NSW election – please leave your cynicism at the door
Why AMY BUTLER is taking a carload of teenagers to vote in Saturday’s election
BOOK REVIEW: Biblical Critical Theory by Christopher Watkin
Brianna Reeves* reviews one of the most lauded Christian books of recent years.
Bad news for authentic religious schooling
The Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) recently released consultation paper threatens to further erode the capacity of Christian schools to offer a distinctive education shaped by a faith ethos. JOHN McCLEAN writes
Help for parents with teens – video series
Helping parents, ministry workers and others connect with the teen experience of depression and anxiety is the focus of a series of videos produced by Gospel, Society and Culture (GS&C) and Prebyterian Youth (PY).
It’s right that boys cry – a wise campaign that we should embrace
An average of nine deaths by suicide occur each day in Australia. Seven of these deaths will be male. AMY BUTLER applauds a new campaign that could help lower that number
Is Facebook harmful?
Social media promises so much. But, as it ‘matures’, doubts and questions arise. NICK RABE challenges Christians to reconsider whether we should participate on these platforms.
Video interview: New organisation focuses on relationships and building bridges into communities
A new organisation seeks to prioritise relationships – how best to ensure that children grow up in safe, stable and nurturing families; how to address the growing problem of loneliness; how to build caring, local communities where people look after one another; how to best look after the disadvantaged.
The suspicion of science
Suspicion of science has been growing since World War I showed us what its application, in the form of mechanised warfare, could do to the human body. Trust in science further plummeted after World War II because of the atom bomb. More recently, the fragmenting of...
Animal rights and wrongs – how then should we care for the beast?
PAUL BYUN wrestles with a big ethical question – his love and care for a new pet while at the same time eating a bacon and egg roll.
EUTHANASIA
The Euthanasia issue is coming to a head in the NSW Parliament. The Gospel Society and Culture committee has updated its resource paper and produced a new Short-Take to help you navigate the issue.
‘Dying with dignity’ reimagined: Reasons to reconsider voluntary assisted dying
‘Dying with dignity’ may sound noble, but we dignify patients best when we provide them with the most appropriate care, to make the most of their precious and fragile existence. *Benjamin Shuhyta writes
MODERN SLAVERY
Modern Slavery is a Gospel, Society and Culture resource paper that digs deep into a problem that impacts 40 million people worldwide and 15,000 in Australia. This is a comprehensive resource that will help all Christians to ‘see, think and act’.
Abortion back in focus
The US Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v Wade and give responsibility to the States, has triggered a worldwide response. If you’re looking for a Christian perspective on abortion, this Gospel Society and Culture paper answers many questions.
Religious Discimination Bills – how to make submissions and complete a survey
Urgent call to action: The Federal Government’s religious discrimination bill has been referred to not one but TWO parliamentary inquires. Both are accepting submissions from the public. Here are some guidelines to help you prepare a submission.
Who are you to judge?
Who is the final divine authority in today's fractured world? KAMAL WEERAKOON* has the answer - and it's not atheism! “Religion poisons everything and causes wars.” When I was in my 20s, my peers took that statement for granted. Everybody ‘knew’ that belief in the...
Book Review: Western Fundamentalism
LEWIS JONES* finds that Gordon Menzies' book, Western Fundamentalism, takes us on a journey worth taking Menzies, G., 2020. Western Fundamentalism: Democracy, Sex and the Liberation of Mankind. Sydney: Gordon Menzies. Available at Reformers Bookshop and other...
Nation’s culture the key to why we are Covid-anxious
LEWIS JONES* considers whether aspects of our socio-cultural formation play a part in the psychological impact of this ongoing Covid crisis. About two weeks into our COVID-19 timeline in Australia, typically taken as time since the 100th confirmed case,...
The Covid information inundation
In the first of two blogs, LEWIS JONES* looks at how Covid has distorted our sense of time and space - but he offers a path to recovery. At 7:07pm on the 26th of June 2021, it seemed like a good thing that you had booked a rental cabin where you were going to stay...
Needle-phobia and loving your neighbour
BEN GREIG* lives in regional NSW and has a fear of needles. He explains why overcoming his fear was important. I have a not-so-well-kept secret. I have a bit of a phobia of needles (trypanophobia). Even the mention of the things gives me an uncomfortable shiver down...
Covid, fate, fatalism, and confidence in Christ
Lewis Jones’s blogs about Covid’s impact on the way we think about the future, prompted KARINE WOLDHUIS* to reflect on her time in Ecuador, where discussions about plans often ended with “God willing”. Fatalistic or realistic? Read on One of the strange things I had...