment. And so it proved to be. As soon as the article was published on a Christian website, there […]
The Bad Bishop and the Good Story
When I read the article about Bishop Rod Chiswell in The Australian, I knew nothing of him. If I believed the article I would have thought that he was at best […]
The Final Stone
The Australian Magazine of 9-10 October 2021 had a fierce anti-Church story cleverly entitled The First Stone. It had everything – good writing, beautiful photographs, human drama, emotion, an evil bishop and the […]
The Threat to Australia’s Women
It was an unusual event. At the height of Germaine Greer’s power and influence, the debating society of the University of Edinburgh held a debate for secondary school pupils who […]
The Tiger who came to Tea, and the Opera House that’s all at Sea
Have you read The Tiger Who Came to Tea – the well-known children’s book by Judith Kerr? It’s about a tiger who comes to visit little Sophie in her home, eats all her […]
Learning from Culture: A review of John Dickson, Bullies and Saints (Zondervan 2021), part 3
Introduction: Traditional book reviews normally say how wonderful the book is, especially if you know the author. They also tend to be short. These reviews, of which this is the last, are […]
Learning from Theology: A review of John Dickson, Bullies and Saints (Zondervan 2021), Part 2.
Introduction: Bullies and Saints is a church history book, and, as we saw In part 1 https://ap.org.au/2021/07/28/learning-from-history-a-review-of-john-dickson-bullies-and-saints-zondervan-2021-part-1/ it is an excellent church history book. In part 2 I want to consider the theological questions […]
Learning from History: A review of John Dickson, Bullies and Saints (Zondervan, 2021): Part 1
Introduction: John Dickson’s latest book is subtitled “An honest look at the good and evil of Christian history”. It has deservedly already received much praise. (It’s a small point but I don’t […]
Laura Tingle and The Twitterisation of Civic Society
This week I was reminded of just what a cesspit Twitter is. So what? Those of you who are on Twitter or know it, will be well aware of what […]
Are you more Likely to be Abused as an Anglican?
It is an interview I will never forget. In my mid 20’s I was just a couple of years into my ministry in the Scottish Highlands when a young woman […]
Welcome to the Sexual Counter Reformation
One of the traps we fall into as Christians responding to the chaos in today’s culture is that sometimes we do not see the wood for the trees. So we […]
TikTok Evangelism
TikTok is a fascinating phenomenon. In the world of social media, we have YouTube for videos, Instagram for photos, Facebook for connection, Twitter for argument and now, the new kid […]
Is Scott Morrison the Christian Prime Minister?
What’s wrong with Scott Morrison? Kevin Rudd is attacking him. The Guardian is attacking him. The SMH and ABC are attacking him. Social media are attacking him. Comedians sneer and […]
Do Muslims and Christians Worship the Same God?
The woman in the hijab was surprised. She approached me after a Muslim/Christian debate and asked if she could talk to me. I jokingly asked if her husband was present […]
Martyn Iles and the Opportunity of the Tweets of Prejudice
Last week’s article on Martyn Iles was already too long before we started dealing with one of the most fascinating aspects of the whole programme – the tweets that the […]
Martyn Iles, Q and A and what it tells us about Australia today
The Sydney Morning Herald thought this week’s Q and A was a significant cultural moment – so who are we to disagree?! They compared it with another one in 2008 […]