Yesterday I wrote about why we do not need to sing the Psalms. In response, I’ve heard from people about how helpful they personally and their churches have found singing them. It is important not to confuse two things here. It is very different to say “you don’t have to sing them” to saying “you… Continue reading How might the Psalms help us in our walk and worship?
Category: Church life
And breathe – you don’t need to sing The Psalms
One of the big changes with The Reformation was a movement towards congregational singing. Prior to that, the expectation was that the laity sat and observed whilst the clergy performed the mass. So Reformed and Lutheran churches seeking to involve all members in gathered worship began to provide metrical versions of Psalms (with words set… Continue reading And breathe – you don’t need to sing The Psalms
Hymn Wars: What our contemporary worship lacks
There are some internal Christian disagreements that raise their head just when you least expect them to. Worship wars is one of them. There has been a long history of seeing the contemporary music of your era as deficient to tradition and compromised. At the same time, those writing newer hymns and songs have determinedly… Continue reading Hymn Wars: What our contemporary worship lacks
Contemporary worship songs by subject
One of the things many people involved in leading worship miss about having a traditional hymn book is the provision of an index that sorts songs by subject. The benefits of such an index are twofold. First, it enables you to choose songs linked to the specific sermon theme that week, secondly it enables you… Continue reading Contemporary worship songs by subject
Balance is often the enemy of truth
One of the idols we chase is “balance.” It is an established political fact that unless everyone else has headed off to the extremes, elections are normally won from the political centre. Opinion polls show that most voters consider themselves to be in the centre and judge the parties by where they believe they sit… Continue reading Balance is often the enemy of truth
Learning to See – That important detail
On a couple of occasions, I’ve been asked for informal advice about a legal matter. Sometimes it has been to do with employment law, once or twice about family law and often to do with immigration and asylum. Often people start with a lengthy story of every single possible grievance or defence that might have… Continue reading Learning to See – That important detail
Learning to see – the full picture
Going back a month or two, you may remember that when asked, Boris Johnson promised that if necessary, the armed forces would be made available to help with the effort against COVID-19. This led to predictable headlines and tweets about troops on the street and people claiming that the Government was using the pandemic as… Continue reading Learning to see – the full picture
Swallows and Vaccines
Yesterday was a good news day in the battle against COVID-19. The twin announcements of a mass testing trial in Liverpool and the positive results from vaccine trials were signs op hope. However, in the Prime Minister’s statement last night, we were reminded by him and the Deputy Chief Medical Officer that there is still… Continue reading Swallows and Vaccines
Learning to See
Yesterday I paid a visit to Eye casualty. I was picking up a sort of wormy line in my vision. I suspected it was a floater and those are generally harmless but given I have a pre-existing eye condition and cornea grafts I thought it wise to get things checked out. The doctor confirmed all… Continue reading Learning to See
Shall we gather? The case for physical gathering may actually prove the opposite!
Before we go any further, I want to make it clear that I prefer to see local churches physically gather in a specific venue. There are so many reasons as to why I believe this is far better than zoom and Facebook. I long for the day when we can gather without restrictions, singing God’s… Continue reading Shall we gather? The case for physical gathering may actually prove the opposite!
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