I was browsing the BBC World Service and came across this story concerning an ultimatum issued by the Anglican church to the Episcopal church in the States "demanding an end to the appointment of gay clergy and the blessing of same-sex couples." The article itself is not my focus here, but rather it's discussion in the BBC's "Have Your Say" feature, including this gem:

I am an Englishman,formerly a member of the CofE and now an Episcopal Priest in the Diocese of Central PA;also a member of the Human Sexuality Commission in the diocese.I appreciate the struggle the Anglican Communion is experiencing but I do not believe an ultimatum to the house of Bishops in US will help matters. the Bible is not about sex but peace & justice and equal access to God regardless of race, gender, or sexual inclination.

The Rev'd Stephen C. Casey, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA

The entire discussion is a fairly horrendous mix of the "expert" opinions of people who have no clue about what Christianity really is, but Rev. Casey's submission stood out. How can someone who has studied God's Word say something like "the Bible is not about sex," as if one's private life is irrelevant or somehow outside the scope of God's purview? Against the "Rev'd Casey", Abraham Kuyper proclaims:

"There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry: 'Mine!'"

A New Beginning

After four exceedingly enjoyable and enlightening years pursuing my bachelors degree at Redeemer, I am now setting out into new territory again. I have recently begun what should be a two-year stint in the Religious Studies Department at McMaster University, after which I will hopefully have my Masters degree. My major is early Christianity, and I will be focusing on patristics with Dr. Peter Widdicombe as my advisor. This will certainly be a challenging two years, both intellectually and spiritually (and physically, actually: McMaster is not the easiest place to get around in a wheelchair), but one can only grow if one is challenged. So, good times ahead...


One of my first assigned readings, an article on the scholarly debate concerning the connection between religion and violence, raised an interesting foundational question for me as I begin my time as a student of religious studies. What, exactly, is a religion? Not an easy problem to solve. If religion is defined in terms of theism, worship of some sort of deity, what about atheistic forms of Buddhism and Hindu? If religion is defined in terms of that which gives meaning to life and history, in terms of a commitment to something greater than oneself, then do Nazism, Marxism and sports fanaticism qualify as religions? Beats me.