I am holidaying with my family on The Gold Coast. We are staying in an apartment with spectacular views over the ocean. We have swum in the surf, laid on golden beaches, screamed with a mixture of fear and thrill on roller coasters at Movieworld, laughed ourselves hoarse as we share meals. We have...
Christmas déjà vu. Has the whole Jesus thing been a failure?
Reading the Christmas story in Matthew one has a sense of déjà vu. A violent regime that shows no hesitation in slaughtering innocent people for political purposes forces a family to flee for their lives. We could be describing Syria under Assad, but instead we’re describing first century Judea...
The True Story of Santa Claus
What do you tell your children when they finally ask, “Is Santa real?” We told ours the true story of Santa. The Santa Claus story begins around 200 CE, with a sailing ship caught in the grip of a terrible storm outside the Turkish port of Myra. As cargo was being thrown overboard by a...