Genesis | Striving with God and men

 A few weeks ago, I organised and hosted a ministers’ gathering. Near the end of the session, one of the ministers suddenly went on a rant about the failings of the church in the West. The church is collapsing, he said, because of the blurring of gender roles that began in the 1960’s and continues to this day. And there was I, sitting in a room full of men with my boots and jeans, close cropped hair, zero make up, and not a floral in sight—and all the authority which was conferred upon me through the rite of ordination.

Read here or listen here.

Proverbs | Wisdom for changing times

Competence is overrated, certainty is boring, golden calves are tacky and dogma is dead. It's the questions which are interesting; it's the wrestling which brings life. Biblical wisdom for changing times ... Read here or listen here.

Biblical wisdom, cultural knowledge, and healing

Biblical wisdom leads to understanding the particularities of place and the interconnectedness of all things, and is a source of hope for the healing of the earth. Read here, or listen here.

Reading with the Risen Christ

The Bible is a dangerous book, full of contradictions and contested images of God. How, then, shall we read? Read here or listen here.

Human violence, and the foolishness of the cross

To those reeling from another week in the patriarchy, the cross offers only foolishness: but in that foolishness we find healing and companionship. Read here or listen to an earlier version here.

Jesus Christ, the apple tree, and me

While we were away with our sister church recently, Phil went for a walk. When he came back, Uncle Den wandered up for a chat: “I saw you come back from a bit of a walk-about just now.” “Yep,” said Phil, and he told Uncle Den how much he loves being outside by himself, and how he finds peace and rejuvenation there. Uncle Den asked him, “So do you talk to the birds that you see? Do you stop to listen to what they might wanna say to you? How ‘bout the trees? They’re always talking; do you listen to them, too?”

Read here, or listen here.

Lady Wisdom and the gender diverse community of God

Once upon a time, long, long ago, Lady Wisdom called out at the public places—the city gates, the crossroads, the mountaintops—and she said: “The Lord began the work of creation with me ...

Read here, or listen here.