Dr Paul Allen

On June 22, 2025, the Mar Elias (St. Elijah) Greek Orthodox Church in Damascus, Syria, became a   scene of unspeakable tragedy . An Islamic suicide bomber slipped into the sanctuary during Divine Liturgy, opened fire on the faithful, and detonated his explosive vest. Twenty‑five Christians—men, women, and children—were killed. More than 60 others were wounded, many critically. The church was destroyed; wooden pews were splintered, stained glass shattered, and blood ran along the tiled floor. And yet, amid the wreckage,  one portrait endured : The centuries‑old icon of  St. John of Damascus , a son of this very city, remained unscathed. The symbolism cannot be ignored: Muslim terrorists bombed a Damascus church, but the icon of the man who, nearly 13 centuries ago offered the first theological critique of Islam and its prophet remained untouched. Who Was John of Damascus? John of Damascus (AD 675–749) lived under the Umayyad Caliphate, a Christian in a Muslim‑ruled world. ...

Every year, substantial sums of money are allocated to the two major Christian churches in Germany. Last year, they received more than €600 million ($645 million) in state funding, in addition to the billions in church tax that the clergy receive. Understanding why huge state allowances go to the  Catholic  and  Protestant  Church takes us back more than two centuries to the 20 years of Napoleon's occupation of Germany at the beginning of the 19th century. After defeating what was then the first German Reich, the French ruler ordered a far-reaching separation of church and state, including the closure and expropriation of monasteries and other ecclesiastical institutions. A law dating back to 1803, known as the "Reichsdeputationshauptschluss" — often referred to in English as the Imperial Recess of 1803 — compelled the churches to cede money and land to often neighbouring secular principalities. As a form of compensation, they agreed to pay the salarie...

  1. Prosecuting fellow believers through online platforms without ecclesial process The Apostle Paul instructed the church in Corinth to judge matters internally (1 Cor. 6). Today, however, the church has outsourced judgment to the Twittersphere. Believers now play judge, jury, and executioner without due process or any semblance of ecclesial order. Social media has become a tribunal, and reputations can be assassinated with a single click. This practice not only bypasses biblical structures of accountability but also reveals how biblically illiterate and spiritually reckless much of the body has become. The church is not a mob. It is a family governed by elders, not online outrage. 2. Presumptuously calling for a 'court of Heaven' For over a decade, the “courts of Heaven” teaching has gained traction in certain charismatic circles. The idea is that one can summon a heavenly court to break generational curses and demonic strongholds. While there are kernels of truth — God is a...

     By Rich Gregory Feb 11, 2025   I recently faced what should have been a “simple” plumbing repair. Those who have attempted such a repair know this statement is laughable, as there is never anything “simple” about “plumbing.” Those are two words that should never be put together. No matter how hard I pushed and pulled, the pipe assembly that needed replacement wouldn’t come apart. After looking up my problem on YouTube (which is what every good weekend warrior does when faced with a snag), I discovered that my issue could be resolved with a small plastic tool costing about $1.50. After my fifth trip to the hardware store that day, my problem was solved in five seconds flat. Without that tool, a self-inflicted flood was right around the corner, but armed with it, the job proved incredibly simple.   That principle – get the right tool for the job! – is transferable to the church. In Titus 1, Paul gave Titus what seems to be a relatively straightforward task: H...

Your academic life was all yours, from elementary to middle and high school to higher education. You read. You studied. You took quizzes, tests, and exams on your own. You did projects and wrote papers. You received your scores, marks, and grades. But occasionally, you were required to participate in a group project. Yes, you remember those. The group project is two or three or more of your classmates joining you to assemble a project for your teacher or professor.  Each member did a piece of the whole to submit it. You had to agree on everything from the topic to the content to how you would present it. And then, you all received the same letter grade, regardless of who did what or how much. Of all the things you were supposed to learn by doing the group project, you probably knew that you never wanted to do a group project again. They just rarely work well. Either you had to do most of the work yourself, or a “weak link” dragged down your grade. Who came up with this form of acad...

“If you’re someone who loved old books–because you love church history and want others to share your enthusiasm–group Bible study can seem like a balancing act between trying to be helpful on one hand and appearing prideful on the other,” writes Travis Hearne for Southern Equip. Teach Theology  through Historic Controversies: Teach gripping stories from the past where different arguments come to life. “Gripping stories are great teaching devices, and the theological controversies from the church’s past are an excellent way to grapple with the deep things of God.” Summarize Truths  through Biblical Confessions: While there is some overlap with point one, many controversies produced statements of truth. “Creeds are helpful because they unite us with a shared belief in a common heritage.” Capture Emotions  through Old Hymns: “There is a wealth of spirituality waiting to be used in Bible study. Old hymns are artistic. And they don’t have to feel out of place if the topic is c...

Discouragement with the state of the modern church and an overly optimistic view of church history has caused some Christians to believe that the church once had a golden age. It’s often suggested that the early church represented this age. We must correct our drifting and return to the values and practices of the early church, the argument goes.  They want the church to be more “Apostolic.” They want it to be more communal (see Acts 2:44). They want it to be free of denominationalism and separation. The natural consequence of this well-intended attitude is a disparagement of the modern church. To identify the early church as the golden era and to yearn for its exact replication is misguided and dangerous. In many ways, these critics are right—there are many things that the church needs to heed from our earliest forefathers. The early Christians faithfully employed the divinely ordained means of grace (v. 42), they shared the gospel with deep fervour, they exhibited tremendous gene...

“Mom, where is God?” “Well, He’s everywhere, sweetheart!” That answer frequently given by mothers to their children is true, but what does that mean? We do not give much thought to God’s omnipresence, do we? We take it for granted that God is “everywhere,” though we do not understand what that means. Does omnipresence mean occupying all the existing space, or is there more to it? Is God everywhere present in the same way? For example, how is He present when the church gathers? This can be a very practical question when we think about Sunday worship.  It has become increasingly common for professing Christians in our Western world to neglect church meetings. Perhaps you have heard people reason like this:  “I believe in God, but church isn’t my thing. I’m not interested in singing, and I find sermons boring. Besides, I can connect with God just as well when I walk in the woods, in the mountains, or on the beach as I can in a church service. After all, God is everywhere.” How do...

In the past 25 years, 42% of our city (metropolitan Orlando, Florida) has stopped attending church. In 2018, we were two pastors who wanted to understand and be fruitful in what we thought was our unique context. We soon learned our context wasn’t unique and that what was happening around us wasn’t as simple as media pundits and Twitter commentators suggested. We live in the most significant and fastest religious shift in U.S. history. Some 40 million adult Americans who used to attend church at least once per month now attend less than once yearly. This shift is larger than the number of conversions during the First Great Awakening, Second Great Awakening, and the totality of the Billy Graham Crusades combined. We live in the largest and fastest religious shift in U.S. history. Over the last two years, we’ve worked with respected social scientists Ryan Burge and Paul Djupe to conduct the largest and most comprehensive study of dechurching ever commissioned. In total, we heard from mor...