what a day - triumphs, reignited passion, people laid to rest; all this topped with an amazingly energetic and noisy Kid's Club. How can anyone say this calling thing is anything but varied and fun?
Lord than you for the privilege of being part of someone's funeral - the joy of discovering and communicating who the departed is in such a way that comfort, strength and the hope made real in Jesus, the Christ, is made real for those who mourn. It is sublime!
The blessing of being able to stand with others, not as Christ for them but alongside Christ with them, blessing, caring, sharing and supporting. Goodness me - how much blessing can we get in a day?
The joy of seeing connections made and steps, albeit 'baby steps' at times, is inspiring and privileged in the extreme.
Strengthen my arms that the battle may be won. Help me to contend against that which stands against us. Teach me to walk slower, listen more and be a little less excited - but not too much :-)
Help me to pray for the apparently distracted, for those who appear to think about spreadsheets and bums on pews rather than the Gospel truths. To not be caught up in the silliness of the ivory towered career rather than the kneeling in a stable worship and calling.
Help our bishops to be pastoral, preachers and exemplars, leaving the waiting at tables (and construction of them) to those who reside in the diocesan corridors. MBA or the Jesus way. Which is the one that speaks of calling?
May today's encounters have blessed those I've met and may tomorrow be a day of opportunity taken, right words spoken and Christ made real in all I do.
And for the person who was apologising more than they were an apologist for the calling in them: fill them and inspire them I pray.
Make me a blessing Lord
Showing posts with label apologetic. Show all posts
Showing posts with label apologetic. Show all posts
Saturday, 10 December 2016
Monday, 31 March 2014
No, it's not a 'normal' blog!
Had a most challenging and enjoyable conversation with someone who felt they need to make the point that my blog wasn't a 'normal' Christian blog! My response went along the lines of 'No surprise there then Sherlock!' because it isn't supposed to be, and here's why:
Many of the 'normal' Christian sites I encounter trawl out the same old theological explanations (often it seem lifting them from other places) relating to the same old theological issues. They work hard at looking clever (something I'd never be able to carry off) and and amongst their highly polished (something I'd never claim to have) web presence they produce extremely clever theological thinking - often proving it with proper theological words and quotes from the great and influential theological minds what clever people refer to (I can't event spell SchloerMarker!).
Sadly, what I try to do here is look at issues that collide with me and having survived the impact define some baseline for me, and perhaps others, to begin to dialogue with and establish some sort of understanding of the issue before me (and perhaps us).
I will engage with things theological but, thanks to some excellent training which taught that theologians are accessible or academic, I have decided that I favour the former and so try to appeal to things with less syllables and fewer names of the Germanic variety*!
I will also continue to leave myriad typos as I rush in, scribble and rush out again - it's the curse of the scratchpad nature of the blog (but will try to remedy said typos at some stage to protect the brains of those around me).
I accept that this place will never be one with a myriad of whatever it is that those wonderfully polished site with loads of neat little adverts and clever little gadgets have to make it stand out as 'something to win prizes'**
What you will find here is stuff that I come across, dialogue with, find myself (and others) challenged by as something we can engage in and develop our own apologetic as we do theology in a real and everyday manner.
So that's me and this place and who, what, how and why it is here - please feel free to become a part of it and make it your own in whichever way you can - All are welcome to view my own brand of weirdness and my journey for integrity in my own faith and ministry life.
Pax
*mind you hypocritically, and just a little inconsistently, I will continue to turn to Barth, Moltmann, Bonhoeffer, Hauerwas and many other of my inappropriately germanic styled heroes as I seek to grow my faith and learn.
** A cool comment from someone who stumbled across the site and, applauding some drivel I'd scribbled, made a number of 'design and features' suggestions which, they assured me, would make me 'an award winning' offering. Not the aim (but of course if you'd like to applaud - feel free (and if you'd like to offer suggestions, correctives and dialogue - feel freer still).
Many of the 'normal' Christian sites I encounter trawl out the same old theological explanations (often it seem lifting them from other places) relating to the same old theological issues. They work hard at looking clever (something I'd never be able to carry off) and and amongst their highly polished (something I'd never claim to have) web presence they produce extremely clever theological thinking - often proving it with proper theological words and quotes from the great and influential theological minds what clever people refer to (I can't event spell SchloerMarker!).
Sadly, what I try to do here is look at issues that collide with me and having survived the impact define some baseline for me, and perhaps others, to begin to dialogue with and establish some sort of understanding of the issue before me (and perhaps us).
I will engage with things theological but, thanks to some excellent training which taught that theologians are accessible or academic, I have decided that I favour the former and so try to appeal to things with less syllables and fewer names of the Germanic variety*!
I will also continue to leave myriad typos as I rush in, scribble and rush out again - it's the curse of the scratchpad nature of the blog (but will try to remedy said typos at some stage to protect the brains of those around me).
I accept that this place will never be one with a myriad of whatever it is that those wonderfully polished site with loads of neat little adverts and clever little gadgets have to make it stand out as 'something to win prizes'**
What you will find here is stuff that I come across, dialogue with, find myself (and others) challenged by as something we can engage in and develop our own apologetic as we do theology in a real and everyday manner.
So that's me and this place and who, what, how and why it is here - please feel free to become a part of it and make it your own in whichever way you can - All are welcome to view my own brand of weirdness and my journey for integrity in my own faith and ministry life.
Pax
*mind you hypocritically, and just a little inconsistently, I will continue to turn to Barth, Moltmann, Bonhoeffer, Hauerwas and many other of my inappropriately germanic styled heroes as I seek to grow my faith and learn.
** A cool comment from someone who stumbled across the site and, applauding some drivel I'd scribbled, made a number of 'design and features' suggestions which, they assured me, would make me 'an award winning' offering. Not the aim (but of course if you'd like to applaud - feel free (and if you'd like to offer suggestions, correctives and dialogue - feel freer still).
Thursday, 17 February 2011
Proclamatory, Apologetical Ecumenism
In my book, one of the best ways of doing ecumenism is to be loud and proud about who you are and what you believe. This is not to encourage dogmatism but it might encourage those who have a position to not only be able to spout it but also understand it from a theological/church history standpoint and be able to explain/defend it too! This is what apologetics is all about and ecumenical gatherings is one of the best arenas to engage in it because it requires dialogue.
There are some who think that ecumenism is about having the largest voice and deaf ears.
The problem with this is that those who refuse to challenge, or even ask, lead the shouters to think that this is the best way forward. The 'spiritual, silent ones' are never spiritual and rarely (once they get amongst friends) 'silent'!
A good example here might be the issue of (and I've taken one at random) 'Zionism'. Now, this is apparently an extremely contentious issue. The leader of one church that I know is not only 'anti-zionist', but is also a self-proclaimed 'pro-Palestinian'. Another leader doesn't give a hoot about Israel or Palestine and thinks they all need their heads banged together. Yet another leader thinks that we have to support Israel because it's what the Bible tells us we need to be doing!
The positions continue and eventually the decision is taken that rather than dialogue regarding the politics, study regarding the Biblical or engage with the varying positions and find out more, it is 'safer' to merely agree not to engage lest we fall out or find ourselves at odd with one another. Better to take the path of peaceful disagreement! We do the safe things like an Easter 'walk of witness' and gather to sing a few carol around a tree at Christmas and hope that the world assumes this means we are one!
What a load of tosh! Surely the Biblical solution is that we look at the important stuff, engage with the historical and political stuff, consider the humanitarian stuff, address Biblical issues and bring it all to the table (it might take months or years, but at least we would be engaging and working towards an informed, balanced and biblical consensus) so that even if we don't agree we might understand.
Would that we might stand up for what we believe and come armed with biblical, rational and honest arguments for the positions that we occupy. Would that we would bring our beliefs and opinions and share why we think, act, live and believe as we do.
Is it any wonder that Islam presents such a viable alternative to us when we are such milky, wishy-washy, lacking in faith people?
Study the subject
Think about and understand it
Explain it
Dialogue
And then one day everyone will clap and you'll become:
So come on then people, let's get started on the journey. Take something that defines you, your church, fellowship, denomination and understand what it means so that you can explain it to others as a valid, reasoned and (hopefully) biblical choice.
If you're Anglican then you have paedobaptism and if you're Pentecostal then it's the Anabaptist life for you - can you explain the differences and the reasons why or is it merely what you do?
If you're catholic then understand that you don't pray TO Mary (and if you do, you are wrong!) but can you explain where she fits in and what the snake is doing under her foot in the statues?
If you're pro-Palestinian, can you explain what you do with all the prophesies about Israel when you stand against that nation and vilify it?
If you're not pro-life then how do you reason with that one, what's the journey that took you there . . . and of course there's more besides (yep, there's even deep theology!!!). It's called apologetics
Pax
There are some who think that ecumenism is about having the largest voice and deaf ears.
The problem with this is that those who refuse to challenge, or even ask, lead the shouters to think that this is the best way forward. The 'spiritual, silent ones' are never spiritual and rarely (once they get amongst friends) 'silent'!
A good example here might be the issue of (and I've taken one at random) 'Zionism'. Now, this is apparently an extremely contentious issue. The leader of one church that I know is not only 'anti-zionist', but is also a self-proclaimed 'pro-Palestinian'. Another leader doesn't give a hoot about Israel or Palestine and thinks they all need their heads banged together. Yet another leader thinks that we have to support Israel because it's what the Bible tells us we need to be doing!
The positions continue and eventually the decision is taken that rather than dialogue regarding the politics, study regarding the Biblical or engage with the varying positions and find out more, it is 'safer' to merely agree not to engage lest we fall out or find ourselves at odd with one another. Better to take the path of peaceful disagreement! We do the safe things like an Easter 'walk of witness' and gather to sing a few carol around a tree at Christmas and hope that the world assumes this means we are one!
What a load of tosh! Surely the Biblical solution is that we look at the important stuff, engage with the historical and political stuff, consider the humanitarian stuff, address Biblical issues and bring it all to the table (it might take months or years, but at least we would be engaging and working towards an informed, balanced and biblical consensus) so that even if we don't agree we might understand.
Would that we might stand up for what we believe and come armed with biblical, rational and honest arguments for the positions that we occupy. Would that we would bring our beliefs and opinions and share why we think, act, live and believe as we do.
Is it any wonder that Islam presents such a viable alternative to us when we are such milky, wishy-washy, lacking in faith people?
And then one day everyone will clap and you'll become:
So come on then people, let's get started on the journey. Take something that defines you, your church, fellowship, denomination and understand what it means so that you can explain it to others as a valid, reasoned and (hopefully) biblical choice.
If you're Anglican then you have paedobaptism and if you're Pentecostal then it's the Anabaptist life for you - can you explain the differences and the reasons why or is it merely what you do?
If you're catholic then understand that you don't pray TO Mary (and if you do, you are wrong!) but can you explain where she fits in and what the snake is doing under her foot in the statues?
If you're pro-Palestinian, can you explain what you do with all the prophesies about Israel when you stand against that nation and vilify it?
If you're not pro-life then how do you reason with that one, what's the journey that took you there . . . and of course there's more besides (yep, there's even deep theology!!!). It's called apologetics
Pax
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)