The Lost Garden Dear friends, I wonder if you know where the Garden of Eden is? Whilst it might be hard to put a cross on the map, as far as the Bible goes, the garden of Eden could be anywhere between the pointy bits of the “Fertile Crescent” – comprising the currently most contested parts of the Middle East, with the…
Simple Gifts Dear friends “Simplicity is the only thing that can sufficiently reorient our lives so that possessions can genuinely be enjoyed without destroying us.” So wrote Richard Foster in the 1970’s. Outside my window the blue tits come close and flutter noisily, sometimes bashing the pane with their wings. They want me to notice that the fat balls have all gone,…
Looking sideways Dear friends, I remember the cycling proficiency lady that came to our Primary School who impressed upon us all the life saving need to look in every single direction including behind you, when negotiating traffic on a bicycle, and especially at road junctions. “Right, left, right again, ahead and behind, then do it again!” I feel the world could do…
A greeting Dear friends “Peace be with you” we say to one another. It is a formal liturgical greeting in our services, when we will often add “(The) peace (of the Lord) be (always) with you.” This greeting not only goes back to the earliest church, but it reflects one of the deepest human desires – in the end, we tire of…
Welsh Fire Dear friends Gifted speakers change lives. They can both motivate, and inspire. A few well chosen and carefully thought words can make all the difference, for both good, or ill. This last week America mourned the death of the Revd Jesse Jackson, whose life and mission was spent carrying the torch passed to him by Martin Luther King. It is…
Pray for Ezekiel Dear friends, Sometimes it is easier to pray for just one person than a whole country. So, may I ask you to pray this week for Ezekiel Kondo, the Anglican Archbishop of Sudan? He and his team have recently been able to return to Khartoum from their enforced internal exile at Port Sudan. The civil war in Sudan has…
Nelson’s Prayer Dear friends, We live in unstable times, with enemies within, and without, seen and unseen, threats abroad and threats at home. Some would build walls, others are content to bed hop in their allegiances. Yet others wonder at the hidden costs of economic vassalage. Doom mongers shout “disaster!” and still others take the Hezekiah position – go back to bed…
The Bronze Collapse Dear friends, Most of us are aware of the Romans. Those who are interested in history know about their roads, towns, villas and legions. Hadrian’s Wall still impresses in the Borders, and many great churches (Dorchester Abbey being one such) sit atop Roman foundations or were built with Roman cut stone. Our faith was born in the Roman period.…
One unnaturally born was how St Paul described his status as the Apostle to the Gentiles. All the other apostles had been with Jesus during his time on earth. They had walked, talked, eaten, travelled and ministered with him. Importantly too, they had been called by Christ to follow, and been witnesses to his resurrection from the dead. St Paul could say…
Dry January Dear friends, Uncle Steve, just outside Tunbridge Wells, is without water again. A combination of very hard frost, ageing pipework, a few power cuts have caused a domino effect, and the network is down. An outraged customer base are blaming ineptitude at Southern Water, but actually their overall performance is moving in the right direction. Few are addressing the elephant…