Emerging Africa

Hi everyone
Just a quick note to encourage everyone to watch For The Bible Tells Me So, which is currently screening at the Out in Africa Gay and Lesbian Film Festival. It's an Oscar-nominated documentary about being gay and Christian, with interviews with the likes of Bishop Gene Robinson and our own Desmond Tutu. It made me ashamed to be a Christian (again) but hopeful at the same time. Would love to hear anyone else's experiences of it... For more info, visit www.oia.co.za.

As many of you know, I’ve been writing a book on gender and Christianity for the last few years. Having read too many academic books written by foreigners, I’d really love it if some of you could take the time to answer some questions on my new blog to give me more of a first-hand perspective.

I'm looking for comments on:
1. When did you become aware that men and women were treated differently within society? What was your response?
2. When did you become aware that men and women were treated differently within the church? What was your response?
3. Has your view on gender changed over the years? Why and how?

Hi all

Hi all

I probably haven't thought this one through as clearly as I would have liked, so please don't hold me to any of the comments below: just trying to air some thoughts and resolve some issues.

In most sermons that I sit through, the teaching on the temple goes something like this:

Happy Easter everyone. For me, its sparked a few questions I'd love some comments on.

Last week, we sat through a passover meal at a little Anglican church in town. For the Jews, apparently, Passover is a time to remember to Exodus, particularly the way the angel of death passed over the doors of the Jewish families while it was on its way to kill all the firstborn children and animals of all the other Egyptians.

Does anyone else find this story problematic? The story of the plagues is great if we look at God's heart for the oppressed and the way he actively leads them to freedom, but his actions seem morally reprehensible in so many other ways.

Hi all

Stephen asked me to explain why I don't believe the Bible is inerrant anymore. Roger suggested I re-post my answer as a blog of its own. Be warned, it's rather long since I wrote it for a UNISA assignment initially, but if anyone has the time, all comments are appreciated.

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What does it mean when we say that there are two streams in the Bible – one human and one divine? Does this conflict with the claim that the Bible is inerrant?
Many Christians see the ethical teaching of the New Testament as inerrant and normative. The Barna Research Group reported in 2001 that 81% of Pentecostal and 66% of Baptists believed that the Bible was totally accurate in all it teaches. Belief in inerrancy is viewed as a fundamental of the Christian faith by many fundamentalist churches.

Hi all