This is a reflection on three words that describe the whole world as we are currently experiencing it, with particular reference to the conflict in Ukraine, suggesting how a story from Genesis points towards the hope for all humankind. SCARRED This is the first word that describes the world as we experience it. Scarred means... Continue Reading →
‘Finding the Still Point’ and ‘Streams in a Dry Land’ – Two book recommendations
This book is brilliant! It was brilliant in 2010 when it was already old and possibly out of print but I've just re-read it and want to point to it again. Just to say it is one of the most helpful, practical and yet also deeply spiritual books I've ever read. Here is the review... Continue Reading →
Something that holds everything together
Physicists have been looking for some time for the 'theory of everything'. The theory of everything is a hypothetical framework explaining all known physical phenomena in the universe. Basically there are a set of scientific rules that explain very large objects (relativity) and there are another set of understandings (quantum mechanics) which 'explains' how very... Continue Reading →
Is the promise enough?
This is the text of my last Sermon May 16, 2021 Sheila’s final Sunday at St Peter and St John’s This morning as we are all too acutely aware we are thinking about leavings and endings. And our two readings address those two themes. Jesus at the end of 40 days of appearances to his... Continue Reading →
God is a ‘who’ not a ‘what’ and why that matters
Earlier this week I had an interesting conversation with someone from generation Z. They didn't announce themselves as being part of that generation but later the same day I was reading about the characteristics of this generation and I realised that the young man I had met was most likely a Z-er - a post-millennial... Continue Reading →
Remembering or forgetting – which is better?
Today is a national day of Reflection in the UK. There will be a minutes silence at 12 noon. This day has been chosen as it marks the first anniversary from the first lockdown in response to the pandemic. Other countries will have their own anniversaries and key dates but this is ours. And we... Continue Reading →
Unknown: when the truth about who we are disappoints us
Like many in lockdown UK David and I are raiding our DVD library and rewatching old films. This reflection only contains one slight plot spoiler for this excellent film 'Unknown' with Liam Neeson in the lead role In the story Liam's character arrives in Berlin and has an accident. He comes round after 4 days... Continue Reading →
More on names and lists there of
Lists of names can be very oppressive. I can think of two places where I have stood and felt utterly overwhelmed: in front of the Menin Gates near Ypres on which are engraved 54,395 names of soldiers who died in the two world wars, and inside the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Jerusalem, where there is... Continue Reading →
Life… a jigsaw with no picture to follow?
Our quest for challenge and entertainment has sunk to a new low... we are attempting a jigsaw with no picture. We found three bags of pieces, all labelled 'David's jigsaw' and are having a go at putting it together. But neither of us know what picture we are creating. We don't know its dimensions, we... Continue Reading →
Star Trek and Strawberries – staying sane in scary situations
"Captain's Log Star date 01 01 2021 ..." I grew up with Star Trek, not the movies, the TV programmes with the doors that went 'swish', the devices into which 'beam me up Scotty' was the most frequent and desperate request, the inscrutable and ever logical Mr Spock, the pessimistic doctor 'Bones' (pessimistic inspite of... Continue Reading →