Not such a silent night…
Back in the 1990’s I was part of a tour which started in Egypt and finished in Israel. Naturally a visit to the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem was part of the agenda. I had high hopes for the time, and imagined myself bowing the knee at the Grotto Cave where it is thought Jesus was born. Like the Wise Men of old, my pilgrimage was to worship the One whose coming reshaped all of human history, and all of my own history. The start of the visit was unpromising. Our tourist busload was one of far too many. I am sure the size of the crowd broke every OHS regulation and indeed, so many...
Read MoreChristmas: From “for us” to “with us”…
Probably like you, I am struggling to believe that Christmas is almost upon us – but facts are facts, and December is galloping away. I have done some Christmas shopping and the family are soon due to see the Christmas lights – so it is definitely that time of the year. As I have been thinking about the significance of Christmas (and Christmas seems especially poignant after this COVID filled year) I have been struck by my favourite name for Jesus, Emmanuel – which means, God is with us. One simple thought has jumped out at me: Until that first Christmas people had a...
Read MoreThe Way, the Truth and the Life: with Jon Bergmann
One of the many things I love about my post as principal of Vose Seminary, is that I get to work with some amazing and creative thinkers. No matter whose office I walk into at the seminary, my entry causes the average IQ in the room to drop about 10 points! More recently we’ve been trying to share that giftedness more widely, and have created a section on the seminary’s website called, “theologians at lunch” – it’s meant to capture some of the feel of many of our lunchtime conversations. In the lead up to Christmas, each day we’ve been considering a...
Read MoreQuotable – For Christmas
With the Christmas season upon us, I thought I’d look at some Christmas quotes from notable figures. A thousand times in history a baby has become a king, but only once in history did a King become a baby. Anon Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before! What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas…perhaps…means a little bit more! Dr Seuss, How the Grinch Stole Christmas How many observe Christ’s birthday! How few, His precepts. Benjamin Franklin Gifts of time and love are surely the basic ingredients of a truly...
Read MoreAnd in the Chaos, God…
With Christmas around the corner, I thought I would reproduce one of the Christmas meditations from my book Could this be God: Bumping Into God in the Everyday. It’s called: And in the Chaos, God… Did you get your fair share of nativity plays this Christmas season? I certainly enjoyed watching a host of little children wend their way through improbable presentations of pregnant Marys, dazzling angels, lofty wise men and the rest of the Christmas crew. It was the unscripted moments that produced the greatest mirth—the accusatory cry of a four year old, ‘That’s not Jesus. That’s...
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