Ever wondered how beliefs in God, the supernatural and worship evolved in the period between the Old and New Testaments? Philip Jenkins’ latest book Crucible of Faith examines the development of Christianity in the “Crucible Era” (the intertestamental period) and will likely kickstart fascinating conversations about the faith. Nick Mattiske reviews. A universal God, monotheism, heaven, hell, the Day of ...
Read More »Tag Archives: New Testament
Book review: More than 100 of the Best
After a lifetime serving God and the Uniting Church throughout Queensland, Rev Trevor Foote has released More than 100 of the Best, a collection of sermons from his extensive archives built up from decades of preaching. Rev Bruce Raymond reviews. Preaching can be an unpredictable business. I have delivered sermons making some points which I thought were of secondary importance, ...
Read More »Friday’s religion wrap
The Journey team selects stories that got us talking this week. Trust in the pastor: the stats are a disaster Christianity Today reports on the latest Gallup poll findings which suggest less than half of Americans believe clergy are honest and have high ethical standards. According to the data, pastors are viewed as less trustworthy than judges, day-care providers, police officers, pharmacists, ...
Read More »The dangers of abandoning the Old for New
The Old Testament makes up around 75 per cent of the Bible but is often seen as harsh, confusing and downright problematic in light of current thinking on women, sexuality and violence. Dr Paul Jones explains why embracing the Old is just as vital as the New. Christians affirm the Old Testament as sacred scripture, right? Don’t we? Hmm, sometimes ...
Read More »Apocalypse now?
Should we still fear the end times as predicted by the Bible? You’ve probably seen end times in films or books but is it just the stuff of wild imaginations or should we as Christians prepare for humanity’s final act? Rev Dr Peter Hobson, Dean of Formation and Dispersed Learning at Trinity College Queensland, offers his perspective. The Book of ...
Read More »Celebrating hopeful disruptions
At Christmas, we celebrate an interruption to our ordinary existence and to what we had planned for life. The birth of Jesus was a disruption for Mary and Joseph: a challenging one that threatened their relationship and their standing in their community. Yet it was a disruption that gave them purpose, hope and fulfilment like they had not known, nor ...
Read More »Extra! Extra! Read all about it!
NT Wright has been affirmed as a prolific biblical scholar and “the most important apologist for the Christian faith since CS Lewis”. Since retiring as Anglican Bishop of Durham, Wright has become Research Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity at St Andrews University in Scotland. His credentials in New Testament scholarship and as an experienced church leader are apparent ...
Read More »Our larrikin God
Around 1990 my New Testament professor, in referring to the encounter of Moses and the burning bush, spoke of Moses encountering “the larrikin God of the desert”. The God that Moses encountered was nothing like the gods of the empires of the ancient Near East. This God was about covenant, freedom and human society organised to a completely different economy ...
Read More »Grappling with the Bible
Breathtaking in scope and certainly ambitious in prospect, Adam Hamilton has written an important book that many people in congregations will find stimulating, challenging and, in the end, comforting. With clear and understandable language, this book is not only an invaluable resource for ministers, but also a must-read for the growing number of book clubs Uniting Churches are establishing. This ...
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