Centre for Public Christianity

The Centre for Public Christianity (CPX) is an Australian not-for-profit media company that supplies mainstream media and the general public with material about the relevance of Christianity in the 21st century.[1] The Centre has no denominational affiliation and seeks to represent historic Christianity as defined by the Nicene Creed.

History

CPX was established in 2007. John Dickson and Greg Clarke[2] were its first directors, with Richard Grellman Chairman. Initial funding from Mission Australia helped get the venture started.[3] After support from Hammond Care, CPX signed a memorandum of understanding with Bible Society Australia.[4] Simon Smart has Executive Director since 2018.[5][6]

Activities

Writers from CPX have contributed articles to The Sydney Morning Herald,[7] The Age,[8] and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).[9]

CPX has an online resource library featuring interviews with writers, scholars and commentators.[citation needed] CPX releases a weekly 'Life & Faith' podcast.[10]

CPX runs the annual Richard Johnson Lecture, a series that aims to "highlight Christianity’s relevance to society and positively contribute to public discourse on key aspects of civil life."[11]2018’s speaker was Nick Spencer, Research Director of Theos, a think tank in London.[12]

The Centre has produced popular and academic works exploring the relevance of the Christian faith, including Public Christianity: Talking about faith in a post-Christian world,[13] 10 Tips for Atheists and other conversations in faith and culture[14] and The Wisdom of Islam and the Foolishness of Christianity.[15] In 2013, Smart co-authored a book with Jane Caro, Antony Loewenstein and Rachel Woodlock called For God's Sake: An Atheist, a Jew, a Christian, and a Muslim debate religion.[16]

In 2009 CPX released an historical documentary called The Life of Jesus[17] that was shown nationally on the Seven Network.

In late 2015 CPX began work on a documentary: For the Love of God: How the Church is Better and Worse Than You Ever Imagined.[18] The project considers the impact of Christianity on the world, both good and bad. It combines on-location filming with interviews with experts, including Marilynne Robinson, Rowan Williams, Alister McGrath and Miroslav Volf.[19] The documentary was released in May 2018.

References

  1. ^ "Centre for Public Christianity". Centre for Public Christianity. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  2. ^ "Greg Clarke to head new national Bible Society". sydneyanglicans.net. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  3. ^ Stephens, Mark (15 July 2018). "The Parachurch Down Under: A Case Study". Christian Scholar’s Review. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  4. ^ "New Alliance Brings CPX and Bible Society Together". biblesociety.org.au. 14 September 2012. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  5. ^ "Simon Smart - ABC News". Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
  6. ^ "Product Details - Pan Macmillan Australia". panmacmillan.com.au. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  7. ^ "The generation brought up on self-esteem is struggling". 13 April 2017.
  8. ^ Zwartz, Barney (2 December 2017). "Faith: When it comes to religion, as for gender, 'vive la difference!'". The Age. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  9. ^ "Finding the holy in Hollywood". Radio National. 1 December 2017. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  10. ^ "Life & Faith Podcast - Centre for Public Christianity". publicchristianity.org. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  11. ^ Payne, Matthew (15 March 2018). "Christianity's Unique Contribution to Western Civilisation: 2018 Richard Johnson Lecture with Nick Spencer". The Gospel Coalition | Australia. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  12. ^ "Christianity's Unique Contribution to Western Civilisation: 2018 Richard Johnson Lecture with Nick Spencer - The Gospel Coalition - Australia". thegospelcoalition.org. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  13. ^ Smart, Simon (April 2011). Public Christianity: Talking about faith in a post-Christian world. Centre for Public Christianity.
  14. ^ Moore, Natasha (June 2016). 10 Tips for Atheists and other conversations in faith and culture. Centre for Public Christianity.
  15. ^ Shumack, Richard (April 2004). The Wisdom of Islam and the Foolishness of Christianity. Island View Publishing.
  16. ^ Caro, Jane; Loewenstein, Antony; Smart, Simon; Woodlock, Rachel (July 2013). For God's Sake: An Atheist, a Jew, a Christian and a Muslim debate religion. Macmillan Publishers.
  17. ^ "Scenes from the Life of Jesus documentary - Centre for Public Christianity". April 2009.
  18. ^ "For the Love of God: How the Church is better + worse than you ever imagined". Centre for Public Christianity. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  19. ^ "'We need to be honest about the failings of the church'". eternitynews.com.au. 7 March 2018. Retrieved 27 March 2018.