Building a Church Without Walls
I’ve written a number of posts recently about the 4 Corners Festival, which kicks off tonight at 7.30 pm with Tony Macaulay reading from his book Paperboy in Ballygomartin Presbyterian Church in Belfast.
I’m on the organising committee of … Read more...
“He felt that he had to tell them that revival had not come, and that it probably was not coming.”Peter McDowell introduces his new book, At Home in Exile: The Journey Towards a New Paradigm (Belfast: Contemporary Christianity, 2012) … Read more...
I’ve been back for a few days from the silent retreat with my students at Holy Cross Benedictine Monastery in Rostrevor.
As ever, some seemed to embrace the silence more than others. But during the retreat one of the monks … Read more...
“You can’t be satisfied, life is difficult, and you don’t know the secret.”
This quote is taken from the back cover of Peter Rollins’ latest book, The Idolatry of God: Breaking the Addiction to Certainty and Satisfaction (Hodder and Stoughton … Read more...
Last night I spoke at a meeting of the Clonard-Fitzroy Fellowship on the topic of ‘Reconciliation in Post Violence Northern Ireland: Can the Churches Contribute?’
My talk covered a range of topics, which have been explored previously on this blog … Read more...
In her previous book, The Great Emergence: How Christianity is Changing and Why (Baker Books, 2008), Phyllis Tickle was among the first to argue that what has been variously called the emerging church, the emergent church, fresh expressions, emergence … Read more...
I plan to blog later in the week about last night’s BBC One documentary about Fr Brian D’Arcy, The Turbulent Priest. A flurry of media coverage leading up to the documentary had honed in on the controversy around D’Arcy’s … Read more...
Earlier this month, the Catholic Church’s ‘Year of Faith’ got underway. It was instigated as a result of the Pope’s Apostolic Letter Porta Fidei and it marks the 50th anniversary of the opening of Vatican II and the … Read more...
As I continue to reflect on and (attempt) to write about the Emerging Church Movement (ECM), I find myself returning to Doug Gay’s 2011 book, Remixing the Church.
I’ve already reviewed Remixing the Church on this blog, and have … Read more...
Who is Rob Bell? What does he believe? Does his career tell us anything important about religious change in the United States?
Whether you are a fan of Rob Bell, a wary admirer, a critic, or simply interested in how … Read more...
Last month (23 September 2012) BBC Radio 4 aired a documentary titled ‘Ireland’s Troublesome Priests,’ which seemingly set out to focus on the Association of Catholic Priests (ACP)and the members of it who have been censored by the Vatican … Read more...