Warren's Reflections

Seeking the 'common good' has become central to my thinking and writing for many years now. What is the point of coming to know Jesus, having your life straightened out and gaining a new start, if you don't then seek the common good of all creation?! Don't say to me escaping hell and gaining heaven - I've grown way beyond that sort of trite simplicity ... I've learnt so much about God's grace to ever again accept that argument. I can bever again imagine a duplicitious God that inflicts pointless punishment on people that he cares enough for to sacrifically seek to redeem.  I feel sorry for those who buy a tied-up package and never open themselves to think beyond it's confines - who never allow their experience and that of others to challenge things they have been taught or heard. As God speaks through Scripture, we can learn to notice the deeper truths about life - what humans do to other created beings and push off the responsibility elsewhere (the grea...

Why do I have the political persuasions that I do? I believe that politics and the church should always work towards the common good. If we want unrestrained 'dog-eat-dog', why have government at all! The 'common good', as I have written in my books, is one of the major features or dynamics of what Jesus meant when he used the term 'kingdom of God'. Everyone getting a fair and equitable go at everything available within God's creation. No selfishness, no stockpiling, no partiality, no prejudice.  This way of thinking completely trumps (appropriate pun) any thought of government needing to protect or promote any form of religion, as, for government, the well-being of all people (especially those being left behind) and community harmony is their foremost agenda. This certainly and naturally spreads to the natural environment and the protection of earth's various species. Besides, those purporting religious protection (beyond the normal need for certain fre...

Recovering quietly from a double hernia operation has given me a lot of (possibly too much) think time. My thoughts have drifted around politics, theology and past church experiences. I haven't wanted to spend too much time thinking about Carlton's latest form fluctuations - way too frustrating!  I rejoice that Peter Dutton lost his seat - he deserved to - especially for even thinking about nuclear power. I put in some money 6 years ago to try to unseat him - an investment that had a delayed return. I just watched the third episode of The Piano on the ABC - where a variety of people play at a public piano (this time at the Preston Market) - and was emotionally moved by a seemingly beautiful man from Gaza (who had lost everything including his beloved piano when his home was bombed) wonderfully play his wife's favourite music in front of her, his three daughters, and a nice little crowd. He also spoke of his love of the opportunities Australia has given his family. What a pr...