Dying and death is not a new phenomenon: we have always become ill, suffered, were going to die and someone else could have killed us. So why now, at the beginning of the 21st century, after prohibiting euthanasia for thousands of years and when we can do so much more to relieve suffering than in Read more
Journalists often are accused of reporting only bad news, and there’s often a fair bit of truth to the charge. Experience shows that scandal and controversy sell, while feel-good, uplifting material sometimes struggles to find a market, but that’s not really an excuse for failing to present the whole picture. At the same time, the Read more
The term ‘personality politics’ has been thrown around this election more than in others. I can see why people don’t want politics to be all about personality. Our age is dominated by a celebrity culture that’s often superficial. People rightly don’t want superficial selfishness to seep into our politics. We want politics to be a Read more
In his classic 1986 study of mainstream American media’s coverage of natural disaster reporting around the world, William C. Adams concluded that the death of one Italian equalled that of three Romanians, nine Latin Americans, 11 Middle Easterners or 12 Asians. Unsurprisingly, he found the media weighted in favour of Western interests. Reporting also showed Read more
I like Jonah. You know the story? God instructs Jonah, up, go to Ninevah. Tell the people If they don’t mend their wicked ways, they will be destroyed. But Jonah won’t go to that dangerous place. He boards a ship in another direction, and runs into a storm. He’s the cause of the storm and Read more
As I wrote in The Gatekeepers are Gone: What’s Holding Your Ministry Back?, we need more churches taking advantage of online services, podcasts, livestreaming, social media, blogging, you name it. Online church is not just necessary, it’s important, even essential. The speed, convenience and world-wide reach of the internet is a wonderful tool. The digital world Read more
Caught in the big, boisterous march that kicked off Māori Language Week in Wellington on Monday I wondered why it took so long for us to accept that a language is a world, and we lose something by not living in it. In a goofy, inattentive way I learned Latin and French at school, unconvinced that I’d Read more
Anti-Catholicism has been called “the last acceptable prejudice.” Tragically, it was on display at the Senate Judiciary Committee’s confirmation hearing for Amy Coney Barrett, nominated to be a federal appellate judge. Barrett, a professor at Notre Dame Law School, is a constitutional law expert who has clerked for appellate and Supreme Court judges. She is Read more
It’s that special time of the year again when kids start heading back to school. And for those who have discovered the fun of learning, school is an adventure! But for millions of working children worldwide, the adventures of a new school year remain but a dream. Sadly, these children will never learn to read Read more
We don’t subscribe to print publications in our house (despite the best efforts of the New Zealand Herald to get us hooked with their free “hit” of six weeks’ free newspapers – we tried it once but it wasn’t worth the numerous letters and phone calls we received afterwards trying to convince us to purchase a subscription). Read more