About this episode
This episode discusses the distortion of the Christian faith and its misrepresentation in modern society.
In recent years, we have seen the Christian faith equated with arrogant nationalism, worship of the gun, of money, power and status; and the faith appropriated as an expression of animus and division, prejudice and bigotry. Daily, we can see such distortion and twisting of the faith, so contrary to the teachings of Jesus, that we can only stare bewildered at the mental gymnastics required to turn the carpenter who counselled turning the other cheek, into a belligerent bully.The much-celebrated theologian and Pauline scholar Anglican Bishop Tom Wright once cautioned how first-time visitors to a church might exclaim “Well, if that’s how God’s representatives behave, I suppose the whole thing’s a waste of time!”.In one of the most graphic descriptions of punishment anywhere in the gospels, Jesus warns that it would be better for a millstone to be placed as a collar around the offender’s neck dragging them to the bottom of the ocean, rather than face their rightful punishment for injuring a person’s vulnerable faith, any spiritual comfort that they might have received, negated by the behaviour of the so-called faithful.
Topics covered
- Christian faith
- nationalism
- prejudice
- bigotry
- teachings of Jesus
Keywords
- theologian
- Tom Wright
- church behavior
- spiritual comfort
Mentioned in this episode
Books & works: gospels
More episodes of Think Question Believe
- Living for tomorrow - today · December 14, 2025 · 22 min
- Turning the world upside down · December 10, 2025 · 22 min
- Finding the time to pause · December 3, 2025 · 12 min
- Held forever in love and honour · December 2, 2025 · 12 min
- The Crisis Ahead · December 2, 2025 · 11 min
- The road less travelled · September 8, 2025 · 11 min
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Think Question Believe podcast page.