Weekly Bible Reflection

hy the Shepherds? Why did the angel announce Jesus’ birth to shepherds? Given the resources of heaven they could have pulled off one very spectacular announcement in Bethlehem or, come to think of it, in Jerusalem. We need to go back to the story...

ne of the encouraging things I love about the Bible is that it allows us to express our feelings. What is more, God understands us and works with us and through us for his greater purposes. Matthew 1:20 records Joseph’s reaction to the news that...

PROBABILITY few of us were recently discussing the probability of the universe coming together by chance. Musing on this I asked, ‘I wonder what proportion of eminent scientists who say we exist by chance purchase lottery tickets?’ William Lane...

ife can be so messy. Why doesn’t God step in now and bring to justice the perpetrators of wars, injustice and evil? These are real questions for us and for people we know. SEASON OF ADVENT The season of Advent is a good time to reflect on Jesus’...

HAPPY THANKSGIVING hroughout this week, ‘Happy Thanksgiving’ will echo across the land from New York to San Francisco. The principle of ‘Thanksgiving’ has its origins in a non-sectarian expression of ‘thanks’ to a loving, merciful and generous God....

FORGIVENESS he Lord’s Prayer is a prayer so many of us have known since childhood. Because it is so familiar to us, do we see what a big, exciting prayer it actually is? A prayer for the honour of God’s name and the triumph of his cause; looking to...

ANGER ISSUES n Albert Camus’ play, Caligula, the Emperor Caligula said: “This world has no importance and whoever recognizes that wins his freedom. And that's just it—I hate you because you are bound. I alone am free. Rejoice, for you finally have...

IN A WORLD OF NO ACCOUNTABILITY e live in a culture where attitudes and behavior are increasingly shaped by political correctness. If we don’t conform we are marginalized. It is an outcome of society's rejection of  God. The Greek philosopher...

POLITICAL OUTSIDER n a thought provoking op-ed article in The New York Times (October 27, 2015), David Brooks asks what ‘A Sensible Version of Donald Trump’ might ‘sound like’. He asks the question because Donald Trump, like Dr. Ben Carson, has not...

SHINE n an op-ed article in yesterday’s New York Times, David Brooks wrote of the way that ‘great powers’ have allowed ‘the global order to fray’ because of the loss of conviction and meaning. He concludes by asserting the primary problem is mental...

LIGHT OF GOD'S TRUTH p until the 1970s there was an agreed morality in the West, grounded in the Judaeo-Christian ethic. As I indicated last week, this was the foundation for what developed, from the time of Alfred the Great, as the ‘Common Law’ of...

CULTURE SAYS 'WHATEVER WORKS'? he title of Woody Allen’s 2009 movie, ‘Whatever Works’ captures the mood of post-modern ethics. Starting with the presupposition that great thinkers like Jesus or Karl Marx were great teachers, the movie contends that...

PERSECUTED lessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ‘Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be...

PEACE wo millennia ago angels sang “peace and goodwill to all” at the birth of Jesus (Luke 2:14). But the world hasn’t got any better. Indeed, while peace is something we all long for, it is one thing the world does not have. The reality is that...

“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.” Some years ago, to promote Christ Church New York City, we advertised our service times and locations and our website with words drawn from Psalm 24 on small bottles of hand sanitizer: ‘Clean hands… Pure heart’....

n Sunday, July 25, 1993, a year before Nelson Mandela was elected president of South Africa, a man with an AK-47 and another with grenades embedded with nails, entered evening worship at St James’ Anglican Church, Cape Town. Eleven people were...

GOD'S MERCY   he 2011 movie, The Eagle of the Ninth portrays the way the Romans glorified justice, courage, discipline, and power.  Where mercy was shown, it was mocked. In the mind of the Romans, mercy was a sign of weakness. Roman leaders...

good meal is always very satisfying. It is particularly delightful when we are able to enjoy the food we like, presented in a way that tantalizes our senses. And, most of all, we are truly satisfied when we are replete without being overfull....