Husband, Dad, Historian. Scholar of early modern and long eighteenth-century Protestantism. PhD focused on Isaac Watts. Infrequent guitarist. Views mine.
Was at the pub with some friends last night. I mentioned that I was a missionary kid in Papua New Guinea from the ages of 9 to 14. One of the guys said, with much pathos and sarcasm, “that doesn’t sound traumatic at all.”
For the first time in 30 years, someone recognised it
@RevKevDeYoung
You and I share a phd supervisor. This piece is a “man of his times” argument, that centres a powerful white man and dismisses the impact of his views and actions on the enslaved. Why are you more generous to slave owners than to egalitarians?
A good metric for worship songs is “can my church sing this from their homes?”
I hope one of the things that comes from this time is that worship songs start being written from the ground up again, designed for ordinary people to sing, rather than from the top down
Anyone else ever wonder if academic conferences are actually a series of elaborate experiments to see what happens when you put large groups of introverts together and force them to make small talk?
@AcademicChatter
#AcademicChatter
I'm excited to say I've signed a contract with
@routledgebooks
to publish my monograph based on my PhD as part of their 'Studies in Evangelicalism' series.
"Isaac Watts (1674-1748): Evangelical Dissent and the Early Enlightenment"
I’m very excited to have been awarded a 3 month Early Career Fellowship at
@TheJohnRylands
to undertake a pilot study into the role of hymns in eighteenth-century slavery and abolition
Watts Up, Doc
I’m very excited and quite overwhelmed to say that I passed my viva with minor corrections today. My thanks to David Ceri Jones and Mary Ann Lund for a great conversation, and Prof John Coffey for his patient supervision over the last few years
I got 3 job rejections recently - two were for jobs which pertain to my PhD and where I have experience in research, publication, and teaching to post grad level (inc course leading and diss supervision).
I don’t know why I’m falling short, but I wish they’d say
@SlowToWrite
Your son adjusting to the sleep patterns that suit adults is nothing to do with him being a sinner - it’s just warped theology to even consider that. I’m about to cook dinner for my kids, are they hungry because they’re sinners too?
@Franklin_Graham
Get a piece of paper and draw two circles - one on either side, so they don’t touch. One circle is Trump, the other is the Christian faith. There is no connection between the two
Thanks everyone. I'm excited that
@Newman_Uni
have offered me a position of Visiting Humanities Lecturer. It's a zero hours contract, so may not *actually* lead to teaching, but it's a successful interview with exciting potential, at least - small step in the right direction
I’ve got an interview tomorrow (online) for a visiting lecturer position - it’s my first interview based on my academic background. Any last-minute tips? I’ve spent a lot of today preparing, but any and all advice welcomed
@albertmohler
Yes, it's vital that those leaders who have foolishly endorsed a man as debased as Trump use this moment to repent and seek God's mercy, as well as the forgiveness of those they have maligned
TW - sexual abuse
Read it for yourself - Doug Wilson and Joe Rigney saying that an abuse victim failing to disclose makes them sinful, and that the abuse victim is sexually immoral. Please, Christian leaders, open your eyes to what’s going on and speak up
TW - sexual assault
Here’s why I push back when people like
@aaron_p_edwards
endorse Doug Wilson - read the thread and see Wilson stating that abuse victims not reporting abuse is as bad as the abuse itself. Only wolves are friends with wolves
@Miss_Snuffy
You have the kids from 8:45 - 3:30. Teachers should do their job at school - outside of school, my kids should spend their time doing what we as a family prioritise. Music, friends, cooking, conversations, hobbies, church. My 8 year old is reading LOTR so it seems to be working
I’m astounded that my essay, ‘Isaac Watts and the Crisis of Dissenting Christology’, has won the Roger F. Poole Early Career Researcher award from the
@BunyanSociety
When Isaac Watts was a young man, he complained to his dad about how boring the songs were in church. His dad’s advice was that he write some better ones, and so he did. It was over a decade later that his hymn book was first published
I dad joked in my Church History lecture that Luther nailed his 95 Theses on the day before All Saints Day, when people gathered to celebrate 90s girl bands. None of the students had heard of All Saints and I feel so old I may as well have been there holding the nail for Luther
I sent off a proposal to transpose my PhD into a monograph, and the reader reports are incredibly positive, and very generous. Nothing formally agreed yet, but the first hurdle appears to be cleared
2 years ago my 7 year old son had 2 serious operations. My pastor knew strawberry milkshake was his favourite treat, so brought him some.
Maybe that’s a good litmus test for whether you’re actually a pastor - how well do you know the unimportant people in your congregation
#joshhowerton
you are not pastoring a 15-20k member church. YOU ARE NOT. You are a motivational speaker & very few ppl have access to you. Stop it.
The megachurch model is BAD. Here’s why:
This morning at church we sang the lyric, “from life’s first cry, to final breath, Jesus commands my destiny.”
Gathered via Zoom, there was a family with a baby less than 48 hours old with us. There was also an older man in his last days or weeks, due to cancer
In the Gospel According to Doug, marrying women to sex offenders is fine, but people who believe in adult baptism are out of bounds. Just remember this next time you see someone promote his Canon Press books
Timeline cleanse:
A few years ago we had a dear friend, Jack, who passed away. We named our son, Barnabas Jack, in his memory. Jack’s wife was the first person to meet Barnabas, 7 years ago.
Today, at his request, he went to her house for birthday tea so they could hang out
Christmas carols are a great reminder that hymns (longer verses combining poetry, narrative, and theology, put to simple and evocative tunes) are better than verse - chorus - bridge songs
Afternoon
@simonmayo
and
@KermodeMovie
. I’m 6 months into a diagnosis of depression and have found christmas tough. I’ve just been out for a walk listening to your Emily Blunt episode and feeling a bit better. Thanks for helping to part the clouds. Happy new year to Jason
@KatecBowler
A wedding I did gig at, where the groom asked the DJ to play “Smack my B!tch Up” as the final song of the night - the couple stood in the middle of the dance floor shouting at each other
These theoboys all argue that Deborah was a judgement against the men of Israel for failing to lead. So *by their own logic* women like Beth Moore are a judgement on them, and they still won’t repent. It’s easy to spot wolves - “my sheep know my voice”
@joe_rigney
You stated in two separate tweets that Emilie sinned, and clarified that they were the sins of sexual immorality and deception - you didn't raise questions, you levelled accusations
The first 7 days of 2021 show me that it’s possible to read Genesis 1 as referring to literal days while also believing the universe to be over 14 billion years old
I’ve got an interview tomorrow (online) for a visiting lecturer position - it’s my first interview based on my academic background. Any last-minute tips? I’ve spent a lot of today preparing, but any and all advice welcomed
@pastorchaset
@eleni_sibbald
Congratulations on the imminent arrival! And it warms my heart that you asked this. I would say, let it be safe for them to express their frustrations and struggles with your vocation without taking it personally. Navigate the boundary between office and relationship
Happy birthday to Isaac Watts.
Did you know...
The oldest dated hymn we have from Watts was called 'Shout to the Lord' and was written in 1694 - exactly 300 years before another 'Shout to the Lord' was written.
Since nobody asked, I've been reflecting on the recent Twitter discussions regarding the legacy and reception of Jonathan Edwards.
Content warning - this thread contains themes of slavery and racism
Church today - songs in Cantonese, a baptism, and included in this picture a guy who had a heart attack 6 weeks ago, and was told he wouldn’t come out of his coma - the consultant said there wasn’t a medical explanation for his recovery. Happy Sunday
Hymn writers were theologically robust, highly educated, and working within a broader system of pastoral practice. Their hymns also assumed a very high level of biblical literacy. It’s hard to think of many contemporary examples which offer the same
@Peter_Assad
Some of the sadder conversations I have are with older church members who never get to sing the songs they grew up with. They feel like the soundtrack of their faith has been completely forgotten. Or has become a joke.
Good morning to nobody except those committed enough to the hymn tradition that they’re singing Isaac Watts’ “Blest is the man whose bowels move” at church today
@between2worlds
The article is pathetic - she called him out like you men should have done. All your TGC/DG cowards claiming only men can lead, you platform this evil man and slander a woman who can’t defend herself. Man up, call him a wolf, and repent in sackcloth and ashes
Since being diagnosed with depression I’ve struggled to control my weight, but I’ve been on a diet of 800 calories a day since New Year’s and now I can fit in shirts I haven’t been able to wear in about 3 years
Yesterday, the proposal for my PhD thesis monograph was submitted to a prospective publisher by the series editor and today,
@mvclarke
and I have submitted a proposal for an edited volume on the legacy of Watts' hymns
My wife is a midwife. She had all of our kids at the hospital where she works. I discovered, at the birth of our first child, and therefore in front of her and her colleagues, that Gas and Air isn’t a french word (gassenerre) which I always assumed it was
Whats one thing that you learned recently that everyone else has seemingly always known?
I was at least 35 when I realised that a 'birthday suit' wasn't just a nice suit that you might wear for special occasions.
@ScottAniol
To anyone reading this battling with depression or other mental health illnesses -
@ScottAniol
’s post is dangerously wrong. Medication is necessary in many cases. I have been on anti-depressants for nearly 4 years, and I’m very thankful for them
I have a job interview tomorrow - it may be the first of several as I've submitted a few applications for various things. But, prayers, good wishes, and all other positive things very welcomed. Thanks
This tweet got a lot more traction than I was expecting.
I've had a great day - a positive meeting about a post-doc application, and an evening working on a book chapter. I'm generally optimistic, while striving to improve. Thank you for all the kind and encouraging feedback
I got 3 job rejections recently - two were for jobs which pertain to my PhD and where I have experience in research, publication, and teaching to post grad level (inc course leading and diss supervision).
I don’t know why I’m falling short, but I wish they’d say
This whole Doug Wilson thing is so weird - I wish a scholar like
@kkdumez
would write a book about why obnoxious white men get a free pass on evangelicalism, I think it could be really interesting, and may diagnose some of the wider cultural issues
I’m excited that my article “Wonderful, not Wondrous: Chris Tomlin’s Improvements to Isaac Watts Hymns” has been published in the Journal of Contemporary Worship
Now that I no longer work for
@NexusICA
, I can tell you all about the time (recently) I was half way through a lecture when I realised my cardigan was tight, not because I had put on weight, but because I’d put my wife’s on my mistake
Our church has a significant Cantonese-speaking community, so we are singing more songs in two languages - a verse and chorus in English, then in Cantonese, etc.
I prefer multicultural Christianity to colonialism and I’m thankful for bonds of faith that transcend culture
A few years ago, I tried to take up jogging to help my mental health. It was a total disaster, and made things much worse.
I started Couch to 5k a few weeks ago and I’ve just run for 20 minutes without stopping
I spoke to my GP this week and I’m staying on 30mg of certralipram to medicate my depression and anxiety. My illness still feels like an alien invasion. But, after 3+ years, I’ve leaned to domesticate the black dog, for the most part
#WorldMentalHealthDay
Somehow, my otherwise happy, loved, and well-adjusted children always manage to look like they’re waiting for Liam Neeson to come and rescue them when they pose for their school photos
@GatewayPeople
Look to the same one who said that those who abuse children would be lucky to have millstones tied around their necks and be thrown into the sea?
@firstthingsmag
I’m not sure what the point of this article is - at best, it’s just patronising someone who doesn’t warrant it, and at worst it’s just a hatchet job which basically says that the mid 90s isn’t 2022 but decides to needlessly attack a gifted and fruitful minister
Ed Sheeran wins Thinking Out Loud copyright case
Worship song writers everywhere are mightily relieved to hear that you can’t copyright a chord progression
In this PhD thesis, I will...
[redacted due to ongoing enquiry by the Metropolitan Police]
...and in conclusion, Isaac Watts made a significant contribution to the relationship between dissent and the Enlightenment
Because she’s the subject to another spiteful attack, I wanted to share what I wrote to
@kkdumez
when I finished ‘Jesus and John Wayne’ - I was raised in the world she writes about so well. I’m very thankful for her work
Because of my depression, I've been called a heretic, told I'm not a Christian, been told that I'm pronouncing Satan over my life, told that taking anti-depressants is a lack of faith, told that if I believed more I'd not have depression. Yes, I'm wound up about this
I learned today from an insider that at one major UK University, 25% of the students are on suicide watch for serious mental health issues. The pattern is apparently common to many universities. This is where pagan secularism leads you - the destruction of the next generation.
This is also why mega church leaders can’t be called pastors in any meaningful sense. If you don’t know the lives and sufferings of the people you claim to lead, you’re simply a CEO or TED Talk guru