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Bishop Graham
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06 Oct, 2011 12:40 PM
Previously Gryphon School wrote:
As a christian how would you react to Epicurus incosistent triad?
Thanks. I assume you are refering to what has been called 'the problem of evil'. Epicurus is often credited with first coming up with: God is all loving. God is all powerful. Evil exists. This looks like an inconsistent triad. Whole books have been written on this problem... in short I follow Augustine's defence which is based on free will. Yes, evil exists. Yes, God is all loving. Yes, God is all powerful, but he deliberately limits his power to allow space for free will amongst humans, without which we would be puppets in his hands and merely manipulated by him.
If God intervened with a bolt of lightning killing dead everyone who was about to do an act of evil, then it would be chaos in the world and people would not have free will.
John Hick, in his book, 'Evil and the God of Love', tends towards Irenaeus's concept of the world being a 'vale of soul making' ie we learn from the awful events that happen in the world and grow through exercising our muscles working against wrong and evil.
Amazingly, God in Christ, suffered evil being perpetrated against him on the cross. He absorbed that evil in his body, not passing it on, and took it out of circulation. I don't have, and no one does, have an answer to the problem of evil - I can only give pointers, and these focus on the cross of Christ. Some say, God made the world and he should pay for the awfulness in it. We can only point to the cross and say: Yes, and he has.
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04 Oct, 2011 10:28 AM
Previously Gryphon School wrote:
Do(es) atheists/atheism frustrate you if they don't give time to reflect on your beliefs? (For example Richard Dawkins)?
Thanks for all your great questions! Apologies for the technical problems and delay in replying. I have time for one answer now before further meetings today and will try to answer more this evening.
Some atheists seem to shoot from the hip in quick reactions, others, however, are much more thoughtful. I prefer the thoughful ones. Here is a very good review by David Atkinson of Richard Dawkins' 'God Delusion' - who tends to shoot from the hip...
http://www.fulcrum-anglican.org.uk/?147
Here is another review which I have found helpful from the London Review of Books by Prof Terry Eagleton
http://www.fulcrum-anglican.org.uk/?148
Terry Eagleton's opening sentence is pretty devastating and has become famous.
Imagine someone holding forth on biology whose only knowledge of the subject is the Book of British Birds, and you have a rough idea of what it feels like to read Richard Dawkins on theology. Card-carrying rationalists like Dawkins, who is the nearest thing to a professional atheist we have had since Bertrand Russell, are in one sense the least well-equipped to understand what they castigate, since they don't believe there is anything there to be understood, or at least anything worth understanding. This is why they invariably come up with vulgar caricatures of religious faith that would make a first-year theology student wince. The more they detest religion, the more ill-informed their criticisms of it tend to be. If they were asked to pass judgment on phenomenology or the geopolitics of South Asia, they would no doubt bone up on the question as assiduously as they could. When it comes to theology, however, any shoddy old travesty will pass muster.
Hope this helps.
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05 Oct, 2011 11:18 AM
Previously Gryphon School wrote:
Where does free-will end and God's plan begin?
Thanks. Free will and God's plan begin and end together. How? I don't know...Both are clearly shown in the Bible and in particular in the cross of Christ. We are not robots manipulated by God. The world is not hurtling meaninglessly along. We have been given the great gift of free will by God and he has an overall plan for the whole universe, which centred on Christ and will be summed up in him. Have a look at Paul's letter to the Ephesians chapter 1, especially verse 10. Amazing.
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06 Oct, 2011 01:09 PM
Previously Gryphon School wrote:
If one ignores religion and politics, is Israel ethically right in its actions in Palestine?
Thanks. Not sure we should ignore religion nor politics for they provide the context for any ethical decisions, and in particular on this issue. Did you see the Channel 4 film series (over four weeks) produced by Peter Kozminsky called 'The Promise' ? It was brilliant and involved a young naive gap year girl becoming aware of these issues. Jews have been appalingly treated throughout the centuries, culminating in the holocaust. Israel has been under threat of extinction by extremists in the Middle East for years. Their fear and need for protection is understandable. However, many of their treatments of the Palestinians by past and present Israeli government have been woefully below the standards in their own Holy Scriptures and, I believe, are indefensible eg the well documented use of phosphorus. Palestinians do need their own homeland. Israel needs assurance of their own continued existence. Let us continue to pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
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06 Oct, 2011 01:41 PM
Previously Gryphon School wrote:
Life after death?
thanks. Yes - and before it too. Someone has come back from the dead and witnessed to life beyond the grave. Ultimately, I believe in life after death because of the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth.
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05 Oct, 2011 11:21 AM
Previously Gryphon School wrote:
Most religions have an ethical code similar to Christianity - would these allow them to be deemed good by God or would their faith bar this?
Thanks. I've tried to look at this vast subject in this article 'Jesus Christ, Salvation and People of Other Faiths':
http://www.fulcrum-anglican.org.uk/?3
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06 Oct, 2011 12:58 PM
Previously Gryphon School wrote:
Whats your view on homosexuality?
I person a lly think the Bishop s Guidelines in the Church of Engl a nd, 'Issues in Hum a n Sexu a lity', form a good a nd b a l a nced reference point. These st a te th a t those who a re g a y in their sexu a l orient a tion a nd wish to be vic a rs a re welcome to be vic a rs but should be celib a te. They do not s a y the s a me a bout l a y people in the church ie th a t they h a ve to be celib a te. In a ll professions, le a ders a re held to be more a ccount a ble th a n others: judges a nd police h a ve to h a ve a higher st a nd a rd of l a w keeping th a n others; te a chers h a ve to h a ve a higher st a nd a rd of beh a viour with young people th a n others; simil a rly a cccount a nts concerning fin a nci a l integrity. So, the a bove distinction between vic a rs a nd l a y people seems to m a ke sense to me. It is a lso worth looking a t P a ul's First Letter to Timothy ch a pter 3, where he s a ys le a ders should be the husb a nd of one wife ie there were cle a rly people with more th a n one wife in the congreg a tion, but those could not be le a ders.
Oliver O'Donov a n h a s written a fine book, ' A Convers a tion W a iting to Begin: The Churches a nd the G a y Controversy' (SCM Press, 2009)
http://www.scmpress.co.uk/bookdet a ils. a sp?ISBN=9780334042105
This is a book of his online ess a ys which m a y be seen here
http://www.fulcrum- a nglic a n.org.uk/p a ge.cfm?ID=130
This a huge subject. Hope this helps.
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05 Oct, 2011 10:40 AM
Previously Gryphon School wrote:
Are secrets justifiable? As all entail a lie?
Thanks. Yes, some secrets are justifiable. eg Anne Frank being hidden in Amsterdam from the Nazis. Some secrets aren't justifiable eg a husband having a secret affair with a work colleague.
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05 Oct, 2011 11:27 AM
Previously Gryphon School wrote:
If it is taken that Rev21:8 refers to those who are so afraid of persecution they turn from Christ and not just 'cowardice' or fear. Is suicide forgivable?
Interesting question. Revelation is not easy to interpret as a book and needs care. Again, a good guide is Tom Wright's book I mentioned in another answer 'Surprised by Hope'. Suicide is very serious indeed and anyone contemplating it should talk to friends and counsellors at school or at home. God loves to forgive. God also longs for people to be fully alive.
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05 Oct, 2011 10:52 AM
Previously Gryphon School wrote:
Does religion deter loneliness?
Thanks. It depends on what religion and whether it is followed authenically of just selfishly. God longs for people to be in integral relationships. We are designed for relationships, and in meeting God we meet others in a new way. There is an important distinction between loneliness and solitude. Solitude - for particular periods - can be life giving. I'm giving a talk at Wimborne Minster on 'Loneliness or Solitude?' on Wed 2 November 2011 at 7.00pm and look forward to working out further my thought in preparation for that.
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