The Archbishop of Canterbury has caused a political stir today with his guest editorial in the New Statesman (text here). Some will argue that he should keep his opinions to himself but I disagree. As a bishop it is right that he should speak about issues which concern wider society; one of the few reasons... Continue Reading →
Why we should support Cameron’s commitment to development aid.
Elements of the media (Mail) have the government’s aid budget in their sights (though not all see Telegraph here). Why at a time of reducing government spending should we ring fence International Aid? The answer is we should do it because it is the right thing to do and, in addition, it is Britain’s national... Continue Reading →
Disappointed, depressed, distressed?
My attention was drawn to a blog (HT Rob Petrini ) by 9marks ‘Don’t make your pastor a statistic’ which suggested the majority of US Pastors were not content in their roles: 70% feel underpaid 70% fight depression 50% feel unable to meet the demands of the job 90% work between 55-75 hours a week.... Continue Reading →
Super injunctions – the law is an ass
Today Sir Fred Goodwin (former head of the Royal Bank of Scotland before the crash) has been named as one of the people who has a super injunction to prevent details about his life been discussed in the media; though anyone who uses the internet as a source for news has known about it for... Continue Reading →
Baptist Times and the internet age
English Baptist readers will know that the Baptist Times has found the last few years hard work financially. The fact they are still here and publishing (with no signs of stopping) is testament to the hard work of the BT team and the benefits they bring to Baptist life. However, athough they have a loyal... Continue Reading →
Politics: I love it
After Thursday's local elections, devolved assembly / parliament elections and the AV referendum it is time to reflect on the political tea-leaves. How will the Liberal Democrats respond to such a bad week? The only option is to keep calm and carry on. They built a record in local government through focusing on doing a... Continue Reading →
Head of Faith and Unity – BUGB job vacancy
With Graham Sparkes moving to Manchester to become the new President of Luther King House the Union is now advertising for his replacement as the head of Faith and Unity. Details here Graham has done a great job and so will be a hard act to follow. But if you can combine a theological reflection,... Continue Reading →
Christians, Internet and responding to Osama Bin Laden’s death
Now back home after the Baptist Assembly I've been catching up on the news and am struck by the way that Christians are responding to Bin Laden's death at the hands of the US military. Within a few hours on Monday my Facebook and Twitter feeds had references to Biblical passages, then later in the... Continue Reading →
Assembly draws to a close
Blogs about events can easily become a list of gripes and congratulations. So for a different approach I thought I would compare it to a regular month at PBC. - Prism. As a church we run ‘Interactive’ on a monthly basis, as an alternative alongside the usual Sunday morning service; the feel is deliberately dynamic... Continue Reading →
Assembly: who is it for?
So far it has been a great Assembly; the weather has been fantastic, the speakers good and the opportunities for meeting up with people plentiful. Yesterday I particularly enjoyed Jeff Lucas who was much better than I remember as a preacher (I know that sounds a bit pompous!) Yet in the midst of this love-in... Continue Reading →
Distinct Reflections 