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Showing posts from 2012

Where's Jesus?

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Christians don't have a monopoly on the view that Christmas has become too commercialised. Nor do they have a monopoly on a yearning for traditional values or the sentiments of joy, goodwill and peace that are central to the Christian, Christmas message. Many of us, lemming like, run headlong over the cliff of common sense to over indulge, overspend and generally mortgage the oncoming January in the pursuit of short lived and sometimes dubious pleasures of the Christmas season. The Queen's Speech invariably turns to the central message of Christ's incarnation just over 2000 years ago but I doubt that message has a major impact on her audience beyond the possible warm glow which may owe some to the imbibing of alcoholic beverages before, during and after dinner. So when Christians wish to put Christ back into Christmas what are they envisioning? I suspect that if Christmas were a largely religious event its appeal would be somewhat limited to the general public. If you want

Rocks and Hard Places

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I didn't get a Father's day card last year. I was fairly pragmatic. After all, its just a made up day and mostly geared to selling cards, gifts and generally sustaining our consumerist economy. If you're not hung over, bloated or broke after a big day then it can't have been that good, can it? I'm not heartless though. It did hurt a little. It must have, because I can remember how I felt. But piling misery on misery really doesn't have any beneficial effects so it's not good to dwell on these things. I got one this year and it feels worse. They say absence makes the heart grow fonder, which is true if you're on a promise. But when nearness is painful, distance is a mercy. When you're separated from your family by distance you can count the miles but when you're separated by regret the counting never stops. I'm on my own with a lovely Father's Day card in the window. It says "Thank you for everything." So I did something right b

Out of Plum

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I've recently read the book of Esther. Its remarkable in that it is the only book of the Bible that mentions neither God, worship or prayer. It's an encouragement for those of us who acknowledge the Great Commission but feel uncomfortable bringing God into every conversation. I cringe at some of the words and phrases Christians dream up to claim ground for God. "Godincidence" is one of them. This is supposed to counter the idea that things happen by chance. Rather, God orchestrates our circumstances to bring about his plans for good. Far from bringing a fresh perspective it merely presents a narrow Christian world-view that is ill conceived and poorly constructed. I am fond of the idea of Jesus being the unseen guest. After all, Jesus said that where two or three of us are gathered together, there is he in the midst. On the other hand, it can sound a little spooky to think that an invisible person is constantly watching you. Nearly every book in the Bible brings a dif

Welcome Home

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In a previous post I asked, "Who is Jesus?" I'm not sure that I really answered the question, rather that I questioned our answers. Young children disregard those around them as they play or interact with their friends or immediate family. They have no thought about how they appear or relate to strangers. When asked a question they often simply hide, stare or offer an answer that doesn't relate to the question at all. They first must establish a context in which the conversation is taking place. If the question doesn't relate to the child then its irrelevant and meaningless and who the person is, is also irrelevant until the child can build a framework in which that person has meaning. One of the greatest challenges for a Christian (or any person of faith) is prayer. Formal prayer is easy because it's very much like sending a letter to Santa. You simply need to know that your god has the position of 'God' then your letter will arrive at the right place

Who is Jesus?

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There is no question that Jesus was born a Jew but did he live as a Jew? Jesus came to fulfil the Law so he had to be the perfect Jew, better than the Pharisees or any Jew before him. The question we then need to ask is, did he dispense with his Jewishness once he had completed his ministry and, in a sense, he did because he broke down the dividing wall between Jew and Gentile. Paul says, in Christ there is neither Jew nor Gentile. The important thing is that He made peace between the two. Crucially, Paul says that the Jews own the legacy and only when they are brought into the fold will the Gentiles have the full measure of the truth. Rediscovering the Jewish Jesus clearly gives us a fuller picture of who the historical Jesus was and what he meant by what he taught. It seems to me that Paul translated the Gospel into 'Christian' beautifully as did the other letter writers but Jesus, in the Gospels, was speaking to Jews as a rabbi, not to Christians as a pastor. Much of Christi

Love and Pray

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For Daniel Softly comes the evening chill When sun's warm glow is gone The day is done, its hours are spent Yet time still trundles on The day that was gives way to night But had it not been born The evening would be colder still We never would get warm And though sun's heat and light are quenched The moment it retires The trees have been both warmed and fed To build and fuel our fires The moon can but reflect the sun The night yearns for the day But when dusk calls and all is done We can but love and pray

Too Much Rubble

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In the 4th chapter of Nehemiah the Jews are mocked as they attempt to rebuild the wall of their devastated city. If being faced with a home city in tatters is not enough their neighbours mock their efforts to rebuild then, to add injury to insult, they threaten physical violence. And it doesn't end there. While their strength is giving out they are faced, not only with rebuilding an entire city wall, but clearing masses of rubble. "There is so much rubble that we cannot rebuild the wall", they say. How do you motivate yourself to face a task that you don't believe you can accomplish when everyone is betting on you failing anyway? Nehemiah first establishes a plan of action. He positions people at the weakest points with bows, spears and swords. Then he gives them a reason to fight. "Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your families, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes," he tells them. I've seen nature programmes

God Doesn't Care

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photo © Sarah Klockars-Clauser for openphoto.net CC:Attribution-ShareAlike I hear people say, "God won't let you down." But we know from experience that he does. He will stand you up at the street corner. He will ignore your prayer, allow you to screw up and to completely embarrass yourself. Jesus explicitly said that we would experience trouble in the world, that we would be ill treated and killed for being his friend. 11 of the 12 Apostles were murdered for honouring Jesus - counting Paul as an Apostle that makes 12 out of 12. If you're counting on life going smoothly, don't look to God. If you watch bank adverts with a critical eye you will realize that they all offer you the same thing, precisely nothing, wrapped up with fancy ribbons. They have no vested interest in your happiness. They only need to lure you into the net so they can use and abuse you and spit you out when you're no more use to them. You will find individuals and branches more or less hel

Unwanted Gifts

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photo © Miroslav Vajdić for openphoto.net CC:Attribution-NoDerivs Let me relate an insignificant incident. Many years ago when I was living with mum and dad we had a new magazine rack. I asked my mum whom this was a gift from. She told me that she and dad had bought it for themselves. I had a good childhood and never went without. We had holidays every year and led a full family life. But money was tight and frivolous spending was out of the question. Had my parents been more liberal with their spending we would not have had the treats that we always looked forward to but that meant we couldn't have something unless it was a gift, had been pre-planned or was a necessity. In my mind the magazine rack was an attractive accessory but not entirely necessary which placed it in the category of a gift. On the one hand this thinking has blighted my life because I've convinced myself I'm unworthy to gift myself just like I thought it strange that my parents would give themselves a

In Spirit and Truth

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photo © Sarah Klockars-Clauser for openphoto.net CC:Attribution-ShareAlike This was written some time ago in response to a guest article and the blogger's response to that article. The point I'm trying to make is that worship is a gift of God and, like the gift horse, should not be examined clinically. What should be tested is not the attitude of worshippers but attitudes towards worship. At one extreme some worship is viewed as entertainment or merely emotional and at the other that worshipping in spirit and in truth necessitates informality or freedom from constraint. We are in danger of being guests at the party arguing over who has given the best gift. The following is the main body of my response: I feel sad that the author feels we "must be very careful how we worship". It was for freedom that Christ set us free, no longer to be tied to customs, obligations and ritual. I also find it pompous to suggest that it is all about God. In corporate worship we are to bu

Snow in April

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A common understanding of inertia likens it to a snowball gaining speed and weight as it collects more and more snow on its way down a mountain. It would, in fact, be gaining inertia but not because it was rolling down a mountain but because it was gaining mass on its journey. As it gains inertia it becomes increasingly difficult to stop but, conversely, when it does stop it is equally as difficult to get moving again. Inertia is the tendency to resist change, which applies to stopping something or someone doing what it, or they, are doing or getting them to do something they are not. And, in theory, they are both the same. We find this when attempting to stop bad habits or start good ones though they follow the snowball principle in that their inertia increases the further we let them roll. This is an excellent principle for directing your life. For most of us there are new beginnings throughout our lives such as marriage, a new job, moving house, changing careers but the snowball pri

Prohibition Notice

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We are moving out. Its not that much of a wrench, nothing in the place was properly finished and we rattled about in a flat with much more space than we actually needed. In a way I feel robbed because I couldn't have afforded a comparable property in another location. It's like having two seats to ones self on the train and feeling a little peeved when it's legitimately occupied. Having what you need or deserve often feels like being short-changed. It is kind of scary. Making a home is such a primitive instinct and giving it up unwillingly always has echoes of abandonment and loss regardless of the affection in which you hold it. I remember being made redundant in the full knowledge that another job was waiting for me. I knew it was the job, not me, that was being terminated yet I still felt a keen sense of loss. I think it's the feeling of not being in control - not being the master of your destiny. Crises have either a purging or necrotising effect - they either force

Home Thoughts

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For the last 10 months I've been living in Ignorance. The building in which I live has been declared unfit for human habitation on the grounds of fire risk, a risk that has been present since the day I moved in so I'm now living in Danger. The postcode is the same but this house is no longer a home (officially). In this situation the council are obliged to ensure I'm not left homeless but that could mean putting me in a hostel. Its ironic that I'm being asked to move from the place that feels most like home at the moment to somewhere that would feel more like a prison to ensure that I am not homeless. We can define 'home' as the place where we live but very often it is merely the place where we are 'homed'. When you think of the refugee camps in Lebanon, people have been homed there for decades yet they are still referred to as refugee camps, full of refugees, camped. They are sojourners, in transit, hoping and praying that, some day, they will be not me

A Lib Dem in the Coalition for Marriage

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I would like to point out that this is not party political and I'm comparing my position to that of the Lib Dems within the government coalition and not with respect to any policy. It seems the coalition are committed to allowing gay couples to officially get married. While civil partnerships are recognised in this country they don't have the status of a married couple. This is considered by many to be unfair. After all, if we are not allowed to discriminate on the basis of sexual preference in the larger arena of public life then why should gay couples be treated any differently than heterosexual couples? This makes a good deal of sense and people of all persuasions can only presume that any resistance to gay marriage can only be a homophobic reaction born of ignorance or religious dogma. The fact that the church is the main voice of opposition only strengthens this opinion with the danger that the established church is seen as increasingly out of touch with society and irrele

Joining the Dots

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photo © anna for openphoto.net CC:Attribution-ShareAlike For some time I've been meaning to learn Classical Gas. For those of you who don't know, it's a guitar instrumental - you may have heard it but didn't know what it as called. Happily its based on a guitar technique I've been using for years so it's a bit like doing a dot-to dot where you just have to join a few dots and it begins to take shape. It seems like my whole life has been a dot-to-dot. I remember when I started school we were given wooden blocks as an aid to learning arithmetic, their lengths representing numbers. To me they were just nice coloured sticks. It was only many years later that I figured out what they were though I'm still not entirely sure. I don't think I understood school until I was about 15. Up till then it had been an instrument of humiliation and mental cruelty. I read some of my school reports a while ago and was surprised how negative and critical many of the comments