Articles, thoughts, essays, and content from Brian as well as students – our budding theologians.
Managing Monday: Some final (for a while) Augustine quotes…
February is drawing to a close all too quickly. Here are a final set (well, for a while) of three Augustine of Hippo (354-430) quotes to help us manage Monday. Faith is to believe what we do not see; and the reward of this faith is to see what we believe. People travel to wonder at the heights of mountains, at the huge waves of the sea, at the long courses of rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean; and they pass by themselves without wondering. Since you cannot do good to all, you are to pay special attention to those who, by...
read moreIs it possible to forgive? Redeeming emotions (3)
We all know that we are supposed to forgive others. Provided the offence against us has been minor, it might be relatively easy to do. ‘We all make mistakes,’ we’d say philosophically, and let the matter drop. But sometimes it is not so easy. Not all offences fit into the trifling category. Some will impact us until our dying day. Is forgiveness then possible? We started this redeeming emotions series with two posts on anger. Today we shift our focus to the question of forgiveness, and the healing of emotions that might need...
read moreAnger for the rest of us… Redeeming Emotions (2)
The first post in our redeeming emotions series looked at the anger of Jesus, and the way he used it redemptively. I imagine many who read it thought – ‘all very well for Jesus. But what about anger for the rest of us? Is there any way that it can move from the deficit side of the ledger to being a positive in our life?’ It is a pertinent question. We live in an angry age. It may show itself in very obvious ways – family violence, warfare, bullying. Other forms are more subtle – sarcasm, cynicism, depression...
read moreManaging Monday: Insights from Augustine
Each Monday in February we are looking at 3 different Augustine of Hippo (354-430) quotes. Hope this weeks selection speaks to you… Trust the past to God’s mercy, the present to God’s love, and the future to God’s providence. The truth is like a lion. You don’t have to defend it. Let it loose. It will defend itself. In my deepest wound I saw your glory and it dazzled me.
read moreAn Angry Jesus? Redeeming Emotions (1)
Not sure which emotions you would rank as the most destructive. I suspect that hate would be right up there, as would jealousy, bitterness and yes, I imagine, anger. It is not hard to see why we would include anger in the list. It wears out our bodies, being linked to hypertension, heart disease and strokes – but it is not just about what it does to us. Being in the orbit of an angry person is at best uncomfortable, and in some circumstances can be terrifying. Which forces us to ask the question, ‘What are we to make of the...
read moreHow to change the world… The Greenpeace formula
I was flying back from the National Council Meeting of Christian Schools Australia on Friday, and after a full day of discussions, felt entitled to relax by watching a movie on my way home to Perth. The Qantas fare on offer was a tad disappointing, so it was with little enthusiasm that I clicked onto the Greeenpeace documentary, How to Change the World. Now truth to tell, even though I am about to write a post on this film, it is not going to go down as my favourite movie of the decade (or year, or month) – but it was interesting, and...
read moreManaging Monday: With some help from Augustine
This February we have been trying to manage Monday with some insights from Augustine of Hippo (354-430) – perhaps the churches greatest theologian. Here are three more quotes. My advice (for what it is worth…), don’t gobble them too quickly – taste one at a time and let the import sink in… There is no saint without a past, no sinner without a future Beware of despairing about yourself; you are commanded to place your trust in God, and not in yourself. The church is the traveller’s inn where...
read moreWhen singleness is a gift…
With Valentine’s day falling on a Sunday this year, many churches will use it as an opportunity to celebrate love, marriage and relationships. And fair enough. But in this post I would like to be a little counter intuitive and invite us to think about the singles in our midst. For some, Valentines day can feel like anything but a celebration. Not that we should fall into the trap of thinking that every single person would prefer to be in a relationship. Many are happily and intentionally single – and really wouldn’t want it...
read moreMessy church, messy mission…
You might know that in addition to my role as principal of Vose Seminary, I serve as the pastor at large and chair of the board at Carey – a school and church planting movement which by providing excellent community services wins the right to speak into the lives of thousands of people who would otherwise have no church contact. Sunday was our annual commissioning service – a wonderfully celebratory event, especially as the staff from our newly opened Forrestdale School were present, as were many of the staff from our fairly...
read moreManaging Monday: A little extra Augustine…
Last week we had a taster of 3 Augustine of Hippo (354-430) quotes. Here are the next 3. Hope they help you manage Monday… From Augustine… Patience is the companion of wisdom What does love look like? It has hands to help others. It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy. It has eyes to see misery and want. It has the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of men. That is what love looks like. Take care of your body as if you were going to live forever: and take care of your soul as if you were going to die...
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