Message from Tim
Faith Seeking Understanding
On Sunday nights starting 12th September we are starting a new online teaching series, based around Craig Blomberg’s book, Can We Still Believe in God?
There are some real obstacles to faith for some people and the evenings will provide an opportunity for honest discussion in a safe environment, recognising that between us we may find very different ways of reconciling these issues with our trust in God. So I do not expect us all to agree with each other by the end of each evening, but I do hope that we will all be able to respect each other’s views and accept each other as our horizons are broadened, our doubts are aired and our convictions probed.
So come prepared to ask questions, to listen, to think, to be honest, to be open and to explore what it means to trust God at the end of 2021.
I can't believe in God because...
12th Sep There is too much evil and suffering in the world.
19th Sep He condemns people to eternal torment in hell.
26th Sep He condones slavery.
3 rd Oct He treats women as second-class citizens.
10th Oct He is homophobic.
17th Oct I can’t believe in miracles.
24th Oct Jesus is a myth.
7 th Nov The Bible is full of violence.
14th Nov Prayer is just a placebo.
21st Nov The gospels are full of contradictions.
28th Nov Over the centuries the Church rewrote the Bible.
5 th Dec Who would want to be a Christian anyway?
Some of us may find ourselves in a bit of a wilderness faith-wise after the last few months as old certainties have evaporated. Paul Ricoeur talked about entering what he called the desert of criticism, where we find that we are asking questions of scripture that we previously were happy simply to take at face value. He also talked about travelling through the desert and coming out the other side into a second naivety, where our faith re-emerges intact, but reinterpreted more in terms of symbolism, paradox and mystery. If you want to find some fellow travellers to walk through the desert with you, then I hope you will join us on Sunday nights.
A Zoom link is available on our website here: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83687281730?pw d=aGplRzVyUGNEemZmbWQxUkpRYWlCZz09
Meeting ID: 836 8728 1730.
Passcode: 394736