The church – like almost every other sector of society – has found itself severely curtailed over the last few months. The UK government’s COVID-19 “lockdown” regulations announced 23rd March barred churches from meeting together, a stipulation not lifted until July. While there has been widespread acceptance some have denied the right of government to … Continue reading Should Churches Obey Lockdown Restrictions?
Politics students are sometimes curious about their lecturers’ political views. Aside from natural curiosity it can be beneficial to know what perspective your teacher is coming from in evaluating and critically assessing what they’re saying. It can also lead to some interesting debates While some lecturers are quite open about their views others keep their … Continue reading What is Political Agnosticism?
There’s something attractive about personality tests and surveys. Frameworks such as Myers-Briggs and the Enneagram help us to learn something about ourselves, put a name or a label to the ways in which we think and feel, or maybe just demystify something of our experience. The world of politics is no different, and there are … Continue reading What is Christian Democracy?
To many, especially here in the UK, the sight of Donald Trump posing outside a church building waving a Bible in the air must have been decidedly odd. The President strolled awkwardly from the White House to St John’s Episcopal Church, held the book aloft for the gathered press, and then strolled awkwardly back. “It’s … Continue reading What was Donald Trump doing?
At the last election I picked five seats that those with an interest in Christian political thought and engagement might want to pay attention to. Here are five more to keep an eye on tonight. Westmorland and Lonsdale Tim Farron has, despite his reluctance, faced repeated questions about his religious beliefs during the course of … Continue reading Christianity and Politics: Five Seats to Watch
Tim Farron’s frustration is beginning to boil over with the news cycle that just won’t die – the news cycle we might term “Tim Farron is an evangelical and that’s weird”. In a Sky News interview with Sophy Ridge on Sunday under repeated questioning about his stance on abortion the Lib Dem leader complained: "I … Continue reading Farron must accept questions about his beliefs
(1) “I’m voting for Theresa May / Jeremy Corbyn / Tim Farron” No, you’re not – unless you live in Maidenhead, Islington North, or Westmorland and Lonsdale, because those are the seats represented respectively by Theresa May, Jeremy Corbyn and Tim Farron. The UK has a parliamentary rather than a presidential electoral system, and we … Continue reading General Election 2017: Five Myths
Recently I had the opportunity to do a bit of research into the Christian People’s Alliance, so I was interested to see their leader Sid Cordle interviewed on the BBC’s Daily Politics show yesterday [1] as part of a pre-General Election series examining some of the minor parties. I’ve complained before about Cordle appearing on … Continue reading Christian People’s Alliance: A Party in Transition
As we’ve already touched on, one of the surprising aspects of the 2016 race to the White House has been the backing conservative evangelicals have given to Donald Trump. It seems strange that those who make up the deeply socially-conservative Religious Right would lend their support to a man of questionable moral standing, whose commitment … Continue reading Cultural evangelicals for Trump, theological evangelicals for Cruz
It’s certainly an interesting time to be studying Christian political thought and engagement with politics. Things are happening at the moment which have the potential to change British and American politics. Divided Christian Socialism? To begin with the UK, over the last three-and-a-half years I’ve been conducting my Ph.D. research into Christian Socialism in Britain. … Continue reading Why now is the time to take an interest in Christian politics
The Ballot Box and the Bible 