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WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING?
CHURCH
Two funerals – my first West Indian one, a long service in church (once we got the main doors unlocked!) followed by leading half a dozen hymns while family members backfilled the grave. A good occasion. Three weeks later I took the funeral of Ruth whom I had known fifty years before at St Jude’s Earls Court. Ruth was single, a faithful Christian, often depressed, and loved cats. She sent out home-made Christmas cards with a short poem each year. She also produced a short book of her poems which were remarkable for their honesty, faith and wit. I used eight of them in my address. Here is one: Thank you for the one tiny flower
Growing on the rubbish dump
Thank you that
In every bleak situation
There is light.
I took both services at St James and St Clements on two Sundays -and found a nearby Pret for essential coffee between services.
FESTIVALS
Two Festivals this month, both enjoying lovely sunny weather. New Wine from 4th for five days, where I camped in a smallish tent, and Greenbelt with Linda over the August Bank Holiday. It is always refreshing to get out and meet different people and hear different ideas. Outstanding memories for me at New Wine were a talk on helping refugees in the Middle East and visiting Peterborough to see the 12th century Cathedral and an excellent Christian bookshop. At Greenbelt Linda and I spent as much time as possible in the shade. We were impressed by Russell Brand – surprisingly Christian. And he was impressed by us. He got caught in a traffic jam on the M1 and so was half an hour late. As he came on site he could hear the waiting crowd singing hymns, a new experience for him. The last event we witnessed was a marvellous comedy duo called Prophet Sharing – an orthodox Jew and a Muslim. They were very funny. It was all right because they both supported Liverpool.
WRITING
Sadly, not much writing. I did a good talk on the Psalms at St Cuthbert’s repeated two days later in prison. The blog I intend to use it as an additional chapter in “Discovering Psalms as Prayer”. I aim to revise shortly, putting together a better prayer section at the end.
I went to two exhibitions on AI (Artificial Intelligence) at the Science Museum and the Barbican, and heard two excellent talks on it at New Wine. This all got me writing the section on AI for my book “Does the Church Have a Future?” But I am still only at the start of religion section of the book.
POSTS & TWEETS
I sent out numerous posts and tweets, roughly five a week. These covered:
Secret London: the V&A Museum, Sloane Sq, St James St where Churchill bought his cigars, and West End statues
Charities like Toilet Twinning and ZANE which helps the desperately impoverished in Zimbabwe.
Cheap and Cheerful food like gluten free pasta and easy steak and kidney pie
Entertainment including Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood” ad the Proms.
Amazing thinkers like the Dalai Lama and St Augustine
I aim to post at 5pm, 6pm or 7pm Which do you think is best? Drop me an email.
FILMS and MUSIC
We saw a couple of pleasant films but nothing outstanding. I went to see Tarantino’s latest and was disappointed. Very long and boring. Only the end was great with its fairy tale violence. The film I do keep thinking about is last month’s German film, ‘Never Look Away’/‘Werk ohne Autor’
However, the Proms have make up for it. I was at Mendelssohn’s Piano Concerto played on Queen Victoria’s 1856 piano. A revelation! The sound was quite dry with no resonant bass notes, so much more delicate. The soloist played a Chopin Nocturne which I try to play – again lovely and delicate, not romantic and swooney. It is how Chopin would have expected to hear it. Then two late night Proms. Four J S Bach cantatas for St Michael and All Angels sung by Solomon’s Knot – amazing early music group where the singers sang entirely from memory and it felt as if they were really singing to each of us personally. Then on 29th I heard a selection of Duke Ellington’s sacred music – a truly wonderful evening of jazz and gospel, ending at midnight.
WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN?
Here are some dates for your diaries. All the meetings start at 7 pm. If you have any queries, do drop me an email.
Monday 9/9 St Cuthbert’s Talk on: the Old Testament – History or Myth?
Wednesday 25/9 7.00 Informal talk and discussion about the planned trip to Israel/ Palestine in March. At the Bolton’s pub, Earls Court Road. Anyone interested in that part fo the world is welcome, whether or not you can go on the trip, and irrespective of your religious lean ings. It will be in the upstairs room at the Bolton pub, Earls Court. There will be Palestinian snacks and a cash bar. Everyone welcome!
Monday 11/11 ‘The Book of Job’ performed by the Earls Courtiers with organ music for the interludes. Also I will launch the revised edition of my ‘Job’, to include a version which can be used in Bible study groups.
TRIP TO ISRAEL 16th – 27th March 2020
A reminder of what the trip to Israel will consist of:
visit the splendid new Museum of the Jewish People in Tel Aviv;
three nights in Nazareth, exploring Galilee and life in a 1st century village;
travel through the West Bank, two nights in Bethlehem and a trip to Masada;
five nights in Jerusalem, a walk from the Mount of Olives to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre plus a day visiting the splendid Israel Museum (archaeology, history, art).
JOIN THE GROUP!
I have just started a discussion group on my Facebook page called “Spiritual Exploring”. I would love it if you signed up for it. it is a closed group, so we can have some serious and safe discussions. Anyone wanting to join from facebook is going to be asked three questions:
Which do you like more, questions or answers?
Is “God” a useful word? Is there an alternative?
On a scale of 0 to 10 how useful do you find church?
My aim is to have a discussion each month on a specific topic. In September it will be, “Has the word “God” passed its sell-by date? Can you suggest alternatives?”
Do log on and tell me what you think.