Bridge of Reason

  The Transfiguration, Carl Bloch, 1865 In the January 2023 Study Edition of the Watchtower magazine the Watch Tower comes up with another of its quaint and awkward 'translations.' “ Be transformed by making your mind over, so that you may prove to yourselves the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”—ROM. 12:2. They write: 'HOW often do you clean your home? Perhaps before you first moved in, you scoured it thoroughly. But what if you neglected it afterward? As you know, dust and dirt can accumulate quickly. To keep your home presentable, you need to clean it regularly. 'A similar ongoing effort is required when it comes to our thinking and our personality. Of course, before getting baptized we worked hard to make necessary changes in our life in order to “cleanse ourselves of every defilement of flesh and spirit.” (2 Cor. 7:1) Now, though, we need to follow the apostle Paul’s counsel to “continue to be made new.” (Eph. 4:23) Why is continual effort neede...

What do you think of when your hear the word ‘sanctified?’ Paul’s first letter to Christians in Thessalonica is best summed up in verse one of chapter four, ‘How to live in order to please God.’ The context is very important if we are to appreciate its application today. Paul was writing to a church living in what was a hostile environment for Christians, calling them to live sanctified lives. We are beginning to experience this environment in what was traditionally a ‘Christian country.’ You might be aware of recent controversial developments in Ireland regarding gay marriage. Ireland (Eire) has voted to change the constitution to allow gay couples to marry. This has proved an enormous challenge to the Catholic Church that takes a traditional, biblical view on marriage . You might remember also, in Northern Ireland, Ashers Bakery was successfully prosecuted for refusing to bake a cake with a pro-gay message on it. They didn’t refuse custom to a gay man, but simply refused to put ...