Columns

  • The Meaning of Christmas – Connecting the Dots between the Crib and the Cross

    Dec 28, 2015

    The Gospel stories about the birth of Jesus are not a simple retelling of the events that took place then, at the stable in Bethlehem.

  • The missing figures from the Christmas crib

    Dec 22, 2015

    As we celebrate Christmas this year, it is easy to gaze at the crib and romanticise and get all sentimental about the tranquil setting before us: the baby Jesus and his family in a cosy manger among shepherds, cows and sheep, protected and heralded by angels, away from all the cares of the world.

  • Muslims hosts landmark visit by Christian delegation at prominent blue mosque

    Dec 18, 2015

    In a landmark and rare visit to a prominent mosque, a delegation of Christians, led by Bishop Sebastian Francis, visited the Abdullah Fahim Mosque in Bertam in Province Wellesley on December 14.

  • Sex and our Culture

    Dec 17, 2015

    No generation in history, I suspect, has ever experienced as much change as we have experienced in the past sixty years.

  • Sensitive to Community, Beyond Ourselves

    Dec 16, 2015

    Some years ago I was challenged by a Bishop regarding an article I’d written. We were talking in his office and the tone eventually got a little testy: “How can you write something like that?” he asked. “Because it’s true,” was my blunt reply.

  • Spiderman, Pontius Pilate and the meaning of power

    Dec 11, 2015

    If you are a Spiderman fan, you may be familiar with the phrase “With great power comes great responsibility” and believe it is an original line from

  • Advent hope

    Dec 11, 2015

    Advent is my favorite time in the liturgical year. For other people, I am sure it is probably Christmas or Easter, but for me, those feasts never live

  • The hiddenness of God and the darkness of faith

    Dec 11, 2015

    When I first began teaching theology, I fantasized about writing a book about the hiddenness of God.

  • Nowhere to run from the tentacles of the market economy?

    Dec 04, 2015

    It is common these days to hear talk from middle-class Malaysians about how polarised the education system has become since their younger days.

  • Our Muslim brothers and sisters

    Dec 04, 2015

    This is not a good time to be a Muslim in the Western world. As the violence perpetrated by radical Islamic groups such as ISIS, Al Qaeda, and Boko Haram becomes more and more prevalent, huge numbers of people are becoming paranoid about, and even openly hostile towards, the Islamic religion, seeing all Muslims as a threat.