Philosophy

The Arabic Letter "N" that stands for "Nasrani", i.e. Christians. ISIS used this letter to mark the homes of Christians left in Iraq. “N”, or ن, is the first letter of the Arabic word for Christian, “Nasrani” or Nazarene. The letter has become as symbol of global solidarity with Mosul Christians. The Nazarene taught that it is impossible not to love when He loved the world so much that He gave Himself into the hand of the violent in order to save them for their sins. The depth of estrangement and contortion was manifest in the kind of death administered: the death of the Cross. It was the world that failed to recognize Him – the world that belonged to Him. Yet, the real story is not that the world rejected Him; the real story is that He was willing to let the world reject Him. Divine self-emptying, divine servanthood, and divine crucifixion are powerful themes that shock the philosophy of religion. Nietzsche called the greatest of all sins to be the murder of God (d...

Published in the Contemporary Christian, Bangalore: CFCC, 2011 In one of his sermons, the revivalist preacher Leonard Ravenhill mentions an incident in which an elderly lady was asked by someone which church she went to. She, perhaps reading the issue of denomination in the question, and not certain of the right terminology, answered abruptly, “Oh no, I go to a different abomination!” While the modern era has been able to pull down many of the denominational walls, there are still some lessons that must not be forgotten. We have learnt that many differences are not really essential, which means that unity can become essential. Yet, while we consider newer ways to bridge relationships, we must be cautious not to burn important bridges down. Questions of Authority The first instance of schismatic feelings in the Church is recorded in Acts 6, and it was, not very surprisingly, an issue of food and tables, a catering issue to be precise. The Hellenist Christians were the first protestants ...