Centre for Public Christianity launch

Two of my Anglican colleagues, Greg Clarke and John Dickson, have teamed up to launch the Centre for Public Christianity (CPX), a research and media organisation promoting the public understanding of the Christian faith. As John puts it, they don't think Christianity needs to be pushed (down people's throats) - it just needs some airtime. That sounds reasonable to me.

There's a new Centre born every minute, but CPX is worth taking seriously - rather like Theos, the new British Christian think tank engaging specifically with public theology. But as I understand it, CPX aims to go broader and deeper into culture and theology, as well as apologetics and history, and if all goes well it will become an important fresh resource and voice for an evangelical representation of the Christian faith.

Not that Clarke and Dickson are mentioning the E word too loudly. After all, this is Sydney, and those look like Anglican churches in the launch clip. But this is no clandestine Sydney Anglican bid to claim 10 per cent of our hearts and minds; as the website notes, the Centre exists through the generosity of private donors and corporations. Notably, I'm told, a grant from the avowedly non-denominational Mission Australia.

Check out the introduction to the Centre for Public Christianity with Leigh Hatcher. Or for the latest CPX press releases, articles and upcoming events check out the news page. And visit the library page for the full range of CPX audio, video and print commentary. As the archive builds, I hope the cogency of argument and range of subjects/issues also increases. Australia (and the online world) needs Christianity 101, but also much more.

This initiative comes from an impressive vision, and it's great to see CPX launched and beginning to do its good work.