I am interested to hear the views of Christians about the use of social media and other modern technologies to advertise Church events, to proclaim the gospel, to enter into wider debate on moral issues, etc.

The time of the Reformation was a significant time in world history. Through the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, there was a massive conflict between those who wished to maintain the medieval religion and those who sought to reform it. One of the most important tools was printing, ie: the use of the latest technology.

The first book to be printed (in 1455) was a Bible. Hitherto, all Bibles were hand copied.

When Martin Luther nailed his ’95 Theses’ to the door of Wittenberg Castle, it was said that it reached the whole of Germany in 2 weeks, and the whole of Europe in a month. The reason was simple: it was printed.

One of my personal heroes is William Tyndale, who produced the first printed English New Testament. He based this on Erasmus’ Greek NT, rather than the Latin Vulgate, which had been the source of previous versions. This ensured a much higher degree of accuracy. His aim, using everyday language, was to produce a Bible than anyone could read; “I wish that the husbandman may sing parts of them at his plough, that the weaver may warble them at his shuttle, that the traveller may with their narratives beguile the weariness of the way.” In course of time, Tyndale had his English NT printed on the continent, and imported into England. Demand was huge, and the availability of the NT in plain English contributed massively to the progress of the Reformation.

Having mentioned Erasmus, his Greek New Testament was, of course, also printed. And many of the theological and moral debates of the Reformation were pursued through books. This gave the protagonists the ability to have their words widely published much more quickly and cheaply than had previously been possible.

Every age has seen technological developments. Genesis 4.21-22 record the use of musical instruments and the creation of bronze and iron tools. Man is an inventor, and always has been. Whether such developments are used for good or evil is the choice of those who use them.

And today is no different. We may bemoan the evil fruit of religious extremism and pornography. But that does not make the technology evil.

My opinion? Simple. Engage with this world using the technology that is available. Be pioneers not hermits. Use the tools available to us; use them in excellent ways; be bold; be creative; be compassionate. Proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ. Stand for truth and mercy in our broken world. Announce your next Alpha course.

“It does not follow from God’s omnipotence that He has the power to become less that He is, or the power to lie, etc. Neither is it allowable to conclude, on the other hand, that God’s power is a limited one because He is unable to do what men do, namely, to lie, or to sin in any way;  … Wycliffe regards it as the act of a mistaken imagination when men suppose that God is able to bring into existence an infinite world for Himself; he puts in the place of an alleged unlimited and boundless power the idea of a power conditioned and unlimited by no other power, the greatest positive power of all. In other words, he conceives of the Divine omnipotence as a power self-determining, morally regulated, ordered by inner laws.” (John Wycliffe and his English Precursors, by Prof Lechler, 1878)

I found this analysis so helpful. I have frequently heard and quoted, that God is omnipotent. Numerous scriptures are brought in support of this concept. However, it seems unsatisfactory, when we then have to qualify the same concept; Can God sin? Can God save the unsaveable? Wycliffe’s wording makes a lot of sense, in providing the proper ‘restrictions’ upon God’s omnipotence, ie: His self-determining power; His moral regulation; His inner character.

I looked and saw an island, so beautiful, so green and pleasant

The weather is inconsistent (giving the natives something to talk about!)

But all is scenic, picture postcard land, perfect PC wallpaper

“we live as kings,” we shout out

Beneath the surface, a different truth, an uncomfortable reality. Far different is the real truth.

Broken, like an African taxi driver’s windscreen; ready to shatter at the next bump on the road.

At every turn, pressures and fissures threaten the whole:

An unfinished list –

• Of constantly evolving mental illnesses, striking the young, and the fit and the strong. Its ‘survival of the fortunate.’
• Of child abuse; victims and abusers; numbering thousands and thousands, and thousands.
• Of an aging population, the pensions ‘black hole,’ unaddressed issues, a blank check for the NHS, already signed.
• Of rich and poor; tax avoidance and payday loans; the growing gap already a chasm.
• An epidemic of gambling, ‘the fun is in the playing;’ a new form of uneven taxation, with a bitter harvest.
• We make the important trivial; and the trivial important.

“But you are all doom and gloom!”

No!

Shining lights in the darkness; some bright, some weak; some flicker and die, to be replaced by more. Many colours and multi-coloured.

Hope, and compassion, and integrity, and community.

Asian and African and European hand-in-hand, heart-to-heart, as it should be; as we were meant to be.

Business and community and charity – common goals; sharing resources and skills.

Faith groups and no-faith groups, and many varieties; co-operating and collaborating.

Bringing hope and compassion, into this broken land, this fractured isle.

And, perhaps the brightest: the local church (but I am biased)

Preaching and teaching; praying and worshipping (because that is what you would expect)

Out-reaching, out-facing; engaging with this broken world, this fractured isle.

Church and business? yes;

Church and community? yes;

Church and mosque? yes;

Not afraid of co-operation and collaboration. My weaknesses and your strengths, to begin to mend, this broken world, to heal this fractured isle.