I could see in her eyes that she was sincere. There was an authentic desire to impart spiritual truth written there. But there was something else, too – a kind of fanatical vehemence that I have come to distrust. Perhaps because I have been there, I know that the zealous are almost always inflated by... Continue Reading →
Where Evangelism Goes Wrong
In recognition of yesterday’s being Pentecost, and because I have been reflecting a lot on the early church lately, I want to talk about evangelism today. It is, in many ways, at the centre of the church’s activities, and indeed should be. Still, as with many of the modern church’s practices, I feel that we... Continue Reading →
Are you spiritually obese?
A culture driven by the need for immediate gratification and convenience will produce citizens who tend to be obese and lazy. Because they never have to exert themselves to have their needs met, they will begin to feel entitled to comfort, and will resent – even see as unnatural – anything that makes them uncomfortable. They... Continue Reading →
Deconstructing Setebos
A truth I regard as an absolute is this: people will always – consciously or not – attempt to shape the world so that it meets their deepest needs. Every person has a set of core assumptions about what the world ought to be like, and we filter all out experiences through these assumptions, and... Continue Reading →
On the Problem of Suffering
I don’t know why I keep doing it to myself. Perhaps it is because I quickly get tired of all the variations on “Shake that booty”, which seem to characterise the contemporary popular music scene. Somehow, when I am driving, out of desperation, I eventually end up turning to the local Christian station, and evidently... Continue Reading →
Talking in Tongues: A Skeptic’s View
I will concede that it is a possibility that my vehemently anti-tongues stance was born out of a couple of negative experiences with charismatic churches. I certainly would be loath to tar all such churches with the same brush or to insinuate that all or even most members of such churches are in any way... Continue Reading →
Hypocrisy: Asking the Right Questions
I need to confess to having a closet interest in Science. Many of the pupils I have taught would be horrified, given how much time I spend in my classes decrying it as the irresponsible obsession with throwing things off cliffs or buildings and timing the descent. But as many flaws as Science has, it... Continue Reading →
Is The Church Losing Its Way?
A colleague of mine, one for whom I have a sincere admiration, recently came back from Iraq, where she went on a mission to provide encouragement to displaced Christians. Ilda’s faith constantly challenges mine. She epitomises for me what true Christianity is about: not just ‘me, my Bible and Jesus’, but a living faith that... Continue Reading →
Vapors In The Wind 