tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-347761712011-07-08T06:21:06.218+08:00A wistful search for a more radical and inclusive Christian community...blogger for povertyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13914297047194822744noreply@blogger.comBlogger181100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34776171.post-63320816779762681082009-09-30T15:06:00.003+08:002009-09-30T15:25:05.626+08:00

An article from Christianity Today:Imagine walking down the street and hearing a child say to his mother: "Mom, why does he walk that way?" Or, "Why is she in that wheelchair?" Or, "Why does he have that cane?" People with disabilities don't have to imagine such questions. They hear them regularly—at least those who can hear.But it's not the queries of curious youngsters that bother those facing

blogger for povertyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13914297047194822744noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34776171.post-13451792629526433512009-03-02T12:28:00.002+08:002009-03-02T13:19:49.988+08:00

Imagine this scenario: A couple has two children, and one of them has a visible disability. The other child is emotionally disturbed because the sibling looks abnormal. Will the parents abandon the child who has a disability so as to protect the other child from being traumatised constantly by the presence of the sibling?That seems to be the logical conclusion based on this article in The New

blogger for povertyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13914297047194822744noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34776171.post-24755360910641932882009-02-25T22:24:00.005+08:002009-03-01T20:39:06.978+08:00

Church-goers who attend churches that advocate tithing will be familiar with the following oft-quoted verses:"Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, 'In what way have we robbed You?' In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse, For you have robbed Me, Even this whole nation." (Malachi 3:8-9, NKJV)So if we have fulfiled our duty and have given at least our tithes to the

blogger for povertyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13914297047194822744noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34776171.post-40272131652385921022008-04-18T00:28:00.003+08:002009-05-25T15:11:28.674+08:00

A letter in Straits Times Forum entitled 'One can always say no to hard-sell religion' (16 April 2008):I READ with interest the complaint by Ms Wee Feng Yi in her letter on Saturday, 'Let's respect a person's private space in public', in which she expressed her concern over 'the increasingly noticeable trend by Singaporeans to proselytise in public.' Personally, I do not like to be disturbed in

blogger for povertyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13914297047194822744noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34776171.post-52685577470804093442008-04-18T00:14:00.003+08:002008-04-18T00:27:02.682+08:00

A letter in Straits Times Forum entitled 'Let's respect a person's private space in public' (12 April 2008) by Ms Wee Feng Yi:I WAS sitting alone in my school canteen one afternoon when a girl came up to me and asked if I had time to spare. Yes, it was yet another get-to-know-God session.I'm sorry if this sounds impolite, but I've had enough of such encounters in school and other public places.I

blogger for povertyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13914297047194822744noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34776171.post-9235128293908622892007-06-03T23:56:00.000+08:002007-06-04T00:12:39.538+08:00

straythe distance is measuredfriendships once treasured, stillcan't help but cryto salvage, did trythe loss had starteda thousand miles agoi got on the right train, right?so why the strain? nowstaring out the window of timesee seasons change and mountains yet climbedcan't look back, can istay on track?

blogger for povertyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13914297047194822744noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34776171.post-11405655210998671322007-02-26T01:24:00.000+08:002009-02-25T23:33:45.832+08:00

One contemporary church (or rather a network of congregations that meet primarily in homes) that has caught my attention recently is The Crowded House located in Sheffield, UK. I am particularly impressed by one of their core values, that is, “Being an inclusive community”:We are committed to making church accessible to unbelievers and welcoming to the socially marginalised. We want all who come

blogger for povertyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13914297047194822744noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34776171.post-1166377331190261182006-12-18T01:28:00.000+08:002009-02-25T23:32:34.497+08:00

When Jesus’ disciples criticised the seemingly wasteful act of a woman who poured expensive perfume on Him instead of using the sale proceeds of the perfume to help the poor, He responded that “you have the poor with you always, but Me you do not have always” (Matthew 26:11). Some Christians today believe that Jesus wanted churches to have “extravagant worship”, thus allocating little if any

blogger for povertyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13914297047194822744noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34776171.post-1165506734965016802006-12-07T23:50:00.000+08:002009-02-25T23:33:37.208+08:00

During lunch hour yesterday, I went to get myself a drink somewhere near my workplace when I saw a man sitting on a wheelchair outside a bank. I didn’t really look at him. Just caught a glimpse and noticed that he was shabbily dressed, with a mug in his hand, sitting there passively, maybe asleep. His right leg was missing, probably amputated. Must be a beggar I guessed. I passed him by quickly,

blogger for povertyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13914297047194822744noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34776171.post-1164732757727452202006-11-29T00:45:00.000+08:002009-02-25T23:32:20.001+08:00

Jesus set an example for His church in showing compassion and mercy to those in need. Dr. D. James Kennedy explores how the early church walked just as her Master walked:Saint Laurence was a deacon in the Christian Church, who was quite generous, especially to the poor. He lived in Aragon of the Roman Empire of the third century. During one of the persecutions, he was ordered to bring to a Roman

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There is a tendency for churches today to set up different ministries to cater to different groups of people. People can be segregated into “homogenous units” in terms of race, language, age, or any other characteristics. I know of churches that conduct separate worship services for people with intellectual disabilities. But is this what God intends His church to be?The justification for this

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Michael Green is the author of over fifty books and has traveled all five continents to teach about Jesus Christ. He has been Principle of St John’s College Nottingham, Rector of St Aldate’s Church Oxford, Professor of Evangelism and New Testament at Regent College Vancouver, and is now Senior Research Fellow at Wycliffe, Oxford University. Here’s what he writes in a book that features evangelism

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Ronald J. Sider steps on toes again after his controversial ‘Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger’ has challenged modern evangelical Christianity for the last thirty years. Here is an excerpt from his recent book that questions why Christians are living just like the rest of the world:The picture of the first Christians in Jerusalem presented in the early chapters of Acts is one of astonishing

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Clothes make the man, said Mark Twain. But what does the Bible say? Here is a sample of passages about the clothes we wear:A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman’s garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the LORD your God. (Deuteronomy 22:5, NKJV; cf. 1 Corinthians 11:2-16)You shall not wear a garment of different sorts, such as wool and

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Tim Chester was previously Research and Policy Director for Tearfund UK, a Christian relief and development organisation that is definitely worth supporting. When he was working at Tearfund, he wrote a book ‘Awakening to a World of Need: The Recovery of Evangelical Social Action’ which tells the story of the growth of evangelical social concern from the 1960s to the 1990s. He is now involved in

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House churches are making a comeback, according to a report in The Barna Update (also reported in TIME and The Washington Post). And in my opionion, that is good news for the church. Why do I say so? For the following reasons:1. It’s the New Testament pattern for the church to meet in believers’ homes (Romans 16:5; 1 Corinthians 16:19; Colossians 4:15; Philemon 2). Although Jewish Christians in

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I may not agree with every belief and practice of The Salvation Army, but I think they have gotten it right in their emphasis on reaching the poor with the Good News of Jesus Christ and meeting human needs in His name without discrimination. And I am especially impressed by their founder’s strong conviction for the inclusion of the poor and marginalised within the local church community. Here is

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This blog is inspired by what Jesus says in Luke 14:12-14, which shows us what God requires His church to be, that is, a truly inclusive community (see here and here). This passage also shows us how far we have missed the mark. John Piper preached a sermon on 13 August 1995 entitled ‘This Man Receives Sinners And Eats With Them’ which opened my eyes to the full implication of this biblical

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