How Christians Can Go Beyond The ‘Culture War’ – Part 1 Many Christians feel we’re losing the ‘culture war’. From SSM to euthanasia, the traditional Christian perspective has lost ground in much of mainstream society. We’re a minority. And yet, I want to suggest that far from getting down about the marginalisation of Christianity, we should look to the opportunities that minority status brings. Now…
Posts by Rick Maude (Page 6)
The Paradox of Prayer (part 2) Praying in the Spirit of Adoption As the risen Lord, Jesus pours out his Spirit to revive and transform us his people. And the Holy Spirit is integral to our praying, for he is the Spirit of Adoption (Galatians 4:1-7). He leads us to God, not simply as the Creator and Redeemer, but as our newly…
The Paradox of Prayer – Part 1 BIBLE & THEOLOGY Praying is a paradox in the life of most Christians. When we reflect about the experience of praying, we find it is the easiest thing in the world, yet we are inevitably bad at doing it. And we find it is the point of feeling closest in our relationship with the God…
Three important differences between Flatter and Encouragement—Part 2 (for part 1 please visit our web site) Flattery builds pride; encouragement builds strength. Often flattery begins with the phrase “You are so…”. Granted, that doesn’t automatically define a statement as flattery, but when what follows is a thick syrup of meaningless praise, it’s a pretty good indicator. Since the flatterer is driven by…
Three important differences between flattery and encouragement – Part 1 There’s a fine line between words that flatter and words that encourage—so fine, in fact, that the words used might be identical. “You are so beautiful” could qualify as rank fawning; it could also, given the right circumstances, tone of voice, and context of relationship, serve as a genuine statement of appreciation,…
4 Secular Myths About Religion … (And Why They’re Potentially Dangerous) – Part 3 Myth #4 – Religion is Against the Public Good, It needs to be kept out of the public square. This view has been popularised by ‘New Atheist’ thinkers like Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens. It re-appeared last year in MSM articles about the SSM postal survey. Fairfax…
4 Secular Myths About Religion … (And Why They’re Potentially Dangerous) – Part 2 (last week in part one we examined the myth that ‘all religions are essentially the same ‘as well as the myth that ‘religion is merely a private belief that does not impact a person’s outward behaviour (see website for details) 3) Religion is Inherently ‘Irrational’ and Belief Driven…
4 Secular Myths About Religion … (And Why They’re Potentially Dangerous) – Part 1 An increasing number of overtly secular people believe in myths: myths about religion – and about how religion works. Unfortunately, many of these secular people are vocal in the public square, driving important discussions around the role of religion in society. As far as they’re concerned, religion’s place in society –…
Are There Many Ways to God? We live in a society that embraces diversity—different ethnicities, music, TV shows, fashion, food, and the freedom of various lifestyle choices. In such as cultural environment it is considered arrogant to say there is only one way to God. If pluralism is the view that there are many ways to God, what do we make of…
Tools, Technology and Attention In 1976, at the dawn of the computer age, the Canadian philosopher George Grant wrote an essay entitled: “The Computer Does Not Impose On Us The Ways It Should Be Used”. The title was a quotation of a claim made by someone seeking to calm anxieties about this unfamiliar new technology. Yet Grant went on to argue that…