A few years back the BBC ran a program where they asked leading international figures to identify the defining moment of their lives. One of the interviewees was Desmond Tutu. He took us back to a day when he was just nine years old, to when he was a young black boy living under South...
Gender, Context and 1 Timothy 2
1 Timothy 2:11-15 is probably the most referenced text in Christian discussion of gender roles. There is even a fair consensus about what it says. It asks the women in the church at Ephesus to learn quietly rather than teach in the church. The really critical question is what does it mean for us...
Gender, Translators & 1 Corinthians 11. On the Mistranslation of a Text
What do you do when you’re translating a bible passage into English and the text says the opposite of what you’re expecting it to say? It turns out there are a very small number of occasions where some translators give us what they think the text should say, even when the grammar says...
The Remarkable Frillfin Goby
The Frillfin Goby is an ugly little fish, 10-15 centimeters long, that lives in tropical and sub-tropical regions around the world. You find them in rock pools. See a goby and you’re not likely to give it much thought. It’s not pretty like so many tropical species, nor is it impressive...
Possibly the worst sermon ever
When I finished pastoring at Edgeworth Baptist, Sandy, the kids and I went searching for a new church to belong to. We weren’t looking for perfection, just for somewhere we could all feel connected, where the preaching helped us make sense of life, and where there was a desire to be a...
Losing my Independence. Finding my Humanity
Most days I can no longer do up the button on the left sleeve of my shirt. For that you need fine motor skills in your right hand, something Parkinson’s has taken from me. Buttoning a sleeve sounds such a small thing, but for me not being able to do it it was a milestone. Until now I have...
Pirates in Pinstripes: How Multinationals Are Ripping off the World’s Poor
Multinationals can be a force for good in the developing world, but can also be a force that harms. This infographic shows why.
How much more would you pay for a football to make sure it wasn’t made by child labour?
Today’s Sydney Morning Herald published research showing children in India are stitching footballs for two of Australia’s biggest sportsball brands, Sherrin and Canterbury . For their efforts the children miss out on schooling, their eyesight is deteriorating, their backs ache and their...
Five Things We Need to Know Before Supporting an Orphanage
Australians love to support orphanages in poor countries, or one of the more recent adaptations of the idea, orphan villages. Orphanages push all our emotional buttons. On the one hand who can’t be moved by the plight of children who are alone and vulnerable? On the other hand institutional...
Making Room for Dissent. How We Can Disagree Without Destroying Each Other.
“Scott, I’m not prepared to talk to you because it’s clear you don’t believe what the bible says”. With those words Dave (not his real name), a fellow pastor, hung up the phone. I don’t believe what the bible says? It was the mid 1990s and the Baptist churches in...