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Learning to live in worship
At the Methodist School of Music (MSM) Worship Symposium, held from 15-17 June 2017, participants from many different churches, denominations, and countries came to understand more about spiritual worship, experience different forms and styles of worship, train their skills in leading worship, and encounter God together as a community in worship. Spiritual worship The symposium […]
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Looking forward to build racial and religious harmony
Race and religion in Singapore took centre stage at the annual Conversation dialogue organised by the ETHOS Institute™ for Public Christianity on 4 April 2017. The dialogue panel consisted of Mr Chan Chun Sing, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and Secretary-General of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC); Dr Matthew Matthews, Senior Research Fellow […]
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Scholarship and spirituality in the Wesleyan spirit
the hat and diploma on the white Those who are familiar with developments in Wesleyan studies might have heard of Albert Outler, an outstanding theologian who first taught at Yale before being recruited to teach at Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University, Dallas. Among other things, he was the one who argued persuasively for […]
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CMS – Safe spaces to share, and room to grow
Every year, as applications open for Primary and Secondary schools in Singapore, most mission schools – including our Methodist schools – experience high levels of interest. Why is this the case? We surmise that alongside academic and extra-curricular excellence, which is not the sole purview of mission schools, another factor is the strong grounding in […]
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Life as Worship?
“Let my lifesong sing to You!” declares American band, Casting Crowns, in their 2005 song titled ‘Lifesong’. The song’s overriding theme – to worship God with all of one’s life – is closely aligned with the theme of this year’s Methodist School of Music (MSM) Worship Symposium: ‘Life as Worship’. How does our Sunday worship […]
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ALDERSGATE SG 2017 ‘Catch the Flame’ and pass it on!
Seen our flame-shaped flyers for Aldersgate SG 2017? (If not, they’re inserted in this very issue of Methodist Message.) You may be wondering: “What is this all about?” Firstly, they’re a reminder about the annual keynote event of Methodists in Singapore – and this year, our theme is ‘Catch the Flame: The Wesleyan Pursuit of […]
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The insights of history – Wesley’s experience at Aldersgate
by Nathaniel Hone, oil on canvas, circa 1766 Edmund Burke, Irish philosopher and statesman, once said: “In history, a great volume is unrolled for our instruction, drawing the materials of future wisdom from the past errors and infirmities of mankind.” Likewise, in our Christian faith, history plays a vital role in continually informing the living […]
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Come, re-commit yourself to God
Close up view on pair of hands folded together in prayer according to Christian religious tradition At the upcoming Aldersgate Sunday Celebration on 21 May, the Methodist community will be called together as a body of Christ to reaffirm its commitment to further God’s Kingdom, pursue holiness in the Wesleyan fashion, and to build upon […]
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Recalling the past, and a prayer for the future
Which has been your most memorable Aldersgate celebration in Singapore? Was it the first time the Singaporean Methodist community came together to commemorate the “strangely-warmed” experience of Methodism’s founder John Wesley, in 2002? Or in 2003, when Aldersgate celebrations had to be downsized due to the SARS epidemic in the region? Do you recall […]
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Twenty years of enhancing worship and music regionally
“Once upon a time, there was a dream….a dream in which churches in Singapore and Asia actively pursued music excellence in the worship life of the church. In this dream, musicians of the Church could draw upon both their Asian heritage and European musical styles through which to express their faith. After much prayer and […]
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Penultimate meeting of world Baptist-Methodist dialogue
The fourth – and penultimate – round of conversations of the international dialogue between Baptists and Methodists took place from 1-8 Feb 2017 at Runaway Bay, Jamaica. The overall theme of the five-year dialogue between the Baptist World Alliance and the World Methodist Council is “faith working through love”, and this year’s conversations centred […]
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Story and worship
“God does not present us with salvation in the form of an abstract truth, or a precise definition or a catchy slogan, but as story.” – from Eugene Peterson’s introduction to the book of Exodus Storytelling is a fundamental tool for Christian living. Half of the Bible is written in story form. Stories teach […]
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Easter solace as we remember loved ones
About 2,000 years ago on Easter, as Jesus was resurrected after taking His place on the cross to die for the sins of the world, He ransomed humanity not just from the wages of sin but also took away the sting of Death itself. Christ’s work at Calvary and His promise of eternal life still […]
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Taking our faith seriously at TTC
A few years ago, an intriguing programme was aired on the BBC radio channel. It was about an “atheist church” in London called the “Sunday Assembly”, which was led by two stand-up comedians. One commentator opined that the Sunday Assembly’s proceedings were too frivolous for his liking. In contrast, he said that the Christian churches […]
