At the beginning of December, it was International Day of Disabled People. It’s also Disability History Month, which ends on 20 December.
But, we’re also coming up to Christmas and I like to mix relevant themes! So I’m going to add a bit of sparkle to the subject of how we interact with wheelchair users. Therefore I thought I’d give a vague nod to the song The 12 Days of Christmas and give you 12 ideas of what not to say to a wheelchair user. (Please don’t try to sing this to the tune!)
Remember the old adage – if you don’t have a target, you will miss it? Or, if you aim at nothing you will hit nothing? It’s an interesting feature of many contemporary evangelical churches that they have strategies, plans, goals and mission statements. And some have even adopted specific percentage goals.
When I first came to Australia to work in evangelism, I was asked to state what my “KPIs” were. This was somewhat difficult, given that I didn’t know what a KPI was! I know now. Key Performance Indicators. I didn’t know what to say. More people praying? People becoming Christians? Preaching the word faithfully. What were they looking for? They wanted facts. Percentages. Measurable outcomes. Figures. Apparently, this is what funders look for.
On Monday, the proposed government definition of anti-Muslim hostility was leaked to the BBC.
Earlier this year, the government set up a working group to come up with a definition of Islamophobia/anti-Muslim hatred. Baroness Gohir, a prominent member of the working group has confirmed that the definition leaked to the BBC is the one that the group proposed to the government in October. It had been kept secret since then, while the government has deliberated and consulted with various groups.
“There is no place for weak men in my dressing room.” That was England captain Ben Stokes’s frustrated verdict after another crushing defeat to Australia in the second Test.
Like many England cricket fans, I’m disillusioned with their performances in Australia this winter. Waking early and checking the score has produced an involuntary groan each time - much to the annoyance of my sleeping wife. Since the Brisbane defeat, the pile-on has been relentless, with every pundit, podcaster and pontificator finding fault in everything from technique and preparation to supposed attitudes and motivations.
Warily at first, I stood there in Whitehall on Saturday afternoon for Tommy Robinson’s "Put Christ back into Christmas" carol service. I wanted to experience for myself this apparent toxic nationalism. I would give it one go – one too many in the eyes of some.
I stand against racism of any kind and I had been issued with plenty of warnings in the last few weeks on social media by other Christians, notably bishops of my own denomination: this former criminal would be politicking cynically, out to hijack the faith for his evil agenda, I was told. Oh yes, there might be karaoke carols blasted into the open-air that day but watch out!It would be a guise for hate and all that this church and nation should oppose.
As Christmas approaches, gift buying is underway. Shops are full, and atmospheric Christmas markets entice you with their beautiful, expensive, but ultimately unnecessary items. You return home with nothing - except perhaps a glass of mulled wine and a mince pie.
What to buy? Back in the day, the physical gift of music was an easy choice: a CD, a tape, or an LP, but now it's all accessed through streaming services. The other physical choice used to be a book, but has that disappeared too?
Bondi Beach forces our wider society to ask the difficult question. Why are Jewish people not safe?Hanukkah offers a powerful lens through which to do that.
The history of Hanukkah
Hanukkah commemorates events recorded in the books of 1 and 2 Maccabees, set in the second century BCE. At that time, the Jewish people lived under the rule of the Seleucid Empire, governed by King Antiochus IV Epiphanes. Antiochus outlawed Jewish religious practices, desecrated the Temple in Jerusalem, and attempted to force Jewish people to abandon their faith and identity. This was not merely political control; it was cultural and religious erasure.
As Christians in England were singing Christmas carols – some underneath wintry skies in the open air – Jews on the other side of the world were being gunned down while lighting the candle marking the start of their Hanukkah festival.
The Sydney gathering beside the famed Bondi Beach turned into a shocking massacre, leaving 15 dead and 30 wounded, and a nation wondering how it could all have happened.
I write this with sorrow, and with a measure of fear that has been quietly exhausting to me.
I am Jewish. Over the past two years I have stopped wearing Jewish jewellery in public. I moved to a new home and have not put a “mezuzah”* on my front door. When I was growing up, at Hanukkah, we would place our menorah in the front window for the neighbourhood to see. I don’t feel safe doing that anymore.
Culture – in the evangelical church, we often talk about this in the context of mission and those of different cultures to the majority in our churches. We talk about being multicultural churches, referring mainly to race and sometimes to age-related "culture" such as youth.
In a country full of different cultures, many churches are working hard in their outreach to connect with many of them.
Charles Gardner is a South African-born journalist and volunteer with CMJ (Church’s Ministry among Jewish people) living in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, and married to Linda, who teaches Christianity in primary schools.
How did you become a Christian? I was staying with my Jewish grandmother in north London when a friend from university athletics days in South Africa shared how Jesus had come to give us life in all its fullness.
I had become aware of a lack of direction or purpose, especially after failing to finish a marathon for the first and only time! Brian Jackson, a top athlete who was training for the Anglican ministry at Oxford, encouraged me to invite Jesus into my life and insisted I attend the evening service at All Souls Langham Place, the next day. I never looked back.
What lessons have you learnt since that you would want to pass on to a younger Christian version of yourself? Though I understood perseverance as a marathon runner, it took me a long time to learn patience, along with the importance of faithfully waiting for answered prayer, and for ordinary things like buses.
How would you describe your prayer life? Though I find myself communicating with the Lord on an almost continual basis as my absolute dependence on Him grows deeper, disciplined prayer times come in fits and starts.
Which two or three Christian books apart from the Bible have most influenced your faith? Appointment in Jerusalem by Derek and Lydia Prince and R.T. Kendall’s God Meantit for Good (re-released as Total Forgiveness), both published by Kingsway. Both helped cement my calling to the Jews.
Who or what have been your biggest Christian influences? The profound teaching of John Stott, our beloved pastor at All Souls, along with the leader of his ‘nursery class’ for new believers, Helen McIntosh, who always referred to herself as a ‘completed Jew’. It was through a sermon Stott preached on being salt in the world that I felt God’s call into journalism.
What are the main challenges you believe Christians face today? Staying true to the gospel in the face of growing antagonism from the liberal left’s unholy alliance with jihadism sweeping across the West like a tidal wave; and standing with the Jewish people as they face the potential of another Holocaust. The alternative is to cave in to antisemitic pressure by remaining silent, as the German church of the 1930s did to its shame.
What encourages and what discourages you? I love inspiring testimonies, which is why I founded the New Life evangelistic tabloid 43 years ago. I am discouraged by indifference to what I perceive as vital issues.
What makes you laugh? Only Fools and Horses and other great comedians like Morecambe and Wise. I love a good joke but am hopeless at telling them, though having a beer with friends is usually a recipe for much laughter.
What would you want to say to the wider evangelical world? Avoid being straitjacketed by a totally inflexible doctrinal position for which you believe there is no possibility of error. Be always open to guidance from the Holy Spirit who leads us into all truth. Avoid being a know-it-all and don’t put Christian “celebrities” on a pedestal; they are not the final arbiter of faith. That honour belongs to God’s Word.
Which Biblical person (other than Jesus) do you most look forward to meeting in glory and why? The prophet Isaiah. It must have been so hard to have been called to proclaim the gospel with no prospect of being taken seriously. “Who has believed our report?” (Isa.53) he lamented. As a journalist, I can identify with that. But thanks to him (and others), we can rejoice at the glorious outcome of what he prophesied. The Lord has often used Isaiah to encourage me and even call me to proclaim good news to Zion, telling them that their God reigns (Isa. 52v7)!
Industrial action has become a regular part of many of our lives in the past few years. The latest in a long run of resident doctor strikes called by the British Medical Association threatens to disrupt NHS care just days before Christmas.
Sport has been plagued by conversations about money in recent years, exacerbated by golf’s high-profile breakaway LIV tour [a professional men's golf tour] and recent demands from elite tennis players for their prize money to be increased.
Golf
The formation of the Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf circuit in 2022 sparked furious debate in the golfing world, as some of the sport’s top stars departed from the PGA Tour [PGA is an organiser of professional golf tours] for the far greater sums on offer at LIV. This was seen by many as a betrayal of the established structures which had given the players their living, and paid them fairly handsomely already.
Christmas decorations are now up everywhere. For some people, this is a welcome relief from the ongoing proliferation of the various UK flags in all those places and more.
When it comes to the flags, some of us find it tempting to make harsh and hasty judgements about those putting them up, perhaps condemning a caricature of Christian nationalism as we do so.
Despite the imposition of “special measures”, “urgent notifications”, “improvement plans”, and “change agendas” in our prisons, something we mortals are doing is not “quite” working there. This is despite some very good humans doing their absolute best, with all their human strength and might!
We as Christians are called to care deeply about the state of our prisons. There are many references in the Bible to prison and imprisonment (both actual and metaphorical). And we are given a very clear instruction in the book of Hebrews (13v3): “Remember those in prison, as if you were there yourself. Remember also those being mistreated, as if you felt their pain in your own bodies.”
For the last few years, my sister and I have been sewing reusable wrapping. We buy lovely cotton cloth in Christmas prints, hem the material, tie with ribbon, and reuse the fabrics every year. They look beautiful under the tree — and it feels good to celebrate Christmas in a way that doesn’t add to the planet’s waste.
But did you know that Christmas itself is the ultimate reason to care for the earth? Not the commercial one, with glitter and excess, but the real one... “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (John 1v14).
Despite not really liking Ferrero Rocher chocolates, I have spent a lot of time over the last five years with ambassadors – first as the former Prime Minister’s Deputy Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief, and now as I finish my time as Adviser to the Chair of the Article 18 Alliance of religious freedom envoys.
Ambassadors can be seen in public but rarely heard. Like the best referees or umpires, whom you don’t really notice until after the match that they have done a good job (although the old cricket umpire legend the late Dicky Bird was of course an exception). It is why the recent public criticism around former US Ambassador Peter Mandelson proved fatal to his career.
I love words. Not only are some of them inherently beautiful, but I’m fascinated by the way we create sounds that contain meanings.
Sure, the Book of Proverbs does warn that “when words are many, sin is not absent”, but it balances the assertion by also pointing out that “a word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver” which, although probably bad for the teeth, presumably represents something good.
We aren't used to good news, so much so that back in 1993, the BBC newsreader Martin Lewis complained that there wasn't enough good news being reported. I understand that the BBC responded by setting up a team dedicated to solution-focused news - whatever that means!
John 11v35 is not only the shortest verse of the New Testament, but also one of the most remarkable. There is no clearer testimony to Jesus’ humanity, as He enters into a scene of death and mourning and responds with grief and tears.
But it also provides a window into His divine attitude to sin and the effects of sin, especially to death. There is no indifference, no simplistic assurance that “all will be right in the end”, but lament at what has become of His world.
Comment
Don't say these 12 things to a wheelchair user
At the beginning of December, it was International Day of Disabled People. It’s also Disability History Month, which ends on 20 December.
But, we’re also coming up to Christmas and I like to mix relevant themes! So I’m going to add a bit of sparkle to the subject of how we interact with wheelchair users. Therefore I thought I’d give a vague nod to the song The 12 Days of Christmas and give you 12 ideas of what not to say to a wheelchair user. (Please don’t try to sing this to the tune!)
Should we have an evangelism target?
Remember the old adage – if you don’t have a target, you will miss it? Or, if you aim at nothing you will hit nothing? It’s an interesting feature of many contemporary evangelical churches that they have strategies, plans, goals and mission statements. And some have even adopted specific percentage goals.
When I first came to Australia to work in evangelism, I was asked to state what my “KPIs” were. This was somewhat difficult, given that I didn’t know what a KPI was! I know now. Key Performance Indicators. I didn’t know what to say. More people praying? People becoming Christians? Preaching the word faithfully. What were they looking for? They wanted facts. Percentages. Measurable outcomes. Figures. Apparently, this is what funders look for.
This 'anti-Muslim hostility' definition has serious problems. Here's why.
On Monday, the proposed government definition of anti-Muslim hostility was leaked to the BBC.
Earlier this year, the government set up a working group to come up with a definition of Islamophobia/anti-Muslim hatred. Baroness Gohir, a prominent member of the working group has confirmed that the definition leaked to the BBC is the one that the group proposed to the government in October. It had been kept secret since then, while the government has deliberated and consulted with various groups.
Are we forgetting that sports stars are human?
“There is no place for weak men in my dressing room.” That was England captain Ben Stokes’s frustrated verdict after another crushing defeat to Australia in the second Test.
Like many England cricket fans, I’m disillusioned with their performances in Australia this winter. Waking early and checking the score has produced an involuntary groan each time - much to the annoyance of my sleeping wife. Since the Brisbane defeat, the pile-on has been relentless, with every pundit, podcaster and pontificator finding fault in everything from technique and preparation to supposed attitudes and motivations.
Warily, I went to Tommy Robinson's Carols
Warily at first, I stood there in Whitehall on Saturday afternoon for Tommy Robinson’s "Put Christ back into Christmas" carol service. I wanted to experience for myself this apparent toxic nationalism. I would give it one go – one too many in the eyes of some.
I stand against racism of any kind and I had been issued with plenty of warnings in the last few weeks on social media by other Christians, notably bishops of my own denomination: this former criminal would be politicking cynically, out to hijack the faith for his evil agenda, I was told. Oh yes, there might be karaoke carols blasted into the open-air that day but watch out! It would be a guise for hate and all that this church and nation should oppose.
Reading God’s Word in a 'post-literate' world
As Christmas approaches, gift buying is underway. Shops are full, and atmospheric Christmas markets entice you with their beautiful, expensive, but ultimately unnecessary items. You return home with nothing - except perhaps a glass of mulled wine and a mince pie.
What to buy? Back in the day, the physical gift of music was an easy choice: a CD, a tape, or an LP, but now it's all accessed through streaming services. The other physical choice used to be a book, but has that disappeared too?
Bondi Beach: When Jewish history repeats itself
Bondi Beach forces our wider society to ask the difficult question. Why are Jewish people not safe? Hanukkah offers a powerful lens through which to do that.
The history of Hanukkah
Hanukkah commemorates events recorded in the books of 1 and 2 Maccabees, set in the second century BCE. At that time, the Jewish people lived under the rule of the Seleucid Empire, governed by King Antiochus IV Epiphanes. Antiochus outlawed Jewish religious practices, desecrated the Temple in Jerusalem, and attempted to force Jewish people to abandon their faith and identity. This was not merely political control; it was cultural and religious erasure.
Bondi Beach attack: 'A wake-up call' for the church
As Christians in England were singing Christmas carols – some underneath wintry skies in the open air – Jews on the other side of the world were being gunned down while lighting the candle marking the start of their Hanukkah festival.
The Sydney gathering beside the famed Bondi Beach turned into a shocking massacre, leaving 15 dead and 30 wounded, and a nation wondering how it could all have happened.
After Bondi: I am Jewish - this is how it feels today
I write this with sorrow, and with a measure of fear that has been quietly exhausting to me.
I am Jewish. Over the past two years I have stopped wearing Jewish jewellery in public. I moved to a new home and have not put a “mezuzah”* on my front door. When I was growing up, at Hanukkah, we would place our menorah in the front window for the neighbourhood to see. I don’t feel safe doing that anymore.
The unreached 94 per cent
Culture – in the evangelical church, we often talk about this in the context of mission and those of different cultures to the majority in our churches. We talk about being multicultural churches, referring mainly to race and sometimes to age-related "culture" such as youth.
In a country full of different cultures, many churches are working hard in their outreach to connect with many of them.
Ten questions with Charles Gardner
Charles Gardner is a South African-born journalist and volunteer with CMJ (Church’s Ministry among Jewish people) living in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, and married to Linda, who teaches Christianity in primary schools.
I was staying with my Jewish grandmother in north London when a friend from university athletics days in South Africa shared how Jesus had come to give us life in all its fullness.
I had become aware of a lack of direction or purpose, especially after failing to finish a marathon for the first and only time! Brian Jackson, a top athlete who was training for the Anglican ministry at Oxford, encouraged me to invite Jesus into my life and insisted I attend the evening service at All Souls Langham Place, the next day. I never looked back.
Though I understood perseverance as a marathon runner, it took me a long time to learn patience, along with the importance of faithfully waiting for answered prayer, and for ordinary things like buses.
Though I find myself communicating with the Lord on an almost continual basis as my absolute dependence on Him grows deeper, disciplined prayer times come in fits and starts.
Appointment in Jerusalem by Derek and Lydia Prince and R.T. Kendall’s God Meant it for Good (re-released as Total Forgiveness), both published by Kingsway. Both helped cement my calling to the Jews.
The profound teaching of John Stott, our beloved pastor at All Souls, along with the leader of his ‘nursery class’ for new believers, Helen McIntosh, who always referred to herself as a ‘completed Jew’. It was through a sermon Stott preached on being salt in the world that I felt God’s call into journalism.
Staying true to the gospel in the face of growing antagonism from the liberal left’s unholy alliance with jihadism sweeping across the West like a tidal wave; and standing with the Jewish people as they face the potential of another Holocaust. The alternative is to cave in to antisemitic pressure by remaining silent, as the German church of the 1930s did to its shame.
I love inspiring testimonies, which is why I founded the New Life evangelistic tabloid 43 years ago. I am discouraged by indifference to what I perceive as vital issues.
Only Fools and Horses and other great comedians like Morecambe and Wise. I love a good joke but am hopeless at telling them, though having a beer with friends is usually a recipe for much laughter.
Avoid being straitjacketed by a totally inflexible doctrinal position for which you believe there is no possibility of error. Be always open to guidance from the Holy Spirit who leads us into all truth. Avoid being a know-it-all and don’t put Christian “celebrities” on a pedestal; they are not the final arbiter of faith. That honour belongs to God’s Word.
The prophet Isaiah. It must have been so hard to have been called to proclaim the gospel with no prospect of being taken seriously. “Who has believed our report?” (Isa.53) he lamented. As a journalist, I can identify with that. But thanks to him (and others), we can rejoice at the glorious outcome of what he prophesied. The Lord has often used Isaiah to encourage me and even call me to proclaim good news to Zion, telling them that their God reigns (Isa. 52v7)!
Should Christians strike?
Industrial action has become a regular part of many of our lives in the past few years. The latest in a long run of resident doctor strikes called by the British Medical Association threatens to disrupt NHS care just days before Christmas.
Over the festive period we are also set to see strikes affecting national bus and train services, air travel, and even cinema-going.
Elite sport: Where is the contentment?
Sport has been plagued by conversations about money in recent years, exacerbated by golf’s high-profile breakaway LIV tour [a professional men's golf tour] and recent demands from elite tennis players for their prize money to be increased.
Golf
The formation of the Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf circuit in 2022 sparked furious debate in the golfing world, as some of the sport’s top stars departed from the PGA Tour [PGA is an organiser of professional golf tours] for the far greater sums on offer at LIV. This was seen by many as a betrayal of the established structures which had given the players their living, and paid them fairly handsomely already.
Loving country without losing the gospel
Christmas decorations are now up everywhere. For some people, this is a welcome relief from the ongoing proliferation of the various UK flags in all those places and more.
When it comes to the flags, some of us find it tempting to make harsh and hasty judgements about those putting them up, perhaps condemning a caricature of Christian nationalism as we do so.
Why our prisons aren’t working, and what’s needed
Despite the imposition of “special measures”, “urgent notifications”, “improvement plans”, and “change agendas” in our prisons, something we mortals are doing is not “quite” working there. This is despite some very good humans doing their absolute best, with all their human strength and might!
We as Christians are called to care deeply about the state of our prisons. There are many references in the Bible to prison and imprisonment (both actual and metaphorical). And we are given a very clear instruction in the book of Hebrews (13v3): “Remember those in prison, as if you were there yourself. Remember also those being mistreated, as if you felt their pain in your own bodies.”
The Biblical support for a greener Christmas
For the last few years, my sister and I have been sewing reusable wrapping. We buy lovely cotton cloth in Christmas prints, hem the material, tie with ribbon, and reuse the fabrics every year. They look beautiful under the tree — and it feels good to celebrate Christmas in a way that doesn’t add to the planet’s waste.
But did you know that Christmas itself is the ultimate reason to care for the earth? Not the commercial one, with glitter and excess, but the real one... “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (John 1v14).
Christ's ambassadors, united by faith across nations
Despite not really liking Ferrero Rocher chocolates, I have spent a lot of time over the last five years with ambassadors – first as the former Prime Minister’s Deputy Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief, and now as I finish my time as Adviser to the Chair of the Article 18 Alliance of religious freedom envoys.
Ambassadors can be seen in public but rarely heard. Like the best referees or umpires, whom you don’t really notice until after the match that they have done a good job (although the old cricket umpire legend the late Dicky Bird was of course an exception). It is why the recent public criticism around former US Ambassador Peter Mandelson proved fatal to his career.
What’s in a word?
I love words. Not only are some of them inherently beautiful, but I’m fascinated by the way we create sounds that contain meanings.
Sure, the Book of Proverbs does warn that “when words are many, sin is not absent”, but it balances the assertion by also pointing out that “a word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver” which, although probably bad for the teeth, presumably represents something good.
How should we respond to good news?
I bring you good news!
We aren't used to good news, so much so that back in 1993, the BBC newsreader Martin Lewis complained that there wasn't enough good news being reported. I understand that the BBC responded by setting up a team dedicated to solution-focused news - whatever that means!
Jesus wept
John 11v35 is not only the shortest verse of the New Testament, but also one of the most remarkable. There is no clearer testimony to Jesus’ humanity, as He enters into a scene of death and mourning and responds with grief and tears.
But it also provides a window into His divine attitude to sin and the effects of sin, especially to death. There is no indifference, no simplistic assurance that “all will be right in the end”, but lament at what has become of His world.