Recruiting Kids to Hate God?

Children’s author Philip Pullman has written a “Dark Trilogy,” the first volume of which, The Golden Compass, is now a major motion picture. Nothing wrong with that, except Mr Pullman is a man on a mission. You see, he is a God-hater, and he wants children to share in his misotheism.

Two and a Half Cheers for the Former Government

... I offer a few thoughts on the departure of John Howard and his Coalition Government. First, a few negatives. For a conservative leader and a conservative party, ruling a nation for 11 years, one might have expected a few more wins on some crucial issues, be they family issues, life issues or related concerns. More could have been done in these areas, and on occasion the Prime Minister and some of his ministers voted on issues in ways which pro-family and pro-life folk would have been uncomfortable with.

Salt and Light Business

Consider a recent remark I received from a friendly, believing, critic. He said that the activities I am involved in were not what believers are supposed to be involved in. He said, “I am concerned that Christians are distracted in their allegiance to Jesus when they believe they must ‘stand up against’ the sin of not-yet Christians while the church still wreaks of the stench of its own sinfulness. Our only mandate is to love as Jesus loves. He never stood against the prostitutes or tax collectors etc, publicly or privately, only the self righteous Jewish leaders

Why Do the Nations Rage?

Consider Assyria, long an enemy of God’s people. When the Northern Kingdom had become too disobedient and stiff-necked, God raised up the Assyrians as his tool of judgment. Isaiah 10 makes this quite clear, even calling Assyria the “rod of my [Yahweh’s] anger” (v. 5). Yet when Assyria has accomplished its divine task, it too is judged (v. 12).

Nebuchadnezzar, ruler of pagan Babylon, is called “my servant” (eg., Jer. 25:9). God uses Nebuchadnezzar and Babylon as his servants in judging Judah. Yet they are not exempt from the justice of God. Because of their sins and unrighteousness, Yahweh will judge them as well (Jer. 25: 12-14).

How to Vote in this Election

On such a hot potato subject as this, a few preliminary disclaimers. First, it would not be wise for me to presume to tell other people how they should vote at the upcoming Federal election. That I will not do. Second, let me admit my biases up front. I used to be a radically secular leftist. Now I am a Christian who is more or less conservative. Thus what is presented here is not fully objective or unbiased. But I think no one is free of bias when speaking on such topics.

A Conflict of Visions

With the Federal election now well underway, it is time to turn the spotlight on some of the competing visions of the two main political parties. This essay will examine some of the philosophical distinctions between the two parties, outlining some of the broad differences found between left/liberal parties and conservative parties.

The unconstrained vision (the radical or leftist worldview) tends to downplay limits. Mankind is seen as more or less perfectible; social and political utopia is to a large extent achievable; and evil is not endemic or inherent in the human condition, and therefore is able to be mostly eliminated. The conservative vision tends to reflect the Judeo-Christian understanding that mankind is fallen, is limited, is prone to sin and self, and cannot produce heaven on earth, at least without the help of God.

On Capital Punishment, Part 1

The recent squabble within Labor Party ranks as to whether the Bali bombers should be executed raises the old issue of capital punishment, and the biblical and ethical concerns surrounding it. How should the believer view this issue? Can a Christian support the death penalty?

There are two ways to answer these sorts of questions. One way, obviously, is to examine the Biblical data on the subject. The other is to discuss the various philosophical, legal and social implications of the debate. This article will mainly deal with the former.

On Capital Punishment, Part 2

Many Christians feel that capital punishment is wrong, at least by New Testament standards, and whatever the Old Testament may have said about it, believers today cannot countenance it. Are they right? Did the teachings of Jesus mean the end of capital punishment? It is to these questions that this essay turns.

On Delivering a Hard Word

When the Apostle Paul was at Ephesus, he told the leaders of the church in his farewell message that he did not refrain from declaring the whole counsel of God to them (Acts 20:27).  He was willing to tell it like it is, even if it meant he would be unpopular and his message would be rejected by many.

But Paul knew that he could not pick and choose those bits of the gospel message which would please his listeners. He had to proclaim the whole will of God, even if it meant delivering a hard word, an unpopular word,

More Madness, More Messed Up Children

Consider another case of madness, again involving the new world order of fractured families brought on by homosexual confusion. A lesbian “mother” is battling to stop the homosexual father of her child from having his homosexual lover declared one of the child’s parents.

“The Family Court heard this week the mother had been in a relationship with another woman for about 10 years when she asked a gay friend to impregnate her. The court heard that even though the child s mother and father lived apart they agreed they would both have a role in the child s upbringing. The mother, however, is fighting attempts by the father to have the court recognise his gay lover as the child’s second father. The court heard allegations that the child’s father was involved in sadomachistic sex and bondage, had an interest in child porn and possessed a magazine containing an article about a father who had sex with his son.

When Madness Reigns, Children Suffer

A lesbian couple is suing a Sydney obstetrician and gynaecologist because they had twins through an IVF procedure. The doctor is being sued for “wrongful birth” because they only wanted one child.

The article quotes the 40-year-old mother as saying, “I remember sitting on the couch and feeling devastated, absolutely devastated”. The article continues, “She and her partner, who were living in Watson at the time, had planned to go to England after the birth, but their plans were scrapped when they discovered they would be having twins, jeopardising their careers, relationship and health.”

When PC Endangers Children

According to a report in the British Daily Telegraph (September 6, 2007), children as young as eight were sexually abused for years while in the care of two homosexuals. But a much-needed response was slow in coming because social workers were worried about being seen as homophobic. The opening paragraphs of the story read as follows

“A council's political correctness allowed a pair of homosexual foster parents to sexually abuse children in their care, a report has concluded. Managers and social workers were reluctant to investigate Craig Faunch and Ian Wathey for fear of being accused of prejudice. Instead, they were viewed as ‘trophy carers’ who, by virtue of their sexuality, had a ‘badge’ which made their actions less questionable.

Europe and the Importance of Memory

One leading theme of postmodernism is what as known as the rejection of all metanarratives. PoMo argues that there are no grand stories, no overarching narratives that can give meaning and rootedness to our lives.

Instead we are cast adrift in anonymity and fragmentation, with no larger world or worldview to hang on to. Not only individuals, but nations – even continents – can succumb to this sense of loss and futility. The postmodern mindset, in other words, can have an impact on not just individuals, but whole peoples as well.

No, We Do Not Worship the Same God

In a predominantly secular culture, theological distinctions are easily lost. Indeed, they are seen as irrelevant altogether, not only for secularists, but for many believers overly influenced by secularism. Thus it may seem like a petty scrabble as to whether Christians and Muslims worship the same God. But it a vitally important issue, for at least two reasons.

One, the nature and definition of God is absolutely fundamental to both faiths. They stand or fall, based on their conception and understanding of God. A wrong conception of God means the religion loses its very foundation.

And both religions are quite clear about what sort of God they worship. And the two are obviously not the same. At the most basic level, while both religions are monotheistic, that is where the similarities end, and the differences begin.

What to Make of Allah

... it should be pointed out that Muslims argue that Allah is the god of both Jews and Christians. Moreover, they insist that all three groups worship the same God. Jews and Christians are considered by Muslims to be “people of the book,” and in Muslim missionary endeavours, this insistence upon the one God argument is imperative.

But is Allah in fact just another name for the Judeo-Christian God? No it is not. Let’s begin with the Old Testament. Several important names are used as part of the divine self-revelation. YHWH is one of the more significant names. Exodus 3:13-15 is a foundational passage in which God declares his name to Moses.

Dispelling the Myths of Appeasement

Appeasement takes many forms. One is to make excuses for those intent on destroying us and our way of life. Instead of pointing out why our enemies are wrong to hate us, we make excuses for them and their actions, and blame ourselves. This comes up time and time again in Western appeasement of militant Islam.

Western self-loathing, coupled with a fear of appearing Islamophobic, results in many people making excuses for Islamist terrorism, while finding reasons to blame ourselves for such acts. Even after 9/11, many in the West found ways to claim that we deserved this, or we were somehow responsible for it.