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It’s time for Christians to speak out against the Conservative Party, not just Boris Johnson
In an article for the Guardian, the ‘recovering journalist’ and Church of England priest George Pitcher has rightly attacked Boris Johnson, pointing out his many character flaws. Johnson, says Pitcher, is ‘a serial liar, philanderer and shirker’, ‘spendthrift, ‘incompetent beyond belief’, ‘a provocateur of racism and hate crime’. Pitcher is quite obviously right, yet, the…
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Navigating Academia as an Undiagnosed Autistic
What is it like to go to university with undiagnosed #autism? How does the diagnostic process affect this? #REDinstead
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Has the Church Abandoned the Poor?
In April 2018, Philip North, Bishop of Burnley expressed the opinion that there was “a widespread perception among northern DDOs [diocesan directors of ordinands] that candidates from working-class backgrounds with northern accents are victims of prejudice” in the selection process for ordination training. Bishop North has, in recent years, become one of the sharpest critics…
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The Church Can No Longer Be Politically Neutral
I can still picture the moment I discovered that there are Christians who believe that climate change is a good thing because it will speed Christ’s return! Much like the famed ‘rapture hatch’, it can be tempting to laugh at such eschatological clumsiness, but for the seriousness of its implications. A similar story emerges with…
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The Problem With Policing
Expressing your aversion to the police as an institution immediately elicits some variation of the same question each time: “what if someone’s breaking into my house?” or “what if someone attacks me?”. People worry about being the victim of, or witness to a crime, and this is completely understandable. Problems soon come though, when such…
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Poverty and Privilege
Walking the Camino is a privilege. We often use such words flippantly, even if we are showing gratitude, but what does it really mean for something to be a privilege? For the last five weeks I’ve been working this through my head. I am someone who has, at least in relative terms, known both sides…
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Short Thoughts on the General Election
In their pastoral letter released prior to the 2015 general election, the Church of England’s bishops attempt to offer guidance to Anglicans as they prepare to vote. ‘Who is my Neighbour?’, they ask, just as the lawyer in Luke 10:25-37 does. Having correctly answered that the law requires him to love God and love his…
Bread and Rosaries 