Roger Abbott on Pastoral Care for the Common Good

Cambridge Papers are published once a quarter and address a wide range of topics, offering ‘Christian reflection on contemporary issues’.

The latest paper is available online here (from where a pdf can be downloaded here):

Roger Abbott, ‘Pastoral care for the common good: How the Church can respond better in the next pandemic’, Cambridge Papers 32, 2 (June 2023).

Here is the summary:

‘Noting that the UK Church’s response to the Covid pandemic was disappointing when compared with her response to disease-related outbreaks of earlier centuries, this paper reflects on the issue of pastoral care by the Church both for congregations and the general public. Requisite pastoral care should have a common grace focus, where carers accept the risks to their own lives, engage collaboratively with the scientific community, yet are also prepared to think and act prophetically. Finally, the paper calls for a way forward that takes seriously the lessons to be learned from the coronavirus pandemic in order to prepare for a more effective response when the next pandemic arrives. The paper closes with an important call for the Christian Church to be at the national policy-making table.’

Theology in Scotland 29, 2 (2022) on Church, Virtual and Physical

The substance of the latest issue of Theology in Scotland is devoted to the relationship between the physical and the virtual in the life of the church. The articles are available as pdfs from here.

Lina Toth

Editorial: Church, Virtual and Physical

From the Editorial: ‘As we continue to inhabit this not-quite-post-pandemic world, and grapple with the fact that, at least in some contexts and some forms, online participation is here to stay, questions around the relationship between the physical and the virtual in the life of the Church will need some sustained theological conversation. We hope that this issue of Theology in Scotland will contribute to a start of such conversation.’

Articles

Tom Shields

Virtual Assurance: Reflecting on the ‘Confident Prayer of the Church’ Through Online Worship

The author addresses two constant questions in Roman Catholic sacramental theology against the background of the broadcasting of online Mass, especially during the restrictions imposed on in-person attendance to inhibit the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. These are: what constitutes sacramental communion in the Roman Catholic Church and what is the role of the priest in celebrating the Eucharist? Looking at the first of those questions, he briefly examines the recent work of Katherine G. Schmidt and her use of the sacramental theology of Louis-Marie Chauvet, which addresses both the idea and the experience of presence and absence in the celebration of the Eucharist. The author concludes that, while her work raises some important issues that need to be addressed, she does not entirely represent Chauvet’s thinking, and the fullest understanding of sacramental communion in the Roman Catholic tradition will always include the physical. It is in addressing the second question, that of the responsibility of the priest in celebrating the Mass with an online congregation, that the author believes a more satisfactory answer can be found as to the sacramental ‘value’ of virtual worship. Employing the ideas of authority, authenticity, and assurance, as they relate to the ordained ministry, he maintains that it is crucial the ‘confident prayer of the Church’ be visible and accessible.

Michael Hull

Why Not an ‘Online Eucharist’?: A Scottish-Episcopal Perspective on Presence

The experience of Covid-19’s lockdowns, especially living through a period without the Eucharist on Sunday lays behind this theological reflection from the perspective of a Scottish Episcopalian about so-called online Eucharists with remote consecrations. The question I set is simple: ‘Can the elements of bread and wine be consecrated outwith the gathered community?’ Simple too is my answer: ‘No, they cannot.’ The pandemic has tested the fault lines of God’s presence in our worship, our presence in community and those presences in the Eucharist. I argue that God’s presence with us was unchanged by lockdown. I also argue that although many of us began to use ‘onsite’, ‘online’ and a variety of related terms in unprecedented ways vis-à-vis liturgies, our presence to one another was changed during lockdown. When we could not gather as a community, even if we were able to communicate via the internet, we could neither celebrate the Eucharist nor consecrate the elements. Theological reflection will, I hope, hone our appreciation of the significance of our humanity, the Incarnation, and the Body and Blood of Christ in the sacramental economy.

Ruth Gouldbourne in conversation with Steve Holmes

From One Degree of Imperfection to Another: A Consideration of Gathering in Different Ways

This conversation focuses on issues raised during the recent pandemic, and in particular the theological as well as practical questions around gathering for worship when we could not be together in our buildings. We have known each other for several years, but have not met recently. However, to have a conversation reflecting on issues about different ways of meeting which have been brought to the fore by the last few years, it seemed good to meet and share food as well as conversation. This is a lightly edited version of our discussion. Unfortunately, we cannot share the delicious food with those of you who read this – and that fact proved central to our discussion.

Adam Hood

The Place of Buildings in the Mission of the Church of Scotland: The Need for a Theology of the Built Environment

Church sanctuaries are a vital asset in the work of the Church of Scotland, helping to initiate and sustain faith. A sanctuary helps define a congregation’s self-understanding and the features of a church building have a pedagogic function. Church buildings are significant too, in the spiritual life of the wider community. They are the material instantiation of the Kirk’s commitment to be present in each locality, providing a focal point for the expression of spiritual needs and the offering of care. They also testify to God’s presence in a location and to values that transcend those of everyday life.

Arts and Culture

Sorrel Shamel-Wood

Churches Will Open for Private Prayer

This poem describes the first time my husband (then fiancé) and I set foot inside a church following their closure as part of the UK lockdown which began in March 2020. Initially, churches opened for private prayer only, with social distancing measures such as one-way systems in place and the removal of soft furnishings and holy water to avoid contagion.

Gifford Lectures Corner

Jonathan C.P Birch

The Theological House that Jack (un)built: Halberstam on an Aesthetics of Collapse and Mushrooms Among the Ruins

Review Essay

Jonathan C.P. Birch

Three Lions, Divine Comedy and Making Jews Count: Baddiel and Skinner, Then and Now

Reviews

Centre for Public Christianity (July 2022)

Among other items, the Centre for Public Christianity has this month posted some new ‘Life and Faith’ podcast episodes:

Asking Questions: Finding Answers – ‘Darrell Bock talks about the things that pushed him, as a young man, to ask deep questions about life and meaning. And where he found answers.’

Pandemic Fatigue – ‘After two years of the exhaustion we’ve felt living in the midst of the pandemic, is “not coping” the new “busy” – in other words, the standard reply to “how are you?” these days?’

Seen & Heard: The Third – ‘Have you read Jonathan Franzen’s latest novel? Are you a Trevor Noah fan? Are you ready to call the best film of 2022? Let Simon, Natasha, and Justine talk you into watching/reading some of the things they love.’

Zoomed Out?

Zoomed Out? is the product of a six-month research process involving over 600 worshippers from the Church of England. The report details Anglican experiences of church during Covid, and explores how lessons from the pandemic can inform the church’s practice moving forward.

The main take-away points are highlighted as follows:

• Online church did not function as a wholesale substitute for onsite church to the satisfaction of the majority

• Online communion was rarely experienced as communion

• Face-to-face contact was a lifeline for many

• Even online, it’s important to be face-to-face

• Anglican experiences of distanced church were incredibly varied

• The return to the church building threatens to exclude the many worshippers who are still shielding from Covid

• The poorest and the oldest are often the least well-equipped to engage online

Further information is available from here, and the report is available to download as a pdf here.

Foundations 80 (Spring 2021)

Issue 80 of Foundations: An International Journal of Evangelical Theology, published by Affinity, is now available (here in its entirety as a pdf), which includes the below essays.

Here is the issue blurb:

‘Issue 80 includes a sobering and yet hopeful piece by Sharon James on how we may offer grace to those submerged in a therapeutic culture; Mark J. Lawson reflecting on the thorny issue of how the church responded to the curtailment of its freedoms during the pandemic; Stephen Lloyd critiques four books that seek to explain Covid-19 in the light of God's sovereignty; Ivor MacDonald looks at the often-neglected rural context for mission and evangelism; and Alasdair Macleod surveys the history of Scottish Presbyterianism during the twentieth century.’

Donald John MacLean
Editorial

Sharon James

“It’s All About Me!”: Ministry in a Therapeutic Culture

Mark J. Larson

The Christian and the Civil Magistrate

Stephen Lloyd

COVID-19 and Creation: Megaphones, Mystery and Lament

Ivor MacDonald

Distinctives of the Rural Context for Christian Mission

Alasdair J. Macleod

The Union of 1929 and What Came After: Developments in Mainline Scottish Presbyterianism in the 20th Century

Stephen Clark

Review Article: Systematic Theology by Robert Letham

Book Reviews

Paul Mills on a Debt Jubilee

The latest Cambridge Paper from the Jubilee Centre is available online here (from where a pdf can be downloaded here), this one by Paul Mills:

Paul Mills, ‘After the Virus: Is it Time for a Debt ‘Jubilee’?’, Cambridge Papers 30, 1 (March 2021).

Here is the summary:

‘The concept of a societal cancellation of debt has an ancient heritage that includes the seven-year cycle of debt elimination found in biblical law. Given the virus-induced economic slump of 2020-21, the idea of substantive debt relief is being revived as a way to alleviate financial burdens on stressed households, companies and governments. The benefits of these proposals need to be weighed against the costs and injustices of changing the “rules of the financial game” retrospectively. But without a principled stance against the bondage of debt finance itself, such relief would only act as a temporary fix. The true lesson from Deuteronomy is that debt should remain short-term, with a “clean slate” within everyone’s grasp, thereby embodying gospel hope within the financial system.’

Theos Report on University Chaplaincy during the COVID–19 Pandemic

A new report from Theos has been published, looking at the role and contribution of university chaplains and faith advisors who have been on the frontline of the pandemic:

Simon Perfect, Relationships, Presence and Hope: University Chaplaincy during the COVID-19 Pandemic (London: Theos, 2021).

Here are some paragraphs from the Theos website:

‘Throughout the pandemic, chaplains and faith advisors have been supporting the isolated, comforting the bereaved, and providing pastoral and spiritual care to anyone who needs it.

‘In universities, chaplains have faced a massive health crisis among students. In November 2020, a survey of 4,193 students conducted for the National Union of Students found that 52% said their mental health was worse than it was before the pandemic, but only 29% of those people had sought any help.

‘This report captures the experience of higher education chaplaincy during the pandemic, drawing on interviews with 16 chaplains from universities across the UK. It explores the unique contributions of chaplains during this time, the challenges they have faced, and what lessons can be learned by chaplains and employers.’

A pdf of the full report is available here, and an executive summary is available here.

Theology in Scotland 28, 1 (2021) on Theology in a Time of Covid-19

The articles in this special issue of Theology in Scotland all originate from an online conference, ‘TheoCon: Theology in a Time of Crisis 2020’, organised by the University of Edinburgh. Individual articles are available as pdfs from here.

Joanna Leidenhag

Guest Editorial

David Fergusson

Theology in Lockdown

Rebekah Lamb

Christian Consolation and Theology’s Task Today

John L. Bell

Theology and the Arts: The Corona Crisis

Christopher Southgate

Singing and Dancing in the Cruellest Month: A Reflection on Theology and Poetry in a Time of Covid

Andrew Root

Time-famine, Resource Obsession and the Good Life in a Pandemic

Jonathan C.P. Birch

Review Essay: When the Dancing Turned to Mourning: Theological Responses to the Pandemic

George Newlands

Rev Prof G.W.D. Shaw OBE (1928-2020)

Reviews

Biblical Counselling UK on Care in a Covid World

Recognising that ‘the pandemic of 2020-21 has brought a unique and serious set of challenges to the church in the UK’, Biblical Counselling UK has a set of articles and other resources here on various topics related to caring for each other in a Covid world.

Lausanne Global Analysis 10, 1 (January 2021)

The latest issue of Lausanne Global Analysis, from The Lausanne Movement, is available online from here, including pdfs of individual articles as below.

Kirst Rievan

Uncovering Discrimination in Missions: Toward a ‘Third Culture’ of Oneness in Christ

As global church and mission leaders, we want to see diversity in our teams. But we also know how difficult it is to create teams where differences are not only tolerated, but warmly embraced. Kirst Rievan addresses the complex issue of unintentional discrimination in Christian organizations against staff and partners of different ethnicities, providing methods, the solution of a ‘third culture’, and penetrating questions for reflection.

Daewon Moon

Pentecostalism in African Christianity: The Formation and Scope of a Distinctive Spirituality

One particular church that is aware of the global nature of Christianity and what it means to be multicultural is the African Pentecostal church. Daewon Moon, Academic Dean at International Leadership University in Burundi, invites us to recognize ‘the remarkable emergence of Pentecostal churches in Africa’, celebrating its ‘experiential and spontaneous nature’.

Gladys Mwiti

Building Hope and Resilience in the COVID-19 Storm: Lament, Communities of Care, and the New Normal

It’s been almost a year since the outbreak of COVID-19, and many of us are feeling ‘Corona fatigue.’ Gladys Mwiti, Consulting Clinical Psychologist and Trauma Specialist, sensitively addresses some of the psychosocial impact of the pandemic and how holistic care for others and ourselves helps us build resilience and hope in the midst of the pandemic.

Ted Lankester

Faith, Health, and Collaborative Love: Pandemic Partnership for Health Professionals and the Church

All of us are wondering, what are the long-term impacts of COVID-19? Ted Lankester, President and Senior Clinician of Thrive Worldwide, considers this question in especially in the realm of global health and development. What would it look like for health professionals to partner with the church?

Evangelical Review of Theology 44, 4 (October 2020)

The latest Evangelical Review of Theology, published by The World Evangelical Alliance, is now online and available in its entirety as a pdf here.

Editor’s Introduction:

Is Our Quality Higher Than That of the US Presidential Campaign?

Efraim Tendero

Evangelicals and Elections

Thomas K. Johnson

The Protester, the Dissident and the Christian

When and why should Christians protest? How can we turn the hearts of other protesters towards the hope offered by the Christian gospel? This article, revised from a sermon originally preached during the Arab Spring uprisings, answers those timely questions as we experience another year of widespread protests.

Ebenezer Yaw Blasu

The Invisible Global War: An African ‘Theocological’ Assessment of Responses to COVID-19

How should the experience of COVID-19 shape future human behaviour? This article examines responses by both Christians and practitioners of primal (traditional) African religions, from a perspective that combines theology and ecology. Drawing on scientific and spiritual principles, it argues that COVID-19 may be calling us to avoid forms of resource exploitation that disturb the sensitive balance between human activity and nature.

Andrea L. Robinson

Reflecting the Image of God through Speech: Genesis 1–3 in James 3:1–12

This article shows how James 3:1–12 echoes the creation account, using imagery from Genesis 1–3 to correlate purity of speech with bearing the image of God. Accordingly, the untamed tongue is regarded as a central characteristic of fallenness and a distortion of God’s image – emphasizing that our failure to tame the tongue separates individuals from God, creates division in the community of faith, and has a severely destructive impact on the world. Applications and a sample sermon outline are provided.

C. Ryan Fields

Evangelical Engagement with Barth: A Modest Proposal

Karl Barth, one of the most influential theologians of the twentieth century, is too important for evangelicals to ignore but not easy to evaluate. Barth reacted against liberalizing tendencies with a strong emphasis on the centrality of Christ and the power of Scripture, but his theology also contained some innovations that deviate from evangelical tradition. This article surveys evaluations of Barth by English-speaking evangelicals and offers well-informed suggestions on how to appropriate Barth’s work.

Jana Holiday and Linda Cannell with James D. McLennan

The Puzzle of Institutional Inertia in Theological Education

Theological institutions must sustain their core values while not resisting necessary change. The authors draw on their extensive experience in theological education and board governance to address how four groups of stakeholders– administrators, faculty, students and boards – can resist institutional inertia.

Chris Gousmett

What Are the ‘Gates of Hades’ in Matthew 16:18?

Matthew 16:18 contains one of Jesus’ most obscure remarks, as he assures Peter (and us) that the ‘gates of Hades’ will not overcome the church. But gates are stationary objects that don’t normally overcome anything. What was Jesus promising? This article shows the weakness of prevailing interpretations and argues for an expansive metaphorical alternative.

Thomas Schirrmacher

Observations on Apologetics and Its Relation to Contemporary Christian Mission

Christians often think of apologetics as something that only academics do, but actually it has been an essential part of Christian mission ever since the book of Acts. This article offers penetrating reflections on the meaning of apologetics today and how all Christians should equip themselves to do it.

Elmer Thiessen

The Reconstruction of Evangelism by Liberal Protestants: An Evangelical Response

Many voices – both secular and religious – argue that it is inappropriate in a religiously pluralistic world for evangelicals to call all people to repentance and faith in Christ. This article, by a leading evangelical expert on the ethics of evangelism, uses a recently published book critical of traditional evangelism as a starting point to explore how evangelicals should respond to such objections.

Book Reviews

Mission Catalyst 3 (2020) on Covid

The current issue of Mission Catalyst, published by BMS World Mission, is now available. This issue is devoted to ‘The Covid-Effect’, looking at ‘what we’ve learned and what we can still learn’.

Mission Catalyst is available as a free subscription, or can be downloaded as a pdf here.

Lausanne Global Analysis 9, 5 (September 2020)

The latest issue of Lausanne Global Analysis, from The Lausanne Movement, is available online from here, including pdfs of individual articles.

In the issue overview, editor Loun Ling Lee writes:

‘Our focus for this issue is on the long-term impacts of COVID-19 affecting us as individuals, church, and society. The articles will give us multiple perspectives – historical, social, political, economic, environmental, and theological – of the COVID-19 pandemic.’

Centre for Public Christianity (September 2020)

Among other items, the Centre for Public Christianity has two ‘Life and Faith’ podcasts: an interview with Richard Shumack, ‘about his new book Jesus through Muslim Eyes, and Abdu Murray, who has looked at Jesus through both Muslim and Christian eyes’, and one in which Justine Toh talks about ‘the struggles facing working mothers during COVID-19, and why society should value the practice of “care”’.

The Bible in Transmission (Summer 2020) on Covid-19

The latest issue of The Bible in Transmission, from Bible Society, is available online here, offering a collection of articles on ‘When a Crisis Strikes: Perspectives on the Impact of Covid-19’.

I have taken the summaries of articles below from Hannah Stevens’ Editorial.

Hannah Stevens

Editorial

Dave Landrum

The Role of the Church In, Through and Beyond the Pandemic

It is because of the conscious recognition of a God who cares for us that the Church has taken the opportunity to respond with outreach in the midst of this crisis. In his article, Dave Landrum discusses how the Church is responding with deliveries of food and medicines, shelter, phone calling ministries and much more. Perhaps this could be part of the reason why there is evidence, as Dave also explores, that people in general are more open to conversations about God and willing to explore church during this time. Historically, the Church’s willingness to stretch out a hand to those crying out for help has helped it grow. It could also be because the fear invoked by a crisis exposes the deeper need for a greater plan and power to be in place. Digital church services, online prayer groups and Zoom meetings also make church more accessible to those who are just beginning to explore faith, as well as supporting regular church members during this time. Dave notes that many churches are coping well despite the closure of their buildings – they are adapting by digitising their content and still ‘meeting’ in each other’s homes digitally, a response which may be going back to a format more in line with the Church’s roots. However, Dave also explores how the Church might respond to the predicted economic crisis through a focus on employment provision and supporting local business.

Peter Heslam

God’s Pandemic Rule and Redemption: Business and the Renewal of the Global Economy

Peter Heslam explores the challenges faced by business with the closure of places to work, shop, learn, socialise, travel and enjoy leisure. Peter notes that social isolation has become a way to ‘engage in a communal struggle’ rather than an expression of individual self-sufficiency. He states that business [sic] are fundamentally ‘other-oriented’, co-operative enterprises and that those most in touch with their purpose are the most successful during the pandemic. They are the ones most engaged with their customers and their changing needs. This drive to meet needs – fundamentally, to serve – is driving three Industrial Revolutions. These are the digital technology revolution, which includes the boom of web-based business such as Zoom; the revolution of local digital production through technologies such as 3D printing, and, Peter hopes, a decarbonising green revolution, aided by the replacement of mass manufacturing and carbon-consuming habits with digital and local alternatives.

Chris Sunderland

So What for the Earth?

Chris Sunderland’s point that deep and lasting culture change is needed to protect the Earth beyond the lockdown. Chris is concerned with environmental issues and makes the point that although much of our response to the crisis has had a positive effect on our environment, this will be short-lived unless we change our view of our relationship to the Earth. For Chris, the collective feeling of dread bought about by the pandemic should catalyse a restructure in our thinking about how we can care for others through caring for our environment. This is grounded in an understanding of ourselves as ‘part of the Earth’s life’, and the Earth as God’s precious creation, a creation that is a continuing process beyond the initial act at the beginning.

Fleur Dorrell

Alchemy for the Masses: Why We Need Art in This Pandemic

Creation is a deeply human response to pain and crisis, which we do as part of our reflection of our creator God. We create to express to others and for the benefit of others. Fleur Dorrell explores the artistic response to the Covid-19 pandemic. She tackles the myth that art is an inaccessible luxury only for the elite, pointing to the democratisation of art apparent during the crisis, such as painting rainbows for the NHS. This, too, is a response that reflects God, because, whether consciously or unconsciously, people are utilising a symbol that invokes God’s promise and protection against total destruction. Just as the biblical rainbow in the sky was and is for everyone, so the artistic expression of solidarity with the NHS and social care is for everyone, from children to the elderly to the disabled. Art speaks to people of all walks of life, and so, Fleur points out, art is a means of connecting and caring for others.

Philippa Taylor

Coronavirus: Some Ethical Issues

A person’s relational health is... a factor in whether they will survive illness, as well as physical health. The truth of this drives us to reach out and provide social interaction to the self-isolating in whatever way we can, as much as we are driven to feed them, because of our shared sense of the ‘high value of human life’, as Philippa puts it. This in turn drives us to evaluate the ethics of the way medical care is being distributed. Philippa explores the ethical dilemmas faced by many medical staff today due to the shortage of resources.

Paul Williams

The Revelation of the Lockdown

Paul Williams discusses the opportunity for a new mission field after lockdown has ended. Paul makes the point that lockdown has revealed the flaws in the metanarratives that influence post-Christian society – science and the courses of action based on science are not always clear, and the world of business and economics is not always stable. He argues that there is a sense we are tired of cynicism; we hunger for ‘the real’, which is expressed in the appreciation of relationships and life, as well as gratitude for the NHS and key workers. Paul has recently written Exiles on Mission, in which he discusses the sense of alienation of Christianity from culture, but even in this he points to the hope that we can be ambassadors for the culture of Christ. Perhaps to the people who are feeling alienated from their old lifestyles as a result of lockdown, Christians can relate and be ambassadors of Christ in the midst of it.

Paul Woolley

News from Bible Society

On Qualities for Living Well in a Pandemic

The below is an excerpt from an email written for the congregation where I am one of the pastors.

A few weeks back, the BBC’s ‘Rethink’ programme asked people who they describe as ‘six great minds’ – from chef Nisha Katona to philosopher Kwame Anthony Appiah – ‘to share the qualities they believe will help us weather the pandemic and thrive in the world beyond’. You can check out the feature here.

Before you read on, you might like to pause to ask yourself the question: what qualities do we need in order to live well at this time? How would you respond if they asked you?

Their answers? Compassion. Gratitude (for healthy bodies). Consistency of small actions. Engagement. Empathy. Hospitality.

I don’t know anything about the faith commitment or otherwise of those who were asked, but it strikes me that those qualities are not at all out of place with the sorts of qualities Christians would be happy to endorse.

It got me thinking about what lies behind the moral judgments of people in society. All of us, Christians and non-Christians alike, approach ethical issues from a particular way of viewing the world, or what we sometimes call our ‘worldview’. (We were thinking about this as a church on Sunday evenings before lockdown started.)

Given this, I’d like to propose that qualities such as compassion, gratitude, empathy, and hospitality make best sense from a perspective that, at the very least, resembles a biblical worldview, grounded in a God who is himself good.

Of course, it’s not true to say that non-believers don’t recognise moral values or live good lives. They clearly do. But that’s not the same as having a consistent basis for doing so.

That’s perhaps especially the case for dedicated atheists. It’s very difficult to make sense of a commitment to values in the absence of God. Where atheists hold to a view that there is nothing in the universe other than matter and energy, that we are a random collection of atoms and molecules, and that moral beliefs are pressed upon us by our evolutionary history, then nothing and no-one has any rightful claim on us and we can live as we please. One of the most famous atheists, Friedrich Nietzsche, recognised this: if there is no God there can be ‘no moral facts whatsoever’.

As Justin Brierley puts it in his book, Unbelievable?, ‘Most atheists I meet are passionate about equality and justice, so of course you don’t need to believe in God to be a moral person. The problem is that you can’t make sense of those moral beliefs without there being a God.’ The question is not whether there might be people who are good without God, but whether they have a strong-enough framework – or a coherent-enough story – in order to hold those views consistently.

The good news for our non-believing friends is that there is a story which is not only consistent with the world they long for and the values to which they aspire, but which undergirds them, and a Saviour who stands at the heart of it for when we fail.

The challenge for us as as Christians is to live as if we ourselves believe that to be case, bearing the fruit of the Spirit, living lives that point to Christ. As the writer to the Hebrews prays (13:20-21), ‘may the God of peace... equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.’

Didache 20, 1 (2020)

The latest issue of Didache (sponsored by the International Board of Education of the Church of the Nazarene) is now available, with several of the essays addressing issues related to Covid-19.

Here are some excerpts from the Editorial:

‘We begin in biblical studies with Samuel Hildebrandt, Lecturer at NTC Manchester, who revisits the concept of “exile” in both Jeremiah and 1 Peter to explore identity, pastoral care, and human responses to God’s “good plans” in exile... Reuben L. Lillie and Dr. Charles L. Perabeau, both from Olivet Nazarene University, provide an intriguing treatise on the creation and nature of Nazarene district organization...

‘The journal then takes another turn, this time addressing a contemporary problem affecting the globe, the COVID-19 pandemic. The recent coronavirus crisis continues to challenge the church in both its creativity and faithfulness... Each academically oriented essay serves as a measured response to the pandemic... [R]eaders will note points of continuity among these authors as well as divergence. So, one will discover varying responses from the use of technology in worship and discipleship, to contextuality and people on the margins of society, to faithful sacramental practice and ecclesial adaptation.’

The essays are available from here:

Dean G. Blevins

Introduction

Samuel Hildebrandt

Living in Tension: Exilic Identity in Jeremiah 29 and 1 Peter

Reuben L. Lillie and Charles L. Perabeau

Redefining Districts: Fulfilling a New Model for Administrative Boundaries in the Church of the Nazarene

Essays on Ministry during the Pandemic

Andrew J. Pottenger

‘Insult to the Incarnation?’ Online Technology and Christian Worship After COVID-19

Jan Duce

The Body of Christ: Together in More Ways Than One

Gabriel J Benjiman

Temple Building, Technology and Worship in a Time of Isolation

Gift Mtukwa

Ministering in a Pandemic: Learning from the Apostle in 1 Thessalonians

Albert Hung

Stitching a New Garment: Holistic Discipleship During COVID-19

Brent Peterson

Sacraments in a Pandemic

Joseph Wood

What the Early Church Can Teach Us About COVID-19: Worship Practices, Adaptability, and Concern for the Other

Review

Lausanne Global Analysis 9, 4 (July 2020)

The latest issue of Lausanne Global Analysis, from The Lausanne Movement, is available online from here, including pdf downloads.

In the issue overview, editor Loun Ling Lee writes:

‘Churches around the world have been pushed to use their creativity for worship services, discipleship programmes, and group activities, with the help of modern technology. Some have tried to bring the gospel into homes by virtual evangelistic Bible classes and WhatsApp Bible studies, as well as Zoom counselling sessions. In his article ‘Mobile Missions Mentoring in the COVID-19 Era’, DJ Oden, a cross-cultural worker in Southeast Asia with PIONEERS, explains how mobile devices are being used securely and effectively for ‘monitoring and supporting semi-literate field workers in creative-access contexts’...

‘Phill Butler reminds us in ‘Who gets the Credit in Collaborative Efforts?’: ‘Since its birth in 1974 one of the distinguishing qualities of the Lausanne Movement has been its focus on linking God’s people together.’ ‘In the COVID-19 pandemic we have seen intense levels of collaboration going on’. What are the vital essentials to enable effective collaboration, biblically and practically? Phill, Senior Strategy Advisor with visionSynergy, emphasizes trust as the key element... Hopefully through lessons learned during the pandemic crisis, our missiological paradigms have shifted from individualism to communalism, and from parochialism to globalism.

‘For the first time, we have commissioned an article in Portuguese, translated into English for Lausanne Global Analysis: ‘Connecting Brazil’s Youth with God’s Global Mission’ by Lissânder Dias, a journalist and one of the founding members of Movimento Vocare. ‘Movimento Vocare is recognized in Brazil by the mission leadership as a successful initiative for mobilizing and connecting young people for God’s mission,’ writes Lissânder. It is a Brazilian missionary movement that has helped them to explore and discover their vocation or calling in God’s mission, giving them meaning in life...

‘In the light of the worldwide COVID-19 crisis, many cross-cultural mission workers have been pondering questions around ‘In a Pandemic, Should Missionaries Leave or Stay?’. As the author Kirst Rievan says, it is ‘an opportunity to rethink our missiology with regard to risk.’ In this article, he uses ‘the concepts of polarity management and mental models to explore if our present missiology of risk still holds true.’

On Good Habits

The below is an excerpt from an email written for the congregation where I am one of the pastors.

Have you been to the hairdressers yet? Or gone out for a meal? Or confirmed that holiday booking? What have you done this week that you couldn’t do last week?

Even as some restrictions are beginning to lift – and we start the long journey back to ‘normality’ – it might be worth clocking what aspects of lockdown life could be worth preserving.

Everyone’s experience differs, but surveys suggest that many people have enjoyed spending less, eating more home-cooked meals, slowing down and putting less pressure on themselves, discovering a sense of living in a highly interconnected world. Some have found that working from home offers genuine benefits – no commute, less stress, more time with the family, longer sleep. Going forwards beyond lockdown, people say they feel more inclined to shop locally, put family and friends first, exercise daily, grow vegetables and herbs, bake more.

Let’s be honest: for some of us, just surviving is an accomplishment in itself! But for the vast majority of us it’s worth asking: what new habits will stick beyond lockdown?

Perhaps it’ll be a daily walk, cooking with the kids, keeping in touch with grandparents and neighbours, renewing contact with old friends, evenings in, writing cards, leaving gifts on doorsteps... Perhaps you’ve been praying more regularly, reading the Bible more often, reaching out to people in need more instinctively.

Once we’ve experienced the benefits of healthy habits, it’s important to think about how we can continue these once the lockdown lifts.

It’s now widely recognised that our behaviour is best changed not primarily by sheer willpower and good intentions (though they have a place), but by habitual repetition. Good habits are crucial – whether it’s washing our hands or brushing our teeth, walking the dog or reading the Bible. Still, as anyone who has ever made New Year’s resolutions knows, maintaining new habits isn’t easy.

In his thought-provoking book, You Are What You Love: The Spiritual Power of Habit, the Christian philosopher James K.A. Smith reminds us that good habits come down to what – or who – we love.

I don’t need to be told I should brush my teeth (or lose weight or pray more). I know I need to brush my teeth (or lose weight or pray more). Mere knowledge alone won’t help me. Nor will good intentions alone help me brush my teeth (or lose weight or pray more). I need to want to brush my teeth (or lose weight or pray more) more than I want the alternatives.

The wonder and beauty of the gospel is that God meets us where we are by giving us Spirt-empowered, heart-calibrating, habit-forming practices to retrain what we love. But there are no quick fixes here. Like growing vegetables or becoming healthier, what counts are the consistent, everyday habits and actions bound up with our lifelong process of transformation into the likeness of Christ through the ongoing work of the Spirit.

Mission Frontiers 42, 4 (July-August 2020)

The July-August 2020 issue of Mission Frontiers, published by the U.S. Center for World Mission, contains a number of articles on the theme of ‘Missions in the Age of Coronavirus’.

According to the blurb:

‘In this issue we observe how COVID-19 is leaving its impact on outreaches across the globe.  As this virus is changing our lives in dramatic ways, it is also changing the way we go about doing missions – which is what this issue is all about. How do we reach people and make disciples while wearing masks and practicing social distancing?

‘We take a fascinating look back at how the Church has responded to pandemics throughout history and review ways that we can respond biblically as Christ followers. We take you on a journey to see how some movements around the world are using the pandemic to reach people for Jesus. You will be called to action when you read how God’s people move directly into suffering – despite the circumstances surrounding them.’

The issue is available here, from where individual articles can be downloaded, and the entire issue can be downloaded as a pdf here.