Why I felt sick watching ‘AI Jesus’

“Whatever their motives and whatever they meant to do, it comes out as next-level stupidity and holding Jesus up as a joke.

I actually felt sick watching it, to see the saviour of the world, the greatest figure in human history, being portrayed like this. …”

– At SydneyAnglicans.net, Russell Powell describes his reaction to the ‘AI Jesus’, and shares some positive things you can do.

Euthanasia in Canada. MAiD in hell?

“More people are being euthanised in Canada than anywhere else in the world. In the last official report, for 2022, 10,064 people died through what Canadians call ‘medical assistance in dying’ (MAiD). …”

– Michael Cook writes at Mercator. Link via Anglican Mainstream.

I am now a Culture Warrior

“‘I was wrong’.  This is not a phrase I use a lot!  At least when it comes to major subjects.   Over the years I have been aware of significant changes in thinking that have had an enormous practical impact for me – baptism, Calvinism, the European Union, socialism, worship and environmentalism being the main ones I can think of.  Recently I have been forced to change my view on the question of culture wars.

I often used to say that I did not want to get involved in culture wars and that it would be a mistake for the Church to do so.  Recently I have been compelled to rethink.  The trouble is that the term ‘culture wars’ is itself a product of the culture wars.  Here in Australia, we look askance at some of the culture wars that are going on in the US, and most of us want nothing to do with them.  It is a negative term associated with white nationalism, Donald Trump and Tucker Carlson,  and suggests that Christians are some kind of political force whose mission in life is to combat the Left.  No thanks.  We want to influence the culture, to win the culture,  not to fight it.  Besides which if we engage in culture wars then won’t we alienate people from the Church and the message of the Gospel?  Doesn’t the Scripture itself tells us that our weapons are not the weapons of this world? …”

– David Robertson writes compellingly at AP, the national journal of the Presbyterian Church.

Related:

Tucker Carlson reads the Bible. (Not the Bee)

The trans culture wars vs lovingly pastoring gender incongruent church members – with Rob Smith

Is taking over Calvary Hospital a religious freedom breach?

“There has been a lot of controversy around the recent decision of the ACT government to compulsorily acquire Canberra’s Calvary Hospital.

One question that is worth asking is this: could this move be an unlawful breach of religious freedom rights? In this post I want to consider the possibilities. …”

– At Law and Religion Australia, Associate Professor Neil Foster suggests some avenues which could be explored.

Image: Diocese of Sydney.

Ban Sports Bet Ads ASAP — Dean of Sydney

“Long-time campaigner for poker machine reform, the Dean of Sydney, Sandy Grant, has welcomed a unanimous report from federal Parliament, “You Win Some, You Lose More”.

From St Andrew’s Cathedral Sydney, Dean Grant said …”

– Read last week’s full Media Release at the Cathedral website.

A missed golden opportunity

David Robertson takes a look at Archbishop Welby’s sermon at last week’s Coronation:

“In the grandeur of the setting and the glory of the occasion, it was easy to think that we were being told something profound, but if you stopped to think about it there was little challenge, little to stimulate and little to point us to Christ, rather than Charles. …”

– Read it all here.

A theological and missional review of the Coronation – with Mark Earngey, Brett Murphy and Sandy Grant

From The Pastor’s Heart:

“After Queen Elizabeth’s funeral last year, Saturday’s coronation of King Charles and Queen Camilla was probably the biggest reaching church service of our lifetimes.

We analyze the service theologically and missionally and compare it with the coronation service of Charles’ Mother Queen Elizabeth II.

Is it in any way better theologically and where is it worse?

– Watch or listen here.

See also:

The true significance of King Charles’ Coronation – Murray Campbell, who writes not only about the Coronation, but about Psalm 2, Nick Cave – and GAFCON.

“Airbags on Pokies” — The Dean of Sydney

Sandy Grant, the Dean of Sydney, writes about the choice before NSW voters this Saturday –

“Friends in Christ, I encourge you to join me in this prayer for our State, with the election of a new Parliament this Saturday, 25th March:

Almighty God and Loving Heavenly Father, we humbly ask you to direct the hearts of those who seek election to our state parliament, and of us as we exercise our democratic freedoms. May we vote unselfishly for the common good. Protect politicians from the temptation of self-serving. Enable them to make realistic promises and help them keep their word. Uphold those elected to serve in the new Parliament through all the heavy demands that come upon them, that they may serve with integrity. May the decisions of our parliaments, state and federal, lead to the safety and welfare of this country, so that peace and happiness, truth and justice may be established among us. Amen. 

As you know, I have spoken strongly in favour of reforms to prevent and minimise harm from poker machine use, which currently sees people in NSW lose $8 billion a year. That’s about $23 million per day! And the worst losses are often in the poorer areas of our city.

I have been calling for reform for almost 15 years, since I first became aware of the dreadul damage done by poker machines on their users and families.”

– Read it all at the Cathedral website.

Image: If only modern poker machines took bets of just 25 cents.

A Legacy (Thus Far) Marked by ‘Bewildering Ambiguity’: Pope Francis Reaches 10 Years as Papal Leader

In today’s issue (15 March 2023)  of The Briefing, Dr Albert Mohler looks at the first ten years of the papacy of Francis.

“He represents so much of the muddled liberalism of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries…”

Hold your horses

“A few days ago I was at Wycliffe Hall, speaking to some Anglican ordinands about why everyone should do rural ministry. Unsurprisingly the conversation soon turned to LLF, and that General Synod vote. Since I am a member of Synod, I was quizzed about what had happened. After a bit, one student asked me, “Given what’s happened, how can you be so upbeat”? …

I don’t think I have seen such a strong, broad and deep evangelical unity in the Church of England as I see now. It often takes an emergency to bring a group together, and that is precisely what has happened.”

– At Church Society’s blog, Church Society Regional Director the Rev Dr Chris Moore argues that ‘this is the time to stand up, not to walk away’.

Photo: Diocese of Hereford.

Related:

Thirty years ago, the Rev John Richardson travelled from the UK to study short-term at Moore College. (This was before the rejuvenation of Oak Hill College in London.)

While in Sydney, he wrote an article which was published in the ACL’s newsletter. (UK Evangelicalism: Optimistic? – PDF version)

At the time, he was not optimistic about the future of Evangelicalism in the Church of England, and argued that strong evangelical leadership was needed –

“You cannot head off a stampede by calling the cows to come back. If the present debacle in English Evangelicalism is to be arrested it will require people of courage and vision who are prepared to go out ahead of the herd, to kick, to shout and to make a noise, so that those who are genuinely Christian, but who are so much like sheep without a shepherd, may be brought back to the good pastures.”

Do continue to pray for evangelical clergy in the Church of England, that they would be given great wisdom by the Lord.

And do pray that the new evangelical unity of which Dr Moore speaks will be effective for the gospel.

How euthanasia has revived the death penalty

“Belgium is not the only nation to euthanise prisoners. In Canada, where assisted suicide is also offered as a medical treatment, three prisoners have been euthanised to date. The story of one of them, known only as ‘patient one’, illustrates the key problem with this practice. …”

– Spiked Online. (Link via Anglican Mainstream)

Image from a St. Helen’s Bishopsgate video.

Revival at Asbury: A Cold Take

“The revival at Asbury College has already come to an end. What began as a brief and simple chapel service turned into a weeks-long worship event that drew tens of thousands of participants and elicited tens of millions of opinions. …

It seems to me that news of an outbreak of revival is best met with a guarded optimism. We don’t need to be naive but also don’t need to be incredulous. …

Speaking personally, I would like my first instinct to be ‘Praise God’ rather than ‘Fat chance!’…”

– You may have heard, the last couple of weeks, about the reported revival in a small private university in Kentucky. Tim Challies shares some thoughts on what has happened and how Christians might respond.

(Image: Tim Challies during a visit to Sydney in 2018.)

On not snatching defeat out of the jaws of victory

“In the immediate aftermath of the Synod vote, the Archbishops of Canterbury and York declared that the vote meant that; ‘For the first time, the Church of England will publicly, unreservedly and joyfully welcome same-sex couples in church’ …

The problem with this interpretation, however, is that it fails to do justice to the motion which Synod passed. When we look at this motion carefully, we find that what Synod actually voted for makes any general liturgical affirmation of same-sex relationships by the Church of England impossible. …”

– Martin Davie expands on the same point made earlier by Dr Ian Paul. That is, the addition to the Bishops’ proposed motion of an amendment – paragraph g – limits what the Bishops can do.

The paragraph reads –

“g) endorse the decision of the College and House of Bishops not to propose any change to the doctrine of marriage, and their intention that the final version of the Prayers of Love and Faith should not be contrary to or indicative of a departure from the doctrine of the Church of England.” (bold added)

He continues,

“… the addition of clause (g) to the Synod motion was a great victory. This is because when taken seriously it will mean that the Church of England continues to maintain an orthodox biblical position. However, in order to avoid ‘snatching defeat out of the jaws of victory’ traditionalist Anglicans need to do three things. …”

– Do read it all here.

Image: Several members stand to seek the call during the debate in the Church if England’s General Synod.

A Catastrophic Failure of Leadership

Principal of Moore Theological College, Dr. Mark Thompson, responds to the Church of England’s General Synod vote late last night:

Tragically, overnight, the Church of England continued its headlong plunge into irrelevance. A catastrophic failure of leadership, in particular from the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, led to the General Synod agreeing to allow the blessing of same-sex civil unions. The bishops of the Church of England pledged at their consecration to guard and uphold the faith, yet, with their behaviour during this General Synod, despite public displays of empty piety, this is precisely what they did not do. They have shown themselves to be theologically bankrupt, pastorally inept and without both courage and wisdom.

Many faithful members of the General Synod of the Church of England grieve with us today at this outcome. As was said in debate, it is a perverse folly to call on God to bless what he has declared in his word to be sin. This vote will not change that and so it becomes one more sign that the leadership structures of the Church of England are under judgment.

We need to pray for the churches in England. We in this country owe so much to gospel-hearted men and women who came from England to share the news of salvation and life in Jesus with those who had lived here for millennia and those who travelled to these shores in more recent times. There is a wonderful heritage in the Church of England that, for many years, has been squandered by its leaders.

Where things will go from here is difficult to say. We must pray that those leaders still holding fast to the teaching of God’s word will be given extraordinary wisdom as they respond to this heart-breaking turn of events. Britain is crying out to be re-evangelised. The gospel we have to share is such good news, for same-sex attracted people as much as for any others. Our sin, together with the shame and guilt it brings, can be forgiven. A new life of hope and purpose and joy can be ours, if we will come to Jesus. He is the Saviour who reaches out to men and women where they are, in our various forms of brokenness and lostness, but loves us too much to leave us where we are.

Heavenly Father, please guard and guide your people in the United Kingdom. Give them courage and hope at this moment and please do such a work amongst them that we may look back and see the good that came even in the midst of this moment of terrible unfaithfulness. For the glory of Jesus and the extension of his kingdom, Amen.

The Church of England faces a huge week

“One thing worse than Sam Smith’s performance at the Grammys is the revisionist Bishops in the Church of England who are this week gaslighting both the sheep under their care and deceiving the general public.

Presumably, Sam Smith thinks that dressing up in a satan costume and performing a song called ‘unholy’ is making some kind of loud and shocking creative statement. Perhaps someone could tell him, he’s doing nothing more than copying a longish line of musicians. It is all rather boorish, except that mimicking the very personification of evil isn’t a particularly bright idea.

Over in old England land, ecclesiastical leaders have taken up that ancient inquisition of the Devil, by suggesting, ‘Did God really say?”…”

– Murray Campbell in Melbourne summarises what’s happening in the Church of England and argues it has lessons for Australian churches.

← Previous Page — Next Page →