Grill a Bishop!

The Right Reverend Peter Price, Lord Bishop of Bath and Wells, was a guest with a difference at Chew Valley School.  His visit was entitled ‘Grill A Bishop’ and he it was who was on the menu!  One was reminded of Christians being thrown to the lions in the time of Diocletian!

A lively group of GCSE and A Level students came prepared with questions to bowl at the Bishop who took all comers with grace and poise.  There were theological questions, ethical questions, even political questions which encompassed a range of domestic, speculative and world-wide themes.

Why does God allow suffering, such as that in Haiti?  Are there moral problems with IVF?  What view should we take of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict?  Is Christianity the only path to God?  When does life begin – and can it ever be justified to take it away?

There was tangible excitement as students quizzed the Bishop.  They were eager to engage in debate and the Bishop was keen to understand their views.  He commented that people sometimes want black and white answers to complex moral questions.  A discussion of this sort is more likely to be an unending conversation with a number of arrival points rather than one definite destination.

What struck me, as an observer, was how urgent and passionate was the thinking and reflection that our teenagers are undertaking.  So often young people get a bad press.  But these students were grappling with the great questions of life with sincerity and an eagerness to discern the truth.