Hear my voice when I call, Lord; be merciful to me and answer me (Psalm 27:7).
Some Answers
Below we have provided some answers to those questions you may have thought about. If you would like to talk about any further questions you have please do not hesitate to contact us.
I have a question about Christianity.
We love a question about Christianity! If you are sincere about having an honest discussion or an argument about the Christian faith, we would love to hear from you!
Why should you speak to us?
The internet and bookshelves are groaning with material relating to the Christian faith. Some of this information is useful and others not so much. In an age of information overload, it is surprisingly difficult to find key truths about the Christian faith and find answers to your questions – your very important questions, from the perspective of an individual living in this time and this space, with the contemporary challenges that we all have to face.
I'm not a Lutheran!
We are happy to take on all comers! It does not matter what your family's denominational loyalty or history maybe. If you want an honest discussion on Christianity and how it can help you with some of the big questions of life we would love to hear from you. Similarly, if you think you have a winning argument to disprove the faith, we will provide compelling answers that will challenge your position – if you are brave enough to take us on!
All we ask is that you do so with a sincere and honest heart.
But I have a Bible, why do I need you guys?
Unfortunately, Satan can also quote Scripture. There are many instances where good folk have been led astray – see the David Koresh story or Google Christian cults. The Bible contains powerful messages that need to be read through the perspective of traditional Christian teaching. There are many fine theologies/statements of faith developed by the mainstream denominations. Among the mainstream denominations, some parishes believe them, and others see them as an anachronism. At St Peter's we stick to the ancient paths where the good way is and we walk in it.
We make no claims that we are the 'only' source of good Christian material; no parish or denomination has a mortgage on the Christ. But we confidently make the claim that our message is rooted firmly in history, and we can offer you 'the good oil' on the Christian message. It is a deep and rich tradition that will challenge you on many levels – are you up for it?
Are you one of these people?
Modern people are caught between two follies, and both end sadly. On the one hand, there are those who have no interest in the 'examined life' (Socrates) because they think that, with no need to search or journey, they have already arrived. On the other hand, there are those who think that their passion and their way of life should be to journey without end. Meaning, if there is any such thing, is like the mechanical rabbit on the greyhound track; it can never be caught. The search for meaning is the meaning of the search. The secret of the good life is the life spent searching for the good life.
To such people, it is unthinkable ever to arrive; for what they really fear is that to choose is to close all other options and to condemn themselves to boredom. Openness is what counts – complete openness. After all, there may always be someone or something else a little further down the road – a better job, a more satisfying relationship, a more fascinating country, a more fulfilling faith. But such unending travel with no destination is futile, and it ends like the curse of the Flying Dutchman – people find themselves on the legendary ghost ship that was doomed never to make port and to sail the seas forever.
Come with us, we urge, and join the journey whose final destination is home, where the one who is waiting for us is our Father. Come with us, for the commitment of faith is not the end of all journeying, but the end of the journey towards meaning and the beginning of the journey of the rest of life. The reason is that for a seeker to find Jesus is not the end of all searching, but the beginning of another and deeper one – the search to know God better and better.
Here, in shining contrast to the fate of the Flying Dutchman, is the place where the searching truly never ends. Not because of the infinity of choosing, but because of the infinity of the One in whom we have found our answer and whom we have come to know. As Saint Augustine reminds us of our coming to know God, 'Even when he is found, he must be sought'. That lifelong search to know the One who is infinite and inexhaustible is a search 'both sought that it may be found, and found that it may be sought: still sought that the finding may be sweeter, still found that the seeking may be more eager'.