The Tyranny of the State Is a Denial of the Right to Life and a Livelihood
Any justifiable counter moves against an enemy become unjustified if they make the government as tyrannical as the enemy it fights. One of Dietrich Bonheoffer’s key advocates in England throughout the 1930s-40s was Anglican Bishop George Bell. He famously clashed with Churchill over-saturation bombing, challenged the ‘kill ‘em all’ ethos of Vansittart, and stood firm against the fallacies behind Vansittartism, which painted all Germans as Nazis without distinction. Bell’s close relationship with the Confessing Church in Germany led to his 1940 book ‘Christianity and World Order’. Bell was well aware of the German Church’s struggle against a diluted Christianity, which…
Despite Fear and Powerlessness Good Friday Remains Good News
Like you, I’m wrestling with the COVID-19 changes imposed upon us. We’re adapting, steady, and we’re focused. We’re still homeschooling. We’re still reading the news in one hand, and reading the Bible with the other. We’re engaged, determined not to let the bad news sneak past us, or our prayers. We’re also determined not to let the barrage of repetitive, useless speculative analysis paralyze us. In 1939, Karl Barth, who had long since been exiled by the Nazis for refusing to sign the Hitler Oath, and for opposing the deification of the State, wrote, The Church prefers to suffer persecution…
The burlesque ambush of the Super Bowl halftime is a sign of the times
Pre-Christian paganism masquerades as Post-Christian freedom The only good things to be said about the burlesque ambush of the NFL Superbowl LIV’s halftime show, is that Shakira’s and Jennifer Lopez’s vocal talent hasn’t waned, the stage effects were well coordinated and the choreography never missed a beat. Beyond this, the scant clothing, right down to the provocative dance moves, presented another “sex sells” exhibit, displaying how far the overt sexualisation of Western culture has taken society back to a pre-Christian paganism, with its excesses and its abuses. The principal message being sent to women by the 15-minute segment is twofold.…
Calls for a new state police force to combat ‘far-right’ extremism show it’s time to end the far-left vs far-right facade
The late, great, Roger Scruton once articulated that one of the most successful lies of the 20th century is the idea that the ‘far-left’ is nothing like the ‘far-right.’ Scruton noted that: The success of Communist propaganda could be found in how it has persuaded so many people that fascism and communism are polar opposites and that there is a single scale of political ideology stretching from ‘far-left’ to ‘far-right’. Thus while communism is on the ‘far-left’, it is one stage along the road one must go in order not to be contaminated by fascism. However: Communism, like fascism, involved…
What if there is proof that God became a baby at Christmas?
I love Christmas carols. They are the soundtrack of the season. As great as carols are, it’s possible to make it through the whole month of December, hear these tunes, and yet not tune in to what the carols are really saying. On closer inspection, Christmas carols make some audacious claims. Consider just a few lines from Hark the Herald Angels Sing: Veiled in flesh, the Godhead see, Hail, the incarnate Deity. Pleased as man, with men to dwell, Jesus, our Immanuel. What an absurd idea. God being limited to one place at a time? God learning how to walk? God……
Why Israel Folau is right about disasters and the judgment of God
Izzy Folau is in the news again for saying something offensive. This time it’s not because of something he posted on social media but what he said in church. If you haven’t done so already, take the time to listen to his twelve-minute sermon before reading any further… However, this time it was not only those in the unbelieving media who were quick to pour scorn n Folau, but many within the Christian Church were eager to distance themselves as well. Everyone from the Prime Minister Scott Morrison—who said that Folau’s comments were “appallingly insensitive”—to Brian Houston who wrote on…
The butchery at Planned Parenthood defies belief
Dr Michael Brown is the special guest speaker at the Church And State Summit 2020 in Brisbane and host of a daily, live radio show syndicated across the United States during which he takes calls, interviews guests and tackles the big controversies facing Western culture. He’s seen and heard it all and has a gift for graciously yet unflinchingly offering truth with love. You could say it’s hard to shock him, and harder still to make him cry. But he was moved to tears when he interviewed the Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel, Mat Staver, about his organisation’s legal defence of Sandra…
The sins of climate change theology
A long-time Pellowe Talk Partner messaged me about a week ago to ask, “What do you make of all this hysteria now enveloping the Anglican Church?” Accompanying that question he sent a PDF statement by the Anglican Church of Australia’s “Public Affairs Commission” endorsing the call for a National Day of Climate Action and encouraging Anglicans to participate. The second paragraph explained, “The Marks of Mission of the Anglican Church commit the Church to striving to safeguard the integrity of creation, and to sustaining and renewing the life of the earth.” This is Biblical. In the first chapter of the…
The Stark Contrast Between Joshua Harris and Alice Cooper
American author and Pastor, Greg Laurie’s interview with Alice Cooper is an insightful look into Christian life outside a cloistered Christian culture. The interview was uploaded to YouTube on the 18th of August. Cooper calls himself a prodigal son and gives some background on his life, including his abuse of cocaine, alcoholism, his 43-year-old marriage, the Church and his return to Christ. Though unrelated, the interview presents a stark contrast between Alice Cooper and bestselling ‘Christian’ author, Joshua Harris. I related to it because I came to Christ through the broken, dark alleys of life. I found home through darkened lyrics,…
The Problem of White Supremacists
There is a new narrative being diligently spun by the leftist media complex, despite all evidence to the contrary. Apparently, white supremacists are responsible for all the mass shootings since Trump got elected. Of course, the Democrat Presidents who previously oversaw the epidemic of violence in America bore no responsibility whatsoever. And journalists are never ever biased or bigoted. Our country is under attack from white nationalist terrorism, inspiring murder on our soil and abetted by weak gun laws. If we are serious about national security, we must summon the courage to name and defeat this evil. — Pete Buttigieg…
There were two people in the temple, a journalist and a footballer
A response to Claire Harvey, deputy editor of the Sunday Telegraph: “I’m more of a Christian than Israel Folau is. I’m more of a Christian than anyone at the Australian Christian Lobby – and I don’t even go to church.” There were two people in the temple – a journalist and a footballer. The journalist could hardly be bothered going in because she was superior to all those inside. But on this occasion, she deigned to stoop down and enter. ‘I thank you, God, that I am not brainless like all those who worship you as this footballer does. I…
5 Reasons National Reconciliation Week Won’t Change Anything
In 2008 Prime Minister Kevin Rudd issued an official national apology for the mistreatment of Australia’s indigenous people. Since then, evidence has abounded that race relations have simply gotten worse with open resentment and even violent protests of Australia. The latest despicable display of racial bitterness is NRL star Cody Walker’s unoriginal refusal to sing the national anthem before the State of Origin opener. You’d never guess it’s actually “National Reconciliation Week” unless that means racist virtue-signalling week. Yes, the people complaining loudest about racism are plainly racists demanding obeisance. This week will potentially only serve to deepen resentment and…
Without Jesus and the Christian message of peace, Anzac Day is lost
Anzac Day comes with a caveat. Absent of any understanding about what causes war and the case for just-peace. Absent of the moral restraints of the message about Christ’s act and command to love God and love one another as we love and care for ourselves, Anzac day becomes a celebration of chaos, not life; a day of hero-worship, not sincere remembrance and gratitude. We surely remember the sacrifice of our ancestors, but with it we remember God’s summons to hear the importance of His commandments that empower us to stand against the continuing brutality of war. It’s because God…
Crying wolf about Nazism, diminishes the heinous crime of Nazism and dehumanises others
In August 2016, I posted a quick response to the hysteria surrounding the election of Donald Trump. I headlined that post, ‘Why Trump is Not Hitler, & Why American Evangelicals Are Not German Christians’. My aim was to counter a lot of what I was seeing posted on social media by people who were usually level-headed and intellectually responsible. It was disappointing to see normally sane individuals suddenly join in the anti-trump rants – which really were, I’m angry because the Leftist power structures, and its monopoly on power, has been diminished – tantrums. Worse still, some Christian conservative academics…
Political Correctness and ‘hate speech’ laws are the secular equivalent of Sharia Law.
Political correctness in its excessive form is the secular equivalent of Shari’a law. It might not have the full judicial weight of Western law behind it yet, but that doesn’t mean people aren’t trying to manipulate the system so as to implement it. I used to think that the only thing wrong with political correctness was the excesses that went along with it. Take the good, reject the bad. However, the more I learn from those who practice and enforce the ideals of political correctness, the more I arrive at the conclusion that political correctness is the secular version of…
The Church should have the freedom to refuse allegiance to the State on the issue of Gay Marriage.
If Australia’s Prime Minister is serious about fairness, he’ll preserve the right to a conscientious objection to SSM; the right for people to hold the view, and teach their kids that marriage is between a man and a woman; and that those children have a right to equal access to their biological father and mother. As I have hopefully made clear in the written contributions I’ve made to this national debate, I see the issues as a matter of social justice. The “no” vote has been about defending truth, liberty, fraternity, science, and even equality, from unbalanced ideological servitude. The State wants…
The death of sanctity.
Economics tells us that the value of a thing is nothing more or less than what someone is willing to pay for it. The most amazing painting, the rarest antique, the most ingenious book… none of these have any value if no-one wants them. What, then, is the value of a person? If this question were asked in eighteenth-century Britain, the answer would be something like “three guineas, maybe four. Does he have all his teeth?” At that time, the slave trade treated humans as a commodity within a capitalist framework. The economics definition applied:like gold, oil and toilet-paper, a…
Donald Trump’s “No” to Imperialism
From the start of his candidacy, I’ve considered Donald Trump a diamond in the rough. It’s a working hypothesis that I’ve held onto in the face of an onslaught of fear and dire predictions about his alleged “reign of terror”, a lot of which came from almost everyone I know (theologians and pastors included). Joining the bandwagon condemnation of Trump, in order to spread fear, was always a darkened side-road best left in the rear-view mirror. Minus a few friends and two years on, this hypothesis still stands strong. While I believe that God can transform, and still is in…
Agnostic Historian Says, ‘I Changed My Mind About Christianity’
“In my morals and ethics, I have learned to accept that I am not Greek or Roman at all, but thoroughly and profoundly Christian.”
Lesbians want out of LGBTQ because the Trans movement is ‘anti-lesbianism disguised as progress’
Lesbian activists have blocked London’s LGBT Pride march in protest against the Trans movement. Yes, you read that correctly. The ‘L’ in LGBTQ+ wants out, if the ‘T’ remains in. The group of women blocked the parade for about 10 minutes, shouting “A man who says he’s a lesbian is a rapist,” and waving a banner that read: “Transactivism erases lesbians.” #PrideinLondon Sorry After #AntiTrans Protest. Pride in London organizers have apologized after anti-trans protesters "forced their way to the front of the parade". Members of lesbian and feminist group Get The L Out demanded to march behind… #UK #LGBT…
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