Ekklesia | Columns | The Simon Barrow Column

Transforming remembrance into hope

Simon Barrow — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 02:36:22 +0000

The best way to honour those who have died as a result of war (as we must do) is to recognise its horror, says Simon Barrow. But we should do this not in order to 'run away', but in order to have the true courage to seek alternatives - to re-member a dis-membered world.

Assessing the UK political climate

Simon Barrow — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 00:07:35 +0100

The die seems cast for the next General Election, says Simon Barrow. But much can still shift if non-Conservative parties, voters and reformers swing into action.

A different way of reading the world

Simon Barrow — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 23:40:22 +0100

Conventional wisdom often sees vengeance and injustice as the rule of the powerful, says Simon Barrow. But the prophetic imagination invites us to see and act differently.

Abandoning the religion and politics of exclusion

Simon Barrow — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 14:12:54 +0100

Forms of religion and ideology which neatly categorize people as good or bad according to whether they were in ‘the right group’ or believe ‘the right things’ are dangerous, says Simon Barrow. They also contradict the basic trajectory of the Christian message.

Not tolerating 'politics as usual'

Simon Barrow — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 17:28:19 +0100

Look out for a major convention on ‘Real Change’ in the near future, with input from civic groups (including churches) and a manifesto for wide-ranging reform, says Simon Barrow.

Christianity versus ‘the church of power’

Simon Barrow — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 20:26:08 +0100

Christians have moved from non-engagement to engagement in politics, says Simon Barrow, but often in domineering and selfish ways. To argue for church as alternative community is not to advocate either 'secularism' or 'religionism', but the recovery of authentic Christianity in a plural environment.

Living without a goal?

Simon Barrow — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 01:04:05 +0100

If watching football is a waste of time with redeeming moments, much the same could be said about prayer, says Simon Barrow. In a world over-attached to achievement, we lose sight of the fact that what is really 'worth it' is often not conventionally 'productive'.

Handling warlike texts in a peacemaking church

Simon Barrow — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 10:10:47 +0100

Enter any public debate about the pros and cons of religion today, and it will not be long before someone raises the thorny issue of ‘texts of terror’ in the Bible, says Simon Barrow. Yet in the person of Christ our understanding of violence is turned upside-down.

Optimism, suffering and artful hope

Simon Barrow — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 09:32:29 +0100

Genuine hope is quite different from optimism or wishful thinking, says Simon Barrow. To understand it we need fresh eyes attuned to the artfulness of reality and the presence of love even in the midst of suffering.

Real change in the political landscape

Simon Barrow — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 02:03:58 +0100

“Reform so as to preserve” is still the mantra of the political elite in Britain. But civil society organisations, faith groups, politicians and ordinary people can help change the agenda, says Simon Barrow.

Cultivating tough gratitude

Simon Barrow — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 16:14:21 +0100

Public life demands ‘tough’ corporate attributes rather than what it labels ‘soft’ personal ones – like love and gratitude. Simon Barrow argues that the communal cultivation of loving relation is needed to help redirect the official anonymity of the social order.

Change, maybe. But real difference?

Simon Barrow — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 01:39:44 +0100

As the political fallout from recent scandals continues, many are in favour of change, says Simon Barrow. But they do not necessarily want this change to make any real difference.

The artistry of faith in foment

Simon Barrow — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 01:20:25 +0100

A cruciform tree, a radiating Cain eyed by a simmering Abel, and a doveish floating vision: these are just a few of the images you will see as part of the vital but little-known Methodist Art Collection, says Simon Barrow.

The terrifying truth about God

Simon Barrow — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 09:14:41 +0100

Often Christians behave as if their central convictions about God has little practical bearing on the world and its problems, says Simon Barrow. On the contrary, being engaged by the Trinitarian mystery of God is central to facing up to the world's lesions with realism and hope.

On not being idiotic about church schools

Simon Barrow — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:03:34 +0100

Dismissing those who want to reform faith schools as 'useful idiots' for a 'secularist conspiracy' misrepresents the facts, feeds absolutism and undermines sensible debate, say Simon Barrow & Jonathan Bartley. It also shows how weak the anti-reform case really is.