Articles, thoughts, essays, and content from Brian as well as students – our budding theologians.
Managing Monday with George Herbert – Take 2
George Herbert (1593-1633) was a Welsh born Anglican priest, theologian, poet and orator. Though he was only 39 when he died, he accomplished an extraordinary amount in his life (including a brief stint in the Parliament of England in 1624 and 1625). While a priest remembered for his genuine care of his parishioners, he struggled with his call to ministry, reflected in one of his most famous poems The Collar which concludes with the words, But as I rav’d and grew more fierce and wilde At every word, Me thoughts I heard one calling,...
read moreChurch: From Members to Attenders…
Language reflects the way we think about things, and with that in mind I was struck when someone recently claimed that it has only been in the last 50 years or so that Christians have spoken about “going to this church” or “attending this church”. For the many hundreds of years before that, they would have said “I belong to this church”or “I am a member of this church”. If the claim is true (and I suspect it is) it’s an interesting change – from members to attenders. Think through...
read moreManaging Monday with George Herbert
George Herbert (1593-1633) was a Welsh born Anglican priest, theologian, poet and orator. Though he was only 39 when he died, he accomplished an extraordinary amount in his life (including a brief stint in the Parliament of England in 1624 and 1625). While a priest remembered for his genuine care of his parishioners, he struggled with his call to ministry, reflected in one of his most famous poems The Collar which concludes with the words, But as I rav’d and grew more fierce and wilde At every word, Me thoughts I heard one calling,...
read moreProtestants, Reformers or Transformers…
As the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation draws near (it is usually dated from Luther posting his 95 theses on the church door in Wittenberg on 31 October, 1517), it is worth asking if we are now primarily protestants (from protestors) or reformers. The Protestant Reformation involved both protest and reform. It was a protest against a corrupt religious system, and some of its particular practices, such as the sale of indulgences. Later it was a strong protest against the April 19th, 1529 reversal of the August 27, 1526 German...
read moreManaging Monday with Parker J Palmer – Take 3
I first came across the work of Parker J Palmer (1939-present) when I was loaned a copy of his book The Courage to Teach. It’s a wonderful read, and it led me to track down some insights from his wider writings. Palmer, a Quaker, is well known for his work on education, social change, vocation and spirituality. Today is our third and final look at some of his insights… The questions we ask ourselves are at least as important as the answers we come up with, often more so – Parker J Palmer The highest form of love is the love...
read moreManaging Monday with Parker J Palmer – take 2
I first came across the work of Parker J Palmer (1939-present) when I was loaned a copy of his book The Courage to Teach. It’s a wonderful read, and it led me to track down some insights from his wider writings. Palmer, a Quaker, is well known for his work on education, social change, vocation and spirituality. Here is a second selection of some of his thoughts. Self-care is never a selfish act – it is simply good stewardship of the only gift I have, the gift I was put on earth to offer others. Anytime we can listen to true self...
read moreManaging Monday with Parker J Palmer
I first came across the work of Parker J Palmer (1939-present) when I was loaned a copy of his book The Courage to Teach. It’s a wonderful read, and it led me to track down some insights from his wider writings. We’ll enjoy them over the next few weeks. Palmer, a Quaker, is well known for his work on education, social change, vocation and spirituality Violence is what happens when we don’t know what else to do with our suffering – Parker J Palmer Take everything that is bright and beautiful in you and introduce it to...
read moreManaging Monday with St John of the Cross – Take 3
Spanish born St John of the Cross (1542-1591) was a major figure in the Counter Reformation (or Catholic Reformation). A priest, poet, artist and mystic, he worked closely with St Teresa of Avila in reforming the Carmelite Order, for which he was imprisoned in 1577. During this time he suffered great privation (including being beaten three times each week), but gained profound spiritual insights, many of which are recorded in his best know work, the “Dark Night of the Soul.” This is our third and final look at some of the sayings...
read moreManaging Monday with St John of the Cross – take 2
Spanish born St John of the Cross (1542-1591) was a major figure in the Counter Reformation (or Catholic Reformation). A priest, poet, artist and mystic, he worked closely with St Teresa of Avila in reforming the Carmelite Order, for which he was imprisoned in 1577. During this time he suffered great privation (including being beaten three times each week), but gained profound spiritual insights, many of which are recorded in his best know work, the “Dark Night of the Soul.” This is our second look at some of this sayings…...
read morePost Post-Christendom…
For the last few decades churches in the Western world have noted, usually with a sense of lament, that we live in a post-Christendom world – in other words, in a world where Christianity has lost its privileged status and is no longer assumed to be true, moral or the default religion of society. We can no longer presume that the major stories of the Bible are known by the majority, and biblical allusions are usually met with blank incomprehension (“what do you mean when you say she’s a Good Samaritan?”) As to the...
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