Returning to the nation’s foundations. One of the themes of Obama’s inaugural address today was returning to the source, the foundations of the United States as key to directing its future. Obama claims a vision to build a nation on the solid ground of the nation’s foundational truths and ambitions.
He sets the context of his [...]
Archive for the ‘ponderings’ Category
Reading a Nation’s Foundations
Posted in politics, ponderings, tagged foundations, inaugural address, interpretation, obama on January 20, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Speed and Faith
Posted in ponderings on January 13, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
I have been reading a book about “slow” recently, basically the idea is that our lives would be much better all round if we lived a little slower. Ate slower, drove slower, tried to cram less in and so on.
One of the interesting observations is that most religious groups recognise that revelation cannot be hurried, [...]
Christian Life as a worse life?
Posted in ponderings on January 11, 2009 | 2 Comments »
I said a few days ago that being a Christian doesn’t make your life better. It makes it demonstrably worse.
Of course, there is a lot to be defined here. What is being a Christian? What is life? What is meant by better/worse.
This statement is a reaction, a reaction against a type of christianity which, often [...]
The God Who Loves You
Posted in life, ponderings, quotes on January 3, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
The God Who Loves You – Carl Dennis
It must be troubling for the god who loves you
To ponder how much happier you’d be today
Had you been able to glimpse your many futures.
It must be painful for him to watch you on Friday evenings
Driving home from the office, content with your week—
Three fine houses sold to [...]
Doctor Who Christmas Special: Thoughts (1)
Posted in life, ponderings, tagged christmas special, doctor who, self-delusion on December 27, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Did you see the doctor who christmas special? It was vintage stuff, brilliant. Still on iplayer if you missed it.
It offered a powerful suggestion of what we can be if we believe we ought to be it. The central human character acts in an extraordinairy way, with bravery and purpose precisely because they believe this [...]
they do not rightly love God…
Posted in life, ponderings on October 10, 2008 | 5 Comments »
Meister Eckhart wrote
Some people want to see God with their eyes as they see a cow, and to love Him as they love their cow — for the milk and cheese and profit it brings them. This is how it is with people who love God for the sake of outward wealth or inward comfort. [...]
How then shall we blog?
Posted in life, ponderings on August 25, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
tallskinnykiwi’s poem about how we shall blog is well put, and perhaps a good reminder that it might be helpful to blog deliberately – having taken the moment to deliberate, or think about what is being written, and how it will be read.
how shall we then blog?
with smile we publish glad tidings daily
with giggle we [...]
When the minister wishes someone wouldn’t come to church…
Posted in church, emerging churches, ponderings on June 20, 2008 | 4 Comments »
I’ve no great wish that this woman start coming to church. Which maybe sounds dreadful for someone in my position. But it’s true. I don’t.
That wouldn’t, I think, solve anything. In itself, it wouldn’t really meet the needs of her heart at all. It might even get in the way.
But getting a feel for [...]
Sometimes I do things I do not like to do
Posted in life, ponderings on May 28, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
To be honest, most of the time I don’t like swimming, cycling or running.
So says Will Clarke, former under-23 world Triathlon champion. Which makes you wonder just what he is doing with his life, until you read
But I really enjoy the triathlon — which means competing in all three of them — and that’s the [...]
1 in 50 scots…
Posted in Scottish, politics, ponderings on May 15, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
I worked out this afternoon that 1/50 of Scotland’s population was in Manchester yesterday watching Rangers get beaten by Zenit St Petersburg in the Uefa cup final. That’s 100,000 angry rangers supporters.
Do you reckon that caused some sort of noticable blip in the Scottish economy? I mean, let’s say 3 million people in scotland go [...]
