Arguments about God are like pointing a flashlight toward the sky to see if the sun is shining.

When it became clear that in fact my father was saying, "It will be interesting to see what you want to do when you grow up," I realized that there was no pressure on that front. And I remember huge relief: Hey, I can go and do what I really know I have to do!

When you're writing theology, you have to say everything all the time, otherwise people think you've deliberately missed something out.

[Albert] Schweitzer thus carved out his own path through the first half of this century, a lonely and learned giant amidst the hordes of noisy and shallow theological pygmies.

From my student days I found him a compelling and fascinating, though often puzzling, figure. It's a lifelong fascination now and I don't expect that to stop! His vision of God, God's faithfulness, God's purposes and so on is so much bigger and richer than almost any subsequent Christian thinker has ever managed. In addition, I have always loved ancient history, especially the history of the early Roman empire, and of course Paul fits right into that.

The Bible is the book of my life. It's the book I live with, the book I live by, the book I want to die by.

People often get upset when you teach them what is in the Bible rather than what they presume is in the Bible.