"I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with sense, reason, and intellect has intended us to forgo their use." - Galileo Galilei

The name Shoshanna is taken from the Hebrew and means "lily". It was chosen because of this passage:

He said to his disciples, "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? If then you are not able to do so small a thing as that, why do you worry about the rest? Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you--you of little faith! And do not keep striving for what you are to eat and what you are to drink, and do not keep worrying. For it is the nations of the world that strive after all these things, and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, strive for his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.
Luke 12:22-31 NRSV

The people behind the Shoshanna ministry site are Andrew James Bromage and Bonni Elizabeth Hall. We're very happily married, we're parents, and we live in Melbourne, Australia.

Andrew is Australian, and is sometimes known in some Christian circles as Aquila, the partner to Bonni's Priscilla. He is training to be a lay speaker of the Uniting Church in Australia, and is the moderator and FAQ maintainer of the Usenet newsgroup aus.religion.christian, as well as being a long-time contributor to that newsgroup. Andrew was raised within the UCA, educated at a Lutheran school, and is the grandson of a retired Methodist minister. Andrew gave his first public Bible reading from the pulpit at the age of three years (yes, really). He reads Koine Greek (the language of the New Testament), dabbles a bit in Hebrew, and is particularly interested in systematic and applied theology (and has a library full of books to show for it). He is employed as a programmer, and also contributes to the couple's web design company, mostly as a programmer and system administrator.

Bonni is American by birth and upbringing, but is happily expatriate in Australia. Bonni is an abuse survivor who struggles continually to heal and grow closer to God, and in that struggle, she often finds herself gaining insights which others find helpful and healing. She works from home so that she can be the primary caretaker of Zoë. Bonni was raised within the Presbyterian church, and came as an adult to the Wesleyan (Methodist) tradition.

And since we are in the business of web development, we offer some of our time and talent as a tithe and/or community service and will often do work for free or at reduced rates for ministries and other appropriate non-profit organizations. We own our own server and will consider giving web space or even hosting a domain (depending on the traffic expected and the nature of the content). Please see the Web Design Resources page for more informtion if you're interested.

We tend to be moderate. Please note that "moderate" does not mean "fence sitter", "lukewarm", or "mediocre". It means that conservatives tend to think we're liberal, and liberals tend to think we're conservative. It means that both of us feel the calling to find the middle ground, and we tend to be able to see both sides of most issues (even if we agree strongly with one or the other). This is both a blessing and a curse.

We also tend to be tolerant. Please note that "tolerant" does not mean "permissive", "bleeding heart", or "accepting". The definitions of "tolerence" we like best (both from the American Heritage Dictionary) are: 1) The capacity for or the practice of recognizing and respecting the beliefs or practices of others. 2a) Leeway for variation from a standard. Note that this is markedly different from "acceptance", which is defined thusly: 1) The act or process of accepting. 2) The state of being accepted or acceptable. 3) Favorable reception; approval. 4) Belief in something; agreement.

We happen to believe that when Jesus said to love your neighbor as you love yourself, he meant it. We don't believe he meant for his followers to accept, agree with, or otherwise embrace ungodly ideas and sinful behaviors, but we don't think that being rude, obnoxious, mean, or otherwise hurtful to people whose behaviors and beliefs we disagree with is going to help anyone achieve anything, least of all salvation. For that reason, we try to practice tolerance and kindness, to show by example that being a Christian is about freedom, love, and life.

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
       John 3:16-17 NRSV

"Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?" He said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."
       Mat 22:36-40 NRSV

Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he said, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" He said to him, "What is written in the law? What do you read there?" He answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself." And he said to him, "You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live." But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" Jesus replied, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, 'Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.' Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?" He said, "The one who showed him mercy." Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."
Luke 10:25-37 NRSV

Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
Titus 2:13-14 KJV

We are some of God's peculiar people, and we maintain this website for lots of reasons, but mostly because we think maybe we have some things to say that people might want (or need) to hear, and, well, we feel we have a calling to do this, simple as that. Our only ulterior motive, if you could call it that, is to hopefully sow good seeds and harvest good fruit.

Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for you reap whatever you sow.
       Gal 6:7 NRSV

Home • About Shoshanna • Christian Resources • Contact


Design, content, and images copyright © A.Bromage & B.Hall, 1996-2005.
All rights reserved. No unauthorized use.