The arrival of the Greens as a real political force in Australia has meant, among other things, that euthanasia is going to be promoted in Australian parliaments, both state and federal. Like all evils, euthanasia is presented to us in a good light. The word literally means ‘good death’, and …
There are times in our lives when one thing becomes almost all-consuming. In his masterful novel, Moby-Dick, Herman Melville explored the mad obsession of Captain Ahab for a great white whale – an obsession which ultimately destroyed him and virtually all his crew. In the graphic last sentences the whale …
It is Thursday, and Paul’s open heart surgery is due tomorrow. It has not been an easy week to do anything productive, and now the newsletter is due. Throughout the week, I had given some admittedly fleeting thought to writing on various subjects, but my mind has been obsessed by …
New South Wales is now second only to California so far as litigation is concerned. A part-time masseuse has sued her employer because her clients’ whingeing made her depressed. She was awarded $26,000 as a result. A basketball referee sued the Mt Isa Basketball Association because she tripped over while …
Editorial
From the Newsletter of Revesby Presbyterian Church
May 2010
Rev Dr Peter Barnes
These days one tends to read the Sydney Morning Herald to make sure one’s blood pressure does not fall dangerously low rather than to glean much wisdom from it. Yet on page one of the 2-4 …
Editorial
From the Newsletter of Revesby Presbyterian Church
April 2010
Rev Dr Peter Barnes
It is sometimes surprising how simple things can have an impact on us. Joni Eareckson Tada tells of how she went to visit Corrie ten Boom one spring day. Both women were disabled and in wheel …
Editorial
From the Newsletter of Revesby Presbyterian Church
March 2010
Rev Dr Peter Barnes
Psalm 105 is an historical Psalm which recalls with gratitude God’s gracious dealings with His people Israel down through the ages. It was He who promised great things to the patriarchs, and who accordingly brought their …
Editorial
From the Newsletter of Revesby Presbyterian Church
February 2010
Rev Dr Peter Barnes
Is the minister of a church to be seen as akin to a CEO of a company? Should he be a public relations expert? Should each local church have a Finance Department? Should we aim at …
Editorial
From the Newsletter of Revesby Presbyterian Church
January 2010
Rev Dr Peter Barnes
The apostle Paul refers to death as ‘the last enemy to be destroyed’ (1 Cor.15:26). When it has struck us, nothing is left the same. In medical terms the heart ceases to beat; in Christian terms, …
Editorial
From the Newsletter of Revesby Presbyterian Church
December 2009
Rev Dr Peter Barnes
It is customary, even compulsory, in many circles these days to lampoon the belief that Jesus was born of a virgin. There is nothing new in this. In the second century, both the Jew, Trypho, and …
