Bishop John will be exploring what holds together the ‘big five’ of the Christian faith: incarnation, the cross, resurrection, ascension and Pentecost. What are they all really about and how can we grasp their significance intellectually and spiritually? Big issues made accessible.
First of two in-depth sessions on the the gospel narratives which lay at the heart of the New Testament and are our window onto the life and work of Jesus. How can we understand both the unity and diversity of these four portraits of Christ and interpret them in ways that are relevant for today’s…
It might seem quite straightforward – Jesus said what he is reported as saying in the Gospels. At one level this is true. At another, however, things may be rather more complicated. A significant complicating factor is that, for more than a century, most scholars have suspected the existence of an entity known as Q.…
Second of two in-depth sessions on the the gospel narratives which lay at the heart of the New Testament and are our window onto the life and work of Jesus. How can we understand both the unity and diversity of these four portraits of Christ and interpret them in ways that are relevant for today’s…
This lecture will address the question: if the covenant with Israel is irrevocable (Romans 11.29), what does that mean for Christians who accept that and believe that salvation is from Christ alone?
An exploration of the non-Pauline New Testament letters (Hebrews, James, 1 and 2 Peter, 1, 2 and 3 John and Jude) that were written to the whole church rather than to individuals or individual churches. We will look at the Author, Setting, Date, Purpose and Themes of each within the overarching geographical context of the…
The English Reformation has been cited as evidence both for and against the decision of the UK to leave the EU. Henry VIII’s idiosyncratically independent stance has been contrasted with the European dimension of Thomas Cranmer’s contacts and the influence of continental Reformers in England and in Scotland. This paper will examine those arguments, and…
In Jesus’ lifetime, people met him face to face, and he gathered around him a community of Jewish men and women who thought he was the one to redeem Israel. Today we use the language of ‘meeting Jesus’ and of growing the church (community), but mean something a little different - meeting Jesus in a…
