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'To Release the Oppressed': Reclaiming a biblical theology of liberation
John Coffey, December 2009 4 comments
Price: FREE
Liberation is one of the great slogans of modern politics and one of the major themes of the Bible. The Exodus from Egyptian bondage was the foundational narrative of the Jewish nation, and Jesus inaugurated his ministry by announcing that he had come ‘to release the oppressed’. Scripture teaches that Christ brings redemption from slavery to sin, but it also depicts deliverance from material forms of oppression. This paper explains how that biblical theme has inspired early modern revolutionaries and nineteenth-century abolitionists as well as modern liberation theologians. While highlighting the failings of Christian liberationists (old and new), the paper concludes that we need a holistic theology of liberation which addresses the diverse forms of spiritual, relational and material enslavement that are rife in the twenty-first century.
Keywords: Christianity & Religion
Is Capitalism Morally Bankrupt? Five moral flaws and their social consequences
Michael Schluter, September 2009 4 comments
Price: FREE
Many Christians accept Capitalism as broadly in line with biblical teaching. Its economic success appears to vindicate attribution of its origins to Christian theology. This confidence in Capitalism as the best available economic system has meant that Christians have failed to recognise that it is one of the main drivers of social and moral breakdown in Western societies. This paper will highlight five failings in the philosophical foundations and institutions of Corporate Capitalism, pointing to their devastating impact on families and communities, and how they bring about the growth of giant corporations and centralised state power. Christians need to search urgently for a new economic order based on biblical revelation. One such alternative will be set out in a future issue of Cambridge Papers.
Keywords: Finance & the Economy
Enhancing humans or a new creation?
Denis Alexander, June 2009 1 comment
Price: FREE
Enhancement involves giving abilities integral to the body beyond those we would normally consider a human to possess. Transhumanism is an influential philosophy based on human autonomy in which enhancement technologies play a central role. This paper summarises transhumanism, describes the scope of current enhancing technologies, and provides a Christian critique, presenting the biblical strategy for human transformation as a compelling alternative to the transhumanist project.
Keywords: Science & Technology, Worldviews & Culture
Three principles for Christian citizens
Julian Rivers, March 2009 No comments
Price: FREE
Three basic types of argument have a proper place as Christians engage in public life. These are arguments from the common good, from institutional independence, and from conscientious witness. They are all authentic expressions of the Christian political tradition, well-grounded in Scripture. They express three principles for Christian citizens. However, all three are being stifled by a new political absolutism in the name of ‘equality and human rights’. This is ironic, because equality and human rights are a contemporary expression of the same Christian tradition. In response, Christians will want to reaffirm all three principles – not only for our own sake, but for the benefit of everyone.
Keywords: Christianity & Religion, Government & Foreign Affairs
Unity and diversity: the Church, race and ethnicity
Sujit Sivasundaram, December 2008 5 comments
Price: FREE
The affirmation of ethnic diversity can give the individual believer and the local congregation a sense of cohesion and belonging. Yet, if ethnicity becomes a primary criterion defining identity, we risk marginalising ethnic minorities. This paper brings the twin principles of unity and diversity to bear on four contexts: the individual Christian, the local congregation, the global church and the church in society. In each case, it advocates the celebration of both the unity of how being in Christ sees ethnic differences disappear and the diversity that emerges in understanding and respecting ethnic differences amongst believers.
Keywords: Christianity & Religion, Worldviews & Culture
Do we need a Christian university?
Nigel Paterson, September 2008 11 comments
Price: FREE
The concept of a university was substantially a Christian innovation, yet most modern universities are secular institutions. This paper surveys briefly the historical background which shows how this came about and the institutional landscape of higher education today. Next, biblical perspectives applicable to all Christians involved in higher education are explored. At the heart of the paper, there lies a discussion of the arguments for and against a Christian university, and the characteristics of such a new Christian university, as envisaged by the author, are presented. The paper is intended to provoke readers across the world to thought, discussion and a more informed response to the many possibilities for Christian service within higher education.
Keywords: Education
The law of love
David McIlroy, June 2008 No comments
Price: FREE
The Bible is clear that to love God involves seeking to be obedient to God. Being God’s people involves seeking to make wise decisions about the way in which God wants us to live. Jesus commands his followers to love God and our neighbours. In working out what that means, followers of Jesus need to take into account what God has revealed in the Torah about what it means to love him and to love another, as fulfilled, interpreted and modelled by Jesus. The Holy Spirit is given to us to enable us to grow in love. In order to make wise decisions we need to have internalised God’s law and to meditate on it with the help of the Spirit. In heaven, doing what God wants will be second nature. Till then, reflection on God’s law is an indispensable part of discerning what it means in practice to love God and to love our neighbour. [Includes BONUS material not included in the printed version.]
Keywords: Christianity & Religion
By any other name? 'Fundamentalist' and 'evangelical' as terms of public discourse
Dr Christopher Watkin, March 2008 4 comments
Price: FREE
Whatever the words ‘fundamentalist’ and ‘evangelical’ may once have meant, their current use in public discourse is largely negative, save notable references to ‘evangelical social action’. Any adequate response to this situation must include a recognition of the different historical provenances of the two terms, and an understanding of their current public usage. If the term ‘evangelical’ is to be saved, evangelicals must act now, firstly, to reinforce public understanding of their positive contribution to society and, secondly, to re-articulate flexibly their beliefs in ways that communicate effectively in the public sphere.
Keywords: Christianity & Religion, Worldviews & Culture
Promises, promises
Caroline Eade, December 2007 No comments
Price: FREE
We all make promises, whether informally, to our friends and family, or formally, in contracts, deeds and vows. Promises are made by companies, governments and international leaders. It seems obvious that a promise carries moral weight. Nevertheless, all of us make rash agreements, or over-commit ourselves, or entirely forget what we have said, and therefore fail to carry out our promises. At the corporate level, it is sometimes easy for a promise to be overridden by financial or political concerns. This paper explores promise-making from a biblical perspective, and suggests some pointers for how we might promise well.
Keywords: Lifestyle Issues
The window is closed: engaging with early to mid-twentieth-century painting
Margaret Wilson, September 2007 No comments
Price: FREE
This paper takes up the story of Western art from the end of the nineteenth century. It explores the move from realism and representation towards abstraction, the cultural influences on this move, and the purposes which this new art may pursue. It traces the development of painting in the first half of the twentieth century through ten representative works of art. By learning how to read these images, Christians may be personally enriched and challenged, gain a deeper insight into fundamental cultural influences on contemporary society and also be better placed to communicate with those who do not share their faith. (Please note: this website version contains live links to online versions of 9 of the 10 paintings discussed. Hard copies of the paintings discussed in this paper are available by request from the Jubilee Centre.)
Keywords: Worldviews & Culture