I’ve recently finished reading Adrian Plass’ recent book, Jesus: Safe, Tender, Extreme. The safe and the tender Jesus I can relate to. I’ve come to know this safe and tender Jesus in new and liberating ways over the last few years.

The extreme Jesus is much more challenging, especially for a conservative Baptist like me! I like life to be predictable and ordered – this is as much a trait of my personality as anything else. But life with Jesus is rarely predictable and ordered. It is often full of surprises and challenges. What does it mean then to follow an extreme Jesus?

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Welcome to andrewbutcher.org

This is a resource of material I’ve written on or spoken about, which I regularly update. There are still some reports and articles to add, but there’s already a few in here to begin with.

Here you can find any publicly available research reports I’ve authored. Visit the ‘research’ category on the right hand side.

You can also find copies of sermons I’ve preached or meditations I’ve written. Visit the category pages for these.

You can see what ministries and other organisations I support and visit their websites by clicking on the links. Read more…

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Finder of the flock
Keeper of the sheep
Father of the prodigal
Friend of the sinner
Defender of the poor
Nurturer of the child
Healer of the sick
Restorer of the soul
Light of the darkness
Water of the parched Read more…

Meditations | No Comments »

How can Christianity be called contemporary? Is it not an ancient faith? Did its Founder not live and die two millennia ago? Is not Christianity a period piece, a museum exhibit, an antique relic from the remote past, irrelevant to modern men and women? Read more…

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Social cohesion as a social policy goal has recently appeared in policy statements in relation to outcomes associated with immigrant settlement. This paper explores some of the literature on social cohesion, and how the concept might operate in a New Zealand policy context. The latter part of the paper focuses on a proposed indicator framework as a way of measuring settlement outcomes for both immigrant and host, and providing an indication of whether social cohesion is being achieved. Read more…

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It was Atticus Finch who said that you don’t know a man until you’ve walked around in his shoes a while. Well, I’ve recently done a bit of walking in others’ shoes. It gives a new insight into life: our own actions are reflected back at us; others’ feelings – in a nominally vicarious way – become our own. I recommend it. It is probably one of the most sobering experiences one can take. It is the kind of ‘if I were in their shoes, how would I react?’ exercise, where the response is ‘if I would react in that way, then I can understand that person’s reaction.’ Read more…

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Two tales, two cities: the best of times, the worst of times; times to remember and times to forget. In one scene, the heat of the noon-day sun: a woman thirsty for water approaches the well for a drink. There she encounters a man whom she has never met, but who knows more about her than she will ever know. This was water-cooler conversation before it became clichéd. He can see she is thirsty, and alone. He offers her that from which she will never thirst. This was an encounter that she will never forget. Read more…

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