Dr Paul Allen

For the last 20 years, regarding LGBTQ+ people and issues, I have followed this simple directive from the Lord: “Reach out and resist,” meaning, “Reach out to the people with compassion; resist the agenda with courage.” Or, put another way (which is now the title of a forthcoming book), we should have   hearts of compassion and backbones of steel . In keeping with that spirit, I do not demonize those who identify as LGBTQ+, as if all of them were devious sexual predators who gloried in BDSM practices and delighted in displays of public perversity. Why, then, have gay pride events for decades been marked by these very perverse displays? And why were the opening ceremonies of the Olympic games, intended by the planners to draw attention to France’s LGBTQ+ community, marked by such perversity? Being Offensive in the Name of Inclusivity We can put aside for a moment the debate as to just how offensive the ceremonies were, in particular, the degree of  intentionality  behind t...

While terrorists shout "death to the infidel", this morning people of goodwill will likely cry "Vive la France!" That Paris, the City of Light should again be threatened with darkness serves as a reminder that, in an age of globalisation, our way of life, for all its comforts, is never as secure nor as guaranteed as we think. Having already weathered the Charlie Hebdo attack and its related atrocities, Paris now has to deal with a collection of even more deadly outrages, which President Hollande has rightly labelled an "abomination". More than 120 people have been killed in the latest brutality, which led the authorities to immediately close France's borders and declare a state of emergency. This morning, thankfully, reports on the ground suggest that although shaken, Parisians are for the most part getting on with life. Perhaps they see normality as the best form of defiance in the face of barbarism. In Europe as in many other parts of the d...

(Photo credit: Wikipedia ) The fact remains that Western civilization — and much of the world beyond — is directly threatened by a militant form of Islam that has the allegiance of millions of Muslims . While the vast majority of Muslims in the world are not fighters in a jihad against the West, and for that we must be thankful. WE KEEP HEARING LEADERS SAY: This is not at war with Islam. We can understand why they would say this, and we also need to admit that there is an important element of truth in the statement. The West is not at war with Islam if that means a war against all Muslims and against all forms of Islam.  But, true as that statement may be, we must also be clear that we are facing a great and grave civilizational challenge from millions of Muslims who believe, quite plausibly, that their version of Islam is more faithful to the essence of Islam and the Quran .   This understanding of Islam is growing, not receding.  It is now drawin...

A number of people lately have been intrigued to meet a French theologian, and have asked me to tell them the story of how I, a French atheist, became a Christian scholar. Even the theologians and apologists I met recently at the  ETS  Conference in Baltimore (where by God ’s grace I was delivering my first scholarly paper) seemed to care (understandably) more about my conversion from atheism than my immediate theology paper! Therefore, it seemed fitting to type it up properly, to have a clean telling of that story of God breaking into my life, ready to be shared with people who ask. So here it is (and please let me know if you spot spelling mistakes or awkward sentences, I’m still French after all!)   FROM   RELIGIOUS   ATHEISM   TO   SECULAR   ATHEISM I grew up in a wonderfully loving family in France, near Paris . I was the second of 3 children. We were nominally Roman Catholic , and would regularly attend mass, but this religious expr...

Image via Wikipedia In many respects, the life of Jerome of Prague paralleled that of his teacher and friend Jan Hus . Hus welcomed the writings of Wycliffe to Bohemia . There he preached reformation a century before Luther. Jerome was also convinced of the Wycliffian truths. At Hus's suggestion Jerome sailed to England and studied at Oxford, Wycliffe's old seat of learning. For the next several years, Jerome moved about a good deal, spreading reform doctrines in Paris , Jerusalem, Heidelberg, Vienna , Russia, Lithuania, Hungary and Cologne . In his native Bohemia he sided with nationalistic students. He denounced a bull proclaiming an indulgence for a crusade against Naples. When Hus was arrested by the Council of Constance , Jerome secretly followed, hoping to defend his friend. He discovered he could do nothing but was in great danger himself, and so he went to neighboring Idelberg and asked for safe conduct.  Unwilling to do nothing, he had placards posted throu...

Image via Wikipedia The Problem of Controversy In July 1519, the famous Leipzig disputation between Johann Eck and Martin Luther was held in Germany. Luther had become convinced that the medieval church had been teaching some falsehoods in regards to the clarity of Scripture and other matters, and Eck took the counter position. After the debate, a written record of the exchange was sent to the theologians at the University of Paris , and they determined that Eck had won the debate. In response they also published ten theses: 1. The Scriptures are obscure. 2. The Scriptures can’t be used by themselves. 3. The Scriptures must be interpreted by masters, especially the masters at the University of Paris. 4. The church fathers are obscure. 5. The church fathers can’t be interpreted by themselves. 6. The church fathers must be interpreted by masters, especially the masters at the University of Paris. 7. The Four Books of Sentences   by Peter Lombard (a medieval theology textb...