Chalke Talk

What do these two seemingly unrelated famous men share in common? As Steve puts it, “To attempt to understand the development of the Church worldwide without any reference to the work of the Apostle Paul is a bit like trying to trace the development of pop music without mentioning Elvis, or the Beatles, the Stones, Dylan, Michael Jackson and U2 all put together."

Following on from last week’s episode, Steve continues to look at the many ways Paul’s writing has been used to justify some of the church’s worst mistakes. From racism to homophobia, it’s hard to believe there is anything redeemable about Paul’s texts. As Steve puts is, “…it is no surprise that for too many he is the author of structural social exclusion.” But what happens if we start again with our interpretation of Paul? And how do we do that? Pre-order your copy of Steve's latest book, now, here: https://openchurch.network/lostmessageofpaul

This week, Steve begins a new conversation – a serious conversation that he invites us all to participate in; a conversation about the apostle Paul. Aside from Jesus, Paul is the dominant figure in the New Testament. His words have had immeasurable influence – but he also shoulders the blame for some of the church’s worst mistakes such as slavery, misogyny and homophobia. Pre-order your copy of Steve's latest book, now, here: openchurch.network/lostmessageofpaul

Paul is often referred to as “the great excluder” and is used by many to defend a legalistic view of Christianity. But what happens, Steve asks this week, if it’s not that the rules don’t matter, but the principle behind them matters more?