Foreign aid: An open letter to David Lammy
James Burnett
Dear David, I trust you are well. I am writing to you about foreign aid cuts.
Red Nose Day, 2019
In response to Stacy Dooley’s visit to Uganda in 2019, you sought to redress the Red Nose Day narrative which, in your words, promoted a “white saviour” colonial attitude to Africa. You opined on the Victoria Derbyshire show: “Comic Relief is a 20-year-old formula that asks comedians to perform and sends celebrities – most often white – out to Africa, and that image evokes for lots of ethnic minorities in Britain a colonial image of a white beautiful heroine holding a black child, with no agency, no parents in sight.”
What is faithful church ministry?
James Burnett
Would you make a good "Traitor"? Have you got the mojo of a chameleon to hoodwink fellow contestants, like the comedian Alan Carr - this year’s winner of BBC’s The Celebrity Traitors?
Game show The Traitors was inspired by the sinking of the Dutch ship Batavia in 1629. When the Batavia sank off Australia, 250 survivors scrambled ashore an island archipelago. Mutinous traitors fought against a small band of faithful soldiers, culminating in a live-or-die boat race towards an oncoming rescue ship. Who would get there first - the "Traitors" or the "Faithful"? A true story!
Revival: My experience with Al Qaeda-loving African chiefs
During the Second Great Awakening, a hot potato leapt from one set of anodyne pastor's hands to another: “Can churches plan a revival?” What do you think?
Stories of revival are sacred heirlooms passed down through the generations. My grandmother told me my great-great grandfather was led to Christ by George Muller of Bristol. Granny ‘Nett lisped revivals to her grandkids while other grandparents rhapsodized famous FA Cup finals, career choices, or U2 concerts.