The blog of Richard Hall, a Methodist Minister in Wales.
From the monthly archives:
I headlined penal substitution as a doctrine, though that isn’t strictly a true designation. The doctrine is “atonement” — Jesus saves! All Christians agree on that. Penal substitution is a theory which attempts to explain how Jesus saves. That’s much more controversial.
The Theory
Penal substitution is a development of the thinking of the medieval church [...]
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Richard and I went to a lecture tonight at Swansea University. Given to a packed theatre by Dr. Margie Tolstoy, who teaches at Cambridge, it was entitled “Jewish and Christian Responses to the Holocaust”. As chaplains, Richard and I also had an opportunity to speak with Margie (as she insisted on being called) [...]
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Dave’s cartoons have a habit of hitting the nail on the head, but he has surpassed himself with this one.
And, no. I shouldn’t be blogging. I’m supposed to be finishing my tax return.
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The man who was found dead in the porch of Brunswick Methodist Church on Sunday morning has been identified as Martin Woodley, of Bonymaen. According to the local paper, he was just 37.
This is terribly sad. I would like to offer my condolences to his family and invite readers to remember them in your prayers. [...]
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Very sadly, a homeless man has been found dead in the porch of one of my circuit churches today. His body was discovered by church stewards as they opened up the church for morning service. His identity is still unknown.
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Christ, from whom all blessings flow,
Perfecting the saints below,
Hear us, who Thy nature share,
Who Thy mystic body are.
Join us, in one spirit join,
Let us still receive of Thine;
Still for more on Thee we call,
Thou Who fillest all in all.
Move and actuate and guide,
Diverse gifts to each divide;
Placed according to Thy will,
Let us all our work [...]
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With these two personal life experiences, is it any wonder that human beings sometimes misunderstand each other?
Some years back, I had landed at Dallas Love Field to board a plane headed for Oklahoma City. The departure signs as well as the sign at the boarding gate gave the scheduled departure time and read “on-time.” [...]
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There’s a shiny new Leisure Centre being on Swansea’s waterfront. It’s due to open in March. That’s the good news.
The bad news is that swimmers will be expected to pay £7 to use it. OK, so there’ll be a residents discount of £1, if you apply for a card. And a family ticket for £18.
But [...]
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It’s Burns’ Night, so let’s have something from the old fella. Some of the words may not be immediately intelligible, but I reckon if you go with the flow of it you’ll grasp what he’s on about.
Address to the Unco Guid (or THE RIGIDLY RIGHTEOUS)
My Son, these maxims make a rule,
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“I am a dissenter because I am a catholic; I am a separatist, because I cannot be schismatical; I stand apart from some, because I love all; I oppose establishments because I am not sectarian; I think little of uniformity, because I long for union; I care not about subordinate differences with my brother, for [...]
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The American Geophysical Union has updated and strengthened its position paper on climate change.
Many components of the climate system—including the temperatures of the atmosphere, land and ocean, the extent of sea ice and mountain glaciers, the sea level, the distribution of precipitation, and the length of seasons—are now changing at rates and in patterns that [...]
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Having connived with its author for the job, I was recently sent Alan Sell’s Nonconformist Theology in the Twentieth Century (2006) to review for the URC’s national magazine Reform. Due to a cockup in the office, the book had aleady been sent to the Cambridge church historian Dr. David Thompson, whose review arrived on [...]
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Craig says: “Some (mainly older) Christians get in a bit of tiz about cremation.”
This came as a surprise to me. I’ve been working as a minister for a little while (though not as long as some I know ), and I’ve never come across anyone who objects to cremation for ‘religious’ reasons. Perhaps it’s [...]
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Claude Piron, one of the most effective Esperantists of recent times, has died at home. Piron was a translator with the UN and the World health Organization, translating from English, Spanish, Russian and Chinese into French. In this video, he makes a case for the use of Esperanto.
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Most of you will know Elie Wiesel’s harrowing Holocaust classic Night, but do you know Yosl Rakover Talks to God? Beth discovered this little book in Oxford and gifted me with it a few years ago. When the text first surfaced in the 1950s, it was hailed as a masterpiece of the Shoah. [...]
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A little while ago, I came across a parody of the popular hymn Amazing grace written, according to the author, as it would be “if it was sung by an Arminianist”. Sadly, the link I had has gone to glory but the first verse will give you the flavour.
Arminian grace! How strange the [...]
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I’ve just* looked in on a pretty ugly “debate” between Christians on another blog. I was tempted to weigh in myself, but it was evident that there was a lot more heat than light being generated. It was getting very personal, very nasty - and was clearly about more than the surface issue. Not very [...]
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The Lambeth Conference launched today.
Dave Walker and Thinking Anglicans were there.
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