Isaiah | The politics of love

A fascinating pairing of texts from Isaiah and Philippians, and an invitation to speak on love in a troubled world, from West Preston Baptist Church. (Listen here.)

“Today Christians stand at the head of this country … I pledge that I will never tie myself to those who want to destroy Christianity … We want to fill our culture again with the Christian spirit—we want to burn out all the recent immoral development in literature, theatre, the arts and in the press—in short, we want to burn out the poison of immorality which has entered into our whole life and culture as a result of liberal excess …”

Continue reading “Isaiah | The politics of love” →

Luke | Where God’s word comes

The word of God comes to the one who relinquishes privilege and works for justice. (Listen here.)

Once upon a time, long, long ago, I lived in America. My mother was a pastor, and she had been called as parish minister by the First Baptist Church of the City of Washington, DC. First Baptist had once been Harry Truman’s church, then Jimmy Carter’s. Older members had fond memories of President Carter teaching Sunday School up in the balcony, protected from sniper shots by a vast stone pillar

Continue reading “Luke | Where God’s word comes” →

John | Revelation at Armageddon

Military violence never ends, whereas Jesus’ way of nonretaliation leads to a true and lasting peace. (Listen here.)

To get to Armageddon, known in Hebrew as ‘Megiddo’, we drive past an airfield. Our Israeli guide tells us about the Syrian fighter pilot who defected there in 1989. He was flying a Soviet-made MIG-23. The plane provided Israel with valuable intelligence, adding to what was already one of the most sophisticated military forces on earth.

Continue reading “John | Revelation at Armageddon” →

Mark | The widow’s gift

In a nation living with the legacy of a powerful church, the widow’s gift offers a way forward. (Listen here.)

Many years ago, a student Christian group I knew ran a community lunch in the borrowed hall of a local church. A few had left fundamentalist congregations, and were haunted by vivid depictions of a vengeful God, a burning hell, and a faith built on fear and control. Another had left a church whose senior pastor had unchecked power, and was on a mission to destroy.

Continue reading “Mark | The widow’s gift” →

Matthew | What must I do?

‘What must I do to inherit eternal life?’ the young man asked in Matthew 19. These days, you might hear it phrased as, ‘How do I get into heaven?’ The answers come cascading down. Believe this, live that way, and don’t, whatever you do, act gay. But what was Jesus’ reply? Keep the commandments, more specifically reject murder, rape, theft and lies. Honour elders. Love your neighbours in this world now … Read here.

A reflection on the closure of the School of Indigenous Studies and, by implication, the church in this land more generally, written for Zadok Perspectives one year on from the referendum and featured on the Ethos blog. Image shows graffiti of Aboriginal flag at Camperdown Memorial Rest Park at Wiki Commons. Graffiti artist unknown.

Job | On suffering and shimmering joy

Suffering is indiscriminate, but then again, so is joy. (Listen here).

There is a story in the gospel according to John which begins like this: Jesus was walking along when he saw a man who had been blind from birth. His disciples asked him, ‘Teacher, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’ These days, we’re not quite so quick to blame people for being differently abled or ill. And yet when my mother, Ruth, had multiple sclerosis, I lost count of the number of people who became frustrated, even angry, with her.

Continue reading “Job | On suffering and shimmering joy” →

Genesis | Abraham and the teacher trees

An invitation to connect with the earth. (Listen here).

Down by the river, on a gentle bend, there is a quiet spot. You can rest there awhile and listen to the water rippling. If you turn your gaze to the sky, you will see branches. They corkscrew around, twisting and turning, bending and bowing in response to each other so that every leaf on every branch has its own space. No tree is crowding another, for they are crown-shy.

Continue reading “Genesis | Abraham and the teacher trees” →

Corinthians | Without friction, no fragrance

Some people want church to be a super-comfortable shelter from the world: but without friction, no fragrance! Listen here.

A few weeks ago, I was interviewed on a Christian radio program. When the host asked me about my childhood, I said that it had been church all the way, for which I was (now) incredibly grateful. The host told me he had also grown up in the church and said it was a great blessing ‘having a sheltered upbringing and a peaceful home life and all that sort of thing …’

Continue reading “Corinthians | Without friction, no fragrance” →

Psalms | The Seven Sisters

A reflection inspired by Psalm 19, shared with Flemington Ark People’s Pantry on 15 September 2024. Listen here. Links to further resources below.

There’s an ancient story, the oldest in the world, which many people know. It’s often associated with the people of the desert: the Martu, the Anangu, the Pitjantjatjara, the Yankunytjatjara and Ngaanyatjarra peoples, but others know it, too. It’s a long story, with dozens of different versions and a thousand twists and turns. The characters go by different names in different places, as does the story itself: but sometimes it’s called Kungkarangkalpa: the Seven Sisters. And, very, very, very, very briefly, one version goes like this: Continue reading “Psalms | The Seven Sisters” →

Blog at WordPress.com.

Up ↑