Contents

Belief

What we believe is central to our Christian identity. While most Christians agree on the basics (Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again), the finer points of what we believe provide us with endless scope for discussion, which is lucky really, or these pages would be rather bare.

The Bible, reason, tradition and our own experience all inform and shape our faith. Theology and spirituality each contribute to the individual and collective understanding of what it means to be a Christian, and other people’s perspectives can both challenge and enrich our own.

Chris Charlton’s Bible study explores some issues surrounding purity, faith and holiness, whilst Ben Samworth’s article takes a look at the dangers of a consumer-culture attitude towards the most important aspect of our lives.

If all this sounds too much like hard work, take a peep at our ‘Biblical Babes’ quiz and discover whether you’re the mother of a nation or a daughter of Jezebel.

Ellen Wakeham and Kate Harper

Bible Study: The Importance of Purity

Pick ’n’ mix religion

Which Biblical Babe are you?

World

Theological meanderings are all very well, but a faith which has no impact on the world begs some serious questioning. James writes that “faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead” (James 2:17).

You wouldn’t think this would be ambiguous, but Christians across the world seem to be divided on the issue of how many (or few) deeds can be ‘got away with’ while sustaining a living faith. Christianity demands sacrifice, and occasionally spending a few extra pence on Fair Trade coffee, while honourable in itself, is not the only thing we should be doing for God — we are called to be light to the world (Matthew 5:14–15), our faith not hidden but clearly visible, however exposed that may make us feel. In this section of Christis, our writers explore how our faith can impact on a world which often seems to be groping in the darkness. Kate Harper looks at the difficult issue of eating disorders and body image from a point of view light years away from that presented in the conventional media of skinny supermodels and featherweight pop stars. In particular, she considers that most dangerous and insidious medium of the Internet, discussing websites that actively promote anorexia nervosa and bulimia.

Meanwhile, Cllr Keith Aspden examines the question of whether, and to what extent, religion should be taught in schools. As a member of a working group currently tackling this very issue (and, incidentally, as Britain’s youngest councillor!) his views carry a certain amount of weight and I’m sure you’ll find them as interesting as I did. His balanced argument is backed up by a weight of knowledge on this subject and, at risk of embarrassing him, I do not consider it overstating the mark to describe him as an expert in this field.

So there you go. Don’t we spoil you?

Chris Charlton

Should religion be in our schools?

Cyber-Starvation

Life

There is a somewhat ironic twist in the choice of authorship for this, the editorial for the first ‘life’ section in the new-look Christis: we don’t actually have a life. Even between us. The sad truth is this was written at 0313 on a Sunday morning, having devoted the whole of the previous day to the scintillating and life-affirming task of Christis production. On the plus side we were on Scarborough beach this time last Wednesday. Oh yes.

Anyway, being deficient ourselves, we thought we’d bring you the pickings of other people’s experiences and aspirations. This issue we are ranging from Victoria’s monastic dreams to ‘The Graduate’s’ scholastic nightmares. If, however, you don’t wish to turn out as bitter and twisted as our estranged friend, you might want to pay close attention to Mr. Charlton’s top notch suggestions for survival on page 11.

If you do happen to find yourself embroiled in any particularly exciting survival-esque escapades over the following weeks we’d love to hear about them (or anything that would fit into this section), preferably with permission to publish them in next issue’s hallowed pages. Even without, reading them will be something marginally more exciting than our current plans for the chill winter evenings ahead. Which currently involve knitting and crochet respectively.

Paul Harford and Rick Taylor

A bitter message from a grumpy old man

Why I want to be a monk

The Christis Campus Survival Guide

Ships

Reviews

The Christis reviews in this issue mostly address that most pressing of all issues facing a fresher: How do I start picking a church in York? The church reviews on the following pages are designed to be a starting point for finding the right place for you. There’s even a ‘helpful’ flow-chart.

When people ask me what I look for in a church, I say, “A good welcome” and leave it at that. My initial attraction to a church is mostly dependent on how welcoming the people are. I believe that church is about community, I have to feel welcome in a community to be a part of it.

But it is not just a welcome I seek. I also seek acceptance. For me, this means that when I turn up at church, people welcome me and let me be who I am, not who they’d like me to be. In practical terms this might mean that an elderly congregation, used to wearing their best clothes to church, put up with my scruffy shorts, holey trainers and shabby t-shirt. It might mean freedom to express unorthodox beliefs without being shunned, or just simply a feeling that it’s ok to say you’re struggling with a particular aspect of your faith and not be judged. So often churches can turn into places where we have to ‘act the part’: become the people we think we should be, rather than who we really are. But unless we can be ourselves in church, we can’t be ourselves before God, and that surely isn’t right.

I’ve also come to believe, that it is only when we are truly accepted by the church as who we are, that we can begin to accept the church for what it is. No church will ever be perfect. There will always be people squabbling, things that don’t quite get done how we’d want them and worship that may not live up to our expectations every week. As we mature in the church we have to find a way to live with these faults: if we don’t we’ll become disillusioned. We may still keep our faith in God, but lose our faith in the church.

Increasingly, some Christians talk of ‘a churchless faith’, but being part of a church community is so much a part of growing in our faith and learning about life in connection with God that I feel that those with a churchless faith are somehow missing the point. Of course, when I say ‘church’ I’m not necessarily referring to a group that meets on a Sunday morning in a building with a spire and an organ, but rather a community of Christians who interact in some way to share their lives together.

I believe, that when I’m in a community where I am accepted ‘warts ‘n all’, then I can begin to accept the whole church with its faults too. This doesn’t mean I won’t work to change aspects of the church which I feel are wrong, but I’ll try do it sensitively, aware of those around me.

So, what do I look for in a church? Certainly not a perfect church, but an accepting one.

Rachel Cavill