Published Academic Articles
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It is better to wean than to hallow Halloween is relatively new to South African society. It has no roots in our traditions or heritage yet some folk embrace it because it seems ‘fun’ and the children like it. The purpose of this little tract is to provide parents with some background to this pagan celebration, the implications of engaging in its activities, and suggestions for alternative approaches to what is in reality a potentially ‘evil’ celebration. Halloween has its genesis in an ancient Celtic festival to honour the ‘lord of the dead’ , Samhain. The Celtic year began
Church unity is so important yet so illusive. In this article I attempt to describe some of the parameters for unity, its continuum and its locus, before coming to the tentative conclusion that networking seems to provide us with the only viable working model available. Having come to this point in my search I then sketch some simple building blocks . In the final analysis, only the Holy Spirit can forge a functionally united global church. Our responsibility is to seek the Lord’s will and to be sensitive to His voice. We also need to place ourselves into interlinking
I heard a report the other day that there are about 50,000 dogs roaming the streets of Detroit. Why is this happening in poor bankrupt Detroit city? Well, a major contributor to both the city’s and the dogs’ demise is… debt. Many of the automotive workers in Detroit had been living beyond their means for years. As their house values went up so they borrowed more to live better on what they had not yet earned. Then came the world economic meltdown. Car sales slumped and tens of thousands of factory workers lost their jobs. House prices plummeted and
When I look at the state of the world and our nation, and hear the contentions of Evangelical world church leaders that much of the church has fallen asleep, then I have great hope. Sounds strange, but that is the truth of it. However, my hope is not that the nation will suddenly change from corruption, violence, and general indolence, to heaven-on-earth. Nor is my hope that the churches of South Africa will structurally unite and exercise major social transformation initiatives. No, my hope is that God the Father will take mercy on His people, that the Lord Jesus
I am currently re-reading the book ‘Jesus Manifesto’ by Len Sweet and Frank Viola subtitled ‘Restoring the Supremacy and Sovereignty of Jesus Christ‘. (http://www.thejesusmanifesto.com) In this book Len coins the phrase ‘Jesus Deficit Disorder’ (JDD), a play on the familiar mental condition labelled Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). His contention is that the focus of today’s church flickers from one thing to another but seldom settles on Jesus. Like a child with ADD the body of Christ focuses first on social upliftment, then on politics, then on getting rich, then on biblical knowledge acquisition, and so on … but seldom
