It is striking that the current war in the Middle East is having such a major and immediate impact on people’s lives here in the UK – on your life and mine. I am talking here especially about the economic impact.
It was on 28 February this year that the USA and Israel began a series of military strikes against Iran. Less than three weeks later, the average price of petrol in the UK had already risen by 10p per litre – and diesel prices were up by 20p per litre.
In the past month, I found myself ricocheting between two conflicting visions of virtue.
On the one hand, Malcolm Guite’s astonishing and luminous poem Galahad and the Grail (2026), which takes us into the heart of the Arthurian quest for life at its fullest and purest. ["Arthurian" refers to anything connected to the legends of King Arthur.]
The Bible, at times, makes for very uncomfortable reading.
Consider these opening verses of 1 Kings 11: “Now King Solomon loved many foreign women, along with the daughter of Pharaoh: Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women, from the nations concerning which the Lord had said to the people of Israel, ‘You shall not enter into marriage with them, neither shall they with you, for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods.’ Solomon clung to these in love … So Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and did not wholly follow the Lord, as David His father had done.”
The rapid pace of change has taken even the most experienced social commentators by surprise.
The dismantling of the "rules-based order" (the idea that international relations follow agreed norms and rules) by many on the world stage means rapid change is afoot – and we’re not just looking at the current suspects. See what happened in smaller nations such as Myanmar in 2021 with the coup d'état, where the military seized power, disregarding democratic norms and international expectations.
The last few years have seen many of Britain’s Bible colleges – from specialist schools like the Nexus Institute of Creative Arts to historic Church of England institutions like St. John’s College – shut their doors for good, with the latest and arguably biggest to fall being Spurgeon’s College last July.
And those which are still accepting students at the time of writing continue to record a progressively widening gap between income and expenditure in their reports filed with the Charity Commission.
What do you think is the opposite of a "control freak"?
I found that question difficult to answer, so I put it into You-Know-What and it came up with lots of suggestions, including "pushover", "soft touch" and "doormat".
Like so many others, I felt disappointed when the findings of the “Quiet Revival” research (commissioned by the Bible Society) were declared as unreliable due to errors made by YouGov who were carrying out the research. The report has been taken down, and many are now understandably questioning what is going on spiritually in the UK? Have we been misunderstanding the moment we are living in?
The Quiet Revival is no more; YouGov has retracted its conclusions, and the data has been debunked [see en explainer here]. A full apology was sent to the Bible Society.
Owing to the blessing we have received in recent years at Noddfa Church in the Welsh valleys, I have had the opportunity to speak and comment on several podcasts, media outlets and at many conferences about this alleged phenomenon.
I have been watching videos by Cecilia Blomdahl, a woman who lives on Svalbard, a Norwegian island in the Arctic Circle. I love them, and it seems I’m not alone in that – she has 1.12 million subscribers.
The island is beautiful, and Cecilia makes beautiful videos. Just today I watched her go with her boyfriend to their off-grid cabin, which is in a remote part of the island, surrounded only by snow and water and mountains. It’s simply idyllic.
"What do we fear enough to talk to strangers about? Our spiritual mandate is to Seek FIRST God’s Kingdom. We must be obsessed with the business of heaven – because only then will the business of earth fall into the right perspective.
Jeremiah 29v13 – “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” Our passion and obsession must be for lost human beings to find and be found by this Living God – because without that they will perish.
The era of Murray Mania is officially over. Jamie Murray has followed younger brother Andy into the sunset following his recent retirement announcement.
The Scot, 40, said that he is bringing the curtain down on a glittering doubles career - and with it, the last of 20 years of magic from the Dunblane duo.
Christians around the world have been horrified by America and Israel’s war against Iran. Yet at the centre of the US government, there seems to be a different so-called Christian narrative driving the conflict.
Pete Hegseth is the Secretary of Defence – or Secretary of War as he now calls himself – and in charge of the US military. He is also a Christian and a member of the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches, which supports a theocratic state ruled according to Old Testament laws.
The 28th day of February had been a public holiday for as long as I could remember. It was a bonus day off after the long spring break – odd but nice.
We were supposed to remember the civilians who were killed by the government for protesting corruption and advocating democracy in 1947, a day now called Peace Memorial Day. But I never knew how to go about it.
The year 2025 marked the 1,700th anniversary of the Nicean Creed. For those Christians who hold to the ancient statements of faith, this was quite a milestone – and one that deserved to be celebrated.
In my own churches, in South Wales, the creed often forms part of our weekly worship, reminding us of the bigger family of Christians to which we belong, and the ancient roots of our faith and tradition.
The Last Battle, the final instalment of C.S. Lewis’ Narnia Chronicles, is an unusual children’s book.
The plot involves all the main characters being killed, some in a train crash and others in battle, and the whole "Narnian world" coming to an end. It is literally apocalyptic.
Rory McIlroy’s latest Masters victory is, by any standard, a remarkable achievement.
To defend a Green Jacket at Augusta places him in rare company, and to do so amid pressure, inconsistency, and fierce competition only heightens the accomplishment.
Over the last couple of weeks, proponents and opponents of assisted dying in the House of Lords have both publicly acknowledged that Kim Leadbeater’s assisted dying bill will not be passed by the end of the parliamentary session.
Since the bill was voted through by majority in the House of Commons in June last year, the Lords have been debating the thousands of amendments put forward by a small number of peers.
There is a moment in many church leadership conversations where team gets treated as a method – a delivery mechanism for a vision that is already essentially complete. The leader has the direction; the team makes it happen. The gifts of others are welcome, as long as they serve the plan.
This is worth examining. Because the Christian vision of team is not strategic. It is structural – even woven into the fabric of reality itself.
Comment
The Iran war: An evangelical economist writes
It is striking that the current war in the Middle East is having such a major and immediate impact on people’s lives here in the UK – on your life and mine. I am talking here especially about the economic impact.
It was on 28 February this year that the USA and Israel began a series of military strikes against Iran. Less than three weeks later, the average price of petrol in the UK had already risen by 10p per litre – and diesel prices were up by 20p per litre.
Review: Galahad and the Grail - What is 'virtue'?
In the past month, I found myself ricocheting between two conflicting visions of virtue.
On the one hand, Malcolm Guite’s astonishing and luminous poem Galahad and the Grail (2026), which takes us into the heart of the Arthurian quest for life at its fullest and purest. ["Arthurian" refers to anything connected to the legends of King Arthur.]
How can we guard our hearts?
The Bible, at times, makes for very uncomfortable reading.
Consider these opening verses of 1 Kings 11: “Now King Solomon loved many foreign women, along with the daughter of Pharaoh: Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women, from the nations concerning which the Lord had said to the people of Israel, ‘You shall not enter into marriage with them, neither shall they with you, for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods.’ Solomon clung to these in love … So Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and did not wholly follow the Lord, as David His father had done.”
What is the church to do about deglobalisation?
The rapid pace of change has taken even the most experienced social commentators by surprise.
The dismantling of the "rules-based order" (the idea that international relations follow agreed norms and rules) by many on the world stage means rapid change is afoot – and we’re not just looking at the current suspects. See what happened in smaller nations such as Myanmar in 2021 with the coup d'état, where the military seized power, disregarding democratic norms and international expectations.
Bible colleges are closing and I think this is why...
The last few years have seen many of Britain’s Bible colleges – from specialist schools like the Nexus Institute of Creative Arts to historic Church of England institutions like St. John’s College – shut their doors for good, with the latest and arguably biggest to fall being Spurgeon’s College last July.
And those which are still accepting students at the time of writing continue to record a progressively widening gap between income and expenditure in their reports filed with the Charity Commission.
Leader, are you an 'accepter' or a 'controller'?
What do you think is the opposite of a "control freak"?
I found that question difficult to answer, so I put it into You-Know-What and it came up with lots of suggestions, including "pushover", "soft touch" and "doormat".
The UK's spiritual condition: Crisis and opportunity
What season are we living in?
Like so many others, I felt disappointed when the findings of the “Quiet Revival” research (commissioned by the Bible Society) were declared as unreliable due to errors made by YouGov who were carrying out the research. The report has been taken down, and many are now understandably questioning what is going on spiritually in the UK? Have we been misunderstanding the moment we are living in?
Golders Green attack: 'This moment cannot be met with silence'
How many times can we hear words like “appalling”, “shocking”, and “unacceptable” before they begin to lose their meaning?
In recent weeks, the Jewish community in North London has been gripped by yet another wave of terror.
'Revivals are not quiet'
The Quiet Revival is no more; YouGov has retracted its conclusions, and the data has been debunked [see en explainer here]. A full apology was sent to the Bible Society.
Owing to the blessing we have received in recent years at Noddfa Church in the Welsh valleys, I have had the opportunity to speak and comment on several podcasts, media outlets and at many conferences about this alleged phenomenon.
‘People are... difficult to live with and bothersome’
I have been watching videos by Cecilia Blomdahl, a woman who lives on Svalbard, a Norwegian island in the Arctic Circle. I love them, and it seems I’m not alone in that – she has 1.12 million subscribers.
The island is beautiful, and Cecilia makes beautiful videos. Just today I watched her go with her boyfriend to their off-grid cabin, which is in a remote part of the island, surrounded only by snow and water and mountains. It’s simply idyllic.
Geopolitics or the gospel? What is our priority?
"What do we fear enough to talk to strangers about? Our spiritual mandate is to Seek FIRST God’s Kingdom. We must be obsessed with the business of heaven – because only then will the business of earth fall into the right perspective.
Jeremiah 29v13 – “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” Our passion and obsession must be for lost human beings to find and be found by this Living God – because without that they will perish.
Jamie Murray's humility is an example for all of us
The era of Murray Mania is officially over. Jamie Murray has followed younger brother Andy into the sunset following his recent retirement announcement.
The Scot, 40, said that he is bringing the curtain down on a glittering doubles career - and with it, the last of 20 years of magic from the Dunblane duo.
St. George and the dragon that the West doesn't believe in
Today (23 April) is St. George’s Day! Let the pageantry begin. Let the joy be unconfined. Get the dragon down from the loft!
No. That’s not happening. The English take little pride in St. George.
Why I disagree with Pete Hegseth
Christians around the world have been horrified by America and Israel’s war against Iran. Yet at the centre of the US government, there seems to be a different so-called Christian narrative driving the conflict.
Pete Hegseth is the Secretary of Defence – or Secretary of War as he now calls himself – and in charge of the US military. He is also a Christian and a member of the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches, which supports a theocratic state ruled according to Old Testament laws.
How Judy Linton forgave her family's killer
The 28th day of February had been a public holiday for as long as I could remember. It was a bonus day off after the long spring break – odd but nice.
We were supposed to remember the civilians who were killed by the government for protesting corruption and advocating democracy in 1947, a day now called Peace Memorial Day. But I never knew how to go about it.
Lamenting the Church in Wales
The year 2025 marked the 1,700th anniversary of the Nicean Creed. For those Christians who hold to the ancient statements of faith, this was quite a milestone – and one that deserved to be celebrated.
In my own churches, in South Wales, the creed often forms part of our weekly worship, reminding us of the bigger family of Christians to which we belong, and the ancient roots of our faith and tradition.
Is Donald Trump this C.S. Lewis Narnia character?
The Last Battle, the final instalment of C.S. Lewis’ Narnia Chronicles, is an unusual children’s book.
The plot involves all the main characters being killed, some in a train crash and others in battle, and the whole "Narnian world" coming to an end. It is literally apocalyptic.
The joy of Augusta - and its limits
Rory McIlroy’s latest Masters victory is, by any standard, a remarkable achievement.
To defend a Green Jacket at Augusta places him in rare company, and to do so amid pressure, inconsistency, and fierce competition only heightens the accomplishment.
Leadbeater's assisted dying bill to fall: What now?
Over the last couple of weeks, proponents and opponents of assisted dying in the House of Lords have both publicly acknowledged that Kim Leadbeater’s assisted dying bill will not be passed by the end of the parliamentary session.
Since the bill was voted through by majority in the House of Commons in June last year, the Lords have been debating the thousands of amendments put forward by a small number of peers.
'The Christian vision of team is not strategic'
There is a moment in many church leadership conversations where team gets treated as a method – a delivery mechanism for a vision that is already essentially complete. The leader has the direction; the team makes it happen. The gifts of others are welcome, as long as they serve the plan.
This is worth examining. Because the Christian vision of team is not strategic. It is structural – even woven into the fabric of reality itself.