Do you remember the film, “Braveheart”? There’s a scene in the film where the Scottish army are frightened by the English and suspicious of their own generals. They are about to desert. William Wallace rallies them with a stirring speech. He finishes with those now famous lines “They may take way our lives but they… Continue reading Free (Simeon’s Song – Luke 2:29-31)
Tag: death
What are we afraid of?
Throughout COVID I’ve seen a particular line of argument from some of my fellow Christians to the effect that the response to the pandemic marks out a society that is afraid of death. Apart from the feeling that this comes combined with suspicion of interventions to mitigate against the virus and a little bit of… Continue reading What are we afraid of?
Why we should care about protecting each other from COVID
We probably are not quite out of the woods yet with the COVID-19 pandemic. The encouraging news is that we have fully vaccinated over 50% of the adult population and over 75% have received at least one dose. However, there are other pressures that are not such good news. First of all, the “Delta” (Indian)… Continue reading Why we should care about protecting each other from COVID
Fall and Judgement
Failure and Rebellion In Genesis 1 and 2 God had been the primary actor and it was his voice that was heard consistently. God spoke in order to bring things into being and events to pass. Towards the end of Genesis 2, man is drawn more towards the centre of the stage so that he… Continue reading Fall and Judgement
Don’t be presumptuous about the future
Do you know what today is the anniversary of? It’s probably not a biggy in most people’s calendars but today marks the anniversary of John Major’s return to Downing Street having narrowly won the 1992 General Election contested on the 9th April. It was an election he was expected to lose and even up until… Continue reading Don’t be presumptuous about the future
We need to talk about death
I’ve lost four friends during the past year. As it happens only 1 of those deaths was recorded as COVID related. However, the presence of the pandemic has made us more alert to death. There is something grim about the arrangements of funerals with the restrictions on who can attend and the required social distancing… Continue reading We need to talk about death
The Curse
Covenant History blessed in God’s presence, cursed by exile from it To understand the Covenant ceremony, we need to go back to Genesis 1-3. God creates a good world and also plants a beautiful and secure garden for the first humans, Adam and Eve, to live in. Adam is commissioned to tend to the garden… Continue reading The Curse
Love Conquers Fear (13) Eternal Life
1 John 5:6-12 – what is it that we truly fear?
Death, sympathy and Distinguishing – Is Donald Trump equivalent to Bin Laden?
Have a watch of this video clip. I wonder if you can spot the mistakes that Ash Sarker makes in her response. Sarkar’s argument is that she sympathises with those who have been celebrating Donald Trump’s illness and wishing for his death for three reasons. That we use black humour to cope with tragic situations… Continue reading Death, sympathy and Distinguishing – Is Donald Trump equivalent to Bin Laden?
On wishing politicians dead
On wishing someone else dead “We should rejoice that this dictator is dead” said the preacher, to audible gasps from the congregation. “My daughter prayed that he would die at our family prayer time yesterday, and it has happened.” He then went on to explain his reasoning. The dictator could either die to himself and… Continue reading On wishing politicians dead
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