Welcome to Contemplations with Charnock, a monthly newsletter sharing my journey as I study for a PhD on the life and thought of Puritan pastor and scholar Stephen Charnock.
I am Associate Pastor of Kensington Baptist Church in Bristol, UK.
Having first worked as a solicitor, I left the law in 2019 to train for pastoral ministry. I am currently studying for a PhD part-time with Union Theological College in Belfast, under the supervision of Rev Dr Martyn Cowan and Rev Dr Sam Bostock. I also tutor for Crosslands Training, who are supporting me through their research programme.
If you would like to hear more about why I’m doing a PhD, my first post tells some of the story. You can read or listen to it here.
I have also enjoyed writing about why learning about church history is a bit like world travel, how knowing that Charnock lost his most treasured possession enriches our appreciation of his writing, and what life at university in the 1600s teaches us about Christian culture wars.
But more enjoyable still have been the comments and conversations these updates have prompted with readers like you. So please feel free to like, comment and share to your heart’s content.
I aim to share an update on what I’ve been learning each month.
Please sign up for the newsletter and join me on my journey into the world of one of the brightest minds and warmest hearts of the 17th century. I am hopeful that God will teach me many things during my studies, and it will be a privilege to share some of these with you.
