In our Gospel reading today, Jesus tells a parable that begins with a man whose fields ‘yielded an abundant harvest’ (Luke 12:16). It’s a parable that speaks well to our times. Even in times of financial difficulty, our supermarkets contain
An old-new commandment
At the Last Supper, when Jesus said “A new command I give you: Love one another.” (John 13:34) the disciples might well have reacted with confusion. After all, ‘love your neighbour as yourself’ was one of the commandments God gave
Faith grounded in history
Have you ever asked yourself “How do I know that my relationship with God is real?” There are lots of reasons you might find yourself asking that – perhaps a difficult personal experience, or a particularly humbling failure, or a
The Joy of Jesus
Jesus is referred to in Scripture as “a man of sorrows” (Isaiah 53:3) and at times that can shape how we think of him. After all, many of the most precious and important moments in his life involved his mourning
Joy in trials
Every philosophy of life out there – from the ancient Greeks to TikTok influencers – is ultimately looking for the answer to the question “How can I be happy?” And one of the biggest obstacles any view of life faces
A Persecuted Prophet
During Lent this year, as we were studying the Sermon on the Mount, we heard Jesus’ words “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and
What do you have to boast about?
Boasting is not a habit many people find attractive. And yet most of us, if we’re honest, will have things about us that we’re proud of, that we think mark us out from other people, and that we secretly (or
Trinity and Spirituality
What does the Trinity mean for our relationship with God? Many of us may be tempted to think that the answer is ‘not a lot’. But the more you look for it, the more you find things that point to
Tricky Trinity?
I’ve heard it said (though I’ve never seen the statistics!) that Trinity Sunday is the most common Sunday of the year for clergy to be off sick. The reason being, presumably, that teaching on the Trinity is so difficult that
From groaning to glory
Earlier this week, Raymond and I were talking to some children about the creation story in Genesis 1. At its climax, God blesses the man and woman and says “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it.” (Gen