Faith-in-Scholarship
Researching medieval miracles
‘Do miracles really happen? Is there a God or gods who actively intervene in human history?’ Lydia McCutcheon reflects on engaging with accounts of divine intervention as a historian.
RealityBites
Why Go out on the Streets at Night?
What a joy to be able to get out on the streets after lockdown and tell RealityBites stories to all kinds of non-Christian people. Working closely with my good friends Mark Yeadon and Mike Burkett we have now resumed our Read more…
Faith-in-Scholarship
How Money Makes You Sad
At my university this semester, I’ve been thinking a lot about money. I think I’ve always thought about money over the sixteen years I’ve been here. That’s partly because it’s a university with a history and tradition of drawing some Read more…
Faith-in-Scholarship
Walking in freedom
“I will always obey your law, for ever and ever. I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts.” (Psalm 119:44-45) Academic freedom is a frequent talking point in our times – it’s often seen as Read more…
Faith-in-Scholarship
The Virus and the Soul
The word “Covid” surely evokes a mental reaction now from people everywhere in the world. The illness caused by this particular virus has inflicted suffering and death in almost every country, and continues to do so, albeit with very different trajectories Read more…
RealityBites
Albert Camus, Old Ladies, Human Rights and Newcastle United
The famous French Nobel Prize winning author Albert Camus (1913-60) once said that Christianity is a religion for old ladies. Today many western, secular people would agree with Albert. Christianity is just for children and simpletons. A Sunday hobby you Read more…
Faith-in-Scholarship
Every Breath the University Takes, continued…
Last week I started this reflection on the state of the university today by looking at the recent film, “Every Breath You Take.” As I said, “There are many ways one could think about this movie. Clearly, there are implications Read more…
Faith-in-Scholarship
Every Breath the University Takes
As a seminarian in a former life, I was cautioned against being “a quivering mass of availability” (a phrase from American theologian Stanley Hauerwas); but in a congregation, this seemed to be what was most desired from the pastor. Many Read more…
LifeMatters
Faith in Democracy
What is the place of faith in public life in the UK? Beyond secularism that seeks to relegate faith to the margins, and a ‘Christian Nation’ position that seeks to retain, or even regain Christian public privilege, is there a Read more…
Faith-in-Scholarship
Faith in Democracy
We commonly grant nowadays that most of us live in societies that are pluralistic and largely secular. Many places in the West, as a growing number of writers and thinkers have noted, can be called post-Christian. Secular liberalism of one Read more…