Tag: Church

  • The Gospel and Ageing

    From the Sola Panel What is the most polite way to refer to an old person? Have you noticed how the words we collectively use to refer to old people in the media and in private conversation keep changing? It’s a strange process. We start using a word or phrase, for example, ‘old man’, ‘old…

  • Replacing the Spirit with the sacraments

    I’ve been listening recently to an online lecture series called Space, Time, [Matter] and Sacraments. The speaker (an influential Church of England Bishop called N. T. Wright) posed some very important questions. For example: How is the story of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection made “real” to us in our own lives now? How is…

  • What is this thing we call the local church?

    Lionel Windsor (2005) I’m thinking of asking a dangerous question. It’s a question that I need to ask, but the very act of asking it threatens to lead me astray. The question is this: ‘What is St. Blogg’s?’ This may seem like a strange question, but let me explain why I need to ask it,…

  • Women Preaching to Mixed Adult Congregations: A detailed reading of 1 Timothy 2:8-15 in reply to John Stott’s position

    The issue of women preaching to mixed adult congregations is one that has caused a lot of consternation in ‘evangelical circles’ in recent times. There is a common argument that women should preach to mixed adult congregations that proceeds along the following lines: Different scholars and respected authorities disagree on the interpretation of the relevant…

  • The Bible alone: what does that mean in practice?

    This is an imaginary dialogue between a Roman Catholic and an Evangelical written to help Christians better understand the Reformation principle of “Scripture Alone”. “Let my cry come before you, O LORD; give me understanding according to your word.” (Ps 119:169) (Nigel’s words are from an anonymous pamphlet written and distributed by a Roman Catholic…