Category: church

Resisting the Temptation: Bruxy Cavey’s Allegations of Sexual Misconduct

February 26, 2022

One of Canada’s most well-known evangelical pastors, Bruxy Cavey is facing allegations of sexual misconduct, as his chair of overseers publicly announced early in the week of Dec. 6th 2021. He has been placed on a leave of absence while an independent third-party investigation takes place. Some things to consider before you jump to any conclusions… … More Resisting the Temptation: Bruxy Cavey’s Allegations of Sexual Misconduct

Engaging the Global Polylogue: Why Listen to Christians in the Majority World When it Comes to Sexual Ethics?

December 1, 2021

Is the majority world on the wrong side of history when it comes to sexual ethics? Where harsh laws exist criminalizing homosexual acts, it seems to be true. But Western arrogance in declaring the direction of history could be seen as the vestiges of colonialism. What about the church? Who is having their ethics sullied by their social context? Here I don’t give all the answers, but I do raise some issues and say we can at least start by listening to each other. … More Engaging the Global Polylogue: Why Listen to Christians in the Majority World When it Comes to Sexual Ethics?

The Lost Art of Friendship: Building Trust and Affection with Strangers as the Medicine of Life

November 18, 2021

In his book The Four Loves, C. S. Lewis writes: “To the Ancients, Friendship seemed the happiest and most fully human of all loves; the crown of life and the school of virtue. The modern world, in comparison, ignores it.” Its not just that we are poorer without friends, but one can die without friends. … More The Lost Art of Friendship: Building Trust and Affection with Strangers as the Medicine of Life

A Train Wreck in Slow Motion: The Rise and Fall of Mark Driscoll’s Unbridled Charisma

November 10, 2021

This new podcast from Christianity Today is dramatic, critical, intense, and wide-ranging in its exploration of the collapse of an evangelical megachurch and its megapersonality, Mark Driscoll. The production is stellar, and the analysis both trenchant and candid. The trailer says: “Its a story of power, platform and fame, and an unflinching look at the cost.” … More A Train Wreck in Slow Motion: The Rise and Fall of Mark Driscoll’s Unbridled Charisma

Grace in the Play of Role Reversals: Muslim Hospitality to Christians in the West

August 3, 2021

I was guest at a Muslim Society event in my home town of Guelph, which prompted me to re-consider the notion of hospitality. We usually view the practise from the superior position of the host. But if it is true that worship is a participation in God’s Trinitarian hospitality, we might do well to consider the notion from the role of guest and the spiritual practise of guesting (yes, it’s a word). This is especially relevant in the post-Christian West, and in the context of a polycentric World Christianity. … More Grace in the Play of Role Reversals: Muslim Hospitality to Christians in the West

Jesus Laughed and So Should You

June 22, 2021

The fact is, most Christian kids are familiar with the verse “Jesus wept.” Why? In some English translations, it’s the shortest verse in the whole Bible. It stands out. What is so beautiful and comforting about this prominence is that it emphasizes the humanity of Jesus. Believers can know God cries for his friends, as his grief comes at the death of his friend Lazarus. But what is so unfortunate and misleading about the prominence of this verse is that there is no equivalent that pops to mind which reveals that Jesus’ humanity also included his laughter. … More Jesus Laughed and So Should You

Post-Christendom Ethics: Evangelism as Immoral, Confessional, Embodied and Beautiful

June 12, 2021

If sharing Good News can never be a bad thing, how come its such a turn off in North America? Can a professor “evangelize” in his university class if evangelism is understood as a form of persuasion? How does evangelism relate to sex and beauty? Here I review two books on the ethics of evangelism in a post-Christendom world. … More Post-Christendom Ethics: Evangelism as Immoral, Confessional, Embodied and Beautiful

A Quiet Celebration? Global Scholars Canada at 25 (+1) Years

May 31, 2021

In the West there is a growing assessment of the wider legacy of Christian mission that may subdue any celebration of global missions because it indites missionaries for their part in colonization, enslavement, and the cultural and racial genocide of countless peoples—a terrible legacy that is said to be the direct cause of global geo-political injustice and strife to this day. This narrative is no doubt the dominant narrative about Christianity on our public university campuses across Canada. But there is more to be said here… … More A Quiet Celebration? Global Scholars Canada at 25 (+1) Years

Confessions and a “No Hate” Religion: Lessons on Racism from Jack

May 17, 2021

This Pentecost, I tell the story of my Jewish neighbour Jack, and how he reminded me that God created this wonderful diversity, but we have this tendency to want to raise ourselves up and put our neighbour down. Racism, prejudice, anti-Semitism, bullying–its personal, its tribal, its systemic, and it can be transnational–but it is exhibit A in terms of evidence for sin as the chronic human problem. … More Confessions and a “No Hate” Religion: Lessons on Racism from Jack