Centre for Christian Living podcast

Here at Moore College, we’ve been thinking about the rise and spread of generative AI and what it means for education—for our students and lecturers. One thing we’ve been determined to do is not just use AI pragmatically (i.e. asking “How can we make the best use of this new technology while avoiding its pitfalls?”), but also think about what generative AI means theologically and morally. How does...

Have you ever debated the question, “Is it ever okay to lie?”? If so, it usually doesn’t take very long for someone to raise the uncomfortable fact that people in the Bible—particularly people in the Old Testament—lie quite a bit. Furthermore, not only do they get away with it, they’re often commended for it—like the Hebrew midwives in Exodus 1:15-21, who lie to Pharaoh about what’s going on with...

Christian living is being a daily disciple of Jesus Christ, and being a disciple is being a learner—an apprentice of Christ. It’s to learn to be like him, to live like him, to think like him, to love others like him. But being a learner or an apprentice of Jesus Christ is no simple thing; it’s rich, multi-faceted and extraordinary. It’s a lifelong process. Of course, it’s also a struggle: there ar...

Every now and then, a book comes along that makes such a sweeping, powerful and insightful argument about the nature of our lives, our world and our culture that it leaves you disturbed and almost disoriented, as if the ground has shifted under your feet and you’re not quite sure where you’re standing anymore. Paul Kingsnorth’s book, Against the Machine, is like this. It’s very broadly speaking a...

Digital technology like smartphones has revolutionised the way we navigate daily life and the way our whole society functions. Such technology has its downsides. Even so, our stance as Christians is often something like, “Let’s use this technology wisely, but not abuse it”, as if the technology is simply a neutral instrument. But the good things of our world (like technology or money) can become m...

Digital technology like smartphones has revolutionised the way we navigate daily life and the way our whole society functions. Such technology has its downsides. Even so, our stance as Christians is often something like, “Let’s use this technology wisely, but not abuse it”, as if the technology is simply a neutral instrument. But the good things of our world (like technology or money) can become m...

Digital technology like smartphones has revolutionised the way we navigate daily life and the way our whole society functions. We have supercomputers in our hands that can answer almost any question instantly and perform many tasks that make life easier. Such technology has its downsides, like the explosion of accessibility to pornography and the prevalence of online bullying. Even so, our stance...

It does us a lot of good to read a book on prayer every couple of years, because the Christian life is a praying life, and Christians need the occasional reminder and encouragement to keep praying or to start praying again after an overly busy or overly anxious period of life. Enter Prayerfulness , a recent book by Peter Adam that, according to CCL Director Tony Payne, is the best book on prayer a...

If you’ve been saying the words of the Nicene Creed for most of your life, you’ll have some sense that this ancient creed is profound and important, and that it summarises something basic and unifying about the Christian faith. But why and how does it do that, exactly? Why is the Nicene Creed a big deal? Why have Christians been saying these words for around 1700 years? And what difference does it...

Christians have always been very pro-family. In fact, historically and in some parts of the world, Christianity and traditional family values are seen as much the same thing. This makes the actual content of the Gospels and what Jesus says about family very surprising—even shocking. It's not as if Jesus is against marriage and family, but his teaching about how to relate to our families brings a r...

One of the commonplaces of our culture is to distinguish between sex and gender. However, it wasn’t that long ago, when filling in forms, that we were asked about our sex—whether we’re male or female. Now forms ask us for our gender, and they often give us more than two options. But did you know that the word “gender”, as applied to someone’s sexual nature or expression or identity, is a very rece...

If there’s one word or concept that you would say is at the very centre of the Christian life, it’s the idea of faith. In fact, sometimes we describe the whole of Christianity as simply “the faith”. Yet for something that’s so central and so foundational, it’s surprising how often people are confused or have misunderstandings about the nature and meaning of faith. In this episode of the Centre for...

On the CCL podcast, we’ve been exploring the topic of “Neurodivergence and the Christian life” in a special three-part series. In Part 1 , we opened up the issue and heard many wonderful and moving stories from neurodivergent people about their experiences, and the questions and issues that arise from their experiences—especially in relation to Christianity, the Christian life and church life. In...

On the CCL podcast, we’ve been exploring the topic of “Neurodivergence and the Christian life”. In our first episode , we opened up the issue and heard many wonderful, extraordinary and moving stories from neurodivergent people about their experiences, and the questions and issues that arise from their experiences—especially in relation to Christianity, the Christian life and church life. In this...

Neurodivergence, such as Autism and ADHD, is increasingly identified and understood in our society. Almost everyone has experience of neurodivergence either in themselves or in close friends or family. How do we think about neurodivergence as Christians? What particular challenges and opportunities does being neurodivergent bring with it, especially in responding to the gospel and living as a Chri...

Moral progressivism is a feature of the best and brightest of our culture. It’s the idea that, just like technology, which is progressing all the time and getting better, so our moral beliefs, values and sensibilities are improving over time. There’s a relentless forward march to the moral status of humanity such that many of the beliefs and values we hold today will be seen as outdated and even i...

Around 19 per cent of Australia’s population is of school age. A similar proportion—around 17 per cent—are seniors, if that’s defined as 65 and older. Are those percentages reflected in the time, people and resources that your church devotes to evangelising and ministering to these age groups? Most of us would admit that our church has put vastly more effort into youth and children’s ministry than...

Do you ever get that feeling that the teachings of the Bible, and the complex and painful things that actually happen in your life don’t always connect? Do you ever feel that when you’re in the midst of pain, grief and difficulty, you’re not exactly sure what the gospel has to say about it? Andrew Nicholls , Director of Pastoral Care at Oak Hill College in London, had exactly that experience as a...

Have you ever had one of those moments of self-awareness when some relationship or perhaps some conversation has just gone badly, and for some reason, you stop and think, “Why did that just happen? What did I do? What attitudes, behaviours and underlying thoughts did I bring to that conversation that contributed to what just happened?” If you’ve ever managed to do that and also thought to yourself...

What does it mean to live the Christian life as a man or as a woman? Does whether we are men or women make any difference to living as a Christian and seeking to be a godly person in response to the gospel of Jesus Christ? Does godliness look any different for men as it does for women, or, for that matter, for young people as opposed to old people? These kinds of questions can often cause controve...

Last year in 2024, Tom Schreiner , Associate Dean for the School of Theology, the James Buchanan Harrison Professor of New Testament Interpretation and Professor of Biblical Theology at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, USA, delivered the Annual Moore College Lectures on the Book of Galatians. In this episode of the CCL podcast, Peter Orr speaks with Tom about Galatian...

In the past, people used to date by asking each other out and getting to know each other over coffee, a meal or some other activity. But these days, many people use dating apps as a way of meeting others. How should we navigate this area as Christians? What are the strengths and weaknesses of this approach? What are the dangers we need to be aware of? Jocelyn Bignill, Assistant Minister at All Sai...

Gospel ministry in our schools is incredibly important and strategic, and has changed many lives. But what does it mean for the gospel to do its work in a school? What sort of work does a school chaplain do? In addition, how does the ministry that takes place within our schools sit alongside, complement and relate to the broader ministry of the gospel that we’re used to seeing in our churches? In...

What’s the place of mission in the Christian life? In this episode of the CCL podcast, Peter Orr speaks to Tania Snowdon. Tania and her husband Mike spent a number of years on the mission field in Spain and have since returned. Tania speaks about the whole mission experience—why you would go; how to decide whether to go; how to decide where to go; the training you receive before going; what it’s l...

As Christians, we know that evangelism is important. But most of us feel that we’re not very good at it and that we don’t do enough of it. In this episode, Peter Orr speaks with Dave Jensen, who works as an evangelist for Evangelism and New Churches Sydney Anglicans . Dave helps us think about how we can increase in our fervour and ability for evangelism, and how we can do it as Christians togethe...