There is something momentous about this year’s England men’s football team. Something huge. Not the historic fact that they got to the final of a major international tournament – only the second ever time. Not even the strange backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic, which meant that a tournament played in 2021 was bizarrely called Euro […]
Category: Blog
Inclusion, eating disorders and commensality
The practice of eating together – also known as commensality – is a conventional way to build community and show hospitality to others. Christian communities often eat together socially (in group meals) and symbolically (at the Eucharist). A recent resource from the Evangelical Alliance called Simply Eat (2018) demonstrates the significance of commensality in churches. […]
Book Review: Being Interrupted by Al Barrett and Ruth Harley
‘Being Interrupted: reimagining the church’s mission from the outside, in’ sets out an ambitious vision for seeing the church and mission through the lens of those at the margins, while framing the whole book with a journey through Mark’s Gospel. The style is deliberately broad and this allows the authors to cover a lot of […]
Telling Encounters: Stories of Disability, Faith, Church and God
Telling Encounters was a day-long conference on the stories of disabled and neurodivergent people, hosted for the first time online in partnership with HeartEdge via Zoom. The theme of ‘Telling Encounters’ centred on the stories and experiences of disabled and neurodivergent people in how we encounter God, including our ministry as disabled and neurodivergent people, […]
Moses, Disability and Inclusion: Sermon for 31st Jan 2021
Readings for the day: Exodus 24: 1-18 and John 15:1-10 As someone who grew up Methodist, I know the importance of the annual covenant service, so I feel privileged to be invited to speak to you on this special day for your church. Thank you! I can see why the reading from Exodus has been […]
On Being Diagnosed with ADHD Aged 38
A couple of years ago, I wrote a blog for Inclusive Church about being an introvert. When I look back at it now, I realise that some of the things I described are likely not just to do with being introvert, but to do with my very recently diagnosed ADHD. More on that later. ADHD […]
Book Review: Trans Deus by Paul Van Der Spiegel
In my ignorance, I sat down with ‘Transdeus’ ready (and hoping) to read a positive Christian argument on being trans – a mixture of autobiography, stories and theology. I hadn’t realised that Paul Van Der Spiegel’s book is a novel. But that isn’t to say that I didn’t get what I’d anticipated. The novel centres […]
Book Review: I’m Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness
Austin Channing Brown’s engaging and eminently readable book describes growing up, coming of age and how she developed her own capacities for survival as a Black Christian American woman. Austin is currently a well-known media producer, author, workshop leader and speaker on racial justice in America. The reader will be quickly become immersed into experiences […]
Covid, Inclusion and the Countryside
“I suppose the pleasure of country life lies really in the eternally renewed evidences of the determination to live. “ Vita Sackville-West “Paradoxically, city people are the ones who praise the charms of country life. Exhausted by the busy and noisy city, they idealize the green tranquillity of the country life, forgetting that besides its […]
Sexual Ethics and a New Type of Christian
My name is Judith and I’m conducting some PhD research around how a new generation of Christians formulate their sexual ethics. I don’t just mean “young Christians” – I think that there is a new sort of Christian emerging, all across the world.These Christians can be found across denominations, in evangelical churches, liberal churches, middle […]