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 …
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 …
Editorial
From the Newsletter of Revesby Presbyterian Church
November 2009
Rev Dr Peter Barnes
One of the most obvious and devastating effects of the Fall in Genesis 3 is that we human beings are unable, spiritually speaking, to see and hear properly. We usually manage to see other people’s sins …
Editorial
From the Newsletter of Revesby Presbyterian Church
October 2009
Rev Dr Peter Barnes
Stumbling blocks are necessarily present in a fallen world, yet the person who is a stumbling block is responsible before God, and Christ pronounces a solemn ‘Woe’ upon him (Matt. 18:7). This issue actually surfaces quite …
