By Not Known Since returning to Singapore, several people have commented, possibly a little out of politeness, that I still look as young as when I left 13 years ago. To which my standard reply has become “I must have looked very old then!” Youth Sunday made me reflect on my own youth, and our…
By Not Known What if God had created human beings without tongues? Our world would be void of great speeches that have otherwise shaped our history – the call to peace, the rousing to war, the shout of protest, the arbitration of conflict, and the consolation of suffering. There would be no poets, philosophers, singers…
By Not Known The cry for freedom is universal. It was the cry behind the French and American revolutions. It was the cry of the Chinese revolution under Dr Sun Yat Sen. And since the second world war we have seen how in all continents the cry of freedom has brought ‘winds of change’. In…
By Not Known In our world today, the big debate continues. What is more important: faith or works? There are many in this world who do good works with plenty to show for it. Yet they may not have faith in God. Still there are also many who claim to have great faith in…
By Not Known The time after the departure of a minister, especially one who has served for a long period of time and who has established himself in the life and hearts of the congregation, has been compared to the period of grief following death. Some of you may be going through such or similar…
By Not Known This is a message I never expected to write. I have been a retired minister for 6 years now and the last place I expected to be, was back at ORPC. When I first received the news of a possible invitation to serve as ISM (Interim Senior Minister) for a few months,…
By Not Known Back in 1997, Calvin Miller wrote The Book of 7 Truths; an interesting tale within a tale about a mysterious man who forever changes the lives of another. He spoke of the enduring powers of faith and demonstrated the true meaning of generosity and forgiveness. One of the 7 truths in the…
By Not Known For those of us who celebrate the Lunar New Year, another season of lavish trading of well-wishes has begun. Greetings like “Gong Xi Fa Cai” [blessing of fortune] and “Nian Nian You Yu” [blessing of abundance] are almost customary, although most people know by experience that reality is more often a far…
By Not Known In the recent census here, it was noted that many younger people have professed to have no religion. They are categorically people who may be atheists. It may simply mean that they do not believe in any deity; or that moral living is not based on any particular book or system of…
By Not Known The one-time world champion boxer Muhammad Ali (1942- ) was not the only person in history to declare himself to be “the greatest”. Neither was he the first nor will he be the last to display such crass human megalomania. Even drunken with such swell-headedness, many of us would be careful to…