Gilbert Keith (G. K.) Chesterton, renowned Christian author and theologian, was born in London on 29 May 1874. His younger brother, Cecil, arrived 5 years later. At Cecil’s birth, the precocious Gilbert reportedly announced, “Now I shall always have an audience.” If Gilbert was hoping for a quietly passive younger brother, he was to be shocked. As soon as Cecil could speak, he refused to merely listen to Gilbert. He insisted on debate. And as the boys grew up together, they disagreed about everything.  Read More...

As is not unusual, our political scene is a bit messy at the moment. The big talking point is the Kim Dotcom-John Banks donation scandal. The situation has emerged because allegedly John Banks asked Dotcom to split a $50,000 donation into two $25,000 donations and then declared them anonymously when he should have named the donor. So now there is a he-said, she-said type of situation with Banks denying wrongdoing and knowledge, and the wolves gathering to prove he did. It sounds a little messier today with John Banks having lobbied Maurice Williamson over Dotcom’s proposed purchase of his Coatesville home. Read More...

It is tragic that the scourge of racism has reared its ugly head in NZ society around Pat Lam, coach of the Blues rugby team. We all know racism is there, bubbling under the surface. We hear the anti-Asian comments, we see the marginalisation of people of colour. It is wrong! In my many years of interest in rugby I have heard many comments on talkback suggesting that Polynesian rugby players are not as intelligent as Pakeha, that they rely on brute strength, that they don’t train as hard, etc. Well this is incorrect from a human perspective, a Christian world-view, and from a sporting perspective. Read More...

A most interesting storm is brewing in the UK that is of interest to Christians of all flavours. In 2006, Nadia Eweida was suspended from British Airways for wearing a cross. Nurse Shirley Chaplin was similarly banned from working on the wards after refusing to hide the cross she wore on a necklace. The UK Equalities Minister Lynne Featherstone has instructed government lawyers to oppose these women as they go to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg to fight for their right to wear crosses. The case has serious implications for the issue of wearing religious clothes and symbolism. The debate revolves around Article Nine of the European Convention on Human Rights which states: Read More...

While it would be fool-hardly for me in distant Auckland to express an opinion on the recently announced demolition of the Christchurch Cathedral, it has got me wondering. I feel deeply and will continue to pray for all involved in this situation – it is a tough question, one of many such questions in Christchurch.  Read More...