Gay Marriage -some UK Baptist viewpoints

With the debate on gay marriage coming to parliament very soon I thought it may be helpful to link to some of the the most interesting articles I have read on the subject from a Baptist perspective
As in most denominations there has been a great variety of views and opinions expressed among Baptists, although it is encouraging that the debate on this really important issue appears to me at least to have been conducted with a great deal of courtesy and mutual respect -This is not always the case when Christians disagree!
I suppose the contribution that made the most impact came from Steve Chalke and so I will start with his contribution which you can read here and the thoughtful responses to it from Steve Holmes that you can read here and Malcolm Duncan here
More recently David Kerrigan the General Director of BMS world mission has joined the debate and in a post asks us to think about religious freedom and its limits here the comments below his blog post are also well worth reading! Stephen Keyworth from BUGB comments here and Andy Goodliffe suggestd some helpful reading on the issue here

Nigel Wright from Spurgeons College suggest a way out of the dilemna many ministers feel here


Not from a Baptist stable but my friend Martin Charlesworth comments on this issue In his excellent blog here

Shropshire Baptist Ministers meeting

I have not been the most regular attendee at Shropshire Baptist Ministers meetings over the years for a whole variety of reasons, including busyness,the fact that I have tended to devote time to meeting with church leaders from Shrewsbury, and one or two other reasons I wont go into here, but I did get along today to Newport Baptist Church for the bimonthly meeting and in the event was pleased that I went.

The people there came from a number of different churches around our large county but also included a hospice chaplain ,a prison chaplain  and our local regional minister.The food was good(it usually is!) and it was good to spend time chatting about matters of common interest which ranged from the Baptist Futures process, to creative evangelism and a whole lot else beside.

Jon Edwards from Ludlow was the main speaker. Jon is a great guy ( I have known him since he was 12!) who has has done an incredible job working in part of Ludlow, that is far removed from the usual image people get of that prosperous and beautiful town.   He is exercising  a brilliant ministry  helping the church put down deep roots in the local community in a load of creative ways. It must have been hard work at times but by Gods grace he and the church he leads have made a real difference.

The other thing that hugely encouraged me this morning was how all the ministers and leaders present spoke about the connections they are making with local people and the ways they are sharing The Good News of the Kingdom in so many different ways.

The meeting made be more hopeful about the future than I have for some time.

My prayer is that the people at the centre of denominational life in Didcot , understand and facilitate in every way imaginable, the good stuff that is happening at a local level.