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Nazareth Then and Now
Ancient Nazareth lacked the critical advantages for its development as a significant settlement: abundant water supply, an elevated site for defensive purposes, and strategic location adjacent to a major highway. The most comprehensive recent study of the archeology of ancient Nazareth and its local region was completed by Ken Dark over several seasons between 2004…
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The oldest hatred
Presentation to a panel discussion sponsored by the Jewish Council of Australia at St John’s Cathedral, Brisbane on Monday, 29 September 2025. The topic of the event was: Should anti-Semitism be exceptionalised or should we combat all forms of racism together? Co-hosts for the event included: Doykeit (a local Jewish group in Brisbane), St John’s…
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The turning point
Christ Church Cathedral, Grafton Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost (B) 16 September 2018 [video] In today’s gospel reading we reach the mid-point of Mark’s Gospel. I am not counting words, but describing the turning point in Mark’s overall story. More on that shortly, but first and very briefly, let’s talk about the location of this episode. …
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Crumbs of compassion
Christ Church Cathedral Grafton Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost (B) 9 September 2018 [video] All three readings today revolve around the theme of practical religion. Proverbs 22 promotes compassion and integrity James 2 encourages generosity that pays no attention to the status of the other person Mark 7 has a foreign woman giving Jesus a master…
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The secret of the grain that falls
Christ Church Cathedral, Grafton The Martyrs of PNG 2 September 2018 [video] In today’s Gospel—chosen for the festival of the PNG Martyrs—we have a classic piece of spiritual wisdom from Jesus: “Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if…
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Paul in his own words
As I prepare for a Dean’s Forum tomorrow with a focus on what we know about Paul the Apostle, this handout which has been prepared for participants might be of wider interest. Rather than rely on the imaginative representation of Paul in the Acts of the Apostles—where the polemical missionary and composer of controversial letters…
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Building strong families
Christ Church Cathedral, Grafton Pentecost 12 (B) 12 August 2018 [video] The great lectionary diversion As basic pattern, each year over a three-year cycle, we focus on the witness of one Gospel to Jesus: Matthew in Year A Mark in Year B Luke in Year C Mark is much shorter than Matthew and…
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Abundance
Pentecost 10B Christ Church Cathedral Grafton 29 July 2018 [video] This week’s Gospel offers us one of the all-time favourite biblical stories about Jesus. This story was so popular in the early church that we find it in all 4 gospels, while Mark and Matthew each tell the story twice! This story is told six…
