What we disclose via social media can be immediately viewed worldwide. We cannot as easily curate our public profile and reputation. excommunitweets have, to my mind, revealed inadequacies in Evangelical theology: how we understand the church, how we understand Evangelical identity, and how we understand unity.

We have falsely represented not only our God, but have established an unjust and unrighteous order and administration of the earth. As we read Isaiah, let us hear the invitation to be raised up with the faithful Servant as one of ‘the many’ being restored to the image and likeness of our God.

Honeybees are faced with global crisis. Between 2007 and 2010, colonies in the United States reported an annual loss of around 30%, with similar losses are being reported across Europe. Nevertheless, a Christian theology of creation also provides hope for us and for all our fellow-creatures.

Advent is the practice of waiting, and we are rubbish at waiting. At the heart of our trouble with waiting is that individual desires and busyness trump any other circumstances. Advent teaches us that there is something other than ‘right here, right now’.

Professor Nicholas Tonti-Filippini, a Melbourne Catholic bioethicist and Associate Dean of John Paul II Institute for Marriage and the Family, died on November 7 at the age of 58, after a long illness. That phrase “after a long illness” is commonly used in death notices, but in Nicholas’s case, it hardly does justice to his story.

Christian schools across the country have begun to opt for ‘wellbeing’ as a replacement for what has traditionally been called ‘pastoral care’. the year 2012 saw the establishment in Australia of the Positive Education Schools Association (PESA) whose member schools, several of which belong to Christian traditions, aims to “lead and promote the science of wellbeing and positive psychology, enabling all students, schools and communities to flourish.” Alex Abecina evaluates the movement.

When I was growing up there were two pieces of wisdom frequently imparted to me: “the ends don’t justify the means” and “think about how you would feel if that were done to you”. These two pieces of ethical guidance were designed to help me act with clarity and correctness in difficult situations. Do we still believe in them? There's evidence otherwise...

The city is the heartland of humanity’s rebellion. And yet, astoundingly, in the strongest of language, God declares that he will come into the city, that he will join his work to humanity’s work and make it complete – he will make it holy. The ultimate Biblical vision for the city is for its redemption from a place of dislocation and destruction to a place of shalom, a place in right relationship with God, will all people and with creation. We are enjoined by the Biblical witness to stop being a part of the problem and to start being a part of the solution. And that requires living differently from the norm.

Gough Whitlam was a very unusual Australian leader: he had imagination, initiative, asked first order questions, thought outside of the box, and did things that were unprecedented. In short, he was an anomaly to the abiding Australian commitment to political caution, a stance which only trusts ‘safe hands’ with institutional power. Unsurprisingly, the political anomaly that was Gough did not last long.

Does Romans 13 prohibit the possibility of Christian nonviolent civil disobedience? Matt Anslow takes a closer look at a familiar proof-text.