Addiction and the Local Church: Biblical Depth Joins Years of Experience

If pressed to identify books that have had the most influence on me, my mind turns to books that have organized my theological infrastructure. Books such as Sinclair Ferguson’s The Holy Spirit and Robert Gundry’s Soma in Biblical Theology. The Heidelberg Catechism showed me that theology can be personal, pastoral, and beautiful. Yet I want to draw attention to a different and, I believe, important genre. A book that illustrates it well is Addiction and the Local Church, by Andy Constable and Mez McConnell (Christian Focus, 2025). The authors are pastors at Niddrie Community Church, located in a struggling community on the outskirts of Edinburgh, Scotland. There, they have a drop-in café where you can get tea and fried food, and you can find friends who will engage those who are usually forgotten, including the homeless and addicted. The church is populated with ex-addicts. Continue Reading →