The traditional Christian world view is not that difficult to grasp. The Earth is a broken place - a cataclysmic break between God the Creator and man the created occurred at some time in the distant past - and Jesus came into the world, literally as the God Man, to set things right. It doesn't matter whether you see Old Testament stories as literal or figurative - they contain fundamental truths in any event. What does count is that you take the matter of you and God seriously.

Sin is an unfashionable word and concept, but it too is seminal to any discussion of how to bridge the chasm. The Bible is fairly clear on what is sinful behaviour and thinking - Jesus made a point of talking about it - and there is no getting around it. Of course, this will seem like utter nonsense to the sophisticated Modern, for whom faith and sin and God are all outmoded ideas that spring from ancient human thinking, 'crutches' for the weak. And yet, large numbers of people continue to believe.

I find sin the single most challenging aspect of life. Our society is saturated by sensuality - anything that pleases the senses is pretty much okay - and kids are bombarded from an early age by images and ideas that encourage selfishness and hedonism. I speak generally of course, but the evidence of decline is daily in the newspapers and on social media. If you think I am being too hard, just ask any school teacher who has taught across two or three decades to the present day.    

Let me say that I am first amongst sinners. Like Augustan and so many others since, pleasures of the flesh are powerful attractors and hard to deal with. They can be addictive. In his letter to the Corinthians, Paul says 'No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind'. It is reassuring to know that we are all in the same boat when it comes to sin and temptation. Our minds tend to make us believe we are unique in this respect. And very fortunately too, God 'will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.' That is even more reassuring, though we have to pay attention come the time of temptation. There is often a 'still, small voice' that can be drowned out. Ours is a time of noise and distraction.