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Christian Faith and Practice

Christian faith lies at the core of the various parish activities.  This is what motivates and assists us.  Christian faith is not primarily a set of beliefs or going to church: it is essentially a way of life based on the the love and grace of God that we strive to realise.  This endeavour does not come easily.  There are a number of  practices and resources available that help us live out the Christian life.

 

These include worship, bible reading, prayer, the traditional statements of belief (the so called creeds), the example of the saints, and study.  On this pages we give some suggestions on available resources that can help people in this adventure of faith. 

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Short Introductions to Faith

Introduction to Christian Faith
A short internet course explaining the basics of Christian faith can be found by clicking HERE.

A series of short YouTube videos on elements of Christian faith can be accessed through the connected webpage by  clicking HERE. 

Getting Familiar with the Bible

Getting familiar with the Bible
The Bible is the key source of guidance about how God is revealed throughout history and how we should live our lives. It provides a firm foundation for proper belief, doctrine and morality.  It is a collection of very different books written and compiled over nearly a thousand years.  It is not the easiest collection of books to understand.  But there are various resources available to aid our understanding.
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  • The Bible Society have an series of 8 videos introducing viewers to the Bible. You can find the series by cicking HERE.
  • There is a larger US based intiative called the Bible Project that uses animated illustrations.  The Old Testament series can be found HERE; the New Testament series HERE.  The Project also has a downloadable app for tablets and mobiles; see details HERE. 
  • In addition SCM produce a series of good bible study material that can be accessed by clicking HERE.
  • There is a wonderful (quite lengthy) book by John Barton "The History of the Bible".

Help with Prayer

Help with Prayer
Alongside worship and bible reading, prayer is one of the three main elements of Christian spirituality.  Very few of us find this an easy practice, and we are all learning. A helpful guide can be found by clicking HERE. 

Archbishop Justin Welby has given a helpfull talk on prayer which you can find on YouTube by clicking HERE

A simple practice is to listen or read the Prayer for the Day and join in with thousands of others saying these words each day.  Click HERE

Classic Christian Books

Classic Christian Books
There are many excellent books written by people in the past who had deep understanding and insight into Christian faith.  Here is one lst of some classic books.
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  • Confessions by Saint Augustine
  • Summa Theologica (Abridged) by Saint Thomas Aquinas
  • The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri
  • Revelation of Divine Love by Julian of Norwich
  • The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis
  • Practicing the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence
  • The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan
  • Pensees by Blaise Pascal
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Modern Christian Books

Modern Christian Books
Alongside the classic books, there are a number of recent books presenting a more uptodate take on Christian faith.
 
  • Orthodoxy by G.K.Chesteron
  • The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
  • Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
  • The Great Divorce by C.S.Lewis
  • Doing the Truth in Love by Michael Himes
  • Simply Christian by N.T.Wright
  • The Reason for God by Timothy Keller
  • The Case for Faith by Lee Stroebel
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Studying Theology

Studying theology
For those wanting to explore Christian theology in depth, we would like to recommend three standard theology text books.
  • Chriistian Theology - An Introduction by Alister McGrath
  • Faith Seeking Understanding by Daniel Migliore
  • Approaching the Study of Theology by Anthony Thiselton
A lsit of providers of short theological courses can be found on the Diocesan website by clicking HERE.
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YouTube Channels

YouTube channels and videos
There is a mass of great material (as well as much dubious stuff) on YouTube channels that explore Christian faith and the wider religious environment.  A couple of channels that we recommend are given here: 
  • The Veritas Forum that is designed with students in mind but covers a wide variety of challenging issues around faith. Click HERE.
  • Lets Talk Religion is a very well researched set of videos which provide indepth factual analysis of historical religious events and beliefs (not primarly from a committed Christian perspective). Click HERE. 
     

Daily Meditations

Daily Meditations
There are a number of internet and podcast sites that provide the chance to join in Christian meditation on a daily basis. 
  • The Centre for Action and Contemplation led by the Franciscan priest Richard Rohr provide daily thoughtful and spiritual meditations. To access this material click HERE.
  • The Bible Society provides a daily programme normally of 3-4 bible readings and a short reflection. Click HERE. This is also a good approach to reading the whole Bible in one year.
  • The ancient Dominican practgice of Lectio Divina has been reinvented by Lectio 365 in a modern idiom. Click HERE to access their introductory videos. 
     

Ethics

Ethics
 Ethics is the study of the underlying principles of how we make moral decisions and practice right living. As such it is an important issue for all attempting to pursue the Christain Way of Life. There is ongoing debate whether there is an specifically Christian framework for ethics. The following resources are worth investigating.  
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