tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59707956291280883022024-03-14T02:00:43.589-07:00as I see it...For the curious and hungry of heartJez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comBlogger158125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-16583284261208322912024-03-06T02:10:00.000-08:002024-03-06T23:55:07.820-08:00The Most Vital, Yet Overlooked, Part of a Church Service.<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjEYzuzZCt59vGyueIYIrXNJ64aDKtBTLC0H8YjP2UsXYXlD_bUDLoXyt7ZZ8jVUS8gW5ewvJmOZ6axsBZ9WdDX7gHeJU0es8NDG5TuU52SSjSKVUk0Re0T8oOK6r6jK2oXIHpEHq2C0FgGpszHpqNRNvnUoIDWwl7Uc38eQoxbNZ-5g65nNFJeUukmxpI" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="484" data-original-width="650" height="395" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjEYzuzZCt59vGyueIYIrXNJ64aDKtBTLC0H8YjP2UsXYXlD_bUDLoXyt7ZZ8jVUS8gW5ewvJmOZ6axsBZ9WdDX7gHeJU0es8NDG5TuU52SSjSKVUk0Re0T8oOK6r6jK2oXIHpEHq2C0FgGpszHpqNRNvnUoIDWwl7Uc38eQoxbNZ-5g65nNFJeUukmxpI=w531-h395" width="531" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 20px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 13px;">Society shapes us, discipleship to Christ reshapes us. Belonging to a local church is a key aspect of our discipleship to Christ, and is therefore, key to our re-formation as people. Whilst our first family (the one we’re born into) has the </span><i style="font-size: 13px;">primary</i><span style="font-size: 13px;"> influence on us, the second family of the church ought to have the </span><i style="font-size: 13px;">lasting</i><span style="font-size: 13px;"> influence over us - meaning, it deposits things in us that last for eternity.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-size: 13px;"> </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It follows from this that what occurs during gatherings of the church are key aspects of our discipleship since they’re meant to form us into the image of Christ some more.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Jesus said: “Go and make disciples… teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you…” that was the MO given to us by our CEO, the agenda that’s meant to help inform everything we do.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I’ve thought about the mechanics of our Sunday gatherings a fair amount, and as a pastor I’ve experimented with a lot of different things over the years. Having been on church staff for twenty years now I’ve been in and created worship services with a range of different things. At various times we’ve used dance, moving lights, haze, videos, spoken words and drama. I’ve sat through sermons (and preached a few myself) that were close to an hour in length but I’ve also delivered ten minute exhortations. I’ve done the leg repetitions of an Anglican (up, down, up down) but I’ve also sung for a full ninety minutes. I’ve seen the full range of the charismatic gifts in operation too from prophetic actions, to specific prophecies, to healings, to tongues and interpretation. I’ve even been prayed through a few ‘fire tunnels’ in my time.</p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Almost all of the things I’ve seen, practised and believed-for over the years have had some degree of merit to them, all of them certainly have their place in some gatherings of the church.</p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Whilst I’ve witnessed a lot of variation ‘from the stage’ or in the kind of meetings we put on, there’s one part of the church’s worship services that I’ve hardly ever seen change. I can think of Sunday gatherings over the years that haven’t had sermons or much singing, but I can’t ever recall coming to church and this not being a part of it. I’m referring of course to the part of the gathering (that most people don’t even consider ‘part of the gathering’ at all), the serving of refreshments. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a guest event, a baptism Sunday or a prayer Sunday. It matters not whether we share communion or recite the creed or share the peace, there will always always be a time for tea and coffee, or chai and juice, oranges and brioche or biscuits and cake.</p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It seems almost sacrosanct, untouchable even, and yet its precisely because of its familiarity<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>that it’s likely we’ve given it next to no thought or attention. We should.</p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">This part of a Sunday gathering, that usually happens after we’ve ‘dismissed’ the room, is as vital as any other part of our meeting together. In fact I’d suggest that, in a cultural context like ours, its possibly of greater importance than some of the formal bits we do in the meeting proper.</p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Our Cultural Context</span></b></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Our social and cultural reality, the background we all bring with us to church, is one of consumerism on the one hand and, what we might call, ‘therapeutic spirituality’ on the other. It’s these realities more than many others, that inform how people relate to Sunday gatherings and it’s the dominance of these realities that make the time for refreshments after church even more vital.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i>Let’s consider consumerism first</i>. We’re trained in this on a daily basis. Our culture needs us token buying things and keep us feeling as though we need to buy more stuff; it’s how our economy functions. It also feeds into our spiritual formation. Not only does the conditioning of consumerism mean we ‘come to church’ expecting a product or service each Sunday (and expect our priests/pastors/prophets/band to engage, entertain and enrich our lives), it also means that we are much more likely to become spectators rather than shapers in the church’s activities. There’s more going on of course than simply ‘consumerism’ - we arrange our meetings like a concert hall, and the presence of 100+ people necessitates that most people won’t be able to speak from the stage. Nevertheless, these things actually serve to make the refreshments after the service all the more important. The only part of a Sunday gathering in which every single one of the saints can play a vital shaping role is this part. When the meeting host says ‘that’s it, we’re done’ every single person in the room is then invited to befriend, love, listen to, serve and pray with whoever they want. Hereby we become the body of Christ mediating Jesus’ presence to the people around us. Even if there’s a case for saying we’re meant to ‘consume’ the service - we ingest the body of Christ and are nurtured by it after all - following this reception of the gospel, we’re meant to then become Jesus’ ambassadors to others.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">What this means is that if a person dashes away as soon as the meeting ends, consumerism is having the lasting influence on their worship practise. We are preventing the gospel from doing its ultimate work of re-forming us and we are allowing the world to shape us in its image. The church isn’t meant to be transactional. We aren’t supposed to pray a pray or light a candle and then leave, like making a deposit at the bank or purchasing a blessing from the religious equivalent to Tesco. That’s how pagan spirituality works, that isn’t how the church is meant to operate. Church is the people of God, his family.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Resist, stay for coffee.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">As you do so you’ll build links with others, become enmeshed in social networks and make familial friendships. As you do this, not only are you gaining a more Christian perspective on life you’re also enhancing the health of the whole.</p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b>Secondly: therapeutic spirituality.</b> What do I mean by this? Closely linked to consumerism, but distinct from it, is the common idea that spiritual practises are private and personal, and also that they’re mood enhancing. People who prefer the term ‘spiritual’ to ‘religious’ often do so for those reasons. Being spiritual depends on me and my freedom to choose how I practise and what I do. And whilst it’s not necessarily selfish, it is certainly self-oriented and selective. After all people who prefer ‘spirituality’ to ‘religion’ often do so because religion sounds to groupthink-y and smacks of institutionalism. Spirituality has less people around me to mess it up!</p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">There are a couple of problems with this from a Christian perspective. First it devalues the body, and sees spiritual practises purely as things that affect the inner life of my emotions and my mind. The second is that it doesn’t lend itself to the creation of community or family something that’s vital to Christian practise. Therapeutic Spirituality isn’t interested in serving others (unless this can be shown to improve oneself), and doesn’t promote self-denial. It also relegates the necessary aspects of building a relationship with someone, to the bin of ‘small talk’. Instead Therapeutic Spirituality wants to dive instantly into personally gratifying experiences and therefore only concerns itself with ‘deep’ conversations. Concerned about local issues? <i>Boring! </i>Worried about your child getting a place at school? <i>Unspiritual!</i></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Needless to say, the way of Jesus is different to this.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Spirituality isn’t the stuff that concerns our inner life but is rather the stuff that concerns (and comes from) the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is concerned with the glorification of Jesus (not the self) and he strengthens us by causing us to feed on and become like Jesus. Become like Jesus. Jesus was a man who loved others, denied himself, preferred his Father’s will to his own and committed himself to people who were clearly below his intellectual and religious ability. The Spirit shapes us into this kind of a human by distributing gifts between the church. This then requires us to <i>both</i> rely on other people <i>and</i> make a deliberate use of our gifts for the sake of others. This is how the Spirit of Jesus takes on bodily form (think Sauron only his opposite!) and this is how we become like Jesus.</p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">How does the part of the church’s gathering that we call ‘fellowship’ do this?<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It starts by pushing us into a different <i>mode</i> of Spirituality than the one we’ve been in during the service. Whilst the worship service is taking place it’s easy to preference some people’s gifts over others. Teachers and tongue talkers, or interpreters, get more air time than helpers and peace makers or wisdom bringers. Once the meeting has finished however we can then make room for all the other gifts. We can greet one another with a sign of peace, we can welcome outsiders and show hospitality to strangers. We can listen to (and thereby bring healing) to our brother’s pain, and we can validate our sister’s suffering. Above all, we can deny our needs to be loved and instead offer love to others. This, whilst it may not feel instantly gratifying, is Christian worship and this is the spirituality of the Spirit.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">In Conclusion</span></b></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I’ll never forget my first few months as a pastor in a church planting context. I worked hard to try and ensure my sermon’s added benefit to people’s lives, I spent hours working with the worship team to discuss song selection, and I sat with the meeting hosts and administrators regularly to discuss body participation and the needs of the children’s workers (always for more help).<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Despite all that hard work and diligence however I soon came to see that the reason people ‘came back’ each week had very little to do with those things. They weren’t unimportant of course, but they weren’t the thing that was making our church healthy. What I noticed, as we ate food and drank coffee was that slowly but surely friendships were being formed. People were being cared for and life was beginning to emerge.</p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It got to the point where I felt pretty confident with our family life and would tell people ‘we struggle to get visitors to come to church, but when they do come I can almost <i>guarantee </i>they’ll want to come back.’ And it wasn’t because of the preaching.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It’s almost like Jesus was right when he said: <i>people will be able to tell you’re my disciples by the way you love one another</i>.</p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The most vital, but often overlooked, parts of a Sunday gathering is the tea and coffee. Don’t screw it up or overlook its importance.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p4" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Christians, drink coffee (or tea if you must).</p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-75811903509733433612024-03-02T14:29:00.000-08:002024-03-02T14:29:38.451-08:00 The Universe Doesn’t Care About You…<p><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13px;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi8ASXm4NGvMfH_NHvIKEKQiEi-gi9SZlgspwpEDEyjYYcvToPy_Tn8FRHzhoYDn9mucSJnOutOKYgXvXZt_ZErQzc_3bVtLd1feshLqqEYYfs4XhboVV6Qx-PFUlPCrpNQIW3qHah53B903P-CWe8uAWP-9UQ1o9XoL3h2-lhE_KyehZYJbPrgvff4X4M" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1333" data-original-width="2000" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi8ASXm4NGvMfH_NHvIKEKQiEi-gi9SZlgspwpEDEyjYYcvToPy_Tn8FRHzhoYDn9mucSJnOutOKYgXvXZt_ZErQzc_3bVtLd1feshLqqEYYfs4XhboVV6Qx-PFUlPCrpNQIW3qHah53B903P-CWe8uAWP-9UQ1o9XoL3h2-lhE_KyehZYJbPrgvff4X4M" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13px;">I</span><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13px;">t’s true, it doesn’t and I see no reason to contest that Richard Dawkins’ assessment is inaccurate either: </span><i style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13px;">DNA neither cares nor knows. DNA just is. And we dance to its music.</i><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13px;"> I am not a significant organism in the world, and I will not be leave a ‘dent’ on the universe, a reality that's expressed well in Psalm 103:</span><p></p><blockquote><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">“The life of mortals is like grass,</p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"> they flourish like a flower of the field;</p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">the wind blows over it and it is gone,</p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"> and its place remembers it no more.”</p></blockquote><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">You see, when we consider our place in the universe and our insignificance (in terms of our size), I find it hard to come up with any reason to disagree with Dawkins or indeed with Oliver Burkeman, who concludes his book on the meaning of life, with the observation that <i>‘what you do with your life doesn’t matter all that much—and when it comes to how you’re using your finite time, the universe absolutely could not care less. . .’<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></i></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><i></i><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Amazon describes this particular book as: ‘uplifting.’</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">‘<i>Meaningless meaningless, everything is meaningless,</i>’ writes the author of Ecclesiastes or to be more precise (in the original Hebrew), ‘<i>Abel abel, everything is abel</i> ’ - remember Abel, that<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>poor second born son of Eve who was murdered by his brother? Everything, we’re told, is simply Abel an agony and a vapour, empty and over all too soon.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The trouble we have with accepting Burkeman’s conclusion and Dawkins’ realism is that, well, life doesn’t <i>feel </i>like it’s meaningless and we don’t <i>feel</i> as though our lives are insignificant. For many modern writers they conclude that humanity's task is to simply learn to stare this cold truth down, to make our peace with it and to finally rid ourselves of its delusion. Then, they often go on to tell us, what remains is to simply try and enjoy life all the same, ‘make the most’ of life however long we get (4000 weeks by Burkeman’s estimate). I hear this time and again in sermons by materialists and atheist celebrities: <i>it's an incredibly exciting thing, this one, meaningless life of yours. Good luck. (Tim Minchin)</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>And I don’t doubt their conclusion based on the sources they’re using. </p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Stare at the dirt through a microscope for long enough and you’ll doubtless come to the same conclusion. The universe really doesn’t appear to care about us one bit. My problem is that all of it just seems to be a little, well, obvious. In fact it’s so obvious it’s a wonder they feel the need to say it in the first place, let alone say it with 80,000 words. Many of these writers are wonderfully gifted with brilliant minds but in the end they’re really not saying anything that’s worth the time of day. <i>Tell me something I don't know why not</i>.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Having said that however, the main issue I have with all these books and blogs is that they fail to engage properly with the main piece of evidence we have to the contrary. The philosophy of the Stoics or the religion of the pre-modern world didn’t pretend to promote the value or dignity of the human race. As far as the Romans/Greeks/Egyptians/Bebylonians were concerned humanity existed to be the slaves of the gods. They/we simply didn't matter to the gods, and we certainly weren't loved by them.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So why, I ask do we feel the need to confront an insistence that we do matter? Who conned the world into normalising the belief to the contrary?<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">One word: <i>Jesus</i>.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Jesus taught poor, agrarian peasants, with a life expectancy of little more than thirty that they matterered. In fact he even went so far as to teach that the most minute details of their lives matter: “Not one sparrow falls to the ground apart from your Father’s knowledge… and you are worth more than many sparrows.” (Mt. 10:19</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Of course, just saying nice things that make us feel better about ourselves doesn’t make them true, but I’m suggesting that <i>he’s</i> the reason we feel justified in holding on to some odd sense of our innate value and cosmic significance. Jesus is to blame. He's to blame, not that feel these things (every organism undoubtedly feels themselves to be central), but that we feel justified in feeling like this. Outside of Jesus we’re told to ‘wake up from delusion’ (Buddhism, Materialism, Stoicism etc.), but because of Jesus we're told 'your Father loves you.'</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">So what evidence did Jesus offer to back up this claim, and why did his ideas get noticed when all the philosophy of his day stood in opposition to him?<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Two things:<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><ol class="ol1"><li class="li3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Jesus died, for us. And as he died he pronounced forgiveness over us, demonstrating in his death the Father’s great love for us.</li><li class="li3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">He was raised to life again, for us. Jesus didn’t simply die a meaningful death, he rose again as validation of his proclamation.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></li></ol><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It was this and this alone that turned the obvious truth that ‘the universe doesn’t care’ on its head. Sure, the universe may not care - but what about the one who made the universe?<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The universe doesn’t care, but the one who made it does.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The very next verse to the one quoted above in Psalm 103 continues:</p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><blockquote><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">the wind blows over it and it is gone,</p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"> and its place remembers it no more.</p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i>But from everlasting to everlasting</i></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i> the Lord’s love is with those who fear him,</i></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i> and his righteousness with their children’s children—</i></p></blockquote><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The reason your life matters isn’t because of the dent you’ll make on the universe, rather it’s the imprint you’ve made on God’s heart. We know this instinctively to be true of course. When a person becomes a parent they know that their new born baby is of no consequence to Pollux the brightest star in Gemini’s constellation. No, their baby isn’t important because it’s impressive, it’s important because it’s loved.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And so are you.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-72347584267186100742024-02-23T06:39:00.000-08:002024-02-23T06:40:10.794-08:00 The End of the Libido, & the Beginning of Loneliness<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgoHp3Bplc17CfZdcboWBUgsOtkAAz9alsKQbpRNhUnU2Gv9REZt_9j8ysQirZiCn6u9YDIhsp_eOxfTfi3FVCqAD5Er2CxH0BYFQJE-TOIUBjDn5XSM3iZFt02OVGkDktbvP5y3Y7ZFYdSM9wXwny2e2wwZn39J-Dc1_qYmW1_XEO6W4RtF-s5Mk3pw4/s460/Any-Human-Heart-006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="276" data-original-width="460" height="349" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgoHp3Bplc17CfZdcboWBUgsOtkAAz9alsKQbpRNhUnU2Gv9REZt_9j8ysQirZiCn6u9YDIhsp_eOxfTfi3FVCqAD5Er2CxH0BYFQJE-TOIUBjDn5XSM3iZFt02OVGkDktbvP5y3Y7ZFYdSM9wXwny2e2wwZn39J-Dc1_qYmW1_XEO6W4RtF-s5Mk3pw4/w582-h349/Any-Human-Heart-006.jpg" width="582" /></a></div><blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"> </span><i style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: 13px;">“Francine has announced that she doesn’t want any more visits to her apartment - the neighbours are talking about the men who come and go. She would be very happy to meet me in a hotel… [but] this is unaffordable, so the news appears to put an end to my sexual life.</span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">1</span><span style="font-size: 13px;">”</span></i></div></blockquote><p></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Logan Mountstuart has kept a personal journal throughout his lifetime and notes in passing the conclusion of his sexual activity. It’s been a constant theme in his writing but now as an old man he resigns himself that it, along with his life, is all but over. And that’s partly the point of the novel.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I recently read William Boyd’s book <i>Any Human Heart</i> (quoted above) and couldn’t help notice the central role that sex played in the central character’s life - that it presumably plays in so many of our lives. He was happy only when his sex life was regular and varied and thus Boyd depicts middle class liberal life, in the 20th Century free from the restraints of religion and many of its historic social taboos.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">And yet, like so many of the other characters in the book, the last few years of Logan Mountstuart’s life are lonely ones. He dies alone and is only discovered by a kindly neighbour sometime later:<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><blockquote><i>“LMS was eighty-five years old when he died. He was discovered towards the end of the day when Jean-Robert, realising that something was amis discovered LMS dead, face down on the grass beside a corner of the barn where there was a large clump of thistles. He noticed that LMS’s cat was not far away, curled up on a stone, watching everything intently.”</i></blockquote><p></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It’s a sad ending and yet it’s also one that reads much like a commentary depicting the impact of the sexual revolution. In our stories and by our cultural rulings we’re raised to believe that satisfying and honouring our libido’s needs<i> </i>(not wants - <i>needs</i>) is central to our happiness and central to our identity. This may be fine except that, it’s not true.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 13px;">In a study undertaken by Carnegie University in the US, psychologists tested whether increased sexual frequency showed any improvement on levels of personal happiness. They recruited two groups of couples, tested their happiness levels and then commissioned half of the couples to carry on as they had been and the other half to double the amount of sexual intercourse they were having. Following the study they reported that there is ‘</span><i><span style="font-size: 13px;">no causal relationship running from sexual frequency to </span><span style="font-size: x-small;">happiness</span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">2</span></i><span style="font-size: 13px;">.’</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><h2 style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">More sex, doesn’t lead to greater happiness.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b></h2><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Here we come upon a truth that all of us instinctively know to be true, but few of our social institutions are prepared to encourage. Our wants, whether hormonal our instinctual, make for terrible leaders in life. They may be effective deputies, but put them in charge of many of our decisions and we’ll end up squandering rather than fulfilling life’s opportunity.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The historian Carl Truman, writes about the failure of the sexual revolution:</p><blockquote><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i><span style="font-size: 13px;">“we have yet to see the full effect of the free-floating sexual life of no commitments on that other current health problem: loneliness. I’d wager it will intensify, not mitigate, the problem of late-life isolation and despair.</span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">3</span></i><span style="font-size: 13px;">”</span></p></blockquote><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Free-floating, atomistic ‘no strings’ sex, that treats coitus as yet more recreational activity among many available to us, leads (inevitably) to seclusion and isolation. Like a pinball bouncing off the bumpers, while life’s good and we’re kept busy bouncing from partner to partner we appear successful (just look at that high score!), but eventually gravity wins, every time. You see, our biology must be subject to something else - it cannot be trusted to drive wherever it wants to. Whether you call it <i>meaning</i>, or <i>purpose</i> or simply talk about your ‘values’ they must be given license to determine how we steer and suppress our instincts and appetites.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Psychiatrist Jon Bowlby demonstrated using baby chimpanzees that there is a deeper need in the world that craves, not the satiation of our appetites, but our concern for connection. Given a choice between bare metal feeding tubes, that dispensed milk, and a cushion-soft one that was dry (and so didn’t dispense any milk), the chimps would often prefer the one that more accurately imitated the softness of its mother. Intimacy and affection matters more than nutrition, it’s a more basic need.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 13px;">Consider also, alongside this, what biologists refer to as the strange case of ‘human monogamy’</span><span style="font-size: xx-small;">4.</span><span style="font-size: 13px;"> Human beings are the only primates, it seems, in which monogamy is not only normal but also produces many benefits, ranging from improved social stability and</span><i style="font-size: 13px;"> </i><span style="font-size: 13px;">increased levels of individual happiness.</span><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">5</span></i><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-size: 13px;"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It seems that whilst my genes are purely selfish, wanting sex in order to secure my organism's future, my soul wants love. Subjugating my hormones reaction to, say, the image of a woman’s body, to my deeper soul level need for love leads to more lasting happiness. And herein lies the solution to Logan Mountstuart’s ennui. Maturity involves making peace and enjoying a healthy partnership between our body and our soul. The goal isn’t to become more ‘spiritual’ (to prefer the needs of the spirit above the needs of the needs of the body say) but to become more human. Maturity doesn’t mean denying your appetites, instead it means enlisting them in a cause greater than they could attain by themselves.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">For a while now we’ve been convinced that examining material reality and increasing our knowledge about the physical world will lead to personal fulfilment. We've believed that by examining what <i><u>is</u></i> we can accurately pass edcist about what <i><u>ought</u> </i>to be as well. In our crusade to free the animal from social control we’ve torn down fences erected by our unscientific ancestors and have acted as though we know better than they. But maybe they (our unscientific elders), for all their lack of scientific knowledge, possessed more wisdom than we do.</p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">If listening to the libido leads to loneliness, celebrating the equality of our body/soul unity led us to create covenants and communities which ultimately enabled deeper, and longer lasting connection.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-converted-space"><br /></span></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><ol class="ol1"><li class="li4" style="color: #dca10d; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Any Human Heart, William Boyd</li><li class="li4" style="color: #dca10d; font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="color: black;"><a href="https://www.cmu.edu/dietrich/sds/docs/loewenstein/IncreasedSexualFrequency.pdf">https://www.cmu.edu/dietrich/sds/docs/loewenstein/IncreasedSexualFrequency.pdf</a></span></li><li class="li3" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 13px;">https://www.firstthings.com/web-exclusives/2024/02/stds-in-the-usa </span></span></li><li class="li3" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 13px;">Testosterone, Carole Hooven</span></span></li><li class="li3" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 13px;">Ibid.</span></span></li></ol>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-3567220263157272222024-02-21T01:41:00.000-08:002024-02-21T07:43:34.482-08:00Symbolism: What We Do, Says Something (part 1)<p><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13px;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjb72ROlNybNCc9VMl29-g8T10cNTaQhjuVVoQGQyIxbdu4SDNnhaG9XmEh0eLi8W90yzNyY0oMvJcR-oXoygeJ4ClcHT6GZu0_9Ia_1Oe0I7XZwj56cnYgRYr3EBo0zm1uElaXEV4XJZWA8K_jJrQHTkoTts3l-7ws08-WYgfyY57umftgE2reUFLqn5M" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="540" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjb72ROlNybNCc9VMl29-g8T10cNTaQhjuVVoQGQyIxbdu4SDNnhaG9XmEh0eLi8W90yzNyY0oMvJcR-oXoygeJ4ClcHT6GZu0_9Ia_1Oe0I7XZwj56cnYgRYr3EBo0zm1uElaXEV4XJZWA8K_jJrQHTkoTts3l-7ws08-WYgfyY57umftgE2reUFLqn5M" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13px;">Burning a flag or sticking pins into a photo, or spitting or swearing; all of them are signs of disrespect, some of them are punishable by law. They are also all dependent on stories and contexts for them to make sense. Sticking a sharp object into chemically coated and coloured paper, needn’t </span><i style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13px;">mean</i><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13px;"> anything at all, neither should the act of setting fire to a piece of rectangular cloth. However, since as human beings, we are meaning makers and moral actors we operate on instinct that our actions serve a narrative purpose.</span><span class="Apple-converted-space" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13px;"> </span></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">In some cases the meaning of our actions are revealed easily (spitting at someone say), in others a lot depends on our being able to read the language being sued. When Saddam Hussein was deposed as leader of Iraq in 2003, the symbolic toppling of his statue by American troops was easy enough to understand, but when the locals began slapping the statue with their shoes, (or just waving them in the air) I felt decidedly confused. The actors on our news screens (mostly Middle Eastern men) thought they were sending a clear enough message, after all <i>they</i> all knew what shoe waving meant, but their action was as non-sensical as any foreign language might.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Our ability to express abstract ideas through physical symbols and actions is one of the most astonishing things about the human race. Things like: subtlety, innuendo, double entendre, suggestion and nuance can all be conveyed with the slightest adjustment of an eyebrow, or, depending on the context, a tap of a chair or a nudge of an arm. The fact remains that only seven percent of our intended meaning is carried by the literal words we speak (thirty-eight percent in tone and fifty five percent in body language). By symbolic and intended meaning, our actions have the power to transform benign things into holy relics with dramatic effect. As the cliched NASA illustration goes, even the man sweeping the floor can believe himself to be ‘putting a man on the moon’.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Believing (and living as though) our actions carry importance is all part of how we escape reality’s nihilistic terror. Storming the Capital <i>means</i> more than storming the local supermarket and thus we (the actors in the moment) believe that our actions make us history makers rather than petty criminals.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The point of all this is to say that way we live out our lives points to a shared belief that reality is bigger than and more than merely material. We all live in such a way that, despite whatever professions to the contrary we might make, showcases a belief in a non-physical (but ultimately real) world. Our lives and our actions, so we believe, are best understood as being more than simply the some of their component parts.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Reality is therefore (at least) double-layered, and we know this long before anyone tries to teach us about ‘heaven’ or propose a multiverse. We know this since being able to effectively navigate the world and build relationships with others relies on our ability to effectively interact with both the visible and the invisible parts of life, the explicit and implicit.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">There exists, you see, both the sign and the signified, and both are real and neither require the other to exist for them to be real. The reality that the sign points to (the signified, the implicit and the invisible), would exist even without this physical expression. The way most cultures have thought about this, before materialism became so widespread and dominant, is to talk in terms of a <i>heavenly</i> and an <i>earthly</i> space, a spiritual realm and a corporeal one.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">As a Christian I believe that the implicit, subtle, unseen, and spiritual aspect of reality is <i>good,</i> and that our physical world is also good. Whilst each also contains elements of corruption (deviation from the good), life works ‘best’ when they work in harmony with one another. Things that are beautiful are beautiful precisely when they represent a happy union of the two.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Now, what does all this mean in practise?<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Our bodies and our images, as well as our actions and our acting, <i>mean</i> something and in fact are signs by themselves. For all our talk about our bodies being malleable bits of machinery, we still think that wearing a suit to a funeral means something different to wearing beach shorts, say. We hold that observing a time of silence in memorial matters, as does crying in grief or cheering in celebration. And whilst many of our actions rely on cultural norms, many of them do not. Smiling means the same thing everywhere, as does a clenched fist. The materialist must hold that utility explains all that the value of hugging can be seen purely by the physical benefit we receive, in this case the oxytocin that gets released and the resulting connection it creates, that leads in turn to an increased chance of survival. Much of (all of?) our behaviour, according to the materialist, can thus be explained purely on the basis of our organism’s fight to exist. We are finely tuned survival machines.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">It may well be the case that such actions can be explained in this way, but they can’t be explained <i>away</i>. Need we choose between kissing and microbe exchange? A personal explanation of things you see, does credit to more of reality than a material one and allows for a fuller union and harmony between heaven and earth.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Rightly and effectively does chivalry, courage and honour call out to a man insisting that he subjugates his purely instinctual and animal actions to a higher and fuller duty. Such things<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>make a man out of the ape.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">With all this in mind we can say that since what we do with our bodies actually matters so, as part of it, our sexual activity matters. A man and a woman being joined together aren’t just <i>doing</i> something, they’re <i>saying</i> something as well. The image of them lays claim to a union and fittedness inherent in the world; two equal and opposite forces, feminine and masculine, heaven and earth are joining together. This has symbolic and imaginative power, and not only for erotic purposes. And just as the best works of art have many levels and intricacies to them, so too do our actions. The physical action may mean something, but the physical action done within the confines of a covenantal commitment means something more. We are moving the minerals of the world into deeper levels of organisation and meaning. In this way our happiness in life is enriched, by imbuing our behaviour with higher purpose. Mopping the floor does something, but it also means something and when done for higher reasons has the power of alchemy to make drudgery divine.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Holding this to be true, we must also notice that two male or two female bodies, or one male and two female (or any other arrangement) being joined in sexual union is also <i>saying</i> something. They are images and actions, not of fittedness but of subversion. You see by our actions we can take an image and corrupt it, and since we are actors in a cosmic drama we all do so knowingly and wilfully, sometimes shaking our fist at the way of things. This is to say nothing of the feeling between the people involved, it’s simply to say that the images make striking statements and send clear messages.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">If we hold that our acting is meant to uphold and live in union and partnership with the Heavens then we must make it our aim to conform our acting to this largest and most grand narrative available to us.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">This isn’t something that affects only our sexuality, though this is one of its most dramatic arenas; this is something that affects all of life, from how we live out our maleness and femaleness to how we raise our children, order our governments, relate to foreign powers and treat our neighbours.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Our actions have symbolic value, and that matters.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-63857828470897787472023-12-28T09:51:00.000-08:002023-12-28T09:56:30.715-08:00My Media 2023<h2 style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZDwds9vhjIEwS9wwZR633kB0ENeV7Cpn5XH-GPs58D7xjS_u7ObC6S1EAeXTw1x6fCLT6oPLk_XrzHUaEUR-VIeB32vUrgdaO4Dvkfm3z7zNAXOvlcFAnAnID2fxNQoGrQC3wlTUrednoM1K3sGlw3Jq8JtJFsB06njj8wv4A7NlY1NmmXlRqvT6UlUA/s6000/med.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="6000" height="122" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZDwds9vhjIEwS9wwZR633kB0ENeV7Cpn5XH-GPs58D7xjS_u7ObC6S1EAeXTw1x6fCLT6oPLk_XrzHUaEUR-VIeB32vUrgdaO4Dvkfm3z7zNAXOvlcFAnAnID2fxNQoGrQC3wlTUrednoM1K3sGlw3Jq8JtJFsB06njj8wv4A7NlY1NmmXlRqvT6UlUA/w675-h122/med.png" width="675" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">In contrast to some of the high-brow and freakishly long reading lists from people being shared this time of the year. Here's something more low-brow </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">achievable</span><span style="font-weight: normal;">; my list of things I've enjoyed reading, exploring and learning this year. From books, films and TV shows to podcasts, memes and alarming statistics it's been fun - enjoy!</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">📖 </span> <span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">Books.</span> <span style="font-size: x-large;">📖 </span></div></h2><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn80N9p9XbM89VuVU8Xm03v5A3n5QAnledETWkvllTeLPPTQlkN5A_ESXroHNn-da2CBDB7xzZPqd7nsDvKnfFDKc9jZEcNlq6PdLnP9uJmMbEW4GLnVmHPqvSLFw1l1X9Bpdy0oI_wi0i_Z017PxTwTptNb0HGbzOyd5yn2ggVZ5zKaQ37iXQoC_nG9E/s6000/banner2.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="6000" height="101" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn80N9p9XbM89VuVU8Xm03v5A3n5QAnledETWkvllTeLPPTQlkN5A_ESXroHNn-da2CBDB7xzZPqd7nsDvKnfFDKc9jZEcNlq6PdLnP9uJmMbEW4GLnVmHPqvSLFw1l1X9Bpdy0oI_wi0i_Z017PxTwTptNb0HGbzOyd5yn2ggVZ5zKaQ37iXQoC_nG9E/w561-h101/banner2.png" width="561" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I love following up leads and discovering great reads across a range of different interests. This year I read history from Dominic Sandbrook's great children's (ahem) books: <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Adventures-Time-Alexander-Dominic-Sandbrook/dp/0141994304/ref=sr_1_1?crid=13E1TPHZQELSF&keywords=dominic+sandbrook+alexander+the+great&qid=1703783273&sprefix=dominic+sandbrook+alexa%2Caps%2C104&sr=8-1" target="_blank">Alexander the Great</a>, <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Adventures-Time-Vikings-Dominic-Sandbrook/dp/0141999209/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1CKLO5NL9LPIX&keywords=dominic+sandbrook+vikings&qid=1703783310&sprefix=dominic+sandbrook+vikings%2Caps%2C89&sr=8-1" target="_blank">the Vikings</a> and <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Adventures-Time-First-World-War/dp/0141994312/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1703783348&sr=8-3" target="_blank">World War I</a> (they are good for big children too!), to the magnificent and eagerly anticipated history of the modern west since <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Remaking-World-1776-Created-Post-Christian-ebook/dp/B0BY3K4XQ5/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3P5QSN9INLXQJ&keywords=remaking+the+world+andrew&qid=1703783390&sprefix=remaking+the+world+andrew%2Caps%2C99&sr=8-1" target="_blank">1776</a> by my friend Andrew Wilson. I also really enjoyed Animal Farm by George Orwell and Lord of the Flies by William Golding along with learning communication skills from a top FBI negotiator (Chris Voss: <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Never-Split-Difference-Negotiating-Depended/dp/B07T7L39TN/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1H9RNJD83V4OH&keywords=never+split+the+difference+chris+voss&qid=1703783441&sprefix=never%2Caps%2C105&sr=8-1" target="_blank">Never Split the Difference</a>). Danielle Treweek's book <i><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Meaning-Singleness-Retrieving-Eschatological-Contemporary/dp/1514004852/ref=sr_1_1?crid=YPGFX22RC7CU&keywords=danielle+treweek&qid=1703783523&s=audible&sprefix=danielle+trew%2Caudible%2C95&sr=1-1" target="_blank">The Meaning of Singleness</a></i> has probably been the book that's shaped by thinking most this year and Glen Scrivener's <i><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Air-We-Breathe-Kindness-Progress/dp/B0B3H1HNXZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=CIM0Q47HNDBK&keywords=air+we+breathe&qid=1703783486&s=audible&sprefix=air+we+%2Caudible%2C86&sr=1-1" target="_blank">The Air We Breathe</a> </i>is the one I've bought the most copies to give away to others.</div></div><div><span><br /></span></div><div><b style="font-size: x-large;">Top 3 books</b></div><div><b style="font-size: x-large;"> </b></div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi16hNKS9dcUZRYEtllINbEhfBefakiTTWLqsNOcbZOey8-d_v74cIGTzwdWEuXPAYufx5_L9N7nptiqAFH1ZG4fFiPMQmp_iiK-ksgAZSJtpuJjqD7JZOsgPaaM_uY35YWS6kpkIj2eX2SLminWLB1_8PGjuQl_unZr1M4yPVbwsRaKfSsuWFKFDhhUZE/s1000/71KltDmweBL._AC_UF1000,1000_QL80_.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="663" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi16hNKS9dcUZRYEtllINbEhfBefakiTTWLqsNOcbZOey8-d_v74cIGTzwdWEuXPAYufx5_L9N7nptiqAFH1ZG4fFiPMQmp_iiK-ksgAZSJtpuJjqD7JZOsgPaaM_uY35YWS6kpkIj2eX2SLminWLB1_8PGjuQl_unZr1M4yPVbwsRaKfSsuWFKFDhhUZE/w120-h181/71KltDmweBL._AC_UF1000,1000_QL80_.jpg" width="120" /></a></div></b></span><b>1. The Toxic War on Masculinity </b>-<i> Nancy Pearcey</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div>This is the book I didn't realise I was waiting for! Professor Pearcey manages to diagnose an important problem and where it came from. She cuts through the noise and controversy with a book that is full of heart, history and sociology. Raised in a home with an abusive father she is well equipped from personal experience to speak on the subject. I also had the privilege to interview Professor Pearcey for a forthcoming podcast episode out at the end of July. She was a delight to speak to, and after two hours of conversation I have even more admiration and respect for her than I did before, an absolute treat and honour. My favourite read of the year.</div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-YAhQjaWSYOS1koVmbT-ITH2KpLQ-7bx0OIWW18WzSo6ItIvXY3_A8nNb9UgtAENWnv0TlHl-xT4kQGczIfabGDIAkaV0QutKAqvE8FrgnLFOv_VEXaCWgK-OzDy4VUym-2FhUmSt0jWpUmJU8CYs-lBIJ2Z1AO-gAZjT3xye3Ynw3nxBFTu7n6lfnQw/s500/1847923674.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="322" height="189" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-YAhQjaWSYOS1koVmbT-ITH2KpLQ-7bx0OIWW18WzSo6ItIvXY3_A8nNb9UgtAENWnv0TlHl-xT4kQGczIfabGDIAkaV0QutKAqvE8FrgnLFOv_VEXaCWgK-OzDy4VUym-2FhUmSt0jWpUmJU8CYs-lBIJ2Z1AO-gAZjT3xye3Ynw3nxBFTu7n6lfnQw/w122-h189/1847923674.jpg" width="122" /></a></div><br /> <b>2. When Breath Becomes Air - </b><i>Paul Kalinisi</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div>This book often gets referenced in the books I read, and I now understand why! Diagnosed with terminal cancer in his thirties, Paul Kalanithi documents his reflections on sickness, death and meaning. He's a gifted writer, courageous in the face of an incurable disease and honest about the limits of science to answer life's most important questions. </div><div><br /></div><div>Wonderfully (and surprisingly) he became a Christian and provides a lovely little defence of Christian faith toward the end of the book. </div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKyvOwf71ak5x0CvNAkCkn8a6LW4PPbgtferrc2i0_n1T31ws7WTcdb3lgz584whQ1CweKH6uWj7g7PTWF16lYIy2c06h7G5S1nB68Xf4-SWVsvGufV1AUqEnU57nJt6ZsdDb-UGmx9Njj407W972BjMGuVDim8loULSHQI-xK5cHpZuEGpudsF7YapXE/s400/9780330460668.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="263" height="185" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKyvOwf71ak5x0CvNAkCkn8a6LW4PPbgtferrc2i0_n1T31ws7WTcdb3lgz584whQ1CweKH6uWj7g7PTWF16lYIy2c06h7G5S1nB68Xf4-SWVsvGufV1AUqEnU57nJt6ZsdDb-UGmx9Njj407W972BjMGuVDim8loULSHQI-xK5cHpZuEGpudsF7YapXE/w122-h185/9780330460668.jpg" width="122" /></a></div>3. Guernica </b>- <i>Dave Boling</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div>I read this book whilst in the region of Spain that it's set and it transported me! It took a while to get into it but once the character's were established and the stage set, Dave Boling delivers a heart wrenching tale of love and loss set during one of the most devastating (and completely unnecessary) bombing campaigns of the the Second World War.</div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><br /></div><div><b><u><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></u></b></div><div><b><u><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></u></b></div><div><b><u><span style="font-size: large;">Fiction</span></u></b></div><div><ol><li><b>Alexander the Great - </b><i>Dominic Sandbrook</i></li><li><b>The Fury of the Vikings</b> - <i>Dominic Sandbrook</i></li><li><b>Prince Caspian </b>- <i>C.S. Lewis</i></li><li><b>Of Mice and Men </b>- <i>John Steinbeck</i></li><li><b>The Gates of Rome </b>- <i>Conn Igguldenn</i></li><li><b>Lion</b> - <i>Conn Iggulden</i></li><li><b>The First World War </b>- <i>Dominic Sandbrook</i></li><li><b>Animal Farm </b>- <i>George Orwell</i></li><li><b>Lord of the Flies </b>- <i>William Golding</i></li><li><b>Guernica </b>- <i>Dave Boling</i></li></ol><div><b>Non-Fiction</b></div><ol><li><b>Powerful Leaders? </b>- <i>Marcus Honeysett</i></li><li><b>It Takes a Church to Raise a Parent </b>- <i>Rachel Turner</i></li><li><b>The Air We Breathe </b>- <i>Glen Scrivener</i></li><li><b>The Secret Place of Thunder </b>- <i>John Starke</i></li><li><b>1776: Remaking the World </b>- <i>Andrew Wilson</i></li><li><b>A Praying Church </b>- <i>Paul Miller</i></li><li><i><b style="font-style: normal;">The Toxic War on Masculinity </b><span style="font-style: normal;">-</span><i> Nancy Pearcey</i></i></li><li><b>When Breath Becomes Air - </b><i>Paul Kalinisi</i></li><li><b>This Side of the Door </b>- <i>John Hosier</i></li><li><b>It Shouldn't Happen to An Accountant </b><i>- Andrew Meggs</i></li></ol><div><b>Audible</b></div><ol><li><b>False Alarm </b>- <i>Bjorn Llornberg </i></li><li><b>Praying Like Monks, Living Like Fools </b>- <i>Tyler Stanton </i></li><li><b>God Has a name </b>- <i>John Mark Comer </i></li><li><b>Never Split the Difference </b>- <i>Paul Voss </i></li><li><b>The Body Keeps the Score </b>- <i>Bessel Van Der Kolk </i></li><div><ol></ol></div><li><b>Dune - </b><i>Frank Herbert </i></li><li><b>The Game of Thrones </b><i>- George Martin</i></li><li><b>Nine O'Clock in the Mornings</b><i> - Dennis Bennett</i></li></ol><div><div><b><u><span style="font-size: large;">Theology books</span></u></b></div><div><ol><li><b>The Meaning of Singleness</b> - <i>Danielle Treweek</i></li><li><b>Gender Quality </b>- <i>Stef Liston</i></li><li><b>Two Views on Women in Ministry </b>- Craig <i>Keener, Craig Blonberg, Linda Belleville & Tom Schreiner</i></li><li><b>Women In the Church </b>- <i>Tom Schreiner & Andreas Kostenberger</i></li></ol><h2 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">🍿 Films 🍿 </span></h2><h3 style="text-align: center;"><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">We watched some great movies this year. </div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">Along with completing the Marvel films in order (Avengers: End Game is great isn't it?), <i>The Whale</i> was heart breaking (George of the Jungle has come a long way!), Dune was a brilliant adaptation of the book (I listened to it on audible this year) and <i>Covenant</i> with Jake Gyllenhaal is really good too (Amazon Prime). I also managed to go to the cinema to see both <i>Oppenheimer</i> and <i>Barbie</i> in the same week. The amount of online commentary the latter generated was fascinating and, truth be told, I wrote (and have since removed!) my own little rant against it. My top three films of the year are:</div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"> </div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrraq3_tauMkEBLqV07t3ymfcStXA7X6e3MgkENyqNxipEgyoag5nEoKdZS7rRFcxvJU_rNcTAAoQqNBplqauBD-zWXDqRzn_zfeAnNTlxHo_KmsCeHYHWbc7e1aGzclbEOcoQ3FJd0PUc2zdWk_IcjBAn1zLDwrn1FXsZoz1zJiXAUOR67-n6P-E6LGI/s735/hidden.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="735" data-original-width="500" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrraq3_tauMkEBLqV07t3ymfcStXA7X6e3MgkENyqNxipEgyoag5nEoKdZS7rRFcxvJU_rNcTAAoQqNBplqauBD-zWXDqRzn_zfeAnNTlxHo_KmsCeHYHWbc7e1aGzclbEOcoQ3FJd0PUc2zdWk_IcjBAn1zLDwrn1FXsZoz1zJiXAUOR67-n6P-E6LGI/w194-h285/hidden.jpg" width="194" /></a></div><b><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><b>1. A Hidden Life</b></div></b></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">"<i>Better to suffer injustice than do it</i>."</div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">Wow. This slow moving, mostly silent drama (if you like that kind of thing!) about Franz Jagerstatter, an Austrian pacifist who, because of his faith in Christ, refuses to swear allegiance to Hitler even when everyone else in his village does. Terrence Malick, who spent almost three years editing the film, beautifully depicts the struggles of conscience and the battle of faith involved in resisting evil. Franz was imprisoned and eventually hanged for his stand. In one moving scene he is taunted by a prison officer who points out how little his protest will do, that he will die forgotten leaving his wife and children behind for what purpose? It's a poignant and haunting statement, and the film drives home viscerally the impossible decisions war forces upon people. </div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5qf7ZVt-qPxW4OWrc8oQe2qlNdxvF2Sk9Dc1ZECnPKEVm3cdraOcCkEdxER7XgAiogoOfc5XulY6Q12PXm8qG2iiwlbesFqcEk5mlv_iBkfgPWkAhKQAXpjhyPbkCmy3XkCLvP66ej7aGlEBGEFlM5WEYr0H2fLo3aSHFIZqjTQLCVXGjc8ET82Jhg08/s820/babylon.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="820" data-original-width="550" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5qf7ZVt-qPxW4OWrc8oQe2qlNdxvF2Sk9Dc1ZECnPKEVm3cdraOcCkEdxER7XgAiogoOfc5XulY6Q12PXm8qG2iiwlbesFqcEk5mlv_iBkfgPWkAhKQAXpjhyPbkCmy3XkCLvP66ej7aGlEBGEFlM5WEYr0H2fLo3aSHFIZqjTQLCVXGjc8ET82Jhg08/w196-h291/babylon.jpeg" width="196" /></a></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><b>2. Babylon</b></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">"<i>See, but you, you held the spotlight. It's those of us in the dark, the ones who just watch, who survive.</i>"</div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">I had a Cineworld card for a few months this year and so saw some new releases as they dropped. Hardly a wholesome watch (there's a reason it's 18 rated!) and yet it depicts brilliantly the hedonism and narcissism in early Hollywood, but more poignantly it poses questions about identity and purpose, exposing the futility and curse of fame.</div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-weight: 400; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlcPp4vUXF172vlDhH5mnfcjdJC9zwtz4sth1BDlhuP6oOBJa24J-k-wrdLyq286mazrYT4TYKTeLvS3lEZWL5IAGWlPv9AO97rA2VPRA_VTUOwt7yWjXsBYtXBoBzioYI0sNY8s-tLjyROwEI-ryEX07Rs7yi77A2B5PcJk8scgsbPlThde5Ar7-_7Wc/s1400/65.webp" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="788" data-original-width="1400" height="111" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlcPp4vUXF172vlDhH5mnfcjdJC9zwtz4sth1BDlhuP6oOBJa24J-k-wrdLyq286mazrYT4TYKTeLvS3lEZWL5IAGWlPv9AO97rA2VPRA_VTUOwt7yWjXsBYtXBoBzioYI0sNY8s-tLjyROwEI-ryEX07Rs7yi77A2B5PcJk8scgsbPlThde5Ar7-_7Wc/w197-h111/65.webp" width="197" /></a></div>3. 65 </div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">A fun, silly, jumpy, dinosaur sci-fi movie; quick too, it was over before I had time to catch my breath!</div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div></h3><h2 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">📺 <span style="color: #2b00fe;">TV Shows</span> 📺</span> </h2><h3 style="text-align: center;">Family show</h3><h2 style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQA2kaA5vMU1p04Z0KY7C_6xGkHZBFLgyXW6aKS5nmcq7PDZjyM_FpEiZ87le8OBl8Kbv_YW65KFjjLuWFjmLrnYvjEKgtOcizeWVoioFawRuv6qUsIq4aFCNg4PhtjtpOjBD1DmYAAm1wGtBBtXe9MM3oYqeHozWX7h2Infktn4oFd0pG_b1ILDBiy8A/s300/race.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQA2kaA5vMU1p04Z0KY7C_6xGkHZBFLgyXW6aKS5nmcq7PDZjyM_FpEiZ87le8OBl8Kbv_YW65KFjjLuWFjmLrnYvjEKgtOcizeWVoioFawRuv6qUsIq4aFCNg4PhtjtpOjBD1DmYAAm1wGtBBtXe9MM3oYqeHozWX7h2Infktn4oFd0pG_b1ILDBiy8A/w201-h112/race.jpeg" width="201" /></a></div><b><div style="text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">1. Race Across the World: Canada </span></b></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">I'd missed this show until now, but as a family we loved it. It's a great celebration of friendship, resourcefulness and human kindness. Oh, and it's a dangerous accelerant to any kindling wanderlust.</span></div></b></h2><h3 style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">Comedy</span></h3><h2 style="text-align: center;"><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU_sTbQxHUMID_0qROQz4wr2LIrU_VUaNagv789SmMMkf4YjpQHK3AcNasE4VpmdT4hp4SZM6_ImH7JsykBLncdcYPihr_nD53_6Na4ZWfRVtknYaghz-EJXUDriLQg_H3wSeh4oCEXmktt48VNk0wvdUHHIMw-YCkE3YB8Xt7x30GF2V-ES22GuFR78c/s300/colin.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU_sTbQxHUMID_0qROQz4wr2LIrU_VUaNagv789SmMMkf4YjpQHK3AcNasE4VpmdT4hp4SZM6_ImH7JsykBLncdcYPihr_nD53_6Na4ZWfRVtknYaghz-EJXUDriLQg_H3wSeh4oCEXmktt48VNk0wvdUHHIMw-YCkE3YB8Xt7x30GF2V-ES22GuFR78c/w202-h113/colin.jpeg" width="202" /></a></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><b>1. Colin From Accounts</b></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">A really charming and surprisingly funny Australian comedy about two people brought together by a car accident and an injured dog. Harriet Dyer is hilarious and together with her counterpart Patrick Brammall makes for some genuine Ross & Rachel romance.</div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEvCE4YDaVSm1tTcomDnPbMtlDHHkt44bcuJ48aLtw9ZfZozw3jWJ-FqBL63lEFqpyFZLrJnh92EUt6E5sG86bDlgrLFDhepOvt4fsdhUXiJ66MW6NOo8xQMRWPkjDnTJ9xUpylOTAZzJChyphenhyphenhPRim-0vv1Jfl4KicR3bSnMOWVyFQZgMU1XS2S8dfQmfc/s980/ghosts-season-4-cast-b211de7-e1663927774896.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="654" data-original-width="980" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEvCE4YDaVSm1tTcomDnPbMtlDHHkt44bcuJ48aLtw9ZfZozw3jWJ-FqBL63lEFqpyFZLrJnh92EUt6E5sG86bDlgrLFDhepOvt4fsdhUXiJ66MW6NOo8xQMRWPkjDnTJ9xUpylOTAZzJChyphenhyphenhPRim-0vv1Jfl4KicR3bSnMOWVyFQZgMU1XS2S8dfQmfc/w202-h135/ghosts-season-4-cast-b211de7-e1663927774896.jpg" width="202" /></a></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><b>2. Ghosts</b></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">The Horrible Histories crew put their talents to work in this lovely BBC comedy. We binged it through the year and one of us shed a few at the conclusion and Christmas special. </div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div></h2><h3 style="text-align: center;">Drama</h3><h2 style="text-align: center;"><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg-Np-niAEOXQNN6Chyh74vYLhXvVT-GJhyphenhyphenFwub8-X_IyRDuordc2xD8xpTQ4F_Bh6_gssSyfx1ZakjF0x3lkZHuiUZ0PYJ0JZvoG2svlth6D3wosv3CjEPttN4AazX5W0ip2sASdzBKAkC3IiupC6qYfBut7GjcLbhDmnFcm_O1gaMhSOV-KK-_coGtI/s300/vikings.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="114" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg-Np-niAEOXQNN6Chyh74vYLhXvVT-GJhyphenhyphenFwub8-X_IyRDuordc2xD8xpTQ4F_Bh6_gssSyfx1ZakjF0x3lkZHuiUZ0PYJ0JZvoG2svlth6D3wosv3CjEPttN4AazX5W0ip2sASdzBKAkC3IiupC6qYfBut7GjcLbhDmnFcm_O1gaMhSOV-KK-_coGtI/w204-h114/vikings.jpeg" width="204" /></a></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><b>1. Vikings</b></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">We were definitely late to the party on this one, but for the first 6 months of the year made up for it with nightly viewings. </div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">The highlight for me was the fascinating relationship that the shows producers seemed to have with Christianity. It's tone definitely changed as the series' progressed (it began in 2013). At times the show glorified in the apparently liberated paganism of the Vikings contrasting it with the narrow mindedness of Christianity, whilst at other times they suggested the reverse. </div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">A stand out observation was the centrality of Athelstan a British monk captured in the first episode. Despite the violence and power of the vikings and despite his own conflicted spirituality he ended up being the most respected character in the show. It casts an interesting light on our own cultures relationship with Christianity and spirituality. Try as we might we can't escape both its ghost and our begrudging respect for it and desire for it to be reawakened.</div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div></h2><h3 style="font-size: medium; text-align: center;">Documentary</h3><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHjLxungCkTZLlvqUWS6o8lhPHFsHIDsWanJNwqWliPA3i-FYs3tol9-BCrzz97tZKziznkbyq5IjT3OYjd2Oxqw-isfB66I3RjGC01K1DsIh6JwkKVGEs-6QGatEbUhS-sZdsih-RnWSgPemB6PIPpyLZ2Up7iKzOqGcNHrSKcQs3akKanY1x2vfM9k4/s225/bekcham.jpeg" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHjLxungCkTZLlvqUWS6o8lhPHFsHIDsWanJNwqWliPA3i-FYs3tol9-BCrzz97tZKziznkbyq5IjT3OYjd2Oxqw-isfB66I3RjGC01K1DsIh6JwkKVGEs-6QGatEbUhS-sZdsih-RnWSgPemB6PIPpyLZ2Up7iKzOqGcNHrSKcQs3akKanY1x2vfM9k4/s1600/bekcham.jpeg" width="225" /></a></div><h3><span style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">This was the year of the </span><a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=define+hagiography&rlz=1C5CHFA_enGB891GB891&oq=define+hagio&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqBwgBEAAYgAQyBggAEEUYOTIHCAEQABiABDIHCAIQABiABDIHCAMQABiABDIHCAQQABiABDIICAUQABgWGB4yCAgGEAAYFhgeMggIBxAAGBYYHjIICAgQABgWGB4yCAgJEAAYFhge0gEIMzUxMmoxajmoAgCwAgA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8" style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;" target="_blank">hagiography</a><span style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">, that old tradition of glamourising our heroes in morality tales from their lives. Robbie Williams, Ed Sheeran, Peter Crouch, Britney Spears and others seemed to commission re-tellings of their glory years, offering us insights into their saintly-ness.</span></h3><h2 style="text-align: center;"><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">Amy and I enjoyed several of them but the stand out for me has to be Netflix's <i>Beckham. </i></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">It was incredibly popular. On one occasion I found myself on a flight and couldn't help notice that on almost every personal screen people had downloaded and were watching it.</div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">I, like every other man I've spoken to of a certain age, found myself saying throughout 'I remember this!' and Amy (like most other women) found herself saying 'Victoria is so funny, and much nicer than she's been portrayed.' The First Family of the Footballing world deserve the king and queen status afforded to them . Beckham's character shines throughout (but that's the purpose of hagiographies isn't it). We (ok, mostly me) love him!</div></h2><h2 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">🎵 <span style="color: #38761d;">Podcasts</span> 🎵 </span></h2><h3 style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNn3Fa8FtwopQJKK6NS2R8yr7nZxctV9Jn6jmJGTcNhPFz-ardFpyEipsQzW-7exUPT87DGpDVOIblhYLGUIc75vtOLj4PAqiym5rR-2fUFQ-s4RbbEN9V5jLLhAJ6lJ-KQifrHcF7ySTUH3uda6-BI-8sbtUmIywQ_wJTF2f5zjbOQ08449EUsAhToNU/s225/rowling.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNn3Fa8FtwopQJKK6NS2R8yr7nZxctV9Jn6jmJGTcNhPFz-ardFpyEipsQzW-7exUPT87DGpDVOIblhYLGUIc75vtOLj4PAqiym5rR-2fUFQ-s4RbbEN9V5jLLhAJ6lJ-KQifrHcF7ySTUH3uda6-BI-8sbtUmIywQ_wJTF2f5zjbOQ08449EUsAhToNU/w154-h154/rowling.jpeg" width="154" /></a></div><div style="font-size: medium; text-align: left;">1. The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling</div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">How did a national treasure become condemned as a heretic even putting my little town in the <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/sussex-school-names-change-churchill-rowling-b1801304.html" target="_blank">headlines</a> a couple of years back. and bigot and how did a concern for women's rights become such a politically loaded issue? </div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">This is superb serial produced by an ex <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.npr.org%2F2019%2F10%2F10%2F768894901%2Fhow-twitter-helped-change-the-mind-of-a-westboro-baptist-church-member&psig=AOvVaw309B4o79kipiPzEO6VWsFi&ust=1703845319690000&source=images&cd=vfe&opi=89978449&ved=0CBIQjRxqFwoTCNjiydD0sYMDFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD" target="_blank">Westboro</a> Baptist member highlights a major fissure in our identity politics. It's nuanced and sympathetic toward both sides of the dialogue and is really well made. </div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQRZcqp7TaD6yLIZiE_52eZj9E_oUq4LfQ0ilG3SU3Wia77iJKCfS3rBfy7eQNA8dF5QHPZ2L_1Fa2w_IGn700mDdXA5KQwa6k7JaHMKK8lXRjFU_kobRj9I73c4Oc_8p9mqX-HIg65xa9kXuxGRFBYxQsKJ0S7wHsgJiDKh8wi2oR-eszwPjp1fTz-C0/s225/rebirth.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQRZcqp7TaD6yLIZiE_52eZj9E_oUq4LfQ0ilG3SU3Wia77iJKCfS3rBfy7eQNA8dF5QHPZ2L_1Fa2w_IGn700mDdXA5KQwa6k7JaHMKK8lXRjFU_kobRj9I73c4Oc_8p9mqX-HIg65xa9kXuxGRFBYxQsKJ0S7wHsgJiDKh8wi2oR-eszwPjp1fTz-C0/w154-h154/rebirth.jpeg" width="154" /></a></div>2. The Surprising Rebirth of Belief In God </div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">If someone would have told me when I was at University that in twenty years time many of the leading and most popular intellectuals would be actively promoting Christianity I would have thought them mad. Such was the hostility toward faith around the time that I became a Christian. </div></h3><h3 style="text-align: center;"><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">Richard Dawkins et al dominated the airwaves in discussions between faith and science and the post-9/11 landscape had seemingly and unanimously decided that 'religion' was the cause of all the world's problems. </div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;">Justin is such a warm and generous storyteller and has managed to weave together a narrative several decades in the making. In one episode discussing some recent conversations from high-profile atheists one contributor amusingly says: <span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;">"If tell people life is meaningless for long enough, you'll end up with The Only Way is Essex." </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">true dat.</span></div></h3><h3 style="font-size: medium; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Podcast Moment of the Year</span></h3><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdr56C_Eh6Oy6dqOahIM0bKkSU6YNsKoD70t_IXasGDaWoLZZkOad8d8OkGuTui93ZqqGvf3WRYXk5yaUIN9e9nWozlrDgOddn-ThWDPfe3l58UTW7q-ByNMfbYTxv33TtPDnp6aVKEBfJt73zjLqZYYnJ5pLCPfu36tnlHsNcyWZSRBV3Xs8GcMOJEwY/s225/speaklife.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="153" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdr56C_Eh6Oy6dqOahIM0bKkSU6YNsKoD70t_IXasGDaWoLZZkOad8d8OkGuTui93ZqqGvf3WRYXk5yaUIN9e9nWozlrDgOddn-ThWDPfe3l58UTW7q-ByNMfbYTxv33TtPDnp6aVKEBfJt73zjLqZYYnJ5pLCPfu36tnlHsNcyWZSRBV3Xs8GcMOJEwY/w153-h153/speaklife.png" width="153" /></a></div></div><h3><span style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">Glen Scrivener at SpeakLife provides a wise and prophetic critique on much of modern life and it was a treat to interview him for my own podcast back in </span><a href="https://open.spotify.com/episode/3vCPZW81OW7CPTyzwyoc0b?si=g8F0Eq-SSCCICY6x8vtN4g" style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;" target="_blank">April</a><span style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;">. His recent critique of Andrew Tate was superbly </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mb3lh3O7ob0&ab_channel=SpeakLife" style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;" target="_blank">scathing</a><span style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400;"> however it was his response to the inquest against Russell Brand, and Brand's response to the allegations that for me wins 'moment of the year'. </span></h3><h3 style="text-align: center;"><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><div>In a fifteen minute episode responding to Brand's '<i>they're coming for me because I've become too popular</i>' narrative Glen addresses the issue of legality and consent laws by suggesting that 'he could be legally innocent and still be morally corrupt.' He then asks the question:</div><div><blockquote><span style="font-family: inherit;">Is it possible that Russell Brand's behaviour is not criminal but is worse than criminal, it’s <i>sinful?</i></span></blockquote><p>When it comes to our ethics, as a society, we're adrift and confused. We <i>know</i> that something is wrong but we can't always find the words or laws to explain why it is. Language and concerns over 'consent' and 'harm' simply aren't capable of carrying the moral weight we want them to. Our real problem is with the old fashioned concept: sin. This explanation also makes sense of why Jordan Peterson is so fixated with the story of Cain & Abel in Genesis. In that account of the first murder we read these immortal and haunting words: </p><blockquote><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>I<span style="background-color: white;">f you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, </span><span style="background-color: white;">sin</span><span style="background-color: white;"> is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it. (Genesis 4:7)</span></i></span> </p></blockquote></div></div></h3><h3 style="text-align: center;">Personal Podcast Episode</h3><h3 style="text-align: center;"><div style="font-size: medium; font-weight: 400; text-align: left;"><div>I love the opportunity I have from producing my own podcast. I have the privilege of speaking with thoughtful people from all over the place and could easily list six or seven stand-out conversations from across the year, but my top three that I'd love to share with anyone who's not heard them are: <a href="http://newgroundchurches.org/podcast/66/anxiety,-acceptance-therapy" target="_blank">Anxiety, Acceptance & Therapy</a> with Jo Johnson, <a href="http://newgroundchurches.org/podcast/82/on-prayer,-masculinity,-mission-men" target="_blank">On Prayer, Masculinity & Mission</a> with Jon Tyson and <a href="http://newgroundchurches.org/podcast/71/the-surprising-appeal-of-jesus" target="_blank">The Surprising Appeal of Jesus</a> with Glen Scrivener. Why not give them a listen.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZNghcTkTQXpfgVtEvJLPNb9ggcPNoueN2rFv_iaq49pvsamtrvvs_4UBvnfhI2RJphkg2HZPoKWPK6beEJP9UHt1nQEG2bmZvY4BPDEBuLyMmWL5h-a6AVlo_hRXqvTN9KjmXTvr4LOXqh7aRi8WJ_GvybQai98n6X8NqpqVFz_E3-zk9AcH2AYR5u7E/s6000/podcasts.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="6000" height="118" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZNghcTkTQXpfgVtEvJLPNb9ggcPNoueN2rFv_iaq49pvsamtrvvs_4UBvnfhI2RJphkg2HZPoKWPK6beEJP9UHt1nQEG2bmZvY4BPDEBuLyMmWL5h-a6AVlo_hRXqvTN9KjmXTvr4LOXqh7aRi8WJ_GvybQai98n6X8NqpqVFz_E3-zk9AcH2AYR5u7E/w649-h118/podcasts.png" width="649" /></a></div></div></h3><h3 style="text-align: center;"><br /></h3><h3 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">🧠 Intellectual of the year 🧠</span> </h3></div></div><div></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirj_ZSHPOb_wyflsM_ELNyaYr6i9u5XpdzGBh4LPyhxDFQ8R5lSaegPSYTZKvauaz8UZjgBHKUPIB874lZC_jYYynAMieMxVmd3HjUyT6AwfDOqSfJZGsU29FWuy-OzK87AkkV1w4bxfizbBbHwZQL9rb19oh2heA7e4sHi4PJTnm5tkxpkLGMYsl_Jk8/s275/Dani.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="275" data-original-width="183" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirj_ZSHPOb_wyflsM_ELNyaYr6i9u5XpdzGBh4LPyhxDFQ8R5lSaegPSYTZKvauaz8UZjgBHKUPIB874lZC_jYYynAMieMxVmd3HjUyT6AwfDOqSfJZGsU29FWuy-OzK87AkkV1w4bxfizbBbHwZQL9rb19oh2heA7e4sHi4PJTnm5tkxpkLGMYsl_Jk8/w130-h196/Dani.jpeg" width="130" /></a></div><div>I love coming across new brilliant and insightful people. My standout discovery of the year was coming across Australian author Dr Danielle Treweek. Her book '<a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Meaning-Singleness-Retrieving-Eschatological-Contemporary/dp/1514004852/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2779U5XU2CADV&keywords=meaning+singleness&qid=1703370024&sprefix=meaning+singlenes%2Caps%2C212&sr=8-1" target="_blank">The Meaning of Singleness</a>' was my top theology read of the year and her lecture on the '<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jgHU3tTVOKE&ab_channel=PriscillaandAquilaCentre" target="_blank">Historical Contingency of the Household</a>' was a delight to find on youtube. I also had the privilege of connecting with her for my <a href="http://newgroundchurches.org/podcast/79/church,-singleness-the-family" target="_blank">podcast</a>, speaking to her for over an hour about her work and thought.</div><div> </div><div>Dani is amazing and is highlighting some really valuable things. Her research on singleness and attitudes toward celibacy through the middle ages is superb and the section in her book on contemporary theologians is really fresh. Her substack is great <a href="https://www.thatgirlbosstheologian.com/" target="_blank">too</a>, but I first appreciated her as a regular, robust but respectful <a href="https://twitter.com/danitreweek" target="_blank">Twitterer</a> - really worth following.</div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">🖥️ <span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="color: red;">Reels</span></span></span><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"> 🖥️</span> </span></h2><div><a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CtXYjNAN2mE/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA%3D%3D" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="510" data-original-width="604" height="122" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjkZq1UVX-up-qJpTOx1IG_6RMd0qJNNbV33fOKXCOZ6qk_zKB2W3-aFCBtJy6Cgbb8OIUUOKjdfD_ut5M4vxqZJGbk2T0phwPz7xIsyodqKFr39cFZdtsPN-lLG9PZQx_Q3wqD1kf_3N-wsxIHVPVwhJXm-Ndn3jYsPxDI7R4sjilfNzlgkq-OMJZo6M/w144-h122/Screenshot%202023-12-22%20at%2022.16.24.png" width="144" /></a><i>"I'm here live. I'm not a cat." </i></div><div><br /></div><div>I mean if you have to say it... An hilarious moment as a lawyer tries to continue a legal conversation with a cat filter on. Amazing. (click the image to open the link)</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CqdOFdFIVZp/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y%3D" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="366" data-original-width="668" height="78" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN_LNwlTJsQudrWM0jbLqvVzIEb_TCZaRZ-wnNGDE7w9AXq8IN_jtru-XpHJuOydbJf3kkJzIkuQFz1WudeFVK4r8POyZgigx86wV-2wzq41ez6N7l_2IzCOrOmlJwI8HoTE2v1dmzBJ1uQx4AzAwAAH9yvi_RACwZYmAd-w-ixW7QJnZTmKqiM4ENsyw/w143-h78/Screenshot%202023-12-22%20at%2022.18.05.png" width="143" /></a>Speaking of amazing, and slightly terrifying, try this scale of the planets animation to add a slightly different perspective to your day! </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yj-Q6G0hRy4&ab_channel=22Minutes" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="1032" data-original-width="1498" height="102" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDOlmlDSFJeYPhVPjxWOG1d9PNetMp-67iseXpo-ZRru1vgNWCl5Kqny3X_2jSI5skSCThEVx09rDelW9dRqs6e8LJagjDFhG01MwDxof6uuYcTYkKrn9xuHnGyaSlYk0sMZBmIDpQ4mSu1X8VojmQ8mXz8IOxBt6dkVH2Ga1IV8Z42unaiaZasV9Tx-c/w149-h102/Screenshot%202023-12-27%20at%2022.09.17.png" width="149" /></a></div>This year we all felt the steep price rises. </div><div><br /></div><div>This amusing video sums it up well: "<i>I'm a trained professional ma'am, I've scanned a lot of groceries, i need you to stay with me</i>!" </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">🖼️ <span style="color: #f1c232;">Creative genius of the Year</span> 🖼️ </span></h2><div><a href="https://twitter.com/AmyMantravadi/status/1719331506542285282 " style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="976" data-original-width="1158" height="167" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1YEJ04esAlkMiMuoqyteWPB1TIqdDVElbOysI3KGESDBl_KoAREd5WAkAldsP7OYeD2NliDzaZy0BBqtZefwSlJqHSbCdz8je_hWKhRN_ejHkgnatiqXTzxjTQgru6TpKITlsTSNGZLAb15EXUjZeu9gSkjt3IUf-1HRz67_AruHklvfkxbPd1Fg-Vbo/w198-h167/Screenshot%202023-12-22%20at%2022.35.07.png" width="198" /></a>I have no real idea who @AmyMantravardi is or how she got onto my twitter feed but I'm glad she did!</div><div><br /></div><div>Turns out she's a super nerdy, comedy genius as this thread shows: the events of the Reformation told through <a href="https://twitter.com/AmyMantravadi/status/1719331506542285282 " target="_blank">Friends memes</a>.</div><div><br /></div><div>Turns out she's done a lot of these including <a href="https://twitter.com/AmyMantravadi/status/1734923862821765256" target="_blank">The West Wing</a></div><div> </div><h2 style="text-align: center;"><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;">🗞️ <span style="color: #2b00fe;">Blog Posts</span> 🗞️</span></h2><div>Paul Kingsnorth's <a href="https://unherd.com/2023/12/our-godless-era-is-dead/" target="_blank">article</a>, released over Christmas on UnHerd, is a brilliant defence of Christianity from an influential writer. His opening line referring to his recent conversation is heartbreaking: <i>Sometimes I think I've been lied to my whole life.</i> </div><div><br /></div><div>He writes critiquing the hubris of the New Atheist movement (and its subsequent decline) and reflects:</div><div><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><blockquote><i>...at root, humans are fundamentally spiritual animals. The future is not atheists in space. The future, like the past, will be religious. Even the the rationalists and the soldiers-of-Enlightenment are wobbling on the ground from which they once scoffed so proudly at the babushkas and the saints. </i></blockquote><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13px;">and this one was a helpful reminder of the (rather limited) role that intellectual arguments play in helping people come to know Christ. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Instead it's invitations to meet him that matter most:</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i></i></p><blockquote><i>God makes no sense until you start to talk to him. Then, strangely enough, all sorts of other things start to make sense too. It is hard, if not impossible to explain, and yet it is the simplest thing in the world. We have always done it. We always will.</i></blockquote><p></p></div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOPfuVpzVeDwkjPqFSuV_L3vTg0mVKas4oulXri36exoDpXxZc-SThDkDx2w2gqgYj75t8IPMfe3XhX6J36GJE-ufOVrDqmv8gLRP9o22uYh5C6KvkG6mvDHoQvmmEcCycUi7AWzgRewFTJM2QI3zwRGJinG0vLCJHuXg9DGroyKTCrE1n5zhQvTdmr5Q/s716/Screenshot%202023-12-27%20at%2022.29.07.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="596" data-original-width="716" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOPfuVpzVeDwkjPqFSuV_L3vTg0mVKas4oulXri36exoDpXxZc-SThDkDx2w2gqgYj75t8IPMfe3XhX6J36GJE-ufOVrDqmv8gLRP9o22uYh5C6KvkG6mvDHoQvmmEcCycUi7AWzgRewFTJM2QI3zwRGJinG0vLCJHuXg9DGroyKTCrE1n5zhQvTdmr5Q/w229-h190/Screenshot%202023-12-27%20at%2022.29.07.png" width="229" /></a></div>But my favourite recent read was this <a href="https://mereorthodoxy.com/the-masculinity-pyramid" target="_blank">one</a> on masculinity. It's a fascinating take on how to define what it means to be a man. </div><div><br /></div><div>Essentially, if we establish an understanding of what a man <i>isn't</i> then we can arrive at a clearer idea of what positive masculinity can look like.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: center;"><br /></h2><h2 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">😂 Meme 😂 </span></h2><div>This lovely little cartoon accurately portrays the odd relationship (and historical amnesia) that most westerners and secular humanists have with their 'self-evident morality'. For decades we've been mocking and demonising (if not actively 'sawing') the branch we're sitting on. </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFKoWe5Yp-CF_hZup0NRCNehiuWdKuFxwLr1ToBhLj6OqkvN2ik0N3OVQRaPkwEU3acou1JMWiwDH7-jDv0cT7KnlXnzvvLNbMUVoK_8gNvGfNJLDLZWJ70jr9n6SxNwbhJbjQUsBxhtsRE78hpPb7CfRAXKdZVe9Rcpnk1cpqI1pfPRlYQxcE5q7j9LE/s1028/Screenshot%202023-12-22%20at%2022.21.37.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="736" data-original-width="1028" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFKoWe5Yp-CF_hZup0NRCNehiuWdKuFxwLr1ToBhLj6OqkvN2ik0N3OVQRaPkwEU3acou1JMWiwDH7-jDv0cT7KnlXnzvvLNbMUVoK_8gNvGfNJLDLZWJ70jr9n6SxNwbhJbjQUsBxhtsRE78hpPb7CfRAXKdZVe9Rcpnk1cpqI1pfPRlYQxcE5q7j9LE/s320/Screenshot%202023-12-22%20at%2022.21.37.png" width="320" /></a></div><h2 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">🚨 Stats & Surveys 🚨 </span></h2><div style="text-align: left;">Louise Perry tweeted some interesting research recently. Despite often getting the impression that the NHS is mostly staffed and run by immigrants she shows here that in actual fact it is largely representative of the nation as a whole:</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY8VbPiNFVleAE0avxrE9muoknvFa0BN8KKWMlvrAM-RCyBcWs8N6kmt0wNB6MX3y8_89zPVyUtTkSgl81MQ7r_bgQKip69HYOxUfsIZ6oUqMtkZiNAwDhQaRuL5kD7bkEjBrtDXT8gm7PEKNXX8cJ-kFkChfuVRe6rQb4pbJEYgEuI4BRseVaavHZzME/s2072/Screenshot%202023-12-28%20at%2017.42.27.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="606" data-original-width="2072" height="108" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY8VbPiNFVleAE0avxrE9muoknvFa0BN8KKWMlvrAM-RCyBcWs8N6kmt0wNB6MX3y8_89zPVyUtTkSgl81MQ7r_bgQKip69HYOxUfsIZ6oUqMtkZiNAwDhQaRuL5kD7bkEjBrtDXT8gm7PEKNXX8cJ-kFkChfuVRe6rQb4pbJEYgEuI4BRseVaavHZzME/w366-h108/Screenshot%202023-12-28%20at%2017.42.27.png" width="366" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhKhkGykc0dDn7yso4WPCp9idbuheqMdk1hF23v2myoF7TTxfnfIEDI1JiYE3N_3-hZxV4QKgkdYRD1r1WhKErIYe1Eqyp8ldZdZ36cNc2GdmBxh5jzrPcmRWvH3taRADQH7RSfkW_aoOF8HhESP4-qu3ak0C9mmoFQVkKpBRvoM1FVDFXEziUbzgFbgw/s2084/Screenshot%202023-12-28%20at%2017.42.35.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="216" data-original-width="2084" height="42" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhKhkGykc0dDn7yso4WPCp9idbuheqMdk1hF23v2myoF7TTxfnfIEDI1JiYE3N_3-hZxV4QKgkdYRD1r1WhKErIYe1Eqyp8ldZdZ36cNc2GdmBxh5jzrPcmRWvH3taRADQH7RSfkW_aoOF8HhESP4-qu3ak0C9mmoFQVkKpBRvoM1FVDFXEziUbzgFbgw/w406-h42/Screenshot%202023-12-28%20at%2017.42.35.png" width="406" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Interesting. And then there's this, m<span style="text-align: center;">ost alarming stat. of the year. Seriously disturbing. </span><span style="text-align: center;">I blame youtube.</span></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj7Nepgn4aq7zhw_wxCFfgzFlzldLZkqWW-TVmSmvoxqXjJDVvLZ9T23_KyiYe0ughR8zXBj_qW2S4EYheThd5eo2qXM9j3jC-3OWmRH8DATmzGLrz6dMTog4UfidTbQabZmHtkWmYbUZbH0SyQEM0Rh-Mnl3AjaZO06zHTxE-7MoKVzTawe-5ML0D9lI/s956/Screenshot%202023-12-22%20at%2022.27.17.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="956" data-original-width="912" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj7Nepgn4aq7zhw_wxCFfgzFlzldLZkqWW-TVmSmvoxqXjJDVvLZ9T23_KyiYe0ughR8zXBj_qW2S4EYheThd5eo2qXM9j3jC-3OWmRH8DATmzGLrz6dMTog4UfidTbQabZmHtkWmYbUZbH0SyQEM0Rh-Mnl3AjaZO06zHTxE-7MoKVzTawe-5ML0D9lI/s320/Screenshot%202023-12-22%20at%2022.27.17.png" width="305" /></a></div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">🤩 Talent of the year 🤩 </span></h2><div><div>If you haven't seen this before prepare to be amazed. There's some pretty talented people out there! Table Tennis <a href="https://twitter.com/TheFigen_/status/1684562363637452800" target="_blank">magic</a> </div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://capture.dropbox.com/KzBOKtL9dOHprdGY" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="926" data-original-width="1102" height="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd63RmhXPd6_cIdsC3Z4NhHqQr1Lb0LYZQU_K4MIu-KWzZ-aN9uNVYqrYRldOdrjvPWaoYyhvBv1XsqUoKGwwT6MG3Y2rjjv2Hw_gH051lfSK0MtRR51jBqNCYrsFrrP4SHvDfkw6van3T_j9ETS8SZelLQS4spaolIggDQqbdiOyliUa1wG0d84tW5k0/s320/Screenshot%202023-12-28%20at%2015.40.17.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><h2 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">✝️ Sermon of the Year ✝️ </span></h2><div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span color="rgba(5, 0, 0, 0.86)" style="background-color: white; white-space-collapse: preserve;">This </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymbTb2HS5Rc&ab_channel=OxfordUnion" style="background-color: white; white-space-collapse: preserve;" target="_blank">12minute defence</a><span color="rgba(5, 0, 0, 0.86)" style="background-color: white; white-space-collapse: preserve;"> of the church's historic position on marriage by Calvin Robinson is ballsy and gets to the core of the issue on a topic that is (bizarrely) causing widespread confusion in the church. </span></span></div><div><span color="rgba(5, 0, 0, 0.86)" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia, serif; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymbTb2HS5Rc&ab_channel=OxfordUnion" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="816" data-original-width="1476" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivZWerR7m8AKLhbtjaJCWTOyUYE-TY5MqsPCF3MFyZpxYdUSOXSQtyfqjgOxQxZc20AntOvvWLfWEFyoWgYolC9z_o79rik62qQKeT66dNKV9GAtoxRh2_5yvPcRoUqyUwZ4Up2HDtr7RE2_vVkVLINUa81WzIDqgYuijIohnh_RkRMsfBWsT1dv8rK8Q/w388-h215/Screenshot%202023-12-28%20at%2015.42.38.png" width="388" /></a></div></div><h2 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">🌸 Poem of the year 🌸 </span></h2><div>I don't read poetry (it's a deficiency of mine that I don't quite know <i>how</i> to enjoy poetry) but I came across this by William Martin recently that deserves to be shared:</div><div><h2 id="yui_3_17_2_1_1703285648158_246" style="background-color: white; color: rgba(5, 0, 0, 0.86); font-weight: 400; line-height: 1.7em; margin: 1em 0px 0.5em; text-rendering: optimizelegibility; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; text-align: center;"><i style="font-size: medium;">Do not ask your children</i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; text-align: center;"><i style="font-size: medium;">to strive for extraordinary lives.</i></div><span style="font-size: small;"><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><i>Such striving may seem admirable,</i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><i>but it is the way of foolishness.</i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><i>Help them instead to find the wonder</i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><i>and the marvel of an ordinary life.</i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><i>Show them the joy of tasting</i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><i>tomatoes, apples and pears.</i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><i>Show them how to cry</i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><i>when pets and people die.</i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><i>Show them the infinite pleasure</i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><i>in the touch of a hand.</i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><i>And make the ordinary come alive for them.</i></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><i>The extraordinary will take care of itself.</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">That's all for '23. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">What did you enjoy from the year just gone, I'd love to know.</span></div><div style="font-style: italic; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Happy New Year!</span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-style: italic; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; text-align: left;"><br /></div></span></h2></div></div>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-82554520656619817982023-12-02T11:41:00.000-08:002023-12-02T11:41:32.629-08:0025years in. More captivated than ever<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiJWoR_DfI_C0tPF4FamHAkfACq5nqRfZZtjRFunfulEKk1_NH6x_qy5eNNQQ-efW9BP6ZehPuONXoRJNp6GgdYbPvVrIFD67GJFDKOhQ6Hjy7NrCVI9goQAqHs8WIfUD1ZTdjV7SiQVK6qoFy70n3KfZH_mn7VcR7XOtMaID9UNTOiMdroKzBdP5sGaio" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="410" data-original-width="705" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiJWoR_DfI_C0tPF4FamHAkfACq5nqRfZZtjRFunfulEKk1_NH6x_qy5eNNQQ-efW9BP6ZehPuONXoRJNp6GgdYbPvVrIFD67GJFDKOhQ6Hjy7NrCVI9goQAqHs8WIfUD1ZTdjV7SiQVK6qoFy70n3KfZH_mn7VcR7XOtMaID9UNTOiMdroKzBdP5sGaio" width="320" /></a></div><br />25 years ago Christ's love, power and presence became a living reality in my life and it still is; he is still my deepest obsession and my soul's greatest delight.<p></p><p>I didn't know very much about him then (I still don't feel I do) but I know more now than I did then. Then I knew enough to sense (however inarticulately) how much he could meet my needs and answer my deepest questions. Now, I am captivated by how far reaching he is how sovereign and holy and yet how tender and near he is. I tremble when I consider it for long, tremble both in terror at how little I comprehend the ineffably sublime one and tremble in utter bewilderment and joy that HE loves <i>me</i>!</p><p>I have known many different times and seasons over the years. I've become a dad, lost a dad; moved house and set up a home. I've married, changed job roles and struggled under the weight of my failings and shortcomings. I've known periods of inner melancholy a season long numbness and I've known ecstatic enthusiasm and drunken extraversion. I've felt abandoned and been let down, and I've argued with close friends and my wife. I've wept over my anger at my children and I've become depressed by how incapable I am of changing. He's been there in every moment, and his presence has never been far away. No matter how many steps I've taken away from him I've found that whenever I turn back toward him he's right there behind me. It's not that I've always known his presence close-by, at times I've felt more like an atheist than a Christian but these seasons have always passed and the fruit they've yielded has always been richer than before.</p><p>You see, the thing is - Jesus is alive and Jesus fills all and is in all. </p><p>His word is my light (even if I choose to ignore it) and in it I see him, meet him and know him. When I was a new believer fresh out of University the New Atheism of new Millennium was all anyone was talking about. In their eyes, and in the eyes of my concerned friends, I was a brainwashed fundamentalist, a believer in fairy tales and someone living a delusion. I had many a conversation with friends who tried desperately to save me from my delusion - the more honest of attempts I was/remain truly grateful for. I used to tell people 'please save me' and 'please show me where I'm wrong' and I meant it, I mean it still. </p><p>But notice how things have and are changing in our cultural landscape. Intellectuals are turning to Jesus once again, rediscovering for themselves the beauty and wisdom of the crucified messiah and as they turn I'm grateful that I'll still be where they left me, still holding onto Jesus.</p><p>I don't claim to be a good disciple of Christ, there's a dozen or more ways I wish I knew him more and followed him more closely; but my delight isn't in my fidelity to Jesus, my delight is in Jesus' commitment to me! </p><p>How can all this be I wonder. How can this wandering rabbi, turned lord of glory so dramatically conquer all who have stood in his path? He casts a shadow over civilisations sometimes prominently, sometimes obscured by other things but always he's there. He satisfies the human soul more than anything else. No philosophy or ideology or meaning making explanation of things has ever had quite the impact on so many people as he. And he's still doing it now. He's still here for anyone (for you?), who is willing to turn to him whether in honest enquiry or in desperate prayer.</p><p>I intend over the coming few months to lay out why I believe in Jesus and what Jesus means to me. Should anybody read it, I hope they'll be drawn into my joy and drawn into knowing him more for themselves but as with the apostle John however, I write this not for any reader but for myself. I write this for myself, I write this - to make <i>my </i>joy complete. </p><p><i>Jesus, I love you. I was made for you and my heart was restless until it found its rest in you.</i></p><p><br /></p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-8965352912544961522023-11-02T00:31:00.002-07:002023-11-02T02:04:54.939-07:00Waking Up After a Storm to Find...<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhGfXarv1OD5gMJNymr2rNJpMDv65S33ps2iBIn5WOCIbRsXLzuEKKTF6hyOF9T9FTLES1Tj7Xf0oBHNg-o1sGfNWstMnGY-ZicU4MOmu6Pz6Ve6F3xYQLaYLqLlb0D0ZAzNI5MrClVNjLZ6EwDgMZclFsSLpD7V5RK9PgjCNw7tai8BYBdN470TEJ4S7M" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="235" data-original-width="330" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhGfXarv1OD5gMJNymr2rNJpMDv65S33ps2iBIn5WOCIbRsXLzuEKKTF6hyOF9T9FTLES1Tj7Xf0oBHNg-o1sGfNWstMnGY-ZicU4MOmu6Pz6Ve6F3xYQLaYLqLlb0D0ZAzNI5MrClVNjLZ6EwDgMZclFsSLpD7V5RK9PgjCNw7tai8BYBdN470TEJ4S7M" width="320" /></a></div><br />As we went to bed we could hear the wind picking up outside. It's whipping round the garden rocking chairs and rattling fence panels, and it's gaining speed. The forecast predicts the dark hours of the night to experience winds close to hurricane force levels. I wonder what we'll find when we wake up in the morning.<p></p><blockquote><p>"...and Yahweh drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided." Exodus 14:21</p></blockquote><p>All night the wind lashed around them. They were trapped, clutching their cloaks with a pillar of wind behind them keeping the Egyptian army at bay, and hurricane force winds in front of them driving back the sea. Both the enemy of the Egyptians and the chaotic, impenetrable force of the waters was being set upon by the <i>ruakh </i>(wind/Spirit) sent by God.</p><p>Then, as morning broke and they strained their eyes to the first hues of dawn excited chattering broke out among them, growing into an the noise of millions of men, women and children disbelieving for joy; where there had been an ocean, there now stretched a street.</p><p>In 1579 the small towns of Seaford and Meeching were settled along the flood plains of the river Ouse until one night, a storm broke; a storm so strong the river was blocked and its mouth diverted. Eventually as locals grew used to the new path of the river and settled their lives around it, the name of Meeching died out and was replaced by one that better suited the reality they'd woken up to find after the storm: <i>New Haven</i>. Now a town of several thousands.</p><p>Waking after a storm we hurry to the windows and look out over the streets and gardens, <i>has anyone lost any fence panels or roof tiles, are any trees over, I hope everyone's ok...</i> </p><p>The wind brings change. We know it does, we've seen footage on our televisions of the damage and havoc it creates. Damage and havoc, but also new realities and lands; new havens. </p><blockquote><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhsCUCHVe7mGb_vV-PLimdLQRzsxHm-M3LXXE8TMvA8JNIog3nItnrfb15aFlWNYnx2znBuMqMBjYBtAltau2YqxuOheRya4WpZqzjWaS9KPZIvQ-g_q_Y-EGdi4_2pw97z5xNqhXg3j3hyYZzQZ-w3PXuSfzbf1kfJVvXS3jch-5Jr4fHYR-9-8rQ9WyE" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="2678" data-original-width="4762" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhsCUCHVe7mGb_vV-PLimdLQRzsxHm-M3LXXE8TMvA8JNIog3nItnrfb15aFlWNYnx2znBuMqMBjYBtAltau2YqxuOheRya4WpZqzjWaS9KPZIvQ-g_q_Y-EGdi4_2pw97z5xNqhXg3j3hyYZzQZ-w3PXuSfzbf1kfJVvXS3jch-5Jr4fHYR-9-8rQ9WyE" width="320" /></a></div><br />"The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters." Genesis 1:2<p></p></blockquote><p>A storm is coming. The breath of God is steadying himself for what's to come. He comes, in partnership with the rationale of the Son and the commands of the Father to drive back, and raise up and tear down, and form: land and birds and trees and seas. He comes to breathe into inanimate organisms and, ultimately, to animate a human pair.</p><p>And then, sometime later:</p><blockquote><p>"Jesus ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait... for you will be baptised with the Spirit not many days from now." Acts 1:5</p></blockquote><p>A storm is coming. </p><p>A yellow warning has been put out that nobody is to leave (unless essential!). We should know by now what happens when the Father's storm comes, old things are left behind and new realities are created. Out of the darkness planets are brought to life, sentient beings are raised up and highways are made on ocean floors. Chaos, the chaos of the sea, and the chaos in our lives gets driven back.</p><p>We wake up wondering what we'll find.</p><blockquote><p>"Suddenly there came from heaven a sound from heaven like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting." Acts 2:2</p></blockquote><p>Closing the windows won't help since this storm is inside the house! It whips around the room as people gasp and shriek as "divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them." </p><p>Fire. And wind! Wind, an accelerant to fire, fire - an unapproachable, untouchable thing, a threat to life. What on earth is going on?</p><blockquote><p>"And they were filled with the Holy Spirit." Acts 2:4</p></blockquote><p>The wind is now inside them, the storm cannot be held back. It comes rushing onward and now inward as their lungs fill with the stuff, energising and animating new life within "<i>and they began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance</i>." the fire also is inside. The licking, flickering, dancing flames of the Spirit, the wind and storm of God is not only 'out there' but 'in here' and now coming forth from their mouths. And then, as one man stands and addresses the onlookers the storm animates them as well, new life, new creation and energies bring with it new birth as thousands are reborn and a new world is begun.</p><p>We wake up after a dark night and wonder what the winds will have done. </p><p>The Spirit is making all things new. The wind is howling for you:</p><blockquote><p>"Open your mouth wide and I will fit." Psalm 81:10</p></blockquote><p><i>Holy breath of God, breathe on me today.</i></p><p><i>Amen</i></p><p><br /></p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-3478161150020271472023-10-31T03:36:00.010-07:002023-10-31T13:06:19.181-07:00We're Right to Be Afraid. Or Are We?<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg_KcaQWd7sKHfmzk-00rdE7IvEUuFOD4SR8NoNEwOY98NdPCB8enQNXeYbvF362hco2WwX4yGwlWH3qME4rUteSK0iBFPHECngyMYOYNDdEx_H9vswUP81tP62p_4lJzsrl88MXUoOrdFR5vLrnOGyVcw1erf0YzoBVoPK-JXx4FBx-kSlO-PVIRE3CJo" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg_KcaQWd7sKHfmzk-00rdE7IvEUuFOD4SR8NoNEwOY98NdPCB8enQNXeYbvF362hco2WwX4yGwlWH3qME4rUteSK0iBFPHECngyMYOYNDdEx_H9vswUP81tP62p_4lJzsrl88MXUoOrdFR5vLrnOGyVcw1erf0YzoBVoPK-JXx4FBx-kSlO-PVIRE3CJo" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">It's just like evil to rant and rave, and to boast and brag and roar in people's faces. It's what darkness does.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><p style="font-family: inherit;">Dictators bluster on about the significance of their ascendency, they parade their military and they flex their muscle. They want people to believe they're unbeatable. They know that if people are scared, they'll be rendered immobile like how the Basilisk would scare a person so much that they froze where they stood, terrified half to death. That's what evil likes to do. </p><p style="font-family: inherit;">Of course in a universe that cares not or feels nothing there's nothing to say that all its boasts aren't accurate after all. Death is so final and the passage of time and its onward march toward it is so unstoppable, we'd be foolish not to be afraid. And so we scare ourselves by getting as close as we can to evil, to prove to ourselves that we're braver and that evil's tamer than our fears make out. We toy with the serpent while its a baby so we can have confidence around it when its fully grown.</p><p style="font-family: inherit;">Very rarely do people dress up in costume or go trick-or-treating to glorify evil. Mostly they do it to get sweets, or they do it to feel alive and release some of life's pressure. Ultimately I believe we dress up for Halloween because we're scared of death and by dressing up, we take some control over the things beyond our control. Dressing up as evil and scary things, saying 'boo' to a child dressed as a ghost is a way of claiming some control over the things you're terrified of; and the honest truth is we're right to be afraid. </p><p style="font-family: inherit;">I have a friend who loves Halloween and goes to town with the elaborate ways that he tries to scare whoever comes to his front door. He's got animatronics, smoke machine, rubber carving knives, you name it, but what I found interesting to learn however is that he's petrified of the thought of ghosts being real. This surprised me when he said it since he's not a religious man and doesn't seem to believe in God, yet when<span style="font-family: inherit;"> a family member suggested a one night stay in a so-called Haunted House, he refused out of fear. On the one hand he goes all out for Halloween, on the other he's scared of the dark. Seems contradictory but it's not. Halloween is the release valve of scared people. It's a vent to let off steam and claim some dutch (or dark) courage over life's hardships and horrors. This is one of the reasons it's so popular among children. Halloween gives a powerless child a feeling of power over a scary thing; it makes <i>them</i> a scary thing and not a <i>scared</i> thing.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">As a nation we embrace Halloween because there are genuinely some evil and </span>unimaginable<span style="font-family: inherit;"> horrors lurking round the corner of our lives. Who's to say when a car accident or cancer, or the loss of a child or the last tin of beans might strike; we're right to be afraid. We're right to be afraid and it's natural to try and take back control by convincing ourselves we're brave enough for life.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">What we fear of course is death. If we didn't die (or couldn't die) we'd all be as cocky as Marvel's Thor and we'd run headlong into every battle with our teeth bared. When death loses it's power evil gets unmasked like a Scooby Doo villain. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">This is exactly what happened when Jesus died; death defeated, satan stripped.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">The apostle Paul writes to a church in Greece and says that Jesus:</span></p><div><blockquote style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;">"Having disarmed the powers and authorities</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; font-size: 16px;"> made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit; font-size: 16px;"> by the cross." </span></blockquote><blockquote style="font-family: inherit;"><p>Colossians 2:15</p></blockquote></div><p>Jesus disarmed (<i>read: stripped them of their power</i>) the forces of darkness by taking out of their hands the only real weapon they had in their arsenal: death. Jesus died, he let them stab him with their knife, and then Jesus rose again. Jesus went into the abyss and snapped death's blade in half. He then disrobed evil and paraded it naked through the streets humiliating it by exposing it for what it is; only bullies dressed in outlandish costumes.</p><p>One day whilst visiting a zoo a tourist stood watching at one of the big cat enclosures as an attendant entered and began sweeping the floor, a few feet from the animal. The wildcat hissed at the attendant, but the man paid it no attention and instead kept on working sweeping all around the ferocious animal. Once he was done the tourist approached him and said "Wow you sure are brave!" to which the man replied, "Nope, mister I 'aint brave you see he's old and he 'aint got no teeth." </p><p>The Devil has been disarmed and for followers of Jesus he cannot terrify us any more. Don't give him credit where it isn't due by being scared of evil, be wise sure, be innocent of evil yes, but don't be scared.</p><p>Dress up if you like, or don't, trick or treat if you like and convince yourself that you're brave; try and claim some power over evil but know this, Jesus did for real what you only do in fancy dress.</p><p>Jesus entered the viper's pit and slayed the great Basilisk for us so that all those of us who are scared out of whits need be terrified no more. </p><p>Halloween is about this, and it reminds us of our Champion in the field who sets us free from fear. </p><blockquote><p>He who's in you, is greater than he who is in the world. </p></blockquote><blockquote><p>1 John 4:4</p></blockquote><p>Happy Christus Victor.</p><p> </p></div>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-8989052504507152492023-10-27T00:34:00.003-07:002023-10-27T00:34:38.694-07:00The Christian Way - 3<p></p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li>Faith isn't an abstract thing we summon up or a token we put in a machine; rather Jesus said, 'I am the way, the truth and the life' suggesting that <i>followership</i> more than <i>believership</i> is the requirement for <i>membership</i> to the Christian way. A Christian is meant to be someone who goes a certain way and lives a particular life. </li><li>Remembering the Jewish Shema we see that the Christian way and Christian devotion requires our whole person as we're told to love the Lord our God with all our <i>heart,</i> <i>soul, mind</i> <i>and</i> <i>strength</i>. The Christian way is an all involving path.</li><li>Today I want to consider the role of knowledge along the Christian way. </li></ol><p></p><p>The apostle Paul considered knowledge to be the main pursuit of his life and insisted that whatever else he may have considered meritorious he now not only doesn't consider it so, he actually reckons all previous gain as 'loss' compared to his final preoccupation - <i>knowing Christ</i>.</p><p>Loss. </p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #181818;"></span></p><blockquote style="font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px;">We all want progress. But progress means getting nearer to the place where you want to be. And if you have taken a wrong turning then to go forward does not get you any nearer. If you are on the wrong road progress means doing an about-turn and walking back to the right road and in that case the man who turns back soonest is the most progressive man. There is nothing progressive about being pig-headed and refusing to admit a mistake. </blockquote><blockquote style="font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px;">- C.S. Lewis, The Case For Christianity</blockquote><p style="font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px;">When you realise you're lost and are making your way back onto the path the loss you're recovering from becomes like a curse, with every step back accompanied by feelings of frustration that you ever took the wrong path in the first place. </p><p style="font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px;">Several years ago a friend and I were driving to Liverpool late one night for a conference. We'd been on the road already for four hours and were within the last forty-five minutes of our journey when he missed a junction and got stuck on a motorway without an exit point for several miles to come. We watched in horror as our SatNav's estimated time of arrival literally doubled; forty-five minutes left became one and a half hours to go! At that point our 'progress' became loss as we resented every mile of tarmac. It's only progression if it brings you closer to home otherwise you're wearing yourself out just to get back to square one. </p><p style="font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px;">If Christ is all in all then outside of him is only emptiness, a soulish vacuum that hollows a man reducing him to nothing but a whisper and a longing. </p><p style="font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px;">Let's consider in full at what St. Paul says in Philippians 3: </p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><span class="text Phil-3-7" id="en-NIVUK-29429" style="color: black;"></span></i></span></p><blockquote><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><span class="text Phil-3-7" id="en-NIVUK-29429" style="color: black;">whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. </span><span class="text Phil-3-8" id="en-NIVUK-29430" style="color: black;">What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ </span><span class="text Phil-3-9" id="en-NIVUK-29431" style="color: black;">and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ – the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. </span><span class="text Phil-3-10" id="en-NIVUK-29432" style="color: black;">I want to know Christ – yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,</span><span class="text Phil-3-11" id="en-NIVUK-29433" style="color: black;"><span class="versenum" style="display: inline; line-height: normal; position: relative; top: auto; vertical-align: text-top;"> </span>and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.</span></i></span></p></blockquote><p>The emphasis in Paul's expression is not on the pain of the loss but on the comparative worth of the gain and the knowledge he prizes isn't intellectual learning or mastery but relational intimacy. 'Knowing Christ' is the gain and goal of his life.</p><p>When I experience something good without Amy with me it feels by contrast like a loss. In fact any trip somewhere without her feels like reconnaissance; if I'd have visited Rome before I met her I'd need to revisit it once we got together. The prior trip would have been a non-visit, a loss even compared to the joy of going with her. </p><p>There is such all surpassing value in knowing Christ that everything done without him feels essentially like it needs to be redone with him. It's the difference between enjoying a walk in the woods attributing its glory only to blind and random chance, to then discovering the mind behind the woods, and walking it with him, its author; delighting in it and discussing it with him along the way. </p><p>It is the difference of intimacy that makes all the difference in the world. </p><p>It is the difference between being made to share a seat on public transport with a stranger to enjoying a dinner with friends.</p><p>Knowing a thing takes the form of objective and subjective knowledge, analytical and personal. There is a third form of knowledge however that occupies the space in between the two. Were we to draw a Venn diagram of overlapping circles, it would be the space shared by both objective and subjective knowledge that would be of most value. It is within this space that we speak truthfully and meaningfully. When I speak of knowing my wife I am using personal language that describes a subjective experience but about an objectively recognised collection of atoms that can be known and recognised in the world. 'Amy' is either a label for the particular collections of atoms and molecules or it is the name of the personal and particular being associated by them. Being with her and enjoying her (and even speaking meaningfully of such a being as 'her') describes a 'third' space of reality between the purely subjective and the purely objective; it is the world of relationships between souls. </p><p>To know Christ there is both the being of God incarnate (sitting objectively 'there') and the subjectively felt relationship I enjoy. The very fact however that I can understand and identify with the Apostle Paul's 'knowing' means that there is a truth between the cold fact and the purely-personal value, there is relationship. Christ exists, or at least a shared appreciation of the objective being of Christ exists, and is therefore able to be spoken of in a meaningful way.</p><p>This is the Christian way, an entering into a universally shared yet subjectively experienced life. It is not locked away from view and experience as mystical experiences might be, it is open and available to all who come to Christ. Come and come and reach out with your mind, your heart, your strength; reach out until this subjective knowing of him becomes yours as well, until you enter the universal church throughout time who have feasted their souls on him and known love and intimacy as its reward and mainstay. </p><p>It is the way.</p><blockquote><p><span style="font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px;"> </span></p></blockquote><p style="font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px;"></p><p style="font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, serif; font-size: 14px;"> </p><p></p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-14147573806935570592023-10-24T01:40:00.001-07:002023-10-27T00:37:49.013-07:00The he(art) of being a father; part 1<p><i>I'm 15 and I walk off the squash court to be met by my coach. He has a smile, a cup of water and some encouraging words. I try as best I can to concentrate on what he's saying before I step back onto court and continue my duel. My opponent doesn't have a coach, doesn't have anyone to give him advice or encouragement; and he looks lonelier for it.</i></p><p>--</p><p><i>I'm 18 and I've woken up after a long shift at work and am greeted by a cup of tea. My dad asks how my day had gone andhow busy the Bar was, and as he asks I see in his eyes an interest not just in the job but in the worker, in his son who's stepped up to responsibility and is proving himself to be reliable. He's proud of me and manages to communicate it with a gesture. </i></p><p>--</p><p><i>I'm 22 and as I step off the stage, the band concludes the service and an older man I know welll walks over to me. He looks me in the eyes and says simply 'outstanding'. He hugs me and then he walks away. I'd proved myself competent and I let out a sigh of both joy and relief. </i></p><p>-- </p><p>No matter who you are or how successful you are I'd hazard a guess that there's a longing in your heart to have someone you admire champion you. I want to affirm that desire in you and, whether you have someone in your life who does it or not, I want to identify several key ingredients that will enable you to be that for someone else.</p><p>I've spoken to and observed people from across a wide range of professions and personalities and I have seen and heard this longing expressed in them all. It doesn't matter whether you're in a well paid and well liked profession or whether you're blessed with high self-belief (or not), your need to have someone in your corner supporting you is normal and good.</p><p>As a man makes his way in the world, voicing his dreams or attempting to live up to his ideals, he steps vulnerably and courageously into a new country everyday.</p><p>If you've had the privilege of being raised with an engaged and supportive father these steps come more willingly, and with the knowledge of a father's safety net you're able to tolerate the vulnerability and uncertainty you occupy. Nevertheless the space a man occupies when he attempts to <i>step up </i>and <i>step out</i> is always accompanied by the desire (and legitimate need) to have someone support him.</p><p>If a man turns inward to find the support and encouragement he needs, it can result in nurturing unhealthy and undesirable characteristics. Self-confidence that is developed in opposition to (rather than as a result of) a lack of fatherly encouragement often fails to bear the hallmarks of love and service that ultimately marks a man out as good in (and good for) the community.</p><p>To be both good <i>for</i> and good <i>in</i> a community every man and woman needs someone to help them. There is no such thing as a 'self-made' man or woman, certainly not one that other people enjoy being around. As those who live in a culture that emphasises the importance and potential of the individual <i>over</i> the group we can find ourselves being surprised and frustrated by this obvious need for other human beings. For some their surname helps them here: <i>Wilson</i>, <i>Smithson, Williamson </i>driving home our indebtedness to another. </p><p>All of us however would do well to slow down and listen to exactly what that inner ache is after. What is it we want when we want to have a supporter and a fan?</p><p>I believe the thing you and I are searching for is encapsulated succinctly and beautifully in words spoken by the ancient Jewish prophet John the Baptist concerning his relationship with Jesus. This is what he said of Jesus:</p><blockquote><p style="text-align: center;">"He must increase and I must decrease." </p></blockquote><p>Read it again. </p><p>And again. </p><p>One more time. </p><p>'He' - another beyond me and outside of me - 'must increase' - his ascendency is beginning and it is essential that it increase - 'and I' - I have a vital role only I can make - 'must decrease' - it is essential that I step aside in order to make room for him to fill the stage I have been occupying. </p><p>In my opinion this subtle and short statement captures both the longing in every man's heart and gives expression to the mission and function every man ought to play for another. To have someone say and behave toward you with that as their mantra: <i>more of you, less of me</i> - is the craving of the human heart. It offers a resource for courage, a backbone for the timid, a refuge for the defeated and it beckons us out of the cave we hide in and the idolatrous empire we build for ourselves. </p><p>When someone behaves like that they make you believe you can do anything and become anything. It's the voice of someone secure enough in their own status and power that they can offer it as stepladder to someone else. </p><p>In what follows I shall be exploring the depth that this statement can reach in empowering us to both be the man God made us to be and create the kind of communities and families God calls us to create. </p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-79906777931795199372023-08-24T09:19:00.004-07:002023-08-24T09:19:45.921-07:00Sentimental Syncretism <p><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13px;">"A robin came to visit us every day when we had breakfast. The kids would greet it saying ‘hello grand pops.”</span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">“I bet he’s playing cricket in the sky.”</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">“He’s reunited with his wife again.”</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">“I asked him for sunshine at his funeral, I don’t know know what he thinks he’s playing at giving me rain - he always did wind me up about my hair going curly in the rain.”</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">We live our lives today giving next to no thought or real attention to invisible realities. People generally live such mundane and functional lives, thinking only about the physical space in front of them. Yet, upon a loved one dying they pull out statements like the ones above that suggest an apprehension of a layer to reality they hitherto care or seem to believe in not at all.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">What is this about? I find myself feeling genuinely bemused by such asinine and inane comments made by otherwise secular minded people. It would be easy to dismiss them as mere sentimentalities, comments made to fill the silence or push away the looming presence of death. Except that in my observation the statements are made by some people with such regularity that they must offer both comfort and explanation. Is it genuinely the case that my sister believes the spirit of her father is animating the body of a Robin whenever it suits her to acknowledge them? If that was the case why would she not do more to entertain the bird? Why not invite it into her home or set up a nest for it in the garden.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Likewise, do my cousins genuinely believe that the afterlife consists of games of cricket? If so who is my grandad playing with? Does he ever take a break? Does he win more than he loses? Does he get tired? More to the point, are there things that we can do in this life that might increase our standing in the next with regards the hobbies and interests we might be able to pursue? Even more to the point, how do they know?</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">As soon as one starts asking question of the statements people make it becomes clear that no they don’t believe they’re describing a literal existence, or a belief in an ongoing realm of reality. The robin is a mere token and talisman for the memory of her father, something in the physical world that helps her accept the unacceptable, or push away the unthinkable - that her dad has in fact died, and that she will one day die as will her children and all the people she loves.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The persistence of such comments made by otherwise irreligious people fascinate me. Something else that’s interesting to me is the question: in a society like us with its legacy of Christianity why do we still instinctively resort toward pagan cosmology and animism? <i>That </i>seems to be our most basic religion; a religion without a personal Being at the heart of it, and <i>that </i>corresponds with the Scriptures definition of the human races rebellion from said Being…</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">In a world with something so shocking and awful as eternal separation from our loved ones, and ever-looming presence of our own end, and in a society that assures us there’s really <i>not</i> anything after death, we fear that we’re not strong enough to stare long into the abyss without needing some balm of sentimentality to comfort us. We make statements about reality that we patently don’t believe in and this enables us to carry on unchanged on our present course through life.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">A related observation and question is that in my experience it’s women who tend to make these statements more than men. The men do often nod reassuringly along and affirm the statements but it’s the women who initiate the fables. Why that might be is intriguing to me. Maybe it’s a manifestation of the maternal instinct to make things better, rub a wound down and restore harmony.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">The sentimentality doesn’t end there however. We have, in our metaphysically impoverished age, added to our sentimentality a healthy does of syncretism. The recent funeral I attended for a non-Christian man ended like this:</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">“As we commit his body to the grave, we return him to the elements. Peter we hope that you feel the warmth of the sun and the refreshment of the rain; may you know the gentle embrace of the wind and not mind the cold too much… and now we’ll end by reading the Lord’s prayer together…”<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">Here we have elemental religion, animism, conscious spiritual and personal existence beyond death and a Christian prayer that invokes the rule of Yahweh God and the eternal kingdom to come.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I scratched my head. Does this stuff actually help people? Are we too cowardly to just say: “well folks that’s it. We appreciated him while he lived but now he’s gone and doesn’t exist any more, he’ll feel nothing, do nothing, say nothing and care nothing since he is now no-thing. The uniqueness of his personhood was a mere aberration since he was simply a happy accident of molecules. He’s simply returned to the dust from whence he came.” Obviously we wouldn’t say that any more; some do, but most wouldn’t. We settle for a more dishonest, but mildly comforting syncretism and we refuse to look long into these things. Convinced that there’s no True hope for the problem of death we make a collage of patches to try to strengthen our quivering souls.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">I’m sad about the state of things, and sad that it all seems to go unnoticed. Sad that all the work of previous generations of evangelists and pastors has not carried over. Sad that the glorious gospel isn’t doing its work in hearts. After all this we’re back to paganism, and are becoming the playthings of chaos once more; albeit with a confusing number of randomly chosen Bible words and phrases thrown in for good measure.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">But that’s just it isn’t it? Things like this don’t get ‘passed down the generations’ by mere symbol or ritual alone. Spiritual Truth like this is like a flare in the midst of a battlefield. Without the deliberate moving toward and looking for and claiming sanctuary in the relief zone by every household and member of the household, we simply can’t be saved. Without men and women who courageously and determinedly ‘fire a flare’ into the sky we have no true north to offer us meaningful hope, nothing to clear away the fog of confusion and save souls.</p><p class="p2" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><br /></p><p class="p3" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 13px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">God help us.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-35065922701303405002023-08-16T14:26:00.003-07:002023-08-16T14:26:19.766-07:00At least the church is free<p> this is a great quote from Matthew Anderson in a letter to a 'deconstructing' Christian:</p><p></p><blockquote><span style="background-color: white; color: #232323; font-family: adobe-caslon-pro, serif; font-size: 17.6px; letter-spacing: 0.528px;">"...I suspect some of the “deconstructing” are only replacing one form of therapy for another—only access to their new sources of happiness is limited to those with money to pay for it. Think about the practices that have replaced church: people pay for therapy, for wellness classes, for yoga, for meditation apps, for relational counseling, for career counselors, for dieticians and personal trainers, and so on. All those can be helpful. Yet if that is what it takes to live a good life, no one with a working-class job and a couple of kids is going to make it. For all its problems, the church at least offers confession, meditation, and singing for free. All she asks is that you take up your cross and follow Jesus."</span></blockquote><p></p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-24556639339694665292023-08-14T09:21:00.004-07:002023-09-21T23:53:31.114-07:00The Cruel Hijacking of the Male<p>Manipulated and hijacked, led like a dumb animal and being made to willingly go where I didn't want to go. </p><p>It makes me so mad, but the truth is that it's a regular experience for any man who desires to live a godly life in pornified culture such as ours. Watch almost any TV show or film, go on almost any website or read any newspaper and there'll undoubtedly be some obstacle to freedom laid in our path, an inviting image designed to hook the eyes and capture the mind. </p><p>It happened just last night at the cinema. </p><p>Cue a scene at a dinner party in a fairly high brow drama. Up until this point the film had been about science and politics, world war II and the legal system - it's all pretty cerebral, all fairly intellectual. A man and a woman are in conversation, they're getting on well, they flirt and then - all of sudden - snap to a scene of her naked chest against his, the two of them locked in passions embrace. Without warning, without any real need to do so <i>bam!</i> The filmmakers feel the need to inject a spike into my drink, to ensure my concentration is back and so make me an adulterer by Jesus' standards. And now I know that for the rest of the film and for days afterwards these images will follow me around, burnt somewhere near the front of brain inviting me to go somewhere and do something else to put fresh logs on lusts fire.</p><p>Ours is a culture that lacks any level of wisdom for the relationships between the sexes. Men live with having their libido constantly tickled and tempted by fantasy. Our women are then forced to bear the burden of having to live with oversexed males, feeling as though they can't bear up with the weight of expectation placed on them.</p><p>The male brain lights up like brain on drugs whenever it sees images of naked women. We know this, we know all about the super-normal principle that hacks the circuitry of neurology addicting us to images and froms. We know this, and yet we do it anyway. What the hell does that say about our culture? 'Dumb' isn't the word, 'evil' is. </p><p>I believe there's at least three clear things are at work here. </p><p>First there is the power of the £. To make money companies know they need to hold our attention, and what better way to hold our attention than to use the visual equivalent of superglue to keep us looking. <i>Tits</i> work, pure and simple - and it's tragic that's it that simple. Shove some breasts on camera and you'll guarantee yourself an audience; what becomes of those viewers and the lasting impact this tactic may have on a society isn't the concern of the profiteer.</p><p>Second there's, honestly, the basic appeal of our appetites. The truth is that I watched the above scene (and didn't look away) <i>willingly,</i> against my will. I did so for the same reason we all do things we know we shouldn't - because we <i>want </i>to. I could look away, I could say 'no' to another drink, I could refuse to pass on the gossip; I could but, honestly I don't <i>want </i>to. And in a society like ours a genuine question is 'why should I?' or the common 'if no one's hurt by it, what's the problem?'. Without any real motive for purity our anticulture of a society revels in its lusts and appetites. Hotter, bigger, bolder, more, more, more. Sail as close to the wind as you can, court danger, play with fire. There's no motive for restraint since there's no real reason to do so; these days we consider flagrant sinning with intent 'being a grown up'.</p><p>Third there's the casual disdain for men that's at work in the world all around us. '<i>Stupid man</i>' someone might say 'Can't handle looking at breasts? Find the female body too much to handle - <i>pathetic!</i>' In a society such as ours there seems very little compassion expressed toward this most natural reality.</p><p>Honestly it's tiring and I'm beginning to wonder if I might just be better off moving into a cave by myself.</p><p>This dumb animal longs to live pure but like every other flawed human battles against his own nature. </p><p>In a world that won't help but instead works hard to make it worse, I thank God for friends who do. </p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-42315657370053168702023-06-07T02:08:00.006-07:002023-06-07T23:14:47.150-07:00My pronouns are me/my<p>Whenever I hear people announce that their pronouns are something unusual: ze/ziem/ey/eir I'm drawn to think about the bigger problem as I see it. When someone insists that other people refer to them using recently invented terms, ones that bear no relation to their sex, reveals that their actual pronouns (the ones that inform their thinking most of all) are still really: me/my - and that's the real problem. </p><p>Whilst the instinct to alter ones pronouns comes from a place of pain and suffering, and ought to therefore be empathised with and dealt with sensitively surely the answer isn't to insist that the grain of reality is bent in your direction. All of us have a natural tendency to want the world to change to meet our needs, but maturity requires not that we change the world to suit us, but that we change to suit the world.</p><p>Of course it's entirely natural to prioritise oneself above others, after all, if I die I'll be of no use to anybody; "please put your own oxygen mask on before helping others." That makes sense. Keeping oneself alive is one thing, but living as if you're free from the demands or needs of others is a problem. When I hear my kids getting frustrated at someone on their football team who won't pass the ball I remember how that felt, when the worst thing you could ever say about someone was that they were "a ball hogger"!</p><p>All of us learn that life's precious commodities: attention, provision and protection are worth fighting for. We learn that living for these things is reasonable, particularly in a world as fraught with danger and insecurity as this one, "got to look out for number one." On the other hand we ought to all learn as well that the best way to secure those things is, rather counter-intuitively, to "look out for number two" as well. This ability, to think not only about oneself but also about ones community, and to live in such a way that at times suffers short term suffering for their sake is part of what turns a boy into a man. It's also this realisation that leads, on some rare occasions, to the laying down of ones own life for others and thus securing not passing attention but lasting significance in the form of legacy. Self-interest that's long sighted and communitarian isn't a problem.</p><p>The problem of our day isn't that we put self-interest ahead of other-interest, the problem is that we're too short sighted with our self-interest. We claim our freedoms and rights and, if we don't burn relational bridges in the process, we certainly neglect the essential strengthening of them. </p><p>We devour books and videos on the kind of self-improvement that focuses almost exclusively on the kind of personal goal setting that's devoid of relational depth. We want to be impressive people who've learnt to maximise our productivity and output, all whilst looking beautiful, strong and healthy at the same time. The impression this makes on others is, quite literally, 'impressive'; we seek to imprint ourselves on their egos, squeezing out a little of their own preoccupation with self to force ourselves on the sub-conscious. Like a chair cushion after we go, we want people to be left moved and moulded by their encounter with us; impressive ones that we are. We don't seek the strengthening and elevating of others but their readjustment by (and often into) our image.</p><p>Thinking along a similar track John Starke points out that this kind of life, one that pursues personal goals such as freedom and beauty has a devastating effect on the second half of life and brings with it terrible suffering: "In a society that dreads old age and death, ageing holds a special terror to those who fear dependence and whose self-esteem requires the admiration usually reserved for youth, beauty, celebrity or charm."</p><p>I'm born into the world as one built for survival: <i>me</i> and <i>my</i>. Along the way I learn that to achieve this effectively I must acknowledge <i>they</i> and <i>them</i>, but I must then resist the impulse that aims to turn others into tools in my service. </p><p>I understand maturity, becoming mature, to be: aligning with and learning to move along with the grain of reality. Although I initially discover the world as a me/my and am tempted to relate to others as they/them, I must mature to viewing myself and others as: we/us. </p><p>There's a reason that Jesus taught his followers to pray in the way that he did. The Lord's Prayer (found in Matthew 6 & Luke 11) begins with two radical ideas. On the one hand we're told to relate to God using the personal and intimate term 'Father' but, before that we're told to approach God as '<i>Our</i> Father'.</p><p><i>Our. </i>And the prayer then continues in this same way: Our Father, our bread, our sins, our deliverance. This is mature living, this is living like God as God intended us to.</p><p>May God help us become mature, people who don't impose our pronouns on others but who relate to others as co-equals and partners rather than commodities or nuisances. </p><p>May my pronouns be we/us.</p><p><br /></p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-7409314022320637942023-05-08T00:11:00.005-07:002023-05-11T03:30:59.708-07:00Save Us From Saul<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghDRX3bNQTFildsN0gqO5S8-zrcz2hyYxQJ5uU1VFLkJ08y1GEzBSr0DH3Vs33POteeQTML3MBOF0OrG28VFSqeKtYnqlG1AQFVtQR8Jxjnzn46SWEUR1TgNzC2Kxgi6ClqLE6jCh3tbK8KHonUj_XPsyisKti2NrKjM1M_qtT2_Zti_XJ3fVq6vHb/s4007/robert-bye-0YQOOxNT2V4-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2671" data-original-width="4007" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghDRX3bNQTFildsN0gqO5S8-zrcz2hyYxQJ5uU1VFLkJ08y1GEzBSr0DH3Vs33POteeQTML3MBOF0OrG28VFSqeKtYnqlG1AQFVtQR8Jxjnzn46SWEUR1TgNzC2Kxgi6ClqLE6jCh3tbK8KHonUj_XPsyisKti2NrKjM1M_qtT2_Zti_XJ3fVq6vHb/w640-h426/robert-bye-0YQOOxNT2V4-unsplash.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p>Saul stood tall, head and shoulders above the rest, a man respected and revered by men; a man able to command men. </p><p>David was small, overlooked and unimpressive. David had not received much attention in his life.</p><p>Saul 'feared the people and obeyed their voice' and was rejected as king, 'the LORD regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel.'</p><p>David danced undignified in public and was despised by his queen for behaviour unbecoming of a king. David was honoured by Yahweh for having a heart set true. </p><p>David has never been without a son on his people's throne. Saul had the throne ripped out from under him.</p><p>Here's a hypothesis:</p><p>Due to his appearance (tall in stature) Saul often had the attention of others, and it was this attention that ultimately distorted his soul. He was ensnared by the fear of man. His whole life people would have commented on his appearance whenever they met him </p><p>“oh you’re tall!” </p><p>and they would have drawn attention to it so often that he believed it was this that had qualified him for the role of king in the first place (and he wasn't wrong). </p><p>He had made it, he was established - he'd become a king no less, based and built on this foundation.</p><p>After a time, when for so long people comment on your appearance and your performance, this becomes the thing you notice most about yourself as well. It becomes your source of confidence, the thing you draw strength from. The trouble is it's a foundation that lacks any depth; it's all hollow underneath.</p><p>Doing what people wanted was what kept saul in the love and affection of others, it was what made him strong as a king, or so he thought. </p><p>After being rebuked by Samuel for offering unlawful sacrifices and allowing people to take illegal plunder he's honest enough to admit that it was 'because I feared the people and obeyed their voice.'</p><p>He's at fault and he knows it, but isn't he also simply reaping the effects of years of being objectified by others. Isn't this the price of appearances? The attention of others has led him to believe that he can do whatever he wants (error number one) and also that he is most secure when he gives the people what they want (error number two). He was pushed up the greasy pole of social status by the superficial praise of others, and he has learnt that to stay there requires him to keep himself within their affection.</p><p>The people are at fault for sure, but then we shouldn't expect any better from people should we? A herd acts without rational reflection, a herd acts based only on what it sees and feels. With people, what's novel gets noticed and no doubt all of us can testify to the sense of security and assurance that comes simply by being around and included by people who are physically strong or tall, capable and competent or even simply 'cool'. We want those people to be the hero that their appearance makes them appear to be. For women of course this is even more of a challenge since it's their appearance that gets commented on or stared at almost all the time. Again, the people aren't to blame - they're just people, and the world being what it is (a bloody and dangerous place) we all draw security from whatever idol or image is on offer to us. </p><p>Her beauty, his strength, draw our attention and elevate them over us and so we look upon them and up to them - so help them God.</p><p>So help them God indeed since outward appearance is no indicator of character or the competency required to lead or establish a household. The bimbo is an airhead who's admired from afar but despised by those closest to them. Worse still than the bimbo (who at least knows their own hollowness), is the ruler who keeps the illusion going as long as he/she can. Ultimately they come unstuck when, acting out of the habit of a lifetime, they give the people what they want and lead them off a cliff or into a dead end or into chaos and agony.</p><p>So Saul suffered the consequences of being a man noticed by others. He was too busy being stared at and commented on that he never dug out a proper foundation for his character. If Small Man syndrome is the temptation to over compensate for a physical deficiency, what do we call this? Tall Man syndrome, or Handsome Man syndrome; an overinflated estimation of oneself that overlooks the importance of deep formation. This is the man who's content with the attention of other men and cares little for the attention of God.</p><p>A man like this formed in public better claw out a proper foundation for his soul in private, or else he'll come to ruin and most likely bring the entire house down upon him as well.</p><p>God have mercy. Save us from becoming Saul.</p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-22150773941743727932023-04-07T14:03:00.004-07:002023-04-08T00:28:46.181-07:00Shut Up In My Bones<p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiUAfPrlI0jmSwKByd4czEGJxGhs7LcxwyJY913rBef5Y44NlDOksix5WvTWOGFwZ1oDNAX3pWVeTYOdVIA6usiuodG0RAFfg7_kGAB1FIq47y4nYGyi3oYJZAQIcCCYGXXp53U3-JKAwqkOLmkbLOHtgJ9DPEvE96N29FhdBed2HQYCTV1P8d-PMp/s1024/38860a8f-44d6-421d-b991-34784865462c.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiUAfPrlI0jmSwKByd4czEGJxGhs7LcxwyJY913rBef5Y44NlDOksix5WvTWOGFwZ1oDNAX3pWVeTYOdVIA6usiuodG0RAFfg7_kGAB1FIq47y4nYGyi3oYJZAQIcCCYGXXp53U3-JKAwqkOLmkbLOHtgJ9DPEvE96N29FhdBed2HQYCTV1P8d-PMp/s320/38860a8f-44d6-421d-b991-34784865462c.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><p>There's a particular discomfort felt by many of us at this time of year. </p><p>It's the unfulfilled joy that struggles to find expression, coupled with the mingling of angst over the urgency of the hour for this thing to be hailed and heard and internalised by every human soul.</p><p>It's Christ crucified and raised, and the birth of a new world and a fresh hope. It's shame removed, sins forgiven and love unleashed.</p><p>Tell me please if you can; should a happening that happens at 9am still be considered at 5pm that same day? </p><p>If so, then what difference does the descending of the dark and the dawning of a day make to the value of the thing? The impact of a grief lasts well into many days and nights and dawns and darks; this is not a surprise or a shock, the turning of a clock makes no odds to something of great significance. </p><p>As earth spins light advances and retreats. Whether it's spun once or a hundred times matters not a bit to the sun or the stars. My friends, dear reader - Christ is crucified. Several spins ago, it is true but does that make any difference?</p><p>The pride and autonomy of the individual needs to be confronted.</p><p>Dear ones, drunk on self - Christ calls you to account.</p><p>Think on it. </p><p>For the sake of your joy, think on it. </p><p>For the sake of your sorrow, think on it. </p><p>What difference does it make that this happened many rotations ago? What difference does the arbitrary dating and stamping of the moment make.?</p><p>It matters not one bit, not a jot, or an iota or a tittle or a little. If the passing of the time had rendered this moment of less consequence or value, granted if that were the case it could be said it's impact can be ignored. But what has happened in all those days and years is the opposite. Generations have come and gone and with each new generation the potency and allure of this moment has been prized and preached, beheld and indwelt. Christ is crucified. </p><p>Oh my bones feel it and my heart aches with it. Why oh why dear one reading this, why would you not stare long into this, long enough to search it out? It makes the most high-flown of claims on your life and on the lives of all who've come after it. It searches your heart and it confirms your worst fears but it also searches your hopes and out paces even the most bold of them all. </p><p>Christ is crucified. Jesus is lifted up and Jesus draws you to himself and bids you look and behold and live and be free. </p><p>Oh my bones, my heart burns to do both devour and delight in this for myself <i>and </i>to stress and impress this upon others. I lament what joys others are missing, what comfort! </p><p>The world and the system of human pride has lied and dismissed the treasure of my messiah. He is the deepest and most intensest of satisfaction, of meaning and of peace. He topples me from where my pride wants to place me and he lifts me higher than it could have ever gotten by itself.</p><p>Dear ones, loved by the One. </p><p>Come come to him, come consider him; come look at him and in looking live.</p><p>Please I implore you, be reconciled to God. </p><p>Please. And, peace. </p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">IMAGE credit: artist, Loken Gamble</span></i></p><p><br /></p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-76714834265711536142022-12-27T14:48:00.002-08:002022-12-27T14:49:10.172-08:00My Media 2022<p>Another year of heartbreak's and happinesses, and another year of discovering some great new things. </p><p>One of the things I enjoy so much about life is the amazing variety of ideas and creativity we're regularly exposed to. Here's some of the things I've read, watched and found that have shaped who I am in 2022. </p><p>Who knows, maybe you'll follow a trail and discover something amazing as well. After all '<i>not all who wander are lost'</i>. ⛰ 🚶♂️ </p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">📖 <span style="color: red;">Books.</span> 📖 </span></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWzgDd7Al5g3fU7suao9IZHVw-RQfnm6Wa7DnwF15wMnraFVirDtJk3VQRQe04bxxTZYez6TFbbOAMhpA2saLuYN7kzpGxpxuFeRy6vdLJdl63Zhc5nuD4nbbgs13YFNqgwhucaqTu7dfVxVv-lrcm176OfYDvnXIOWRk7manmZwWpSNR5rFmuyvx6/s5315/book%20horiz.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /><img border="0" data-original-height="886" data-original-width="5315" height="98" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWzgDd7Al5g3fU7suao9IZHVw-RQfnm6Wa7DnwF15wMnraFVirDtJk3VQRQe04bxxTZYez6TFbbOAMhpA2saLuYN7kzpGxpxuFeRy6vdLJdl63Zhc5nuD4nbbgs13YFNqgwhucaqTu7dfVxVv-lrcm176OfYDvnXIOWRk7manmZwWpSNR5rFmuyvx6/w586-h98/book%20horiz.jpg" width="586" /></a></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Notable among some of the great books I've had the privilege to read: <b><i><span style="color: #2b00fe;">The Power of Moments</span></i></b> by Dan & Chip Heath on the value of creating points in time (moments) that elevate experiences into moments we remember - and that have the added effect of slowing down our experience of time. <i><b><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Born to Run</span></b></i> was a great listen whilst training for my first Ultra marathon in May. It's hard to complain at 3k whilst listening to epic stories of 100 mile marathons in inhospitable places! <b><i><span style="color: #2b00fe;">The Cross and the Lynching Tree</span></i></b> lifted the lid on the horrors of America's racist past and gave me fresh insight into why they're still so divided along racial lines. Carl Truman's <span style="color: #2b00fe;"><i><b>Rise of Triumph of the Modern Self</b></i> </span>helped me grasp the philosophical and historical journey into the rapid shift in cultural norms we've lifted through. This about sums it up: </span></div><p></p><p class="p1" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><i></i></p><blockquote><blockquote><i>With Rousseau the self was psychologised, then with Freud psychology was sexualised and finally sex was politicised. Now, everything is political.</i></blockquote></blockquote><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Lastly, two books shaped my understanding and appreciation of the female experience (useful since, you know - I'm a man) Elaine Storkey's overview of violence against women in <b><i>Scars Across Humanity</i></b> changed me and enabled me to appreciate the horrors faced by women across the world and Louise Perry's <i style="font-weight: bold;">The Case Against the Sexual Revolution </i>gave me empirical data and a feminist's voice for the wisdom of the ages.</span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b> </b><i>Top 3 Books</i></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho59uufgnkGVCt90Hzxm7YCQ_iebZCVmjyfwatG2dyJqeieLcdCUZgiwj3Wd1Tc2wM_2E0XC-U_gLnf-2MxZtfXNHquxSAHJx8_LrqOkzW-1kSH8fX4zarZFyvuM3rRuGURSfIWBEBCQDHG4Tk8rSXV5tKNaOAgLWiBld1dSZJ3B-KD7oSDIuP9QJE/s225/download2.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="158" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho59uufgnkGVCt90Hzxm7YCQ_iebZCVmjyfwatG2dyJqeieLcdCUZgiwj3Wd1Tc2wM_2E0XC-U_gLnf-2MxZtfXNHquxSAHJx8_LrqOkzW-1kSH8fX4zarZFyvuM3rRuGURSfIWBEBCQDHG4Tk8rSXV5tKNaOAgLWiBld1dSZJ3B-KD7oSDIuP9QJE/w158-h158/download2.jpeg" width="158" /></a></div>1. <b><span style="font-size: medium;">Stolen Focus - Johann Hari</span></b><p></p><p>I read this book first in the year and it's stayed in my memory and affected the way I think about things. It's easy to read with stories and plenty of cultural references along with interviews with a range of experts who provide analysis on a range of issues from phones, adhd, parenting and the importance of boredom.</p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKzCiw8RR8xyuiFlG279NVD-zE50kpAI4gtllx5EDrOFnjsE7Tu2fjS5gL8S9S3aC84G0gfiDemmw9FW7emZNqyKxJqUz3o0o2KLsU2wFR3qkuGZo-JjkmamEzghJZJ9oA-aQ4om4bp-HrqgG4joe5jon0NZLoRCw8wk85JXxKxe_33OOHGg-qanxJ/s253/download3.jpeg" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="253" data-original-width="199" height="197" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKzCiw8RR8xyuiFlG279NVD-zE50kpAI4gtllx5EDrOFnjsE7Tu2fjS5gL8S9S3aC84G0gfiDemmw9FW7emZNqyKxJqUz3o0o2KLsU2wFR3qkuGZo-JjkmamEzghJZJ9oA-aQ4om4bp-HrqgG4joe5jon0NZLoRCw8wk85JXxKxe_33OOHGg-qanxJ/w155-h197/download3.jpeg" width="155" /></a></p><p>2. <b><span style="font-size: medium;">Why the Rest Hates the West - Meic Pearse</span></b></p><p>A latecomer in my yearly reads. Although there's been a run of books recently aiming to explain our cultural moment, this book does it without even trying to - and achieved it twenty years before anyone thought to attempt it. He does it not by asking questions about western history and culture so much as offering contrasts between the western world and the non-western world. </p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv71sjPMlWBVkJWDBgfsGWIJ20Ig0bLOowLE497pnd87p6UC9d_2UDTtH610X2C2XAY6Hq0IFxbLseeENi16zNwrV81OR2cvslx4Eq7IxUl1YH7nmpzRMyHLwppm07xOHWgU2EkHuyThedL36in0p0X-zBbckzf0qBvpFDA_wIRS4dPMWXWKe9IA2_/s283/downloadandy.jpeg" style="clear: left; display: inline; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="283" data-original-width="178" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv71sjPMlWBVkJWDBgfsGWIJ20Ig0bLOowLE497pnd87p6UC9d_2UDTtH610X2C2XAY6Hq0IFxbLseeENi16zNwrV81OR2cvslx4Eq7IxUl1YH7nmpzRMyHLwppm07xOHWgU2EkHuyThedL36in0p0X-zBbckzf0qBvpFDA_wIRS4dPMWXWKe9IA2_/w154-h245/downloadandy.jpeg" width="154" /></a></p>3. <b><span style="font-size: medium;">The Bethlehem Story - Andy McCullogh</span></b><p></p><p>This book left me open mouthed in wonder at the majesty, wisdom and beauty of both the richness of the Bible and of God's redemptive plan for humanity. I thought I knew the Bible fairly well but this book showed me how much I still have to discover. You can listen to my conversation with Andy about it <a href="http://newgroundchurches.org/podcast/59/stories-of-faith-in-the-margins" target="_blank">here</a> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></p><h2 style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #ffa400; font-size: large;"><span><br /></span></span></b></h2><h2 style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #ffa400; font-size: large;"><span><br /></span></span></b></h2><div><b><span style="color: #ffa400; font-size: large;"><span><br /></span></span></b></div><h2 style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #ffa400; font-size: large;"><span>🎧 AUDIBLE:</span> 🎧 </span></b></h2><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0F9FQPnyTfvTu9isXeTe0i79Lc77qpr75uIY_J9w0yVmjEUkTWvF8m78SVUJv8IJErJq5fZMHVbDY-cFcpbAH6W4ggBuSjIyIT-ZMKCK-lLrGpya_ogQZNAELmY_vubaqT9G5GF5aJZxAfI-n7sO7n71fjpMyYqpBp6-cai6T1NZaOIdAUKi8QPQB/s225/download.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0F9FQPnyTfvTu9isXeTe0i79Lc77qpr75uIY_J9w0yVmjEUkTWvF8m78SVUJv8IJErJq5fZMHVbDY-cFcpbAH6W4ggBuSjIyIT-ZMKCK-lLrGpya_ogQZNAELmY_vubaqT9G5GF5aJZxAfI-n7sO7n71fjpMyYqpBp6-cai6T1NZaOIdAUKi8QPQB/w154-h154/download.png" width="154" /></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>1. Live No Lies - </b><i>John Mark Comer</i><b> | 💥 <i>book of the year 💥 </i>|</b></span><p></p><p>I loved this book so much I listened to it twice and took inspiration from it for a 9 month sermon series. Comer writes and speaks in a way that shows he understands the questions and attitudes of our age, He's a great translator of timeless truth put in a timely manner, drawing on ancient and modern sources to illustrate his points. Superb. Buy it, read it/listen to it, repeat. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiK-_Z_XbN17ny1hV2yLOTm4T_O5GG_0ao_kOotU3ByVsQqSH8SOcni3xMB6d7SDNzFQoBy0_-iBeRCcOhZndSOEcqDKBgNpTGHa-svqmKi312DHAn-Ud1J__uLAddcVZxNfUqBb2-lgOKWmm5OQXAE_yP88Tx_8ZtdO4mae-J7DIMuEXsYAYiZ_9t/s225/intneiotnal.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="153" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiK-_Z_XbN17ny1hV2yLOTm4T_O5GG_0ao_kOotU3ByVsQqSH8SOcni3xMB6d7SDNzFQoBy0_-iBeRCcOhZndSOEcqDKBgNpTGHa-svqmKi312DHAn-Ud1J__uLAddcVZxNfUqBb2-lgOKWmm5OQXAE_yP88Tx_8ZtdO4mae-J7DIMuEXsYAYiZ_9t/w153-h153/intneiotnal.jpeg" width="153" /></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>2. The Intentional Father</b> - <i>Jon Tyson</i></span><p></p><p>I sobbed and delighted my way through this book. It came a close second for my book of the year; this book has led to the creation of one of the most enriching midweek groups I've been a part of. It's a book that seems to be capturing the hearts of the dads in our church. </p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ-n4Gkl1MCh9DJVCzgr3gQd4DcWsskSxUJ6Ht8dUlIH2M3iJK-cFCJyvFnZmUoVUibd-BGvAcw9Hkvv-g4wK65w6iOGqWdQegZ3uzHv2-7utgaANi081WcTaSoGSQaGw6tftz6Po6d-GmljCz8jHEKm1f3fdxA2UbCzCm6B5TDM4p1gj1MQ3VXBOc/s225/gay.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ-n4Gkl1MCh9DJVCzgr3gQd4DcWsskSxUJ6Ht8dUlIH2M3iJK-cFCJyvFnZmUoVUibd-BGvAcw9Hkvv-g4wK65w6iOGqWdQegZ3uzHv2-7utgaANi081WcTaSoGSQaGw6tftz6Po6d-GmljCz8jHEKm1f3fdxA2UbCzCm6B5TDM4p1gj1MQ3VXBOc/w156-h156/gay.jpeg" width="156" /></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>3. Gay Girl, Good God - </b><i>Jackie Hill Perry</i></span><p></p><p>I mean, <i>Jackie Hill Perry</i>! This book is a biography of her life's journey to faith in Christ and the impact Jesus has had on her but with her reading it it's more poem than prose. She's articulate, eloquent and lyrical. I listened to this on some fresh spring mornings running round a local forest, an environment that seemed appropriate for such superbly read rhetoric. </p><p></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><i style="font-size: large;">The Complete List</i></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Fiction:</span></b></p><ol><li><span><b>Return to Roar </b>- </span><i>Jenny McLaughlin</i></li><li><b>The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King </b><i>- J. R. R. Tolkien</i></li><li><b>The Gates of Athens </b><i>- </i>Conn Iggulden</li><li><b>I Am Pilgrim </b>- <i>Terry Hayes</i></li><li><b>Hamnet </b>- <i>Maggie O'Farrell</i></li><li><b>The Lion, The Witch & the Wardrobe </b>- <i>C. S. Lewis</i></li><li><b>A Christmas Carol </b>-<i> Charles Dickens</i></li></ol><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Non-Fiction:</span></b></p><ol><li><span><b>Abortion - </b><i>Dr Lizzie Ling</i></span></li><li><span><b>God's Sketchbook </b>- <i>Jake Goodison</i></span></li><li><span><b>Gods of War </b><i>- Meic Pearse</i></span></li><li><b>Stolen Focus </b>- <i>Johann Hari</i></li><li><b>Why Does God Allow War? </b>- <i>Martyn Lloyd Jones</i></li><li><b>The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self </b>- <i>Carl Trueman</i></li><li><b>Adam's Return </b><i>- Richard Rohr</i></li><li><b>Fully Human - </b><i>Steve Biddulph</i></li><li><b>Multiplanting </b>- <i>Colin Baron</i></li><li><b>A Non-Anxious Presence </b>- <i>Mark Sayers</i></li><li><b>Scars Across Humanity</b><i> - Elaine Storkey</i></li><li><b>The Bethlehem Story </b>- <i>Andy McCullogh</i></li><li><b>The Story of Christianity </b><i>- David Bentley Hart</i></li><li><b>Making Faith Magnetic - </b><i>Dan Strange</i></li><li><b>The Cross & the Lynching Tree - </b><i>James Cole</i></li><li><b>Why the Rest Hates the West </b>- <i>Meic Pearse</i></li></ol><div><b>Audible:</b></div><ol><li><b>Born to Run </b><i>- Chris McDoughall</i></li><li><b>Live No Lies </b>- <i>John Mark Comer x 2</i></li><li><b>How To Hear God's Voice </b>- <i>Pete Greig</i></li><li><b>The Power of Moments </b>- <i>Chip Heath & Dan Heath</i></li><li><b>Is Atheism Dead? - </b><i>Eric Metaxes </i></li><li><b>Beautiful Resistance - </b><i>Jon Tyson </i></li><li><b>The Intentional Father </b><i>- Jon Tyson</i></li><li><b>Notes From a Small Island </b><i>- Bill Bryson</i></li><li><b>Gay Girl, Good God </b>- <i>Jackie Hill Perry </i></li><li><b>James Acaster's Guide To Quitting Social Media - </b><i>James Acaster</i></li></ol><div><b>Bible Commentaries:</b></div><div><ol><li><b>The Christbook Matthew 1-12 </b><i>- </i>Dale Bruner</li><li><b>1 Corinthians For You </b>-<i> Andrew Wilson</i></li><li><b>1 & 2 Kings - </b><i>Peter Leithart</i></li></ol></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">Memes</span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>life's lovely, time-stealing, addictive nonsense</i></div><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Dog videos. </b><i>Turns out now that I own a dog, I'm easy prey for wasting time watching dogs do weird things. Here's a highlight:</i></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxfpc-IB8t3baKfYNIKUEcNjhvmHdkyY-8DVo5Lr_zqDNoD5wHorsfu-tcNBQXM6ZyLG48gjXLlvvu8f4jHjQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Funny prank. </b><i>There's a few of these I saw that tickled me:</i></span></p><p><span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: large; text-align: center;"><span><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzKQ54UXXjzJxBnHdbh1BfOhPelwvkVEY1hZgS6EKQLK_NoESLD-vKmJ5Gql6wCp3ix4A522SvpGgQXszwYDA' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span></div><span><b><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">🎉 meme of the year 🎉 </span></b></div></b></span><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>The cutest, catchiest song that'll change the way you look at sweetcorn</i></span></p><p><span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: large; text-align: center;"><span><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzluWstyN_dl7VQ5SY-8AOT_S1muFmRwvPbqqZmIoV2d_kzdlqyTMeDk32oKOKpr30mXleJpcUaeDAhhR84rw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></span></div><p style="font-size: large; font-weight: bold;"><span><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></span></p><div style="font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><span><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">📺 <span style="color: red;">Television.</span> 📺 </span></b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Top 3 shows/series</span></i></span></div><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXYoQUDY3Fy7cx77ANnpcXqD5HkdVBrbfThEyEj2-Qn1HNMSvrvv2-5_VhbArVpkrtEy_2mS_2z6bS2p-sdhn31k5g5ZEuE4LQp4UOa3gqOF3a9j1pfo7xwlhAqr2UyMkloXhSwUU7GTidYO_ezz6PiDBkwo0cSjRWQGY1k6uY_xKlCL5fLl6XF4ml/s225/parks.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="152" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXYoQUDY3Fy7cx77ANnpcXqD5HkdVBrbfThEyEj2-Qn1HNMSvrvv2-5_VhbArVpkrtEy_2mS_2z6bS2p-sdhn31k5g5ZEuE4LQp4UOa3gqOF3a9j1pfo7xwlhAqr2UyMkloXhSwUU7GTidYO_ezz6PiDBkwo0cSjRWQGY1k6uY_xKlCL5fLl6XF4ml/w152-h152/parks.jpeg" width="152" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>1. Parks & Recreation</b></span><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Amy and I binged our way through the whole 7 seasons in 2022. If I'm honest, Season 1 was a slow grower, but it got funnier and funnier. Great to have a light watch and easy laugh every night. Miss it in my life. </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYGi_KrX49jnMgJSIF5K4M2167lvOJNaQ6-9EjaYxOMWZVzDZrcnCdv3hZEr8GM507QX7UNZSDhXuvwLuuk2VnKUfcGf25rjKWJyzIQX--golqrNGgGnerAIrGURIdJA6btccFveMa8Q6jWBD9KOrrHqpcA9Xwse0EIOMF1JYLUjuU4ErxN1FqXmsc/s251/rings.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="251" data-original-width="201" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYGi_KrX49jnMgJSIF5K4M2167lvOJNaQ6-9EjaYxOMWZVzDZrcnCdv3hZEr8GM507QX7UNZSDhXuvwLuuk2VnKUfcGf25rjKWJyzIQX--golqrNGgGnerAIrGURIdJA6btccFveMa8Q6jWBD9KOrrHqpcA9Xwse0EIOMF1JYLUjuU4ErxN1FqXmsc/w152-h190/rings.jpeg" width="152" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>2. Rings of Power</b></span><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I loved it, mostly just for being back in Middle Earth. It was soooo good to be surrounded by the slow unfolding epic events that grew and grew into an amazing finale and big reveal. Really hoping they do more - <i>even if it did cost more to make than a few professional footballers make in a year!</i></span></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHQWo30Di75x-dSkAmBuV-vaY0tJjCJebnLCierF2mFyA39i_FLa2z7Av_KCx-ejyn-3jWJr9w5iyyJB9NMTHEiqtuUzE57fYQ8GA7KxMtwpx7mENUIDxXt85CZ_wehE4KldhToK_cqI0kA-WKSALTnkJNp6VuEZ1NYw9exLpZZzqBdH4dmlA07grM/s225/trait.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="153" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHQWo30Di75x-dSkAmBuV-vaY0tJjCJebnLCierF2mFyA39i_FLa2z7Av_KCx-ejyn-3jWJr9w5iyyJB9NMTHEiqtuUzE57fYQ8GA7KxMtwpx7mENUIDxXt85CZ_wehE4KldhToK_cqI0kA-WKSALTnkJNp6VuEZ1NYw9exLpZZzqBdH4dmlA07grM/w153-h153/trait.jpeg" width="153" /></a></div><b style="font-size: large;">3. Traitors</b><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Oh wow! This was amazing. We loved watching this together, trying to guess what the traitors would do and who'd be voted out, but mostly it just made me want to revisit the days of student weekend aways and late night mafia games. </span></p><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Family Views.</b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX08icS5Cvoav2ZRQByKZbpx3l8bmK3lHmppyNLb0ASceg75QMsVDDDYQj9KeOAQyN2Kl7rcyTQYy7z8_Axwpy85qPBxTIfQvBhvw05KUfAt-xSRlapKgmz5LdvxKHmqraa05T2wXxt10Fo-MrcR69kmFJkkYaAX7TcLAecxjXi3GTeRKhcPDQ8HHK/s225/brno.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="153" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX08icS5Cvoav2ZRQByKZbpx3l8bmK3lHmppyNLb0ASceg75QMsVDDDYQj9KeOAQyN2Kl7rcyTQYy7z8_Axwpy85qPBxTIfQvBhvw05KUfAt-xSRlapKgmz5LdvxKHmqraa05T2wXxt10Fo-MrcR69kmFJkkYaAX7TcLAecxjXi3GTeRKhcPDQ8HHK/w153-h153/brno.jpeg" width="153" /></a></div><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>1. Encanto</b></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">This was the year we didn't talk about Bruno, but Toby sang about him everyday for several months.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgicQtYKR6UUM25lUXiT4IDROYHQvbsA84R9kBmjwpy74JtuRyERUOZjbISPM7vFwOI25sx7QDkatfJINUaJQIAOLcUWaUK28vhyZHkvzLKVCSew1POVLoff3eYJ0gtc_j8XesWznu6dPHlGoNm16hXQ11v7jT0fQfhpVpTnjX9cWw2VB1VMlzLcU_q/s275/camp.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="275" data-original-width="183" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgicQtYKR6UUM25lUXiT4IDROYHQvbsA84R9kBmjwpy74JtuRyERUOZjbISPM7vFwOI25sx7QDkatfJINUaJQIAOLcUWaUK28vhyZHkvzLKVCSew1POVLoff3eYJ0gtc_j8XesWznu6dPHlGoNm16hXQ11v7jT0fQfhpVpTnjX9cWw2VB1VMlzLcU_q/w151-h228/camp.jpeg" width="151" /></a></div><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>2. Camp Cretaceous </b></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The show that began during the pandemic concluded this year. We loved it as a family, there was so much fun, jumps and cliff hangers. I was shocked/saddened by the final season's strange turn toward trying to educate my kids about sexual ethics(!) which was a reminder of how aggressive the progressive agenda really is, but other than that (and even with that to be fair; it gave us some good talking points) this was great fun.</span></p><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">🎥 🍿 <span style="color: #2b00fe;">FILMS.</span> 🍿 🎥 </span></b></p><p style="text-align: center;"><i>saw some great movies this year. Here's a few faves</i></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHgfA9L6Hc5fiVrfBDVq49I_V3x4vDEtuqY4AFozqmAHoST_ypvj46GihKqhXiJlyw_v96oHOfbMswIFWHKOYyWzQmFefNeZjB63f7xhiHZ5-4nZ3adBOIaF5iC89Y486fZaibYZ34u0AZjdlRvqVcBKXeeZqzNP0A1Adc5zbWtHbPkEY35L_OfAkI/s1060/work.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1060" data-original-width="720" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHgfA9L6Hc5fiVrfBDVq49I_V3x4vDEtuqY4AFozqmAHoST_ypvj46GihKqhXiJlyw_v96oHOfbMswIFWHKOYyWzQmFefNeZjB63f7xhiHZ5-4nZ3adBOIaF5iC89Y486fZaibYZ34u0AZjdlRvqVcBKXeeZqzNP0A1Adc5zbWtHbPkEY35L_OfAkI/w153-h226/work.jpg" width="153" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;">1. <b>The Work</b>. I don't think I've had a viewing experience quite like this before. Cinematically it's nothing special but it's such a visceral watch that it's hard to forget. A dozen of us watched this together as homework from our Intentional Fathers group and as the film finished we just sat in silence, and sat and sat and sat. No one wanted to speak, or knew quite what to say. </span><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">It was like sitting through a therapy session in which some of the meanest and toughest men you can imagine opened up about their emotional pain. These men howled in distress, squared up to each other in confrontation and confessed to feeling so lonely they saw suicide as the only option left to them. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">It's a behind the scenes look at the toxic men responsible for toxic masculinity, and it's a reminder of the high stakes involved in parenting and homemaking. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h8OVXG2GhpQ&ab_channel=Dogwoof">Trailer</a></span></div><div><br /></div><div><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDisZ5HhJ7CoSxhTyoNtL-yjHzwrmmJA9YHFYh5o00EyfTCRh_hSz-TIjH7lywNVAimYm4ejfDvINi2c7ddmudrIuFTgi_C04AyA09cUigWeVZ_hQHcUP7q6q41jlxk9HN9Hv0kJThs1o9VIcl1J57OEcbAbctBqUBCNqMnCnOsJn-3XhNvJf68wIN/s2000/rabbit.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="1334" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDisZ5HhJ7CoSxhTyoNtL-yjHzwrmmJA9YHFYh5o00EyfTCRh_hSz-TIjH7lywNVAimYm4ejfDvINi2c7ddmudrIuFTgi_C04AyA09cUigWeVZ_hQHcUP7q6q41jlxk9HN9Hv0kJThs1o9VIcl1J57OEcbAbctBqUBCNqMnCnOsJn-3XhNvJf68wIN/w154-h232/rabbit.jpg" width="154" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;">2. <b>JoJo Rabbit. </b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Oh wow. Watch this if you haven't seen it. A beautiful and hilarious black comedy about Nazi Germany and Hitler's youth. Taika Waititi (Korg - the rock thing - in Thor Love & Thunder) is hilarious as Adolf Hitler and Roman Davis is superb as Jojo. An unexpected treat of a film. Watch the trailer <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tL4McUzXfFI&ab_channel=SearchlightPictures" target="_blank">here</a></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx-Pu848eogEzTCXMFXvmNGKfLgy0BQ_wKGFBjbPePbug3yUogxtkxjQ8c1pmv-qKdMbVWQJS2-xTN16TfmBI0c-w9Y4VeLTRutcsilpJuYQWvHBBHSZe-5YQisk6R1-qtLW4HAgEgF4iLzQ8G14JUPsmWNhsPLd9pV6udEgjy4sJNPvSboZSDlL60/s2048/north.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1382" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx-Pu848eogEzTCXMFXvmNGKfLgy0BQ_wKGFBjbPePbug3yUogxtkxjQ8c1pmv-qKdMbVWQJS2-xTN16TfmBI0c-w9Y4VeLTRutcsilpJuYQWvHBBHSZe-5YQisk6R1-qtLW4HAgEgF4iLzQ8G14JUPsmWNhsPLd9pV6udEgjy4sJNPvSboZSDlL60/w154-h228/north.jpg" width="154" /></a></div>3.<b style="font-size: large;"> The Northman.</b><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">This year's Green Knight, it follows the coming of age and vengeance seeking of a young viking (Alexander Skarsgard) with Anya Taylor-Joy (Queen's Gambit) once again being mesmerising. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">It made for a nice change from much of the gender revisionism of modern marvel films and showed the traditional strength of men and women as distinct yet equally powerful in their own ways. Oh, and the reveal toward the end challenging his self-made heroes-quest narrative was a complete surprise. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHnwGGcyy97fHHwW9pw1fdo0LZM4q7s8kKUO9bSzlj8IaVWgBzZbJGUrNCeKc5jD8GYGLAp30hhlcjImNhRj8dr4TxOF37OxqWyG9pOvbrPsPhWLH6OxioZ0SDk5oNohLZ47d8PPfsCZNS1CyjD6XAyW5ZwrBEUFW1NuxNvTGfQBEh-zIH68llNRwL/s299/up.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="299" data-original-width="168" height="274" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHnwGGcyy97fHHwW9pw1fdo0LZM4q7s8kKUO9bSzlj8IaVWgBzZbJGUrNCeKc5jD8GYGLAp30hhlcjImNhRj8dr4TxOF37OxqWyG9pOvbrPsPhWLH6OxioZ0SDk5oNohLZ47d8PPfsCZNS1CyjD6XAyW5ZwrBEUFW1NuxNvTGfQBEh-zIH68llNRwL/w154-h274/up.jpeg" width="154" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;">Notable mention: <b>Don't Look Up. </b></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">A satirical and sarcastic poke at the Trump administration and science denying fanatics. It's amusing and haunting, if a little bit dangerous since it could lead to the flattening of legitimate differences of opinion on complex issues, characturing them into simply those who 'look up' and those who refuse to. It was perhaps most impactful in its critique of our entertainment culture that's more concerned with the latest celebrity break-up than we are with the important moral concerns of our day.</span></p><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><h2 style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>"</b> <span style="color: #800180;">Quote.</span> <b>"</b></span></h2><p><span style="font-size: large;">From Richard Raul's book Adam's Return about male initiation, here's an idea I've found myself quoting with others fairly regularly: </span></p><p></p><blockquote style="font-size: large;"><i>If we don't transform our pain we will almost certainly transmit it.</i></blockquote><p></p><p></p><h2 style="text-align: center;">💡<span style="color: #2b00fe; font-size: x-large;"> Idea.</span><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span>💡</h2><p></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">This idea about absence <i>as</i> presence from Peter Leithart's commentary on 1 & 2 Kings is beautiful and bang on: </span></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><blockquote><span face="TwitterChirp, -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: #f3f3f3; font-size: 23px; white-space: pre-wrap;">"Absence is an intense form of presence. As long as friends and family are physically here, they are localised... a</span><span face="TwitterChirp, -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: #f3f3f3; font-size: 23px; white-space: pre-wrap;">bsent, memory discovers them in every nook & cranny - a beloved wife is always in the kitchen & the bedroom </span><span face="TwitterChirp, -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: #f3f3f3; font-size: 23px; white-space: pre-wrap;">& curling up in her favourite chair... all at once."</span></blockquote><p></p><h2 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ffa400; font-size: x-large;">📷 </span><span style="color: #e06666; font-size: x-large;">Photos.</span><span style="color: #ffa400; font-size: x-large;"> 📷 </span></h2><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Both of these images are amazing but for very different reasons.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJcYHRHLgQgCXAniROWSWxZQJBBuoXnf5CrBfjkQNVQIZ1ONBVusGqfoWWNX2Sq7CmwcVR3Vckwa6x6uEalgHr2iKi95P77OPGm-Xn4a25nhXiWICdzWzAchF9W_PdD_RSdhy5fmZ58GAUGmkCgzFvc-0UTpm2wwmvTaCcH8qgtebTmwsIYVpDJbwf/s277/lightning.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="277" data-original-width="182" height="376" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJcYHRHLgQgCXAniROWSWxZQJBBuoXnf5CrBfjkQNVQIZ1ONBVusGqfoWWNX2Sq7CmwcVR3Vckwa6x6uEalgHr2iKi95P77OPGm-Xn4a25nhXiWICdzWzAchF9W_PdD_RSdhy5fmZ58GAUGmkCgzFvc-0UTpm2wwmvTaCcH8qgtebTmwsIYVpDJbwf/w247-h376/lightning.jpeg" width="247" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">__</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpSwyUp2fySzHkdJke4dKqhVyz0VstW1trJrQacV_fqkPQ8SbWuQxKLJI4hDde7DJD-TFKLHO2broc_RM4u6Ie3iWTadf3ipA_zgYct1w9pqvsVeg-OOR_pIq-k99DiroHI1GwMoVmIMcWC5i35xWK5zCIFbtPFOzWRrj5RjUpWsm5ycCOH1S3JAXC/s710/green.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="355" data-original-width="710" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpSwyUp2fySzHkdJke4dKqhVyz0VstW1trJrQacV_fqkPQ8SbWuQxKLJI4hDde7DJD-TFKLHO2broc_RM4u6Ie3iWTadf3ipA_zgYct1w9pqvsVeg-OOR_pIq-k99DiroHI1GwMoVmIMcWC5i35xWK5zCIFbtPFOzWRrj5RjUpWsm5ycCOH1S3JAXC/w479-h240/green.png" width="479" /></a></div></div><i>this map from NASA shows that the Earth has become significantly greener (not browner) over past 20 years. Space the size of North America has become much much greener due to the increase Carbon Dioxide in the atmosphere.</i><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><h2 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ffa400; font-size: x-large;"> </span><span style="color: #ffa400; font-size: x-large;">🔠 Word. 🔠</span></h2><p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">I learnt a new word this year that I have found makes sense of many important moments in life. </span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Liminal</i></span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><blockquote><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;">It means 'in between' or 'transitional' and is a state that occupies much of our lives; whether we're on a journey somewhere (a car or a train is a liminal place) or adjusting from one stage to another (pregnancy or teenagehood are liminal states) or become aware of the reality's enchantment (worship services or countryside walks can be liminal places). </span></p></blockquote><blockquote><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Learning to lean into and find peace in, or feel at home in liminal places is an important part of life for it's in liminal states that growth often occurs most of all. When you leave home, or realise you're wrong, or pause life's busyness to worship you allow for liminality and the potential transformation it brings. </span></p><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Welcome liminality, make your peace with liminality, seek out liminal spaces and you'll be amazed at the transformation it can bring. </span></p></blockquote><p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #ff00fe; font-size: xx-large;">🧠 </span><span style="color: #ff00fe; font-size: x-large;">Intellectual Discovery. 🧠 </span></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPT9ij8KeFNvQsc8tXr2fZ8u4HPxvdot-2uHACn6_ZtCPeOAoapLcCqVbyR1ntimg1A34YF3Q_kiOP5YVspnHFwh5ngXZge7dnPcxx_pvK0LICtSvGbkUQBkIZ5vdlIV1XT9XTJp-mrq_n55f5TLzeSEPQXpUTVWql8LQnwzBrPRpP_94sVN8xvpw6/s1050/perry.webp" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1050" data-original-width="700" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPT9ij8KeFNvQsc8tXr2fZ8u4HPxvdot-2uHACn6_ZtCPeOAoapLcCqVbyR1ntimg1A34YF3Q_kiOP5YVspnHFwh5ngXZge7dnPcxx_pvK0LICtSvGbkUQBkIZ5vdlIV1XT9XTJp-mrq_n55f5TLzeSEPQXpUTVWql8LQnwzBrPRpP_94sVN8xvpw6/w154-h232/perry.webp" width="154" /></a><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Louise Perry</b></span></span></p><span style="font-size: medium;">One of the things I love is discovering new minds and truth seekers who help make sense of reality. This year, thanks to a podcast I stumbled onto, I came across the incredible Louise Perry and have since gone on to read, listen to and watch a lot of what she's said. </span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">She's sharp, courageous and honest; and seems willing to follow evidence wherever it leads however unpopular it may make her. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">She's right about so many things, important things that we as a society really need to reckon with if we're to care for women and children properly. Check out a video of her <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0K1ZIbFU6O4&ab_channel=Triggernometry" target="_blank">here</a>. </span></p><p><br /></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-large;">🎭 </span><span style="font-size: xx-large;"><span style="color: #2b00fe;">Musical.</span> 🎭 </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeLk_R3imKPdcxbnmUAfCd_0-f0z9GO6hx67i_a6vZu4nCwbu2L_rDKaLfSjCNFofn8MZCiGrmC7FLwzOaqAvLamNsAxtMvNYDvxvNM0-OuHKmfwmT4Rxn7LRAODzHxg1tob9JKitNSLRVB2WsN3iSU4gmueds70c7wXasfNqWPiBtMLkdyZ_93Eb7/s248/evan.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="248" data-original-width="203" height="187" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeLk_R3imKPdcxbnmUAfCd_0-f0z9GO6hx67i_a6vZu4nCwbu2L_rDKaLfSjCNFofn8MZCiGrmC7FLwzOaqAvLamNsAxtMvNYDvxvNM0-OuHKmfwmT4Rxn7LRAODzHxg1tob9JKitNSLRVB2WsN3iSU4gmueds70c7wXasfNqWPiBtMLkdyZ_93Eb7/w153-h187/evan.jpeg" width="153" /></a></div><br />Dear Evan Hansen</b>. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">We found and fell in love with the music from Dear Evan Hansen, just in time for them to take it off the West End. Still, the movie was decent enough and the storyline is incredibly moving and a sadly all too true portrayal of teen identity and esteem crises.</span></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">🎶 </span></b><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #e69138;">Podcasts.</span> 🎶 </span></b></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large; text-align: left;">A few new favourite episodes and series.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy10bJX_H1G4NT3AJeIr6MxddiyrNPxBaD9UIiY-DFWd9C0anVXxZUtqvO97CqMoGvdinrrjiPdBMd0NLCV4nDOtfF9-QL0TCRzEb2jW4PxzOPuZFYlqR-wDaocRqQ29k0LEndrkMHbvWzJbCwq__OPEc6FsCIN10c5mWistJBkaR81y1uifvLPTY9/s225/coleman.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy10bJX_H1G4NT3AJeIr6MxddiyrNPxBaD9UIiY-DFWd9C0anVXxZUtqvO97CqMoGvdinrrjiPdBMd0NLCV4nDOtfF9-QL0TCRzEb2jW4PxzOPuZFYlqR-wDaocRqQ29k0LEndrkMHbvWzJbCwq__OPEc6FsCIN10c5mWistJBkaR81y1uifvLPTY9/w154-h154/coleman.jpeg" width="154" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">1. Conversations with Coleman. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Featuring the moral psychologist Jonathan Haidt and guests, this episode featuring a conversation on parenting and freedom is really worth listening to: <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-fracturing-of-the-american-mind-featuring/id1489326460?i=1000564237107" target="_blank">here</a></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Series</span></b>. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwEg12le04CIkeWObHj_DS1Ws5QqY6yBOfL7UA1wL4-I7bM7i5xwhQ1BF6qL0OuvvX7HKYFLBNYBdZqi9kUBK7br7gSldWGsFYfAFIChvxypunxGr8vE1lMnHE5lcsnU0DpEApKjZmdMONLfE6grx8YPP7jTqUgAj-wpTBJPKo8gP8-JAPX6qSL3w2/s225/mars.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="152" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwEg12le04CIkeWObHj_DS1Ws5QqY6yBOfL7UA1wL4-I7bM7i5xwhQ1BF6qL0OuvvX7HKYFLBNYBdZqi9kUBK7br7gSldWGsFYfAFIChvxypunxGr8vE1lMnHE5lcsnU0DpEApKjZmdMONLfE6grx8YPP7jTqUgAj-wpTBJPKo8gP8-JAPX6qSL3w2/w152-h152/mars.jpeg" width="152" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">This was also the year I listened to <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/5rJtwcRM7WNYs0LNTrlP5N" target="_blank">The Rise & Fall of Mars Hill</a> a heartbreaking, but ultimately liberating listen. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">After a lot of bleakness the example of Tope Koleoso, a pastor in our family of churches was a ray of hope and heaven that went someway to restoring my soul somewhat.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0W3C-_WlxsZ22ttnkFDBS1DF5ADyB1fTAldeZ88vO-X9F9k9qnK1kq8uFx9dT42wBztkLRMGnnfvyY6WzipruJ6-zjPNyuL6RsuSaen6II707Vle4UBSrFuRTHZMApUuxtt1IdJqF-g3pCvSMsPNPsf-AOOOoGwx28LaW1F3KZ-MWBGqhdyPKaU9R/s225/serial.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0W3C-_WlxsZ22ttnkFDBS1DF5ADyB1fTAldeZ88vO-X9F9k9qnK1kq8uFx9dT42wBztkLRMGnnfvyY6WzipruJ6-zjPNyuL6RsuSaen6II707Vle4UBSrFuRTHZMApUuxtt1IdJqF-g3pCvSMsPNPsf-AOOOoGwx28LaW1F3KZ-MWBGqhdyPKaU9R/w154-h154/serial.png" width="154" /></a></div>But it was mainly the year, podcast-wise, that Amy and I discovered Serial and spent hours driving round the country or sitting in a tent on a rainy night listening to the <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/za/podcast/the-trojan-horse-affair/id1606918193" target="_blank">Trojan Horse Affair</a> and the killing of <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/5wMPFS9B5V7gg6hZ3UZ7hf" target="_blank">Hae Min Lee</a>, two excellently produced and compelling listens, can't recommend enough.</span></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-large; text-align: left;">🎤 </span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #38761d;">Favourite Sermon.</span> 🎤 </span></span></div><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Lastly the gift and wisdom of my friend Mick Taylor did me the world of good. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">In this message originally given a few years back he shares about the chance of legacy leaving and where fruitfulness and true hope are ultimately to be found; beautiful. </span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1kKOiCaIdOIdRFHkSKQdHWv-gfAYrUder/view?usp=sharing " target="_blank">click here</a></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFwG9QGc8UNjRUF2BmQbXU9P0KhagghPbATiGSEG0ZJh0Befo1nhXsBgvM8i041sqvpR5jR_Rv1slyh6AAQ1BqY0tyZt6Q-FjpUcvekgkkOUi-KY7W5t3jNHfnn72AcOi84VDZxKHXz8GYBRRlzulPTnfijRTthbvbbt6Y_4LYRriu5DTmHbCqfFfr/s742/Screenshot%202022-12-24%20at%2010.27.21.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="606" data-original-width="742" height="185" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFwG9QGc8UNjRUF2BmQbXU9P0KhagghPbATiGSEG0ZJh0Befo1nhXsBgvM8i041sqvpR5jR_Rv1slyh6AAQ1BqY0tyZt6Q-FjpUcvekgkkOUi-KY7W5t3jNHfnn72AcOi84VDZxKHXz8GYBRRlzulPTnfijRTthbvbbt6Y_4LYRriu5DTmHbCqfFfr/w226-h185/Screenshot%202022-12-24%20at%2010.27.21.png" width="226" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-74139671895879420372022-04-26T13:47:00.005-07:002022-04-26T13:47:44.378-07:00Ultra Run - For Jessica<p> So, peer pressure's a thing. Having never run even a half marathon before (let alone a full one) somehow I got talked into this - 50k (31m) of trail running up, down and over the stunning South Downs Way. </p><p>I can't wait! (no really)</p><p>Beyond just peer pressure however, here's my motivation and tribute...</p><p>For five years my dear dad lived with and battled against cancer, regularly climbing metaphorical hills and mountains of his own. With grit and determination he made his final years count and then just 3 months before his death fought overwhelming discomfort to travel 77miles in the back seat of a car to meet my firstborn son just hours after his birth. Whilst we miss my dad to this day, he left us with happy memories and full hearts grateful for his legacy of love and courage.</p><p>Then, a few years later in 2017 my gorgous little neice, a feisty and full of life 3yr old was diagnosed with kidney cancer. Devastated by the diagnosis and tragically familiar with the terrifying dragon of cancer we all braced ourselves for the worse. But in Jessica, cancer met its match. Her inner Xena slayed the beast, cut of its head and marched to victory ringing her freedom bell on 22 May 2018. </p><p>Now, four years after finishing her treatment she's still cancer free, still full of life and still pretty fiesty!</p><p>Jess, you fiery dragon slayer, this is my tribute you!</p><p>With both my dad and Jess we as a family relied heavily on the huge love and support of familiy, friends and charity groups to help get us through. </p><p>I'm honoured to be able to have the chance to support the incredible local family support charity WOLO.</p><p>Wolo Foundation helps to improve the quality of life of families living in Sussex affected by cancer. To read more about Wolo, their story and the ways in which you can help, please visit www.wolofoundation.org</p><p>To donate to my run visit: </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqnoqp6368mI4rVoNeuS9Fs4wGcTFu26UcwawVQFxbQfS4SfTiwr9Sg7yDa97VPnjCIVdUuKPkB_T1UGdbQMdJzR2M3vJikbWLMDb_GNaF0EUnFb_iz3tv3M2bux4uedmjW9JxHpKwshZexff44Iayi0PlR0t01T-w--qQj1paTQN6SqCySMu1SR3-/s1024/WhatsApp%20Image%202022-04-26%20at%209.23.49%20PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="768" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqnoqp6368mI4rVoNeuS9Fs4wGcTFu26UcwawVQFxbQfS4SfTiwr9Sg7yDa97VPnjCIVdUuKPkB_T1UGdbQMdJzR2M3vJikbWLMDb_GNaF0EUnFb_iz3tv3M2bux4uedmjW9JxHpKwshZexff44Iayi0PlR0t01T-w--qQj1paTQN6SqCySMu1SR3-/s320/WhatsApp%20Image%202022-04-26%20at%209.23.49%20PM.jpeg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><p></p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-44457049638334771012021-12-29T07:11:00.005-08:002021-12-29T07:11:42.121-08:00My Media of the Year 2021<p>Books, Films, Podcasts, People, Songs and some Viral Videos. This year I've decided to single out a few of my favourites to share them with others. I hope you like them...</p><p><i><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">MOVIES</span></b></i></p><p>Nights at home with lockdowns and an endless service of movies on demand led to some great movie moments. I didn't keep a list so have undoubtedly missed some real treats but three stand outs and a surprising 'must watch' would be:</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjua12u09RvKgoHLA051qgL3gEBY9z3RWCXVcck76G5WyShm_oUHp2suCFmPJt30TuMtqo9u8D7ZCIU-KNeMWM4SNlVfQAgGcn7r7NvM53_TkCW0mmCHmg2mQhrC9m1KJd8ph7aEQ1IYvIE70PkVsDncaKKuSQySYFGSlvRfYiBsS70-gZzBtjNNce3=s384" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="384" data-original-width="259" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjua12u09RvKgoHLA051qgL3gEBY9z3RWCXVcck76G5WyShm_oUHp2suCFmPJt30TuMtqo9u8D7ZCIU-KNeMWM4SNlVfQAgGcn7r7NvM53_TkCW0mmCHmg2mQhrC9m1KJd8ph7aEQ1IYvIE70PkVsDncaKKuSQySYFGSlvRfYiBsS70-gZzBtjNNce3=s320" width="216" /></a></div><b>1. The Mauritanian</b> starring the incredible Tahar Rahim (from the BBC drama: The Serpent). <p></p><p><b>2. A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood </b>starring Tom Hanks. Charming and inspiring for everyone, but particularly as someone wanting to embody Christ's love in the world. </p><p><b>3. The Green Knight</b>. I've got to come clean with this one and say that I love movies where very little happens. However it was only in listening to Jonathan Pageau's description of the symbolism in the Green Knight that really made this movie stand out for me. </p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><u>Must watch movie:</u></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>Inside</i> by Bo Burnham</b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhIS3JKO2xtTUSUAMAKdgDe9IBNGipuI3pw1XooiSqYRb5LPrMTlYVW9rEJltYlRhGN6WdGYIEzO47j_6pWZyIgCFff5jajgPM6p6zFhcqMQLOvsTYDJ8Axaybkd9dZyi7GF6D-_kH2m1R04HLIeNs3wHxU89OdWuRa5Rd8SKfc29_MoJgeLIJHPlcZ=s367" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="367" data-original-width="249" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhIS3JKO2xtTUSUAMAKdgDe9IBNGipuI3pw1XooiSqYRb5LPrMTlYVW9rEJltYlRhGN6WdGYIEzO47j_6pWZyIgCFff5jajgPM6p6zFhcqMQLOvsTYDJ8Axaybkd9dZyi7GF6D-_kH2m1R04HLIeNs3wHxU89OdWuRa5Rd8SKfc29_MoJgeLIJHPlcZ=s320" width="217" /></a></div><p>This was one of the most fascinating and bizarre things I've seen for a long time. A musical comedy set entirely inside a single room supposedly documenting the experience of the artist Bo Burnham during lockdowns in 2020. This popped up as a recommended watch on our Netflix one evening in June. We'd not come across Bo Burnham's comedy before so gave it a shot. </p><p>We spent an hour and half in a state of feeling trapped by our curiosity and intrigue. It was borderline dull and boring, and borderline brilliant. We were stuck at this border delighting in the brilliance and genius and social observation of the incredibly eccentric Burnham. </p><p>The stand out treat for me was the hilarious 'White Woman's Instagram' song: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHotXbGZiFY" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHotXbGZiFY</a> </p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><i>BOOKS</i></span></b></p><p>This year I've read (or listened to) some really interesting and inspiring books. Below is a description of my top three; a Christian book, a non-Christian book and a biography. Each one has been an absolute treat and I'm sure would be enjoyed by anyone who read them.</p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><i><u>Christian</u></i></span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>Letter From Birmingham Jail</i> </b></span><b style="font-size: x-large;">by Martin Luther King Jr</b></p><p><b style="font-size: x-large;"></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhu_5gtunUYgX1MM76YtO4RTOtCA-77dgTQWAGEVH5BJaZd9mJWrmm1_nPR0pSXcc-4jZuYq2-IvmrvwGfP29ZNvlu7klh4_ItxLyjqEqdN4x89paOWr5LAGhRcVaDoxero7HrLjtoxXk9tO3j7n_SNXUYdpSn5UJ5fDDOdCScGzTuth3tHqxct-tJW=s1902" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1902" data-original-width="1312" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhu_5gtunUYgX1MM76YtO4RTOtCA-77dgTQWAGEVH5BJaZd9mJWrmm1_nPR0pSXcc-4jZuYq2-IvmrvwGfP29ZNvlu7klh4_ItxLyjqEqdN4x89paOWr5LAGhRcVaDoxero7HrLjtoxXk9tO3j7n_SNXUYdpSn5UJ5fDDOdCScGzTuth3tHqxct-tJW=s320" width="221" /></a></b></div>A little book this can be read in an hour or so, but the ideas pack such a punch that it is deeply impactful. Amy and I read it aloud to each other one lazy Saturday lie-in in lockdown and we appreciated this book so much that we ran an online reading of it over Zoom during lockdown. <p></p><p>Luther King Jr's description of the difference between just and unjust laws was really helpful. His challenge that we all bear a social responsibility to actively resist unjust laws (which are no laws at all) feels like an issue all of us need to wrestle with in an age of government restrictions and growing animosity toward unvaccinated/unclean/unpopular people and opinions within our society.</p><p>He identifies the problem of 'white moderates' in the struggle for equality and indeed we could add to that any comfortable class unmoved by injustice (to which I know I'm far from exempt). The answer to white moderates? His section on extremism ('was not Jesus an extremist for love') is moving and motivating. </p><p>Do you yourself a favour - read something that will challenge you and inspire you in 2022; start with this if you've not read it.</p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><u><i>Non-Christian</i></u><b> </b></span></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;"><i>Identity</i> by Francis Fukuyama</span></b></p><p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjfS5jG4viY_A9pdoxmiiWt8SdHwP9D8iZ1BFLyqe__cKTEx1ZaZEbyu2FgQV86g-_u-Q2XC0RgpYJTDlyP6L5rDBeOYhaGlkuoAmF36SjAsVo9HkjDIA8QL5zCnTyYl4Hc2BBt-qh_-qmuyZlu0UZ-5FrOpDpiFCdmVkuSbHDuvxpPbtAu7N0O4kCP=s259" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="259" data-original-width="194" height="259" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjfS5jG4viY_A9pdoxmiiWt8SdHwP9D8iZ1BFLyqe__cKTEx1ZaZEbyu2FgQV86g-_u-Q2XC0RgpYJTDlyP6L5rDBeOYhaGlkuoAmF36SjAsVo9HkjDIA8QL5zCnTyYl4Hc2BBt-qh_-qmuyZlu0UZ-5FrOpDpiFCdmVkuSbHDuvxpPbtAu7N0O4kCP" width="194" /></a></b></div>This book offers a concise overview of some of the key ideas and movements that have led to the creation of the modern self and identity. The chapters are short and the key thread maintained well throughout such that it was easy to follow. Fukuyama diagnoses the human need for recognition and dignity as being the main cause of much of the social movements over the past half a century. <p></p><p>W<span style="font-family: inherit;">ith a lightness of historical touch he opens up the impact of industrialisation and urbanisation on human identity and shows how the philosophy of Christian thought, uncoupled from Christianity has gone on to have far reaching implications. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Fukuyama links the German vision of <i>gesellschaft </i>deployed by the Nazis to the struggles of the Tunisian street seller <span style="background-color: white; color: #202122;">Tarek el-Tayeb Mohamed Bouazizi who died by self-immolation and whose death is credited with starting the Arab Spring in the early 2010s. </span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">It's a straightforward and practical book that poses (and offers answers) to some important questions we're all grappling with. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"><u><i>Biography</i></u></span></p><p><b><span style="font-size: large;"><i>In Order to Live</i> by Yeonmi Park</span></b></p><p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgBA2lb6WIsaxqVOkzVPOfL7-ydMe7dXYZ_X62W3ekM36eAi8CWw1I4NabPFidEh1iTiR2skww0heQyy-J5WnGqUf9X_RioWToVYR_eNDq7laPciKrqOz0554LVo8tOhZkLr47f8punJAnrRoA8p4mYVcTAaPHsMAMHScEMIMxq43VklHye7x_GTz2-=s450" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="292" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgBA2lb6WIsaxqVOkzVPOfL7-ydMe7dXYZ_X62W3ekM36eAi8CWw1I4NabPFidEh1iTiR2skww0heQyy-J5WnGqUf9X_RioWToVYR_eNDq7laPciKrqOz0554LVo8tOhZkLr47f8punJAnrRoA8p4mYVcTAaPHsMAMHScEMIMxq43VklHye7x_GTz2-=s320" width="208" /></a></b></div><p></p><p>Moving, harrowing and deeply challenging. Yeonmi describes life growing up in North Korea, her escape to China, the several years she spent being trafficked for sex as well as her escape and journey to South Korea and on to the US. </p><p>The podcast conversation of her and Jordan Peterson provides a good summary of the book: <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tyranny-slavery-and-columbia-u-yeonmi-park/id1184022695?i=1000523673376" target="_blank">Podcast</a></p><p>I am in awe of Yeonmi. She is remarkably insightful, thoughtful and honest and her life is a testament to the strength of the human spirit. As hard as it is to read, I cannot recommend it highly enough. It shatters many of the sentimental illusions people in the west live with about human nature and (along with the interview with Peterson) exposes much of the threats facing liberal democracy today. </p><p>Thank you Yeonmi for sharing with us such a precious and sacred memoir as this; you are remarkable. </p><p><br /></p><p><i><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">PODCASTS</span></b></i></p><p>I love the way that podcasts introduce me to people I've not heard of or read anything about before. It's one of the little treats of modern media. I'm a regular listener to several podcasts and from them come three episodes and one person I want to highlight here:</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj9Wdog839coBYoITl6qIeX7GTJiAtnttYdxHHKYfe9ufoczyfCskBqtjHUn9yl6u_Re0xfaAyhz9SNq3CeliqrjnZMupejohSHds6bks2XBSjn7Lzd-UrJvHZv8_zrLSI1jI9zFBPBlBTLyRftXmKM86qu4te-8JWuvb9jMO50rkdk8r0PrX8fFRaz=s225" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="144" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj9Wdog839coBYoITl6qIeX7GTJiAtnttYdxHHKYfe9ufoczyfCskBqtjHUn9yl6u_Re0xfaAyhz9SNq3CeliqrjnZMupejohSHds6bks2XBSjn7Lzd-UrJvHZv8_zrLSI1jI9zFBPBlBTLyRftXmKM86qu4te-8JWuvb9jMO50rkdk8r0PrX8fFRaz=w144-h144" width="144" /></a></div><b>1. Born This Way</b> - <i>Sexual Orientation, Fluidity and the 'Born this Way' myth featuring Dr. Lisa Diamond </i>(<a href="https://www.prestonsprinkle.com/theology-in-the-raw/859-lisa-diamond">here</a>)<p></p><p>Appearing on Preston Sprinkle's Theology in the Raw podcast Dr Lisa Diamond is an atheist lesbian and sexuality researcher. If you're interested in conversations around sexuality you'll no doubt really appreciate this podcast and this episode in particular. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg-N5cnOxrVgyIN-WlH2Pr0ftN28b9LZdZSpX8bDP-cNCP0JrVmMEUAWNbxU9AyIuLIHVqpHEZXVl5zavtlo5tby_swSVylbCa7hCfOkL-X2vh0yu1yp7Op5gOeIg9e46TUdJI9JVzUidu0Pdxxdc4nZ1efiAvqUnPLeNkKzFvDd3w4WKWbVHiaWqdY=s2560" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2560" data-original-width="1697" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg-N5cnOxrVgyIN-WlH2Pr0ftN28b9LZdZSpX8bDP-cNCP0JrVmMEUAWNbxU9AyIuLIHVqpHEZXVl5zavtlo5tby_swSVylbCa7hCfOkL-X2vh0yu1yp7Op5gOeIg9e46TUdJI9JVzUidu0Pdxxdc4nZ1efiAvqUnPLeNkKzFvDd3w4WKWbVHiaWqdY=w147-h222" width="147" /></a></div><b>2. The Boy Crisis</b> - <i>Dr Warren Farrell appears on Triggernometry</i> (<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/no/podcast/why-men-boys-are-struggling-and-no-one-cares-dr/id1375568988?i=1000536684267">here</a>)<p></p><p>This episode led to me reading the book 'The Boy Crisis' which had a huge impact on me. For me, this is an unspoken and yet hugely important issue not being considered in the gender wars. I'm biased (given that I'm trying to raise three boys) but then I've always believed that 'if we can sort out the men' in society then we 'sort out' the women too, especially given that it is the abuse of women by men and the abandoning of the home by men that are leading causes in many of our social problems. </p><p>Warren Farrell is a leading voice in this discussion and speaks with compassion for both men and women. The episode is good, but the book is better. Buy the book: <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Boy-Crisis-Boys-Struggling-About/dp/1948836130/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1640787222&sr=8-1" target="_blank">Boy Crisis</a></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgbzC5t0petQEBpzjc1HWRnqKDXgdKjeZQXn5sSswa264Z_RAqKu10acMmMdYUoWZuEeQ_P1GeTKTh27nrvHD6U_i9ZS0m4BjZJ-Sbsx0szybLFK7ivz7h_vEhwTxs7FXEHkwwPLCL4YS78MWrwqCRFmrBKqyc73oSIxZOuP612szQKx4PanApiphLP=s1000" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1000" height="145" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgbzC5t0petQEBpzjc1HWRnqKDXgdKjeZQXn5sSswa264Z_RAqKu10acMmMdYUoWZuEeQ_P1GeTKTh27nrvHD6U_i9ZS0m4BjZJ-Sbsx0szybLFK7ivz7h_vEhwTxs7FXEHkwwPLCL4YS78MWrwqCRFmrBKqyc73oSIxZOuP612szQKx4PanApiphLP=w145-h145" width="145" /></a></div><b>3. The Rest Is History</b> <i>- Vietnam (<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/71-the-vietnam-war/id1537788786?i=1000528180174" target="_blank">Here</a>)</i><p></p><p>A fun new find on the podcast front this year was the brilliant 'The Rest is History' with Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook. It's a great show, and light hearted and fun enough that I'm allowed to have it on in the car during family road trips - a rare exception! This episode is good, but the standout shocking fact for me that makes it into my top three is the simple fact shared in the episode that in the Vietnam War the Americans dropped more bombs on South Vietnam than were dropped by <i>all </i>countries throughout the <i>entirety </i>of World War II - shocking!</p><p><i><b><span style="font-size: x-large;">PEOPLE</span></b></i></p><p>I've loved meeting some amazing people this year (in real life) but have also loved 'discovering' some new thinkers online too. Two people you should check out are: </p><p><b>1. Jonathan Pageau</b> and his work on The Symbolic World youtube channel. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/JonathanPageau">Here</a></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiBAUiopB-NHSfggRZPW_ACY4sV8_WMHghF6VKvJMpG5gI3CQaiqGcZHXym5lZ3NEGUS1b0tKN6ZnEuAzUjGR_owivwpEPVWIB0RIk4toRaoApT-bOvoLs6X5W0veZMIz0pak8_rjgQ1h98nw-eBXKSG4_2Tx08ivoosO3RAFYgPq2dYfb61CkB2jH6=s1200" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="114" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiBAUiopB-NHSfggRZPW_ACY4sV8_WMHghF6VKvJMpG5gI3CQaiqGcZHXym5lZ3NEGUS1b0tKN6ZnEuAzUjGR_owivwpEPVWIB0RIk4toRaoApT-bOvoLs6X5W0veZMIz0pak8_rjgQ1h98nw-eBXKSG4_2Tx08ivoosO3RAFYgPq2dYfb61CkB2jH6=w114-h114" width="114" /></a></div><b>2. Paul Kingsnorth</b>. I've only recently discovered him and am now devouring things he's saying and written. An environmental activist and atheist in his twenties who in recent years has converted to Christianity. Paul is well respected writer and thinker and becoming a Christian was entirely unexpected (not least by himself). He has written about his journey here: <a href="https://www.firstthings.com/article/2021/06/the-cross-and-the-machine" target="_blank">The Cross & the Machine</a> and I particularly enjoyed this interview with him here: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQecvCZ92mo&ab_channel=HermitixPodcast" target="_blank">Cultural Collapse & Christianity</a><p></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><i>SONGS</i></b></span></p><p>Every year there's always a couple of songs or albums that grab hold of us as a family and get stuck on repeat for weeks. We are still in love with the Hamilton soundtrack, and my eldest's ability to keep up with the rap in Right Hand Man is really impressive - and a testament to how much we've had it on around the house!</p><p>Three songs however that we listened to more than any others were:</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhyCP8pUzo9qUOeGuLBJw_2R4XIHk3XXPOlBZqA8K_7FETIZE80SQaRO1jOjHylvQKjYsA1JHdZDdVW_K42T94bUgMhUZ7BPB8PGfvarVW59UG7b9y0qAS_RCW7CrWZl-JsYWyoKZY_RiuBs6OoiyjiOK_Nw3klohwXN-WUde0dA8-wUQvPVdFukFRM=s582" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="283" data-original-width="582" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhyCP8pUzo9qUOeGuLBJw_2R4XIHk3XXPOlBZqA8K_7FETIZE80SQaRO1jOjHylvQKjYsA1JHdZDdVW_K42T94bUgMhUZ7BPB8PGfvarVW59UG7b9y0qAS_RCW7CrWZl-JsYWyoKZY_RiuBs6OoiyjiOK_Nw3klohwXN-WUde0dA8-wUQvPVdFukFRM=s320" width="320" /></a></div><b>1. Elevation Worship: Talking to Jesus</b> - this song ought to come with a warning not to listen to while driving or operating machinery! I love it and it reduces me to tears of joy at the wonder of being a Christian and the longing for my boys to come to delight in Jesus for themselves. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXsxw1fRHMA&ab_channel=ElevationWorship">Watch here</a><p></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg7VK9mkGQI0ZbDqmWgZYEsmDhph8wBdgYypzz7szfQTdPrFylsOFX9IvVS44n1GVI3Mh7V2TDKs0bEmHb18joYI6vFcdmmtgLh9lDEdilcrb1yvCOdo28C-E44eDUCASfXhqnwghmRHsVcK4zxTGt5htVCMe5hgNhDl1mUBC6Z0v5hIrVvGQw_FLNh=s1280" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg7VK9mkGQI0ZbDqmWgZYEsmDhph8wBdgYypzz7szfQTdPrFylsOFX9IvVS44n1GVI3Mh7V2TDKs0bEmHb18joYI6vFcdmmtgLh9lDEdilcrb1yvCOdo28C-E44eDUCASfXhqnwghmRHsVcK4zxTGt5htVCMe5hgNhDl1mUBC6Z0v5hIrVvGQw_FLNh=s320" width="320" /></a></div><b>1. Lecrae: Coming in Hot</b> - this song is a family favourite and playing it loud with kids around is always fun. <p></p><p><b>2. GuvnaB: Aight Boom</b> (<a href="https://music.amazon.co.uk/albums/B07C7TTPXM?marketplaceId=A1F83G8C2ARO7P&musicTerritory=GB&ref=dm_sh_Ijz8CUbXlOKs2NZ10vU5YXn1X&trackAsin=B07C88SNK4" target="_blank">Here</a>) My favourite from the album is Safe Place, it's a beautifully honest journey through Isaac's wrestles with church along with its hypocrisies, corruptions and also beauty and power. Enjoy it here: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6RLccqd0gA&ab_channel=GuvnaB-Topic" target="_blank">Safe Space</a></p><p><br /></p><p><b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><i>VIRAL VIDEOS</i></span></b></p><p><span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgcpw-0ZdnlhcbUBfJrrrF_qbjfA3oAIFcj8-YmLZeZgPXpxlfNvlnt3TPk6uIA5X4RMMPgRuRccyB4Wr4M94TmkKCeaw8N4J9yM-La9oGtz-QMA96MFcQf2c4xmlRQXO4CkDH9dhIaldzO9G0qiKiRcggs9CkFnLMsxzzvts3kNbxBPuSYyw3JcJFd=s647" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="647" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgcpw-0ZdnlhcbUBfJrrrF_qbjfA3oAIFcj8-YmLZeZgPXpxlfNvlnt3TPk6uIA5X4RMMPgRuRccyB4Wr4M94TmkKCeaw8N4J9yM-La9oGtz-QMA96MFcQf2c4xmlRQXO4CkDH9dhIaldzO9G0qiKiRcggs9CkFnLMsxzzvts3kNbxBPuSYyw3JcJFd=s320" width="320" /></a></span></div><span><br />Finally... two viral videos that really made me smile. One is a (very cheeky - you have been warned) poke at the notion of 'total equality' Here: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzpMRCeTHYE&ab_channel=RyanLong" target="_blank">Men For Total Equality</a> </span><p></p><p><span>The other a heart warming reminder of Christ's faithful shepherding. This is how he loves us and how we often behave... <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_4S5yBkSpU&ab_channel=Geerow" target="_blank">The Good Shepherd and the Sheep</a></span></p><p><span><br /></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>Happy New Year!!</b></span></p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-19595966380888000582021-08-21T11:06:00.000-07:002021-08-21T11:06:26.750-07:00True or just plausible?Several times over the years I have had the experience of leaving church and feeling utterly bewildered that not everyone in my town is a Christian. On these occasions the experience has been so positive, the communication so compelling, the congregation so engaged and the stories of personal transformation and healing so remarkable that it has involved a sort of feeling like that of a culture shock to return back to secular Britain.<br />
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What I've come to see however is that this sort of experience isn't the exclusive reserve of churches. As I've left the cinema after a particularly moving experience, when the theatre show ends or as the crowd's passion at the football stadium takes over I find myself feeling something similar. It's a feeling of 'I <i>must </i>spend more time here.' or 'these people have the answer to help resolve life's tensions.'<br />
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It's more that just something associated with groups coming together too. A vibrant party of impressive or delightful people, a panel discussion of bright and articulate communicators, a perfect outing or evening with friends; they all have a similar effect. They all bring about feelings of truth and totality. <i>These people </i>must be the right ones, <i>their way</i> must be the right way, <i>this cause </i>is what my life ought to be angled towards.<br />
<br />
Recently I've come to see that the power of what sociologist Peter Berger calls a 'plausibility structure.' In high and heady moments I'm experiencing the strength and power of the story and emphasis in front of me.<br />
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You see belief is less linked to truth than it is linked to plausibility. If we believe a thing to be plausible we're likely going to be willing to accept it to be true, but if we struggle to see how reasonable a thing is we'll have a hard time going along with it even if it's obviously true. This is how conspiracy theories and cults work. They cast doubt and create suspicion, and they play into our ego's desire to be among the enlightened elite, and if they can enlist the support of popular celebrity they're onto a winner. In other words they make what they have to say sound and seem attractive; they create an appealing plausibility structure. But this doesn't apply only to cults and conspiracies of course but to almost everything we hold to be true. The sexual revolution, our attitude toward abortion or euthanasia, our policies on immigration, all of them have been shaped and formed on the level of plausibility.Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-40482266219097315292021-08-17T04:10:00.003-07:002021-08-19T02:37:58.673-07:00I Can Understand Why My Parents Aren't Christians, I Don't Blame Them<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FOkoWKUlqZg/YRuEXrY-AYI/AAAAAAAABVU/k6ovEHex31Ymx8m4NljHxgQxWICVV1vPwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1280/PTYIJlo.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="830" data-original-width="1280" height="208" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FOkoWKUlqZg/YRuEXrY-AYI/AAAAAAAABVU/k6ovEHex31Ymx8m4NljHxgQxWICVV1vPwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PTYIJlo.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><blockquote><p>For the non-resident reader who did not experience the lates 1960s and 1970s in Britains, it is hard to convey how [the] self-appointed religious leaders were reduced to abject mockery in the press and daily culture. Liberal Christians as much as secular people parodied and joked about them, not mainly in a malicious way... but in a form of affectionate contempt, but contempt nonetheless.</p></blockquote><p>As a 'non-resident reader' who didn't experience the 60s and 70s Callum Brown's detailed history was an amazing eye-opener. It gave me a deeper sense of what formed the nonreligious mind of my parents, growing up as they did in the 60s and 70s. I was given an insight into what they were up against when it came to even trying to consider the Ultimate claims made by Christianity. </p><p>A striking image from the era was of Vernon Mitchell in the dressing room of strip club talking to the performers (above). His job was to visit the clubs, watch the shows and decide which bits should and shouldn't be censored. Christianity from the 1920s-70s was one that most considered concerned itself mainly with the moral rectitude of the nation, it was a Christianity that seemed determined to play the parent treating the nation like infants.</p><p>Since we humans are ultra-social animals it would appear that the cards are may be stacked against us when it comes to objectively discovering spiritual truth, especially if that truth seeks to restrict or set limits on our appetites.</p><p>As far as we're shaped by others, fear of ridicule and social shame is a powerful force making exploring truth in terrain that would leave us vulnerable to such realities an unattractive proposition. In a famous study on conformity Solomon Asch asked participants which of the lines on the right was most similar to the target line on the left. In control groups where all but one person was a 'stooge' tasked with lying 32% of participants went along with and conformed with the clearly incorrect answers being offered by the group.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YZ9Erq5jPRk/YRuJO7TWcXI/AAAAAAAABVc/gs9MBfTRiHcdRXAdKHyPZZBowbYUmwogQCLcBGAsYHQ/s418/Screenshot%2B2021-08-17%2Bat%2B11.02.23.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="418" height="230" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YZ9Erq5jPRk/YRuJO7TWcXI/AAAAAAAABVc/gs9MBfTRiHcdRXAdKHyPZZBowbYUmwogQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screenshot%2B2021-08-17%2Bat%2B11.02.23.png" width="320" /></a></div>Now imagine growing up in a world where all the people you admire and respect ridicule and make light of Christianity. We don't need to imagine. I still remember the skin crawling embarrassment and fear I felt after my conversion when someone first outed me 'Jez, I hear you've become a Christian.' <i>ssshhhhhh! </i>My parents grew up in a world where their heroes and role models were routinely patronised and subject to moral correction by old men who seemed to care very little for their concerns and interests.<div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6CwU__aTgaQ/YRuM-blL1ZI/AAAAAAAABVk/ZH0n8kiDSNgjLs1a2XaaRIQjCAhfU18fgCLcBGAsYHQ/s481/Screenshot%2B2021-08-17%2Bat%2B11.18.02.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="305" data-original-width="481" height="174" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6CwU__aTgaQ/YRuM-blL1ZI/AAAAAAAABVk/ZH0n8kiDSNgjLs1a2XaaRIQjCAhfU18fgCLcBGAsYHQ/w274-h174/Screenshot%2B2021-08-17%2Bat%2B11.18.02.png" title="John Cleese" width="274" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">John Cleese & Michael Palin defend 'The Life of Brian' before Mervyn Stockwood Bishop of Southwark and Malcolm Muggeridge<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M9kCfT9IWTA/YRuN5VMORjI/AAAAAAAABVs/QHsio-BJk7IX8zvW5JXnOW651Kc1oigOQCLcBGAsYHQ/s479/Screenshot%2B2021-08-17%2Bat%2B11.17.24.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="269" data-original-width="479" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M9kCfT9IWTA/YRuN5VMORjI/AAAAAAAABVs/QHsio-BJk7IX8zvW5JXnOW651Kc1oigOQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screenshot%2B2021-08-17%2Bat%2B11.17.24.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mick Jagger after leaving prison is flown in to face a panel of moral and religious leaders</td></tr></tbody></table><p>To grow up in an environment like this, where Christianity is seen as the enemy of progress, joyless and oppressive, inevitably hinders a person's ability to consider it with an open mind. It is probably a fair conclusion to draw that many people didn't reject Christ but Christianity. They threw the baby out with the bathwater. </p><p>In his book Dominion historian Tom Holland points out that objecting to Christianity's lack of progress or oppressive attitudes is odd since Christianity gave the world both the concept of history as progress, and ideas of universal equality and worth we assume are self-evident.</p><p>It was a time of massive social change where deep currents finally broke in waves on the surface and the Christianity of the 60s and 70s was completely unprepared or unable to respond. Christianity had become entwined with public bodies of authority and power and had assumed a position of privilege and power it was now being toppled from. The tone of the journalist interviewing the most popular preacher of the time, Martyn Lloyd Jones, in 1970 is further evidence to how estranged popular culture had become from the institutionalised Christianity of our nation's history. Basic and foundational Christian beliefs clearly bewildered her. </p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wwW265Omeqc/YRuRHFElyFI/AAAAAAAABV0/BAhUg7KOEDwQpxEfRhgn3y8OrDzw5PnHwCLcBGAsYHQ/s578/Screenshot%2B2021-08-17%2Bat%2B11.35.32.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="324" data-original-width="578" height="179" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wwW265Omeqc/YRuRHFElyFI/AAAAAAAABV0/BAhUg7KOEDwQpxEfRhgn3y8OrDzw5PnHwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screenshot%2B2021-08-17%2Bat%2B11.35.32.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Joan Bakewell interviews Martyn Lloyd Jones in 1970</td></tr></tbody></table><br />At a time when young people were listening to the Rolling Stones & The Beatles, when Stringfellow's was becoming a household name and 6 million people were visiting Blackpool each year to sample its freedoms and freak shows Christianity was the overbearing parent seen as trying to stamp out the fun. People had tired of its lectures, and tired of its parishes with their assumptions of christendom. Since its creation in the 1920s the BBC was allied with British (and therefore Christian) ideas. In the mid 1960s it put out over 30hrs of religious broadcasting a week and held a tight leash on what ideas were allowed to be expressed. <p>For most people growing up in the 60s and 70s it was the humanists and atheist icons who displayed the most honesty and artistic integrity and held the celebrity status. We admire and listen to people who best make sense of life and help bear the weight of living, something that Christianity seemed to offer very little help with, embodied as it was by ageing men too privileged or too remote to be considered in touch with life's complexities.</p><p>It was believed (or at least promoted by the establishment) that it was our Christian morality that made the British Empire great and so in a post-war era rightly worried about the atheist communists it wasn't perhaps unreasonable for government officials to favour Christianity the way it did. Nevertheless in a generation traumatised by WWII and all to familiar with life's fragility and at a time when the Empire was contracting and Britain diversifying all the more, room was left for expressing a vision of what would make the future country worth inhabiting. At this point enter Secular Humanism ready as it was to replace the stranglehold of Christian moral judgements. It had been preparing itself for this day, muscling for more of a voice. Its ascendency seemed inevitable, the masses and especially the young had tired of their parents religion. In 1969 Roy Jenkins, architect of the 'liberal hour', said:</p><blockquote><p>The permissive society... a better phrase is a civilised society, a society based on the belief that different individuals will wish to make different decisions about their patterns of behaviour, and that, provided these do not restrict the freedom of others, they should be allowed to so within a framework of understanding and tolerance.</p></blockquote><p>Jenkins summed up the vision of Humanism by tying it to the concept of civility. Civilised, mature, grown up people are humanists. It is ironic and perhaps a testament to the dominance of Christian thought however that he could promote Christian values as an alternative to Christianity; like using an axe hewn from the tree he now sought to chop down.</p><p>Christianity was perceived to be a tool of the state to control and restrict the population, to hinder their self-expression, to keep the wealthy in their place and the poor in theirs. Humanism by contrast was seen as a compassionate force for society's good and in the 'liberalising hour' of the late 60s pushed for the decriminalisation of suicide and homosexuality and the legalisation of abortion, and contraception. Humanism seemed to speak for the people while Christianity seemed committed to keeping heavy burdens on the backs of people they demonised rather than helped. It was a Christianity people felt deserved all the mockery it got, a Christianity that had held power for too long and was now reaping the fruit of having become too entangled with the establishment. </p><p>Young people in the 60s and 70s never stood a chance when it came to considering the truth of Christianity. They ran from it and found freedom in the arms of the progressive liberalism they created. I don't blame them. As a child of a liberal and progressive family and society I am grateful for the freedoms I take for granted, grateful that I can choose what I watch and where I go and grateful that I am able to make moral decisions for myself. I am grateful too that I never knew Christianity as something trying to restrict my freedoms and curtail my fun. I knew it as awkward and unpopular but not restrictive. I had a neutral enough view of it that I was willing to pick up a New Testament and read it. Here I found water for my soul and wisdom that spoke deeply to me and a Christ who astonished me. </p><p>I have every sympathy for my parents' generation, I'd have reacted in exactly the same way. Now that time has passed however I wonder if it's time to reconsider the place we consigned Christ to. In recent years there has been a growing number of non-Christian intellectuals uncovering our indebtedness to Jesus' legacy and expounding on the wisdom of his movement. From Psychology professor Jordan Peterson to Philosopher Roger Scruton, Historians Tom Holland & Niall Ferguson and Columnists Douglas Murray and Matthew Paris Christianity is less a source of derision and increasingly one of pilgrimage.</p><p>Talking with a friend recently who was a pastor in the 70s & 80s he said: 'it is arguably easier to share the gospel with people now than it was then.' We are, after all, meaning making beings who aren't being well nourished by many of the options available to us. Food for thought. </p></div>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-73466486591910295602021-07-05T02:29:00.003-07:002021-07-05T02:29:28.284-07:00The Christian Way - Part 2<p><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 12px;"></span></p><blockquote><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">"When Christ calls a man he bids him come and die." </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Dietrich Bonhoeffer</span></p></blockquote><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Being a Christian requires every part of a man, so much so that it appears to onlookers like a death.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Mark-12-28" style="background-color: white;"></span></span></p><blockquote><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Mark-12-28" style="background-color: white;">And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?”</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span class="text Mark-12-29" id="en-ESVUK-24695" style="background-color: white;">Jesus answered, <span class="woj">“The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.</span></span><span class="text Mark-12-30" id="en-ESVUK-24696" style="background-color: white;"><span class="woj"><span class="versenum" style="display: inline; font-weight: 700; line-height: normal; position: relative; top: auto; vertical-align: text-top;"> </span>And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’</span></span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span class="text Mark-12-31" id="en-ESVUK-24697" style="background-color: white;"><span class="woj">The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”</span></span><span class="text Mark-12-32" id="en-ESVUK-24698" style="background-color: white;"><span class="versenum" style="display: inline; font-weight: 700; line-height: normal; position: relative; top: auto; vertical-align: text-top;"> </span>And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him.</span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><span class="text Mark-12-33" id="en-ESVUK-24699" style="background-color: white;">And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbour as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”</span><span class="text Mark-12-34" id="en-ESVUK-24700" style="background-color: white;"><span class="versenum" style="display: inline; font-weight: 700; line-height: normal; position: relative; top: auto; vertical-align: text-top;"> </span>And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, <span class="woj">“You are not far from the kingdom of God.”</span> And after that no one dared to ask him any more questions.</span></span></blockquote><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">We are considering what Christian devotion looks like, and there seems no better place to begin than here. The concept of 'important commandment' jumps out at me to begin with. What is the man meaning? 'Important for what' we might ask. As a summary or essential statement of faith? But that's perhaps to enquire too much like a modern westerner with 'religion' as a substructure of society. The man isn't interested in defining the central tenants of Jewish religion, but for social and personal wellbeing. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">For something to be important it is of use. The earth wire is of importance the electrical wiring, just as oxygen is the most important element in the air we breathe. Seen like this, the question takes on an air of medical enquiry from a senior doctor to a junior one. The man is perhaps wondering what particular axe this latest teacher has to grind. Will he emphasise adherence to Torah or the right to take up arms and reclaim what is theirs? Will he emphasise Yahweh-who-heals-you or Yahweh-our-banner? </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Jesus' answer is as orthodox and as practical as they come. Are we to think that the most important commandment as defined by Jesus would be any different for us today? How much do we ever consider it?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">The concept of 'commandment' is also important to the discussion. We are used to thinking of commands as one would a law code laying out what is illegal and what is legal. We hear the phrase 'the ten commandments' and think 'these ten things I must do if I am to be in the right' whereas within Jewish law they are categorised as the 'ten words', summary statements of broader teaching and concepts. They are words to live by, more than they are rules to keep. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">'Which is the most important commandment?' seen with these two lenses put over them turns the question into: 'What is crucial word we need to live by?'</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Jesus' reply is not the reply that many Christians would give to the same question. As we saw last week we often reply simply by telling a person to 'believe' or 'behave'. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Let's spend some time considering what Jesus says. Before we do, notice that Jesus rejects the exact nature of the question by the way he replies. The question, like a modern day investor, asks Jesus to define the One Thing that matters most of all. "Tell me the USP of our faith. 'P' Singular." Jesus replies with three:</span></p><blockquote><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">The Shema<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span></p></blockquote><blockquote><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">The Greatest Commandment </span></p></blockquote><blockquote><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">and a variation on the Golden Rule </span></p></blockquote><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">These are, amongst many other things, the essentials of doctrine, devotion and duty. A devotional life must surely involve a focus on all three.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i></i></span></p><blockquote><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Hear</i></span></blockquote><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Take heed, pay careful attention </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i></i></span></p><blockquote><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>O Israel</i></span></blockquote><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">The community and congregation of God's people. This underlies the centrality of the community and people of faith. There is a believing and called people as distinct from the other peoples in the world. The boundaries of that people are established by what follows:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i></i></span></p><blockquote><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Yahweh our Elohim</i></span></blockquote><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">In a world of elohim (gods), we have Yahweh as ours, he is distinct from the other gods and is not the same. We must not be fooled into thinking that just because someone uses the word 'god' does not mean they have in mind ours. Is Yahweh your god?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i></i></span></p><blockquote><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Yahweh is one</i></span></blockquote><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">He is united in his person, integrated and whole not divided against himself, not lacking anything.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">At the outset Christian devotion is marked by attention to all the above, inaccuracy on the above results in a skewed and 'wonky' life. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Zac: my legs feel wonky. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">We'll consider the rest of Jesus' reply in the next few weeks.</span></p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="text Mark-12-34" id="en-ESVUK-24700" style="background-color: white;"></span></span><p></p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-25113905748726334262021-06-28T03:20:00.002-07:002021-07-05T01:30:48.683-07:00The Christian Way - Part 1<p><span style="font-family: inherit;">"<i>But what would I do?</i>"</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">"<i>What do you mean?"</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>"If I became a Christian, what would that look like for me at 9am on Monday morning, or when I wake up tomorrow, what practical difference would it make? You say 'trust in Jesus', or 'believe' like it's something I can just do, but what does the doing of it look like? Pray? I can pray, I can say the words, I've spoken them out before addressed to a so called God but what difference did it make? I'm not trying to sound facetious, I'm trying to understand. Tell me what to DO.</i>"</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">This statement and these questions made by a materialist friend of mine has stayed with me. It's an honest question. In a world of techniques and discipline, with the Whim Hoff Method and the Seven Pillars, and the Eightfold Path and Mindfulness, what is the Christian way?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>Moral reform</i> often seems to be the answer people expect to hear. Evidence that a person has embarked on the Christian way is, that they clean up their act. If that's the case, on day one of becoming a Christian is it just the case that a person must simply try to live better? Is that what the Christian Way is? </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">What about when a person isn't particularly <i>im</i>moral in the first place? How much better do they need to be the day after the decision? Or, the opposite, what if their immorality is all they've known; what if they've never even heard about God's standard of morality?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Another answer to the question 'what is the Christian way?' is the issuing of the command: 'believe in Jesus'. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">'Wake up each day and believe in Jesus.'</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">'Put your faith in Jesus.' </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">'Trust Jesus.'</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">What lifestyle follows those practises and what am I meant to believe in him for? </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Also,</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">has it ever occurred to you how truly strange a command that is? I cannot will belief through force of effort, instead belief seems to arise out of conviction and conviction seems derived through reason and experience. To a strict materialist even the very idea of <i>belief</i> sounds too sentimental, besides I seem to breathe in and out regardless of whether I trust in Jesus or not and my day unfolds before me in much the same way no matter if I begin it by saying a pray or not.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Often: belief, faith and trust, are presented as entry requirements that establish a person upon the Christian Way, the entry point, and then moral reform the bread and butter of that way. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">For one seeking and trying to grasp what it would require of them to become a follower of Christ it can still seem hard to get a handle on.</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">How does one believe in or come to trust in Jesus and what are the evidences of that belief? How would I know if I've done it or not? We often present the Christian message in terms of either forgiveness of sin or admission into heaven, but that makes it seem less like a 'way' and more like a 'moment'. Is the Christian way a daily decision or a once off decision?</span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Even so, how does a person know if they've put their faith in Jesus? What does it mean to take ones faith and put it in Jesus? This is a strange image since it pictures us all walking around daily with tokens called 'faith' making decisions about where to place them. That doesn't seem to accord with reality where belief seems more reflexive and instinctual than premeditated. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">There are<i> some</i> beliefs that we seem to take time to consider, like when we purchase a new car or decide to step inside an aeroplane. Those decisions, we tell ourselves, are based on research and rationality. Faith in Jesus can be like buying a car, a matter of investigating the perks and benefits of one guru over another and making your choice. But even those decisions, decisions we tell ourselves have been thought through and arrived at in good conscience, are more based on social plausibility than we'd like to admit. It isn't my personal genius but my social status, lifestyle and disposable wealth that makes me choose which car to buy.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Getting on a plane is about one of the most dangerous things a person can do and yet I must be honest and confess that I've never done the maths myself. I haven't studied aeronautical engineering, and I have no idea how or why the tube of metal stays in the sky. I could quote some terms like 'drag' and 'lift' and I could work to convince myself I know how flight works, but that still doesn't explain the basis for my confidence. I got on a plane because well, others do it; so it must be ok.</span></p><p>The question is, what happens <i>before </i>belief?</p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">In trying to question the faith <i>behind</i> my decision to get on the aeroplane I'm better off asking not 'how did you come to trust the plane?' but rather 'why did you want or need to travel at all?' It's in answering this question that I begin to unearth my actual beliefs, my motivating impulses. Answering this question would lead me to say something like: 'I believed a week of sunbathing on a beach in Altinkum would bring me joy.' In other words, I came to take my life in my hands and trust a plane because it promised to bring me what I <i>wanted</i>. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">This is true for all manner of dangerous decisions we make or strict disciplines we impose on ourselves. If I believe that jumping off a bridge with an elasticated chord tied to my ankles will bring me joy, I'll do it, if the pay off doesn't seem worth the risk I won't. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">If I believe I'd be happier if I was slimmer or fitter then I'll deny myself what I genuinely desire and I'll inflict pain on my body. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">If I want a harmonious and integrated home life I'll deny myself the demands of my couch and help out round the house. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">We will all sacrifice to achieve an end greater than the discomfort we have to go through to get there. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Does Jesus offer me something I want? </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">If he does then I'll accept social derision and awkward religion for the sake of it. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Having said that, the command 'believe in Jesus' isn't offered as a sales pitch offering me a channel to get something I desire, it's much more ultimate than that. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Jesus said 'I am the truth', and truth doesn't require belief to confirm it. He said 'I am the way' having in mind a mode of living and a way of being. He said 'I am the life' and in so doing made every other religious guide, death by comparison. </span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: inherit;">Yes, but what do I actually need to do?!</span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">The question posed by my friend is going to form the basis of a series of weekly articles aimed at trying to find, in practical terms, exactly what a life of devotion to Christ looks like. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">What is a Christian life as distinct from a pagan one? </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">How does a Christian start their day or eat their breakfast? </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">How does a Christian live up to the claim of being a mini Christ? </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;">What is the Christian way?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></p><p><br /></p>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-88604047411092776602020-07-31T01:26:00.001-07:002020-07-31T01:26:43.410-07:00Two Kinds of New Normal<div class="separator"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tVu_c31j8s4/XyPVH12aKxI/AAAAAAAABJ8/MaN4JOFq-N4PxLI5Oohf0ktaiagEgZE7QCLcBGAsYHQ/s277/newnormal.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="182" data-original-width="277" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tVu_c31j8s4/XyPVH12aKxI/AAAAAAAABJ8/MaN4JOFq-N4PxLI5Oohf0ktaiagEgZE7QCLcBGAsYHQ/s0/newnormal.png" /></a></div><div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div>There are two kinds of new normal. There's the one that arrives in fanfare and is announced by everyone, often ushered in by a crisis; no one can miss this new normal. All eyes are fully open to the changes we must now get used to; perspex screens, masks and social distancing. There is another kind of new normal however that is much more subtle, it happens gradually over time like the boiling of a pot or the flavouring of a dinner. No one announces its arrival and once it's here no one really notices it as 'new' at all but only as what 'is' since we can't imagine or conceive of a world in which this normal doesn't exist.</div><div><br /></div><div>These new normals are deadly and without canaries to warn us they'll end up killing us and dismantling our social structures. </div><div><br /></div><div>This thought occurred to me recently when reading Glynn Harrison's excellent book 'A Better Story' in it he points to many of the effects of the Sexual Revolution on society. The promise of the revolution was 'better sex and more freedom' and whilst it has certainly made us more free (if freedom is taken to mean only the throwing off of restraints) it hasn't brought us much that is better. I have grown up in the post-revolution world and so have known nothing else but its dogmas. </div><div><br /></div><div>It was only when a new friend I made several years ago commented with surprise at the amount of divorced or remarried couples he knew of in the church that I began to consider whether this normal wasn't always around; I had no idea that it was new at at all. </div><div><br /></div><div>Here's some normals we're familiar with, normals that we might never have considered 'new' since no one announced them with the same fanfare we've become used to in the past few months:</div><div><ul><li><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><i>Common acceptance of the validity (thought of course emotional painful reality) of abortion. There were 209, 519 abortions in England and Wales last year (it increases year on year and is the highest its ever been since the passing of the Abortion act in 1967 - 18 out of every 1000 women aged 15-44 had an abortion last year)</i></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><i>Living together before being married (>66% of couples)</i></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><i>High divorce rates (42%)</i></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><i>Addiction to or regular use of porn. I have long assumed (from experience in youth work) that every boy (and increasingly a lot of girls) struggle with being addicted to or a regular user of porn. And the stats show that children are accessing it younger than ever before.</i></span></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><i style="font-size: 14px;">Sexually </i></span></li><li><i style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 14px;">48% of all children born today will not be found living with both natural parents by their sixteenth birthday</i></li><li><i style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 14px;">Father </i><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><i style="font-size: 14px;">absences in homes: In 1972 1 in 14 households in the UK were fatherless, now it is 1 in 4. In more than 236 local authorities in England and Wales more than 50% of </i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><i style="font-size: 14px;">Mental health disorders.Common. Expected even. One </i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><i style="font-size: 14px;">In 2015 one in five teenage girls had experienced a major depressive episode in the last year.</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><i style="font-size: 14px;">Suicide: The biggest killer of all men under the age of 50, and increasingly among the young. 46% more 15-19yr olds committed suicide in 2015 than in 2007.</i></span></li><li><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><i style="font-size: 14px;">Loneliness. We're familiar with the commonplace loneliness among our </i></span></li></ul><div><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">I'm sure there are </span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">Mental health disorders are treated by many as being as inevitable as the common cold or as genetically predisposed as cancer and yet there is plenty of evidence to suggest that for the most part (though of course not in every case) it is more a symptom of something else, resulting from other factors at work in a person's life.</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">Whereas in our current crisis we're going to great lengths to protect the elderly and vulnerable from Covid-19, many of the new normals listed above are simple accepted (or in some cases celebrated); and yet it is our young that are most at risk from them all.</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">"Family insecurity and insecurity are bad for kids in terms of almost any outcome that you care to mention" (Harrison) </span></span><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 14px;">and whereas we all accepted that divorce would harm our kids (although in many cases even that is done 'for the sake of the kids') cohabitation (the new normal) poses a much greater threat to the stability and security of our kids: </span></div><div><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span></div><div><p style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px 0px 0px 14.2px;"><i>In a study from the UK Marriage Foundation the author found that, independent of mothers’ age or education, more than half of couples who only get married after the birth of their first child have split up ten years later, compared with only one quarter or couples who marry before having children.’</i></p></div><div><i><br /></i></div>This has huge knock on implications for the mental health of our young since (in one survey of 10,448 eleven year olds) 18% of those living in stepfamilies had significant mental health problems, compared to 6.6% of those living with both natural parents. Boys were affected most of all, displaying conduct problems, hyperactivity and attention-deficit issues.</div><div><br /></div><div>There are two kinds of new normal, one that gets noticed as 'new' and one that gets accepted simply as what 'is', but if it hasn't always been this way shouldn't we be more concerned that it's new and start to question whether we're all happy with it?</div>Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5970795629128088302.post-13916525441348774612020-07-06T01:10:00.004-07:002020-07-06T01:10:42.048-07:00Doing is believing: the real reason why Covid-19 presents the biggest threat to the church for a generation'Seeing is believing' goes the adage, but I don't think it's true.<br />
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Anyone who says 'I'd believe if only I saw...' isn't to be believed; they understand neither themselves nor the nature of their beliefs.<br />
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At first seeing may well lead to believing but only until believing becomes unpopular (socially or personally) and then suddenly (as if by magic) our <i>sight</i> is called in for questioning; excuses are made and <i>belief</i> will slip out the back door of doubt claiming 'I lost faith.'<br />
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The question is, do we lose it or just stop it?<br />
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Belief is less linked to sight than people realise and is instead linked more to our actions and our affiliations. On the one hand we believe what we repeatedly do and we do whatever we intuitively <i>want</i> to do; and what we <i>want</i>, is the result of our conditioning and our culture. On the other hand we believe what the communities we're part of make attractive for us to believe. We believe whatever our society has made plausible for us to believe.<br />
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It's those two realities that underpin what I think is the greatest threat to the church for a generation.<br />
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The longer our churches are closed the longer our behaviour conforms to the patterns of our culture, and since our society has worked hard (and deliberately) to make secularism and atheism seem the more plausible, a prolonged swim in these waters without the rhythm, routine and re-education of Sunday mornings will make following Jesus appear less true, attractive and necessary.<br />
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That is to say nothing of what is <i>actually true</i>, but only what <i>becomes true</i> for us by the way we behave.<br />
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Another factor in this has been the effective diluting of our churches into social clubs and the appealing of our churches to consumer trends that has gone on over the past two decades. In the name of mission we have worked hard to serve people sound-bitey sermons and emotionally charged worship and even written daily devotionals for them to read - '<i>don't read the Bible yourself, just read what I got out of it when I read it</i>.' we effectively say to them. We've done these things to such an extent that fewer Christians have substantial daily practises of their own to help draw them closer to God. The church has become so reliant on the professionals (the Free Church equivalent of the clergy) that we have created a lazy form of Christianity - and since we haven't spoken more attractively and intentionally about the beauty of Christian truth in the face of deliberate campaigns to undermine traditional Christian ethics, we have created an apologetic and limp-wristed church perhaps more dependent on Sundays to 'keep 'em coming back' than ever before.<br />
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When our church doors do open again I'm not saying that there'll be no one there to worship, but only wondering aloud what the long term effect this lockdown will have had on those who are there.<br />
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What we've done in the past three months has instilled beliefs (by way of our behaviour) that will now hold more plausibility (and therefore truth) than will Jesus' words and the historic rhythms of the church. We've clapped for the NHS, reinforcing the importance of public righteousness and centrality of our culture's cult of Health. We've talked incessantly about the strength of the economy, reinforcing the value of the office above the household, and those of us with children have talked often about how we 'can't wait to get the kids back to school' perhaps settling for good our desire to delegate away from parents the educating of our children - <i>teach them whatever you want, just don't ask me to do your job!</i><br />
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Of course it hasn't all been doom and gloom; or has it?<br />
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Educating our churches to 'watch church from home' might be better than nothing, but only just. While it 'wins' in maintaining a routine that in turn helps play into Christianity's plausibility, it 'loses' by playing into consumerism and encouraging a 'take it or leave it' spirituality that is devoid of sacrifice, commitment and relationship. Some will contest that there's been plenty of positive pastoral and community oriented response - serving our neighbours, supporting those in need, delivering food etc. Whilst that has certainly been true, my concern is that too often this has been done by a committed core minority and not the majority, it's the same few faces on every Zoom call with whole households conspicuously absent from our lives. When churches do eventually come back together inevitably there'll be greater feelings of imposter syndrome among those who went underground and didn't engage in the community life. Retreating into our private households may have kept some us more physically healthy than the alternative but it has undone five year's hard work on the part of our churches to break the isolationist individualism that makes genuine church fellowship so hard. The default mode of our age is to embrace <i>me </i>over <i>we, </i>so without weekly routines that force <i>me </i>back into <i>we </i>we're allowed to indulge more in what is a much easier and more natural fit for us.<br />
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It seems to me that these things make up the real crisis affecting the church. Things have certainly changed, but not necessarily for the better. All we've done in the last few months will have changed for good what we believe, or maybe it will have just shown what was already there.<br />
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<br />Jez Fieldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06720192902901199539noreply@blogger.com