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WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING?
JAPAN
Linda gave Peter and me a present at Christmas – a holiday in Japan! We had a fantastic holiday from 2nd to 16th October, including two 17-hour flights. We stayed in Tokyo (4 nights), Kanazawa including a night in a 1,250 year old ‘Ryokan’ – traditionalJapanese inn with hot springs; five nights in Kyoto; visit to Hiroshima – the Peace Park is beautiful but very sobering – and two nights on the beautiful nearby Mayajima Island. Linda had learned quite a bit of Japanese, including two of the three alphabet systems – very useful. Everyone was so friendly and helpful, though with limited English. I loved the mix of old and new in Tokyo, with little temples and shrines all over; we saw so many gorgeous Japanese gardens. We would love to go back.
One feature of Japan is the inseparable mix of Shinto and Buddhist religion. The shrines and temples with their red archways (“torii” =gates) managed to be both spectacular and serene. But they often verged on superstition, e.g. “The demons called the god of well-being of the family and the business prosperity are targeted in the prayer” (from a notice board on Mt Misen, Miyajama Island). Very curious.
JOB
A key task this month has been preparing for the upcoming performance of Job. That included proof reading the second edition of “Job” ready for printing. I was sent a proof copy. It was amazing how many little corrections I needed to make! It is much easy to spot things when they are in the final printed form.
On 25th I visited the William Blake exhibition at Tate Britain. Interesting, but not a must-see. In my opinion the best things he did were the engravings for the book of Job. It is possible that Tate Britain bookshop might stock my book, but I have yet to find out.
BOOK PROPOSAL
At the end of September I had an excellent meeting with Helen Lewis re publicity and publishing. She is interested in promoting my next book to traditional publishers but she needs me to write a comprehensive book proposal – as much work as writing part of the book! One has to cover different topics like Overview, Target audience, Author background, Competitive titles, Marketing, and Chapter outline. I began drafting the first topics in the middle of the night during a 4 hour transfer wait at Dubai on the journey home from Japan, and did some more late one night at our local hotel over a pint of Guinness. For the Competitive titles section I am now reading several books which cover similar territory to what my book. So I am reading now, not just writing!
In Japan I asked my stepson Peter his opinion of possible titles for the book. I had just thought of a snappy one word title: “Incredible? The church in the post-modern world” He was very negative about it, said it sounded like one of those Christian leaflets that get handed out. I put my original title, “Does the Church have Future? Being credible in the post- modern world”, which he instantly pronounced as much better.
What do you think? Any ideas for alternatives?
FILMS
It has been a short month for films, but Linda and I have seen two:
“Non-Fiction” (in French ‘Doubles Vies) is a typical French arty film, with lots of smart conversation and questionable morals. But ti does have Juliette Binoche. My interest was that it was all bout the world of modern publishing and the challenge of digital media. One message was clear: audio books are the way to go. Maybe I need to think about that!
I have no reservations about “Official Secrets” the true story of the GCHQ whistle blower who leaked an email before the Iraq war. Keira Knightly is excellent, the story is full of twists and turns, including the disaster fo using spell-check, and the ending is absolutely jaw-dropping. Do see it!
POSTS & TWEETS
The background to many of my posts this month has been my reading in Proverbs. My posts included: Japan, Wisdom from Egypt, Bloomsbury architecture, Food banks, Blake and Job; Official Secrets, St Jude and cheese sauce! Check them out on facebook/revandybooks:
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 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.
Monday 9/12 Making Sense of the Bible – the book of Revelation.
TRIP TO ISRAEL 16th – 27th March 2020
A reminder of what the trip to Israel will consist of:
visit the 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 am starting a discussion group on my Facebook page called “Spiritual Exploring”. I would love it if you signed up for it. You can log in on the landing page of my website biblenbrief.org. In November I’d like to think about “Words of Wisdom”. Can there be wisdom with out faith? If so, what is the point of faith? etc.