Before I went to bed on Friday night, I noticed the Oslo bombing in the headlines. But my heart sank as I pulled up the news on Saturday morning to discover the extent of the carnage and the events that followed. I felt a deep sense of sadness as I […]
For most of us, our biggest financial investment, will be the purchase of a house. The need for shelter is a necessity of life. However, in recent years, housing markets are more focused on investment, than shelter. Australian house prices have climbed steadily over the past twenty years. Most first […]
I have been amazed in recent years by the strong influence of Judaism within Christianity in Australia. I recently heard of an Independent Baptist church publicly celebrating Passover. I regularly hear of itinerant speakers who teach Jewish ceremonies and encourage their practice within the Christian community. In my travels, I’ve […]
CONTENT WARNING: This post contains material which some readers may find disturbing. If you do not wish to see this material, please stop reading now. “Mum! Why do I have to study all this boring history stuff? I’ll never use it!” “I just want practical training. I don’t want to […]
I don’t think of myself as a Calvinist, although I greatly benefit from Reformed theology. This was not always my experience. As a child, I once heard this horrified whisper in church concerning a newcomer: “I know about him. He’s a Calvinist!”—as if the man were an alien or baddie. […]
Our church participated in our monthly bush regeneration project with the local community yesterday. While sitting in the mulch I was thinking about ministers and science. Ministers need to be professionally curious about scientific issues. Ministers are usually able to be conversant on a wide range of issues. Furthermore, most […]
Following on from last week’s interview with Bob Bixby, I’ve interviewed Al Garlando, an Australian blogging pastor. Jason Harris interviews Albert Garlando for InFocus JH: I know you’re a busy man, so I appreciate you taking the time to share with us. First, just let us know a little about […]
The Australian Centre for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies has highlighted some interesting statistics on Australians’ charitable giving. In 2007-08 (the most recent year for their research), the average tax-deductible donation made and claimed by Australian taxpayers was $523.10. This average amount has nearly trebled in the last decade. In 2007-08, […]
Part of the purpose of InFocus is to develop the Australian blogosphere. We do this by providing an Australian section in our blogroll, by linking generously to Australian blogs, and by encouraging Australian readers, thinkers, and theologians to blog. I want to further support this purpose by focusing today on […]
Thanks to Jason and the rest of the InFocus team for giving me the opportunity to write over the next twelve weeks. I’m excited about sharing what I have been reading and reflecting on with particular attention to the purpose of the blog: “Our purpose is to develop the Australian […]
