What
matters ultimately is Jesus - so it's quite right that folk should have
conviviality irrespective of denominations and traditions.
Why has he gone from - so fantastically - raising awareness of the world's most disadvantaged people (for whom we can make a remarkable impact, £ for £) to talking about himself most of all?
Racism is an evil that exists across human history, it did not begin with the barbaric abhorrence of enslavement.
And
why is there not more discussion about the continuing theft of wealth
from the Global South? It's ironic that racism is rightly decried, yet
the exploitation of the places in our world where folk have the most
melanin is continually ignored.
By
shutting USAID, Trump is responsible for 10s of millions of deaths
(lives that can be saved insanely cheaply). He'll cause countless
further deaths through his support of Global warming. But violence is
not the answer.
Jesus
told us to love our enemies (and He died for us because though most of
us have never done anything as egregious as kill, we've all done wrong),
as much as Trump rejects this.
But
simply reading it isn't adequate, one needs to actually choose to
repentantly follow Christ (who frequently argued with those who knew
scripture yet didn't, in their hearts, truly seek God)
Honestly,
I'm most bothered by our country increasingly caring more about dogs
than about human beings. For instance, far more money is donated to
animal charities than to charities helping the world's very most
impoverished people (for whom each £ can make many times the impact that
a £ could make here).
I'm
just not sure this should be lauded(?) What if, instead of spending
money on the cost of a cinema ticket, folk watched a non-controversial
film at home and donated the savings to an organisation like IJM who
help children facing grotesque exploitation.
I
thought it was propaganda - then I watched Corbyn repeatedly refuse to
condemn Hamas when asked in the days after October the 7th.
With charities like Mary's Meals UK
we can enable the world's most disadvantaged kids to have a meal at
school, for only 10p per meal - so why not make a sandwich without a
"kit" and use some of the savings for this?
The
slave trade was horrific beyond imagination - right now, some of the
Black folk in parts of our world ravaged by Western corporations' greed
are again suffering horrifically and are largely overlooked. I can't
help thinking that the UN's priority (with finite time/resources) should
be fighting existing suffering (inc modern enslavement), given that
history cannot be changed - though this isn't at all to say that it
shouldn't be discussed extensively. Everyone knows about the historical
slave trade - but what proportion of the public knows about present
enslavement, or about the wealth extraction from the Global South?
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development-professionals-network/2017/jan/14/aid-in-reverse-how-poor-countries-develop-rich-countries
The lack of attention afforded to these current issues enables them to
continue
It needs to point us towards Jesus, not encourage lauding of an entertainer instead of Him.
I
remember a school assembly before an Easter holiday, in which a member
of the pastoral team had a pupil come forward for an illustration - he
gave the boy a Creme Egg and highlighted that this was like grace, the
boy hadn't earned it yet was given it. As the boy went back to where
he'd been sitting, the pastoral team member called his back, saying that
in fact this hadn't been a good representation of grace. He told the
boy to open his hands out, then tipped a bucket of Creme Eggs onto them,
saying this was a better representation. I remember this many, many
years later, and how it made us think about Jesus offering more joy than
we can grasp, without our earning it.
As
well as being disturbingly Orwellian and an encroachment on basic
rights regarding speech, this is an insult to vuctims of actual violence
I'd observed the ire Pope Francis evoked amongst conservative Catholics, and suspected that some might ask "is the Pope Catholic?". But Leo, as Gerrard Butler writes, has authentically relayed Christ's teachings, albeit to the chagrin of Vance et al. Jesus recurrently chastised those who feigned religiosity to attain dominance - as MAGA does. It is erroneous, however, to assert that the "Republican Party that has become more or less the political wing of evangelical Christianity" - rather, within American politics, the word "Evangelical" has been grotesquely misappropriated. The UK's Evangelical Alliance - which has expressed concerns about racism within society and about climate change - is demonstrative of how America's use of the word has mutated. Etymologically, it derives from "evangelion", translating as "good news" - that Christ offers unearned eternal joy; and Christ implores virtues (including compassion, selflessness, humility) which Trump has upside down, like his Bible.
Assisted Dying
A recurrent complaint by those who support Assisted Dying is that opponents are "religious". Yet I worked (in an admin position) for the Christian Medical Fellowship (an organisation for Doctors and other healthcare professionals) and the objections were never "religious" - they were concerned for vulnerable and disadvantaged people, particularly having seen, as healthcare professionals, so much that led the to worry about this bill. It's by no means clear from the Bible that people shouldn't be allowed to end their own lives, in fact I'd argue that the Bible doesn't prohibit it, but opposition to the bill is borne of respect for human life and sympathy for those who would inevitably feel coerced.
My own experience RE mental health is that "choice" is a moot point - plenty of us feel compelled to do things that we do not truly want to, and for some elderly or disabled folk who feel like a burden, Assisted Dying would cause unbearable mental anguish as they wrestle with the false idea that they should take it up.
My own experience RE mental health is that "choice" is a moot point - plenty of us feel compelled to do things that we do not truly want to, and for some elderly or disabled folk who feel like a burden, Assisted Dying would cause unbearable mental anguish as they wrestle with the false idea that they should take it up.
Aged 3, I spotted chocolate with damaged packaging in M&S and thought it OK to take it. In subsequent years I learned both of basic principles such as "thou shalt not steal", and that one must not neglect one's God given conscience. Is it not these which are in decline?
I concur in disdaining political shoplifting. But most shoplifting is driven rather by greed, in an environment in which indeed "religion" has been replaced by the worship of self. And with regard to violence, whilst indeed there is some abhorrent rhetoric from some on the far Left, it is rather supporters of far Right ideology who ravaged towns and threw bricks at police in the summer riots of 2024.
I concur in disdaining political shoplifting. But most shoplifting is driven rather by greed, in an environment in which indeed "religion" has been replaced by the worship of self. And with regard to violence, whilst indeed there is some abhorrent rhetoric from some on the far Left, it is rather supporters of far Right ideology who ravaged towns and threw bricks at police in the summer riots of 2024.
Trump's derangement evidently includes imagining that he is inherently favoured by God. In fact the Bible instead implores each person to repent, since it is through Jesus, rather than through heritage or achievements, that salvation is possible and He (not any egotistical president) has the ultimate victory. Furthermore, Trump might also read of how Jesus repeatedly chastised those who, like Trump, feigned religiosity for power. But Trump will need first to stop holding his Bible upside down.
Gerard Baker opines that JD Vance's changing creeds are indicative of an absence of moral fibre, though theoretically one might evolve in one's views if continually seeking to discern truth. However, in claiming any denomination of Christianity whilst he's simultaneously such a sycophant for Trump, he and MAGA more broadly indeed indicate insincerity. Christ said that one cannot serve two masters, and Trump's ideology is so antithetical to Christ's teaching that the pretence of allegiance to both is contradictory.
The
slave trade was horrific beyond imagination - right now, some of the
Black folk in parts of our world ravaged by Western corporations' greed
are again suffering horrifically and are largely overlooked. I can't
help thinking that the UN's priority (with finite time/resources) should
be fighting existing suffering (inc modern enslavement), given that
history cannot be changed - though this isn't at all to say that it
shouldn't be discussed extensively. Everyone knows about the historical
slave trade - but what proportion of the public knows about present
enslavement, or about the wealth extraction from the Global South?
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development-professionals-network/2017/jan/14/aid-in-reverse-how-poor-countries-develop-rich-countries
The lack of attention afforded to these current issues enables them to
continue
When the IRGC invokes "the name of God, the almighty, the merciful", it emulates the religious authorities with whom Christ argued for attempts to utilise God as a means of attaining dominance whilst not in fact following Him. Increasingly, Trump's administration is doing this also.
Trump
presumes that God is on his "side". But Jesus didn't teach this
concept. The battle is ultimately not between Westerners and others -
it's against the sin each of us and we all need to repentantly turn to
Jesus, the true victor.
Jesus
continually argued with those who, like MAGA, feigned religiosity -
rather than actually trying to follow God - to attain power.
"Access
to abortion" in the first several weeks of pregnancy isn't entirely the
same as celebrating the killing of a preborn human whilst asserting
that they were developed enough to hear music.
The
patient is convicted of child abuse, anyone arguing that the problem
here is a healthcare worker using the pronouns she believed to be
correct should consider whether they're truly on the side of the
vulnerable.
It's
not social justice to support tiny vulnerable human beings being killed
by more powerful human beings. Reform are wrong about most things, but
not this.
Abortion in
the first few weeks of pregnancy is one thing - but it's currently legal
up to 24 weeks. Look up babies born prematurely at 24 weeks and
consider if you really think that this should be legal.
Believing
that God's guidance is for sex to only be within hetero marriage
doesn't mean having any less neighbourly love for those who think/act
otherwise (though I know that some have failed - or not tried - to
demonstrate Christ-like behaviour). God disagrees with some of the
behaviour of EVERY person, yet also loves each person beyond measure (so
much that Jesus died for us)
It
is, though I can't help worry that non-believing members of the public
who watch might mistakenly be led to think that theism is about odd
rituals and personal feelings. The celebrities always say plenty of
seriously misinformed things, and there's often no one in the show
addressing these fallacies
What does Reform UK think Christianity actually is?
Christ
told us to love our neighbours, specifically referencing those from
elsewhere, yet Reform wants to cut Aid to the world's poorest people.
Jesus told us not to be proud of our heritage (Matthew 3:9) but to
repent.
We have just commemorated our shame being borne by Christ - as prior generations heard whilst growing up, our wrongdoing accrues a debt, but Jesus offers to pay it on the cross (it is not insignificant). Contrastingly, younger generations are inculcated during formative years with the ideology of an absence of such justice - though it must be stressed that most young people nevertheless have a conscience and many have admirable values. Commercialism's ascent has entailed our increasingly being imbued with the marketeer's message that we're entitled to whatever we feel we'd like.
Fraser Nelson rightly observes that some political figures now brandish a cross alongside a "the clash-of-civilisations narrative". Yet the two don't align. On the cross, Jesus was victorious in a wholly different battle, that against our sin. Thus we should have humility, and recognise that we are not endowed with righteousness by dint of heritage - in fact Jesus rebuked those who took pride in theirs (Matthew 3:9). He also repeatedly chastised those who feigned religiosity for the sake of power.
Jesus implored us to love our "neighbours", referring to those of ostensibly rival cultural groups (see the Good Samaritan), and He urges each person to repentantly turn to Him. Muslims are not prohibiting anyone from doing so.
Jesus implored us to love our "neighbours", referring to those of ostensibly rival cultural groups (see the Good Samaritan), and He urges each person to repentantly turn to Him. Muslims are not prohibiting anyone from doing so.
Jews should not have to fight antisemitism alone
Observing the rise of the Manosphere, I'm struck that it correlates with the abandonment of the previously widely respected teachings of a particular historical figure, who happened to be Jewish.
Observing the rise of the Manosphere, I'm struck that it correlates with the abandonment of the previously widely respected teachings of a particular historical figure, who happened to be Jewish.
When Justin Welby became Archbishop, I had the privilege of being the first member of the public to as him a question in a radio phone-in - and I lament that I asked a question about same sex marriage. In fact, what is paramount is The Gospel. The Archbishop's fundamental responsibility is to direct people towards God - in an era in which so many people understandably yet mistakenly presume the fallacy that His existence is contrary to science, or unimportant. Whatever the failings of the Church, observers should be cognizant that Christ perpetually argued with religious authorities - thus any unChristlike behaviour within the institution should not be conflated with Him
Sonia Sodha correctly observes the erroneous oversimplification of Muslim Britain by the Left and by the Right. I hypothesise that, in an era in which we have so much information immersing us continually, we are prone to generalising groups of others as a coping strategy. Some on the Left deem all Muslims innocent victims of societal racism, spurred on to do so in retaliation to the animosity of some on the Right. In reality Muslims are as varied as the rest of the population.
Thousands of people congregating in Trafalgar Square, other than for a public performance, arguably is inherently an act of dominance - this doesn't mean that the individuals at the event, nor in the wider Muslim population, have a conscious aim to dominate the country.
Imminently, Trafalgar Square will host an enactment of Jesus' death and resurrection - since the religious tradition of our nation is one that entails cognizance of our own sin, not the pretence, demonstrated by Farage and his acolytes, that humanity's problems are the preserve of an imported religion.
Thousands of people congregating in Trafalgar Square, other than for a public performance, arguably is inherently an act of dominance - this doesn't mean that the individuals at the event, nor in the wider Muslim population, have a conscious aim to dominate the country.
Imminently, Trafalgar Square will host an enactment of Jesus' death and resurrection - since the religious tradition of our nation is one that entails cognizance of our own sin, not the pretence, demonstrated by Farage and his acolytes, that humanity's problems are the preserve of an imported religion.
Jesus
says that out of the heart, the mouth speaks, and that a good tree
produces good fruit - Trump's hateful and boastful rhetoric demonstrates
that he is not trying to follow Christ.
His
policies are also indicative of someone not trying to adhere to Jesus'
teachings - note that Jesus taught us to help those in need, including
those from elsewhere, yet Trump has doomed millions of people to death
by terminating (rather than amending flaws in) USAID.
Why would you not instead support one of the places in our world where there's extreme suffering which is overlooked?
NB
- in addition to the hell this is causing for those in the nations hit
directly by the war, it's also putting folk elsewhere through hell
because it's hindering shipments of Aid to (largely overlooked) places
where there's starvation.
Recently
I was in conversation with someone who's 23 weeks and another
individual - the 2nd person asked about whether the baby has feet yet,
and whether it still has a tail. They're an educated individual, it
struck me as demonstrative of how widespread misunderstandings about the
preborn could be.
"Religion"
means different things to different people. Jesus didn't come to
instigate traditions and rituals, we can't earn our way to Heaven -
instead He died to make our salvation possible. However, most Brits
aren't interested, and mistakenly presume that there's no rational basis
for believing in God or the resurrection.
Folk
should look into this for themselves. I thought it seemed absurd to
believe that Jesus rose from death, but came to see that the historical
case is solid.