C.S. Lewis on Democracy

Food for thought from C S Lewis –

“I am a democrat because I believe in the Fall of Man. I think most people are democrats for the opposite reason. A great deal of democratic enthusiasm descends from the ideas of people like Rousseau, who believed in democracy because they thought mankind so wise and good that every one deserved a share in the government.

The danger of defending democracy on those grounds is that they’re not true. … I find that they’re not true without looking further than myself. I don’t deserve a share in governing a hen-roost. Much less a nation. … The real reason for democracy is just the reverse. Mankind is so fallen that no man can be trusted with unchecked power over his fellows…”

– C.S. Lewis, “Equality”, in Present Concerns. (h/t Between Two Worlds.)

An important distinction in our thinking about church

“It seems to me that we are not often as careful when we think and speak about church as we are in other areas of Christian doctrine. Confusions abound, sometimes through a lack of careful distinctions.

Earlier this year I was in a debate with some older brothers in the faith about the threefold order (bishops, priests, and deacons)…”

– Mark Thompson seeks to stimulate our thinking at Theological Theology.

‘The Anglican church can’t now renege on women bishops’

John Inge, the Bishop of Worcester, writes this opinion piece for the BBC.

“When the decision was made to ordain women as priests, solemn promises were made to them that they would continue to have an honoured place in the Church of England.

To renege on that now would seem like a betrayal.”

Related: Developments in York.

Some deep reflection needed

“I have been reading an immensely interesting book in the last couple of weeks. It is by Peter Hitchens, British journalist, author, broadcaster and brother of celebrated ‘new atheist’ Christopher Hitchens.

It is interesting for a whole host of reasons…”

– ACL President Mark Thompson writes at Theological Theology.

The C of E’s General Synod: Doing the Best Things in the Worst Times

“While some may draw comfort from the apparent ruling out (if he was ever ruled in) of Jeffrey John as Bishop of Southwark, the Church of England’s direction of travel is now abundantly clear. Whether or not we agree with David Virtue’s assessment that the Church of England ‘is now Province XVII of The Episcopal Church’, he is absolutely right that we are seeing the same ruthless marginalisation of the orthodox as has happened in the United States…”

– Charles Raven’s latest commentary at SPREAD.

The Anglican Curmudgeon on developments in York

“…the women priests in Synod combined with a sufficient number of male priests to ensure, by a bare minimum, that the wisdom of the other orders in the Church of England would not be put into practice. And in that description of the result is all the data that anyone needs to conclude that the admission of women to the priesthood in the Church of England was just the first step in a widening gyre.

There will be no turning back: after the approval of the ordination of women to the episcopate, the numbers will so change in the Church of England’s House of Bishops, and in the lay delegates as well, as to make inevitable the ordination of LGBT’s to the episcopate. And at that point, the Church of England — in whatever form it then remains — will be indistinguishable from ECUSA.”

– A S Haley (Anglican Curmudgeon) looks at the trajectory on which the Church of England has launched itself. (Photo: Women in the Church.)

ESV widget for Mac

If you use a Mac, you may find the updated ESV Dashboard widget useful.

After women bishops, what next?

“I’ve not had time to follow the Synod debate on women bishop’s much less to comment. However, I was having a discussion with some of our own folks on Thursday night, where I observed that the introduction of women bishops is by no means the end of the line, for there are explicit indications amongst the chief supporters of the consecration of women that our theology and liturgy are also in line for changes.

Just to give an idea of what this entails, I have simply cut and pasted the following from a paper on the WATCH website:…”

– John Richardson writes about moves for women bishops at the Church of England General Synod (which meets until Tuesday).

Josephus: the man and the myths

The folks at The Centre for Public Christianity have been busy uploading resource videos to their Vimeo account.

Added recently is a two part interview with Professor John Barclay of Durham University – on Josephus. Part 1, part 2.

(Related: a recent broadcast from The White Horse Inn.)

How to Protect our Children Online

Steve Kryger at Communicate Jesus has a very helpful post – with links to resources.

Have a look here.

What is the Gospel? — Available free on Kindle

For a limited time, Crossway publishers have made available Greg Gilbert’s new book What is the Gospel? free on the Kindle – from Amazon. (Download the Kindle app if you don’t own a Kindle.)

Of the book, William Taylor of St Helen’s Church in London says,

“Clarity on the gospel brings both confidence in the gospel and conviction concerning core gospel truths. This excellent book is wonderfully clear and biblically faithful, and will repay reading with renewed gospel focus.”

and Archbishop Peter J. Akinola:

“Greg Gilbert has called the church back to the source of her revelation. In a simple and straightforward manner, he has laid bare what the Bible has shown the gospel to mean.”

For those with access to the iBook Store (not yet in Australia), you can also get it free there.

DVD Sale from Desiring God

Desiring God are selling all of their DVDs for $US9.99 during July 2010.

(Bear in mind that these are all in NTSC format – and are probably also Region 1. Many Australian DVD players – though not all – would be able to play them.)

Recovering the priority of relationships

“Some recent conversations to which I have been a party suggest we talk a good game when it comes to the priority of relationships while our practice is practically indistinguishable from the relational desert inhabited by those around us.

Is there, as some people are beginning to suggest, a sad disconnect between our confession and life at this point?”

– Mark Thompson asks some fair questions at Theological Theology.

Corroborating Evidence

From The White Horse Inn:

“If Jesus was a real historical individual, then do we have any confirming evidence for his life and ministry from sources outside the New Testament? Some point to the writings of Josephus, but isn’t it true that his famous passage about Jesus was proven to be a fabrication? Interacting with the hosts on this topic is historian Paul L. Maier, author of In The Fullness of Time, and editor of Josephus: The Essential Works.”

– broadcast on June 20, 2010, Paul Maier’s interview is well worth hearing.

A Dangerous Structure: Can General Synod Stave Off Collapse?

“London’s Lambeth Council has some helpful advice on its website  about dangerous structures: ‘If you notice a building or structure that appears to be in a dangerous condition, or in serious neglect, an engineer will inspect the problem and take the necessary action. If the structure is unsafe, but there is no immediate danger, then the owner will be contacted to make it safe – if they don’t, they may face enforcement action.’

There is no question of course that the material fabric of Lambeth Palace, the historic London home of the Archbishop of Canterbury, is in good order. In fact, the Archbishop’s website  reassures us that there are ’plans for future work to upgrade the fabric of the Palace’, but the spiritual fabric of the Church over which he presides is looking increasingly precarious.…”

– Charles Raven observes how quickly the Church of England is losing the plot.

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