in that half hour or so I was there I caught a glimpse of the kingdom of God - a kaleidescope of humanity sharing food, life and friendship without pretence, rank or judgement, at the table of a welcoming God.
The Corinthian Principle
One of my favourite comments on the church is found in Eminence, a novel by Australian author Morris West, which tells the story of Luca Rossini, a Cardinal in the Roman Catholic Church. Luca who now serves in the Vatican, lives in the shadow of a terrible experience he suffered as a young priest...
Why Every Church Should Pay Attention to Its “Brand”
Five years back if you had asked me what I thought of the idea of branding the church I’d have scoffed. Branding to me was little more than marketing spin, something to be strenuously avoided by anyone interested in authentic community. Having been through a rebranding process at Baptist...
Australian Churches – Losing More People Than We’re Gaining
The Church in Australia appears to be in decline. Yet between 2001 and 2011, the number of people identifying with a Christian church grew from 12.8 to 13.1 million. I belong to the Baptist denomination. In the 2001 census 309,205 people identified as Baptist, but in the 2011 census this had grown...
Belief Enablers. What Turns Australians On to Christianity
In my last post I reported the findings of research into what blocks engagement with Christianity for Australians. The research also provided insight into what fosters engagement. First, while half the population are not open to changing their religious views, half are, including a significant...
Belief Blockers. What turns Australians Off the Church
This week I came across a piece of brilliant market research into Australian attitudes to Christianity and the church conducted in late 2011 by McCrindle research. For those Christians inclined to think of creation and evolution as the key ideological battleground, to assume the Church commands...
If I Went Back to Pastoring I’d Do ‘Pastoral Care’ Differently
One of my greatest challenges as a pastor was ‘pastoral care’ and if I was to go back into pastoring a church this is an area where I’d make big changes. During my ministry I championed the idea that we should practise congregational care not ‘pastoral care’. Nowhere...
The Stained Glass Ceiling: Deciphering the Debate Over Gender Roles
Differences of opinion over appropriate gender roles exist within the Christian community. This paper provides an introduction to the issue and overviews five interpretive models commonly employed to interpret the main biblical texts and apply them to life today.