mgpcpastor's blog

Australian Presbyterian was late again this (last) month. I blame it on daylight saving.

First things first, the format changes continue to be refined this month.
The absence of news from Australian Presbyterian Churches for the second month in a row may mean its gone for good. The various state publications have probably brought this about.
An expanded news section is included. I wonder about the longevity of this section. Online sources mean that monthly news has probably been circulating for awhile and loses any sense of currency. Most of the items are sort of timeless, but of those that indicate a date, the most recent seems to be August.
I know that lots of Australian Presbyterians are probably behind the demographic curve as far as getting online in a pro-active way, but in the next year or two news will probably give way to more articles.

The articles this month are heavy going. This seems to be a trend as well. If the state publications are going to cover all the lighter stuff, the national journal seems intent on carving out a reputation as a place for serious theological interaction.

Peter Jones returns to provide commentary on the cultural and philosophical background to the sexual revolution. I think the main focus of his comments is that those driving the changes in societal morality and standards are doing so because they are influenced by a pagan worldview. It rejects objective perceptions of identity and replaces them with subjective ones. This worldview is seeking to assert itself as the dominant one and is hostile to Christian views of truth and authority.
David Palmer follows up with an article on the contemporary efforts to either redefine or marginalise marriage. His contentions are that these efforts are again part of a philosophy that wishes to break down objective notions of roles and indentities within gender. Marriage needs to be defended as a biblical standard. It also needs to be lived out with truth and integrity because it is a vital part of human well being. Accepting other standards will be to the detriment and damage of society collectively and individually.
David and Roslyn Phillips support this with an article pointing out the lack of a scientific basis to prove that homosexuality is genetic. As a condition that is a product of environment, experience and nurture we can then engage with those who support it about the extent to which they wish to influence society to live and love as they wish. Philosophically the only limits are those which society can bear. And they want society to bear pretty much anything.

Bible Studies from Bruce Christian on Romans 1-8 would have been handy three or four months ago.

An Age article by Barney Zwartz is included. This is harrowing reading. It concerns the personal story of a family devastated by the abuse that one of their own suffered at the hands of a clergy member. It is not a Presbyterian story, and for that reason I was a bit uncomfortable as well. Sadly we have our own stories. Hopefully these sorts of articles confirm our efforts to eradicate abuse and take the necessary steps to bring about an accountable culture in which it cannot happen.

The letters page deals with the hardy perennial of creation, but also expresses a different tangent with letters of appreciation to the editorial team. Well deserved.
Book reviews and a reflection by Peter Barnes round out the issue. Peter encourages us to be resolute yet gracious in expressing our Christian convictions. As someone with plenty of convictions I’m sure Peter gets lots of practice. His good reputation around the place seems a testimony that he practices what he preaches.

Past issues of Australian Presbyterian are available online, three months after original publication. The pdf of the July issue can be found here. My review of that issue is here.