What we think God is like, affects not only our theology, but our relationship with him and the quality of our life. In the Middle Ages, he was pictured as an old man sitting on a cloud. According to how we interpret the Old Testament, we could see God as being jealous, angry and vengeful. Some picture God setting up the universe, creating the laws of morality and physics, and leaving us alone to face the consequences of our actions. None of us can fully grasp the nature of God, but if we are to have a more accurate view we must look at the life and teachings of Jesus. Continue reading “What is God actually like?”
We live in a capitalist economy, based on exchange of goods and services using the medium of money. When we buy or sell something, we make an agreed exchange of value. In theory nobody wins and nobody loses, but in practise the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. Is there an alternative?
There is a cost to being opposed to violence. The cross stands out as the ultimate price of non-violence. Jesus allowed men of violence to nail him to that cross and apparently triumph over him. But the resurrection of Jesus from the dead was the ultimate triumph of love over violence.
Facebook can be a blessing keeping you in touch with old friends and contacts. But sometimes the views expressed are judgemental and not a blessing at all! This morning I noticed a report by some American preacher in which he lashed out at christians for sharing a christian song which has done the rounds on Facebook.
As we look around us at the world, we see so much suffering, poverty, disease and violence. Our leaders, politicians and governments have made such a mess of things. Selfishness, greed and corruption seem to rule everything. We threaten our very existence with nuclear weapons and contempt for our environment. Billions live in poverty and millions of children die every day of preventable diseases.
What did Jesus say about sexual relationships? He spoke a great deal about the Kingdom of Heaven, about money, about hypocrisy, but not much very much about sex. He said nothing about homosexuality, abortion, masturbation, birth control or pre-marital sex, though to hear some fundamentalists speak, you would have thought he majored on these subjects.
Jesus and accumulating money
Many of us call ourselves Christians. How different our Christianity would be if we all took the words of Jesus seriously. Jesus said some radical and amazing things, but they are often forgotten, sidelined, ignored or treated as being hopelessly idealistic.
Compassion and Justice 