On March 13 one of the RCL O.T. Readings (Lent 2) is Genesis 15. CSBV Research Associate Ashley Hibbard invites us to read on to Genesis 16 and to consider the place of Ishmael in the O.T. story and beyond. The character of
The Blessing of Ishmael
Bibliolog and Bibliodrama – an approach to playing with sacred texts
In this guest post David Tatem introduces Bibliodrama and Bibliolog, two ways of engaging with biblical texts which could be used to explore texts of violence. If you are interested in finding out more, please leave a comment to that effect, and we
Avoiding Advent Anti-Judaism
How do we preach from the Old Testament in ways that avoid anti-Judaism? In this latest blogpost for our Sunday Sermon Monday Mourning series, Revd Robert Parkinson reflects on the question. Advent and Christmas provide rich occasions for preaching and
What does a peacemaking church do with the armour of God ?
On 22nd August the RCL readings include Ephesians 6, the ‘armour of God’. CSBV research associate Peter King reflects on the challenges this presents. August 22 – Ephesians 6: 10 – 20. RCL Year B I have to admit that
King David’s toxic masculinity
For the next two Sundays (Propers 12 and 13, Pentecost 9 and 10) the RCL Old Testament readings cover the story of David and Bathsheba and its aftermath (2 Samuel 11:1-15 & 26 – 12:15). CSBV Research Associate Ceri Webb invites us
Uzzah and the Ark
The Old Testament story of Uzzah, apparently killed by God for steadying the Ark of the Covenant in transit, is one of the set readings in the RCL for this Sunday (Pentecost 7; Proper 10). We have two posts on this
Arming Wall Builders with Swords
I recently preached on Nehemiah 4:13-23 at my church, St Nics Durham (CoE), as part of a sermon series on the book of Nehemiah. The series covers the major parts of the book rather than a verse-by-verse approach which can
Power from on high …
If there’s one word we all associate with God it’s the word “power”. Week by week, hymns and prayers and liturgies remind us that God is a God of power. One search engine suggests that there are over 20,000 hymns
“Greater love … ?”
A few weeks ago in the UK there was an understandable outcry when the former chief schools inspector appeared to suggest that teachers should be prepared to sacrifice their lives in face of the Covid pandemic: “They’ve [health workers] gone
Not Necessary But Inevitable
As we approach another Easter, and prepare to tell again the story of the death and resurrection of Jesus, what message will we give about the reasons for the events of that momentous week ? For many preachers I suspect