A great piece in The Age from Michael Leunig gives this reflection on our society:
‘Like in many situations elsewhere in the culture, what is valuable and original is being most obscured or overlooked, and what is most lurid, feverish and foul in the human condition is lavishly displayed.’
If you’re following the election debate in Australia it is hard to pick what are key issues or what will really make any difference. The things that are really important in life are not decided by how we vote but how we treat God and how we treat the person next to us.
Check out this article:
Yes, my old friend from school, Kamal, who is a Presbyterian minister in Western Sydney, has been lecturing with his mum in Melbourne in the last week. Great to see you made the news Kamal!
With all the hype around the ipad’s release in Australia I am wondering what is driving all of this. Is it merely the love of gadgets and technology? Is it fashion and the status it can bring? Is it the need to have the most convienient, up to date information or some way of connecting in the urban jungle?
I love my gadgets but I have not yet gone and camped out for the release of one. Trying to scratch below the surface of these phenomenon is difficult. Perhaps grabbing an ipad is how you can become part of a new type of community, I certainly know that not having such devices can make you feel almost obselete at times. In modern society Community and connection are increasingly hard to find and establish. People are more mobile than ever and it is hard to establish local communities with the diverse demands on people’s time today. While devices such as mobile phones, and the next generation including the ipad seem to promise connection it is hard to see how it will be anything but superficial. Often the complexity of technology can lead you to spend more time playing with it than working on meaningful relationships. The ipad is designed more for communication of information and entertainment than any real connection. Admittedly when it comes to the ipad there is more behind it than merely connection, I suspect the novelty value and the perceived power of instant information are big factors too.
As I continue to look for connection I am reminded that through Jesus that God wants more than a superficial connection with us and calls us to find something deeper with Him. Knowing God gives us more reason to get involved in the inefficient process of getting to know others. In my suburban context I think for now I will be better spending my money on coffee at my local and enjoying life connected face to face.
As someone who teaches the Bible in schools I am conscious that many now know nothing about it. Scott Monk gives us some good things to reflect on.
Here is a great article in Quadrant Magazine by Scott Monk.
Here is a great interview from Sunrise on Tony Abbot’s comments that we ought to teach the Bible in schools.
Check it out here.
Kamal is a good friend of mine and has put together this great article on Christian dating and romance. Although he has never had a girlfriend he co-wrote it with his mum, who is a sexologist. Check it out here.
‘Our culture doesn’t have a framework for masculine benevolence anymore’
Carolyn McCulley has an interesting reflection on romantic comedies in the age of the ‘self-confident’ woman.
Expressions of care and mutual dependence are far from signs of weakness but part of how we are designed to live together.
The question is, are we prepared to show our weakness for the sake of allowing others to serve?
Here is a great article from The Times on the problems in Africa and why they need Christian evangelists, not more education or aid.
An obvious question following this is, if Africa needs the Christian God why don’t we in the west?
It stikes me that alot of the problems in our society could also be greatly helped by transformed living. Half the problem is just getting all the Christians in the churches to give it a go.
Thanks to Mick Fell for pointing this one out.
Bishop Tom Frame has some interesting reflections on the state of the Australian church and how it has got this way.
Read them here.
In this article in the Age the Presbyterian church states that it would defy any changes to the religious exemptions to the anti-discrimination legislation. The Catholics, Anglicans and muslims weigh in too.
Church would defy loss of exemptions
It is encouraging to find the Anglican archbishop making similar comments to the ones I made here.
