• It’s time for Christians to speak out against the Conservative Party, not just Boris Johnson

    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…

  • Truth, Freedom of Speech, and the Poppy

    Truth, Freedom of Speech, and the Poppy

    This blog is a sort of semi-sequel to this one.  If you have not read it, you may like to. In a recent speech, the actor and comedian Stephen Fry expressed his frustration at the apparent death of the political centre ground. The problem, he feels, is that freedom of speech is under attack from both…

  • The Church Can No Longer Be Politically Neutral

    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…

  • The UK’s Handling of the ‘IS Beatles’ is Illegal, Immoral, and Dangerous

    The UK’s Handling of the ‘IS Beatles’ is Illegal, Immoral, and Dangerous

    Regardless of the horrendous nature of their crimes, the UK’s handling of the cases of Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh, sets two very dangerous precedents: stripping them of citizenship, and refusing to demand assurances that they will not receive the death penalty.