Why Christians Should be Concerned about the 'Islamic Trojan Horse School Plot' (It's Not What You Think)

The Trojan Horse 'Islamic radicalisation plot', in which several schools in Birmingham stand accused of enabling (or not preventing) the potential radicalisation of their overwhelmingly Muslim pupil bodies, has revealed what a threat to Christianity the faith is.

By faith, I don't mean Islam. I mean secular 'tolerance'.

Of course, it's serious if state-funded schools are having speakers in assemblies who promote extremist viewpoints; if pupils are not taught properly about faiths other than Islam; if girls are not given the same opportunities as boys.*

But what's most serious is lines like this, which came from MP Chris Bryant on the BBC's Question Time the other day:

“Of course it’s not wrong to be devout and conservative and to have conservative views, but it is wrong to separate girls and boys or to treat girls differently.”

Why should that worry you? Because Chris Bryant has done the classic mid-sentence switch that tolerant relativists all end up doing.

The Intolerantist faith

Notice the first part of his sentence is classic tolerance. It’s fine for you to believe whatever you believe. Who is anyone to tell you what to think, or to tell you that what you think is wrong? This is a tolerant country, where we welcome people of all faiths.

But the second part of his sentence completely undermines the first part. Because if your religious conservatism means you think your sons and daughters should sit separately in class (or that, if you’re a teenager, you should sit apart from the opposite gender in class), well that’s not fine anymore. That’s wrong. And you’re wrong.

In other words, you can be a religious conservative as long as your religious conservatism doesn’t lead you to do things that I don’t think are right.

That’s intolerant. It’s the intolerance of a ‘tolerant society’, which decides the boundaries of acceptability, and then polices them fiercely. It’s the intolerance of tolerance—we might call its advocates devout (in)tolerantists.

And it’s an issue for Christians. Because despite all the jumping up and down, Muslims form a very small proportion of the UK population. Radical Muslims are not going to be in charge of our laws and courts anytime in our lifetimes.

But radical (in)tolerantists already are. And how long is it before there’s a news item about a school, or group of schools, where some of the governors stand accused of:

• being motivated by their religious beliefs
• holding outdated, bigoted views on areas such as homosexuality
• lobbying for changes in the way sex education is taught, to the annoyance of a sizeable minority of parents
• inviting speakers into assemblies who hold intolerant beliefs about things such as hell
• believing that, while all children should receive the same education, some roles in life should only be open to men.

How long before someone sits on the Question Time panel and says: “Of course it’s not wrong for evangelical Christians to be devout and conservative and to have conservative views, but it is wrong to think what you do about sexuality, act like you do in evangelism, promote what you do as a school governor.”

If you’re an evangelical, your beliefs sound just as radical, extreme and unpalatable to a secular (in)tolerantist as a conservative Muslim’s do. Don’t be fooled by the first half of the sentence: it’s the second that shows the danger.

*Although let's make two qualifications; it's serious if non-state-funded schools do these things too—would you be fussed about the educational background of a radicalised terrorist? And second, it's amazing how segregation of girls and boys seems anathema, when I attended a very 'English' and wholly segregated school. It was a boys' grammar school.

Independence: the other side of the coin

It's an exciting yet, at times, uncomfortable truth: God didn't save us to be a bunch of individuals each following him in the way that seems best to us, he called us to be a community, passionate about sharing our lives with one another.

We are called to:

• Love one another (John 15:2)
• Devote ourselves to Scripture together (Acts 2:42)
• Teach those younger in the faith than us (Titus 2)
• Carry each other's burdens (Galatians 6:2)
• Spur one another on to love and good works (Hebrews 10:24)
• Give sacrificially to whoever is in need (Acts 2:45)

And we can't do any of those things alone ... We need to know people deeply and love them sincerely by spending quality time with them regularly if these things are to be possible. There's no getting away from it, when we are truly authentic in our walk with the Lord, our lives are healthily enmeshed with our brothers and sisters in Christ.... continue reading

On to a Good Thing

1. Dig Even Deeper ebook - just £5!

Get the ebook version of Dig Even Deeper for just £5!

2. Good: The Joy of Christian Manhood and Womanhood (New eBook)

A free e-book about God’s design for men and women.

3. St. Helen’s Training: The Word of God Part 2 of 6

A new video from St. Helen’s Bishopsgate.

4. Taking God At His Word Audio & Video

Audio and video resources from the launch of Kevin DeYoung’s new book.

5. Look at the Book

A new initiative from John Piper and Desiring God.

6. And finally...

Our video of the week, ‘Is forgiveness really free?’ trailer:

Found something that you think should make it on to the On to a Good Thing round-up? Send it to: ontoagoodthing@thegoodbook.co.uk

Independence: the appeal

No-one is born with an overwhelming desire for independence. Every new baby, no matter what their personality, has the ability to scream and scream and scream … and to keep on screaming until someone comes to give them the sustenance or comfort they desire. But by the time we reach adulthood, often the barriers have gone up and our lives display very different priorities. So what’s so attractive about independent living?

It’s safer

There’s no point denying it, sometimes life hurts and it has done ever since the fall of Genesis 3. To put it bluntly, sometimes people are real pains! It’s not something I dwell on much – I have better things to do with my time – but, if you pushed me, I could come up with quite a catalogue of ways in which I have been wounded. I’m sure you can too. People hurt us - physically, emotionally, spiritually – and, to state the blindingly obvious, that doesn’t feel good, especially with the added dimension now of arguments spilling over into social media and the world’s uncompassionate eyes. Distancing ourselves from others makes it less likely we will feel pain again. Of course, it makes it less likely we will feel love again too …... continue reading

Independence: the secret struggle

No man is an island, they say – and I guess that’s true - but I’ve noticed more and more in recent months that plenty of men (and women) often try to be just that. Whether it’s culture’s call to individualism or a personal drive for autonomy, many of us like to live as loners.

I’m not suggesting we aspire to be the modern day equivalent of hermits, holed away in some dark crevice. No - that wouldn’t work at all - crevices don’t have wifi! But within the hustle and bustle of the modern world, where hundreds of people pass us in the street or online each day, there can be a drive to live our lives deliberately distancing ourselves from those we are designed to hold dear.

I remember vividly the first time I was called a strong, independent woman. It was something that brought a smile to my face. You see, I like the idea of being superwoman, speeding through life invincibly - able to help others but being invulnerable myself. Of course, that’s not actually what I’m like at all but it’s an attractive aim. Needing others seems so, well, needy! And there’s a voice deep inside many of us that whispers “don’t go there - don’t admit you have to depend on anyone at all”.

So this week on The Good Book Blog we are going to look a little at the tendency towards independence that lies within and ask ourselves the question – is this really the life that Jesus calls us to enjoy?

Join the Good Book Company Team

Fighting the Monday feeling

"Blessed be your glorious name, and may it be exalted above all blessing and praise. You alone are the Lord. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you."

Nehemiah 9:5-6

Seven things I DON’T want my toddler to thank his daddy for (in twenty years)

My son has just turned two. His vocabulary now stretches to: “Thank you Daddy for… [insert cars/blueberries/lion]”. So I’m confident that, come Sunday, to mark Father’s Day he will thank me for… well, cars, his sister, blueberries, and his teddy lion.

To be honest, I’m hoping that in twenty years, he’s not thanking me primarily for those things when he takes me out for lunch on Father’s Day (note, son: lunch, not just a card). On Mother's Day, I blogged on what I hoped he would thank his mother for in 20 years. But for Father's Day, I'm thinking: apart from his cars, blueberries and lion, what else should I be hoping he doesn’t most thank me for when he’s 22?... continue reading