The Making Of The Western Mind — John Anderson speaks with Tom Holland

“John joins Tom Holland in his London home to discuss Christianity’s role in shaping Western civilisation.

Holland prompts us to reflect on the intricate moral web our society still upholds today and consider the intertwined history of the Western imagination and Christianity.”

– A fascinating interview.

Related:

Review: War on the West, by Douglas Murray – at John Anderson.net.au

Anglican Aid launches Emergency Flood Relief for Pakistan

From Anglican Aid in Sydney:

“Anglican Aid is working with local partners to provide relief to the people of Pakistan, as floods devastate the nation. Christians on the ground report that hundreds of people have been forced to set up temporary camps on roads and highways, which are typically raised off the ground. The price of tarps has skyrocketed. Anglican Aid is working with our existing long-term partners in the region, including One2Another in Multan, and the Diocese of Hyderabad, to provide much needed relief. 

For more information, or to give, go to anglicanaid.org.au/pakistan-flood-relief.”

Elegant Orthodoxy: The Thirty-nine Articles of Religion

“A new visitor to our parish recently told me, ‘I read your Thirty-nine Articles, and I was underwhelmed. It just seems like a basic Christian statement of faith.’

A basic Christian statement of faith. Exactly.

The Anglican Church’s Thirty-nine Articles of Religion aren’t comprehensive. They don’t answer every theological or ecclesiastical question a follower of Jesus might have. But there’s an elegance in the Articles’ brevity and simplicity that both roots us in the historic church and is timely today. …”

– At the Gospel Coalition, D. J. Marotta, Rector of Redeemer Anglican Church in Richmond, Virginia, introduces the Thirty-nine Articles to a wider audience.

Traditional Anglicans are Going by The Book

“A group of clergymen has broken away from the established Anglican church in Australia to form the ‘Diocese of the Southern Cross.’ Former Sydney Archbishop Glenn Davies is its first Bishop. The announcement was made at the recent Gafcon Australasia Conference held in Canberra.

What’s it all about? Well, to be clear, I’m not an authority on doings within the Anglican church. I’m just a parishioner. But I have enough understanding to have a view on the issue at stake. …”

– Writing in Quadrant, Peter Smith looks at the reasons for the formation of the Diocese of the Southern Cross.

It’s Not About You: How Biblical Theology Transforms Bible Study

Nancy Guthrie spoke at Christ College in Sydney on 18 August 2022. Her topic? – “It’s Not About You: How Biblical Theology Transforms Bible Study”.

The college has now published the video.

After introductory matters and Nancy is interviewed, her address begins at 28’34”.

A very helpful and encouraging talk and well worth your time.

She encourages us not to take our understanding of Biblical Theology for granted, or to assume an understanding of it in our churches.

How do we make church accessible to all?

From The Pastor’s Heart:

“How can we as church leaders develop and implement plans to care for people affected by disability – so that they can hear the gospel clearly and engage in Christian fellowship.

What are the theological foundations for disability ministry?

How do we in our hearts/attitudes welcome or distance those with disability?

What language should we use?

How do we include people on the autism spectrum? What are the complexities welcoming people with mental health challenges?

Louise Gosbell is Principal of Mary Andrew’s College in Sydney and has worked with the Sydney Anglican Social Issues Committee to produce a set of guidelines to help churches.”

– Watch or listen – and download the guidelines – at The Pastor’s Heart.

Open Week + Open Night — 29 August – 2 September

Moore College Open Week is on:

Open Week (29 Aug – 2 Sept):

Come and visit our Newtown campus, experience an actual lecture and meet faculty and students. You will be greeted by a student who will give you a tour, introduce you to other students and take you to class. You can drop in for a day or part of any day during this week plus share in a morning tea and lunch.

Open Night (Monday, 29 Aug) – “Into the World” (includes live-stream option):

Open Night looks at how our graduates are prepared to take the gospel into the world. Speakers include Mark Thompson, Simon Gillham, Kara Hartley and Paul Grimmond. You will have an opportunity to have your questions answered in our Q & A session. Dinner and supper are provided.

– All the details you need – including links to RSVP – are on the College website.

Assisted suicide is spiralling out of control in Canada

“Canada is widely seen as one of the world’s most progressive nations in the world, ‘leading the way’ (depending on where you stand) on a variety of social issues. But in recent months, Canada has been garnering some less than savoury international attention because of the dark side of one of its recent progressive accomplishments …

3.3 per cent of all deaths in Canada in 2021 were assisted deaths. This has matched and surpassed the rates in places like Belgium and the Netherlands, despite it being available in Canada for less than a decade.”

– The National Post (Canada).

Link via Challies.com. Image via St. Helen’s Bishopsgate.

The Myth of the Via Media, and other Canterbury Tales

“Sometimes it is called fudge … And I say, hey, I like fudge, it’s a lot better than killing each other.”

So said Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, on the topic of Anglican identity, in an interview during the recent Lambeth Conference a fortnight ago. Personally, I too like fudge. Perhaps as much as Archbishop Cottrell. However, I am not as convinced that ‘fudge’ is a desirable description of authentic Anglicanism.

And I trust, most of you will agree with me that ‘fudge’ is not what we wish Australasian Anglicanism to taste like; that Anglican ‘fudge’ does not supply sufficient sustenance for us Australasian Anglicans, as we seek to proclaim the glories of Christ to the nations, and as we seek to strengthen the spiritual lives of the men, women, and children within our parishes. Milk it may very well contain, but something more meaty is needed to sustain Anglican identity.

– The Australian Church Record has published the text of Dr Mark Earngey’s seminar at the GAFCON Australia Conference in Canberra last week.

He says, “I want to take you through two major misunderstandings: that of the so-called Anglican via media and that of the so-called Anglican three-legged-stool.”

It will repay careful reading!

Mark is Head of Church History at Moore College.

Living as God’s woman in God’s world

“Some of the biggest questions you can ever ask yourself  as a human on this planet are: who am I? why am I here? what is my purpose?

We ask those questions because we are human, and we ask them as women. And how we answer them determines how we live our lives, how we see ourselves, how we relate to each other, how we treat each other, and above all, how we respond to God.

Let me begin with two affirmations:

1) that we were created for God, for God’s  glory – created to bring glory to God; and

2) that it is only as we live as God intended that we are truly free.

So the questions we need to ask ourselves are:

• what do we learn about who God is?
• what do we learn about ourselves, as humans and as women?
• what do we learn about how God wants us to live in His world? …”

– At Equal But Different, Lesley Ramsay has been posting on the theme of Living as God’s woman in God’s world –

Part 1 – Living as God’s woman in God’s world: Confusion.

Part 2 – Living as God’s woman in God’s world: Old Testament Clarity.

Part 3 – Living as God’s woman in God’s world: New Testament Clarity.

– with the promise of more to come!

She also recommends God’s Good Design 2nd Edition by Claire Smith (Matthias Media 2019).

‘Learn the Gospel’ book and videos

A new study book and videos from Matthias Media:

“Whether building a house or building a life, solid, square and true foundations are vital.

If you’re just starting out in the Christian life – or considering it – you want to get those foundations in place from the start. Even if you’ve been a Christian for a while, it’s important to occasionally check your foundations – they might have shifted or been attacked by white ants, or perhaps they weren’t laid quite as straight as you originally thought.

In this Learn Together book, we’ll thoroughly inspect our gospel foundations and make our understanding of that gospel sound and biblical.

Through reading, studying the Bible, watching some video input and discussing what we’re learning together, we’ll go deep into the gospel of Jesus Christ – understanding each of its parts, how they fit together, and what implications the gospel has for our lives.

This is Two Ways to Live grown into a study book for small groups and classes. Each of the six points are fleshed out with Bible study, discussion and video and text input.”

– The book is available from Matthias Media.

Plus you can watch or download the accompanying videos here.

Jesus Club Community opens disability-inclusive ministry for adults at Tamworth

Here’s a press release from Jesus Club Community:

Jesus Club Community, an evangelical Christian organisation, has partnered with Oxley Vale Anglican Church to open a new Bible-reading club for adults with intellectual disabilities (I.D.) in Tamworth, NSW.

Jesus Club Tamworth is in Oxley Vale, just minutes from Tamworth, with a population of over 63,000, of which 5.6% or around 3000 have some form of disability. The club is the region’s only ministry dedicated to sharing God’s good news to adults with I.D. in a meaningful way.

Simon and Margaret from Oxley Vale Anglican Church approached Jesus Club in March this year with this idea for their community. At the time, they had four people with disabilities in their congregation and they wanted to set up a dedicated Christian ministry for people with disabilities to have fun, form genuine friendships and learn the gospel in a way they could understand.

What attracted her to the Jesus Club program were its gospel-centred vision and extensive library of over 100+ Biblical-teaching resources for adults with I.D.

“I like that [Jesus Club] provide the [teaching] material… and that there are a number of programs written already, that include suggestions for songs, craft, and worksheets. We didn’t have to keep reinventing the wheel… It just makes running [a disability ministry] so much easier!” said Margaret.

The other big plus was Jesus Club’s newly developed online training program which helped their volunteers quickly train up in the ins and outs of disability ministry.

“We viewed the recommended videos over four or five sessions and read [the corresponding] parts of the orientation book… [Their training] is very comprehensive,” said Margaret.

So when Jesus Club Tamworth opened in May, the club’s volunteers felt thoroughly prepared, having trained in everything from the Jesus Club vision to information about different forms of intellectual disabilities, safe ministry and helpful practices for communicating and relating to adults with intellectual disabilities.

Their club now meets once a month, and the first report from volunteers was very encouraging:

“We were all very pleased about our first meeting. All aspects went without a hitch, with six members, six leaders, and one carer. The feedback from members was that they enjoyed the singing, the game, the dressing up and the video of the Great Banquet… Next meeting, we may have three potential new members!” said Margaret.

About Jesus Club:

Jesus Club’s purpose is to make Christ known to adults with I.D. so they can have a friendship with God forever. Since 2017, they have helped many churches grounded in the gospel to establish disability-inclusive ministries that share God’s good news with adults with I.D.

It now equips 20 churches to run the Jesus Club program and has a network that spans from Lower Mountains to Northern Beaches and Turramurra to Albury. Their new online training allows them to set up a Jesus Club anywhere in Australia.

Here’s their website.

CMS Summer School 2023 registration is now open

Registration for the NSW & ACT CMS Summer School 2023 at Katoomba is now open.

When The Noise Won’t Stop – Paul Grimmond

From Moore College:

“Do you or a fellow Christian suffer from Anxiety?

Author and Moore College Lecturer Paul Grimmond knows what it’s like.

His newest book ‘When The Noise Won’t Stop’ is packed full of research and Biblical wisdom that will help Christians who suffer from Anxiety – and those who care for them, including pastors.”

– An encouraging 3 minute video.

When The Noise Won’t Stop is available from Matthias Media.

See also this interview with Paul on The Pastor’s Heart (28 June 2022).

Temptations preachers face to give up on the Bible

“Preachers are not special. Every Christian faces temptations to sin. Preachers face the same temptations as every Christian. Like any of us, preachers are ruined through financial greed, sexual immorality, or alcohol abuse. However, there are some specific temptations preachers face concerning giving up on the Bible. …”

– In its series on preaching, The Australian Church Record has this very helpful article by Phillip Jensen.

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