anglican focus

The news site of the Anglican Church Southern Queensland: nourishing and connecting our faith community

New Testament

Books & Guides Greg Jenks Books & Guides

Matthew’s Parable of the Royal Wedding Feast: A sociorhetorical Interpretation

“It is the intertextual dynamic with the findings of the Royal Commission that sets this huge piece of critical biblical scholarship apart. This is not just an arcane treatise for members of the guild of biblical scholars…This is a serious piece of critical biblical interpretation that also deals with the prophetic message of the text for our Church in wider Australian society today,” says The Rev’d Dr Greg Jenks

Faith book reflections Fiona Hammond Faith book reflections

The book I have given away most and why: Fiona Hammond

“The character of Phoebe in Paul’s Letter to the Romans has always intrigued me. Paul wrote to the Church in Rome, trusting Phoebe with the delivery of that letter…So, she’s a landowner, runs a thriving business and is trusted by the Christian community far and wide. That is a life I wanted to read more about,” says Fiona Hammond from St Francis College

"The New Testament makes it clear that giving is an essential Christian discipline. However, instead of a percentage amount we are given clear principles.," (The Rev’d Charlie Lacey from St Andrew’s, Springfield)
Reflections

Tough Questions: Should Christians tithe 10 per cent of their income?

“In a list of the top 50 subjects that Jesus taught on, money and finance comes in at number four, yet Jesus never chose to teach about tithing. In short, the New Testament does not stipulate a ten per cent tithe for Christians. So, what should our position on giving be?” asks The Rev’d Charlie Lacey from St Andrew’s, Springfield
Reflections

Tough Questions: When will Jesus return?

“Jesus is going to return and we cannot know when, regardless of what is happening in the world around us. However, of crucial importance to us is our state of readiness, a subject that Jesus addressed at length and is the theme of at least four parables,” says The Rev’d Charlie Lacey from The Parish of Springfield

Resources & Research

Can Scripture be a performance?

“Biblical Performance Criticism focuses not just on what is being said but how it is being said. It reminds us of the centrality of the audience. In our modern text-based culture with readily available multiple-translation access to the Bible, we sometimes forget that Scripture has closer affinity with ancient epic poems than modern history and literature,” says The Rev’d Dr Jeanette Mathews

Features

Tough Questions: If there is going to be a "new heaven and a new earth", why care for the environment?

“Christians are called to be heralds of the new creation, by pointing forward to the future hope that we have in Jesus. This means living today as we will live in a renewed and restored creation, where heaven and earth are one. We look forward to the day when God’s people will live in harmony with God, one another, and creation itself. Our interactions with creation in the present should point forward to this future reality,” says The Rev’d Charlie Lacey from St Andrew’s, Springfield

Reflections

Tough Questions: Who wrote the Bible and which translation should we use?

“Problems of interpretation often occur when the Bible is read one dimensionally – in other words, when it is all taken to be more or less the same genre. Confusion will always arise if we misunderstand the genre of a text that we are reading…Reading the Bible is a much richer experience when we understand the different genres and what they are meant to convey,” says The Rev’d Charlie Lacey from St Andrew’s, Springfield

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