Rev elations

Worry, Jesus quite rightly identifies is toxic and ineffective – worrying does not lengthen life, indeed it may actually shorten it, it certainly limits it. But, worry we might say is endemic in contemporary society, it comes under various names like anxiety or stress, but its pervasive atmosphere in one of the wealthiest nations in the world suggests that the accumulation of wealth does not bring an end to worry. But to tell us not to worry, surely that is the craziest of teachings. Who can live a life without worry? How does Jesus explain such a commandment? To worry that our basic needs won’t be met, Jesus argues, is to doubt the essential blessedness and goodness of the creation. It’s not that Jesus asks us to live a life of blind faith, but to recognise that God has created a world in which even the lilies of the field are clothed in splendour. In linking his argument about trusting in God to the created world, Jesus is explicitly referring us to the role of God as Cr...

We all know the story of the wooden boy who longs to be a real boy, but who has to learn to be good in order to achieve his dream. The story of Pinocchio. If you were Pinocchio, would you be one that longed to become a boy or would you rather counsel acceptance of one’s reality? One position might be summarised as ‘I am a wooden toy, accept it and enjoy my lot’ and the other ‘I am a wooden toy, I want to be a boy’. It might be that the first position is the wiser one. What sort of existence would it encourage?  The second position may only lead to disappointment. What sort of existence would it encourage? The contrasting Biblical texts that we read today (see below) present two very different understandings of what it means to be human in relation to God. They encourage us to reflect on our own expectations concerning the nature of human or ‘created’ existence. They ask us to consider what the end of human life is- The first Biblical text, from Ecclesiastes, presen...

See my video Christmas message here:  http://www.rugbyadvertiser.co.uk/news/local-news/video-christmas-message-from-rugby-rector-1-5767570 This Christmas message comes to you from St Andrew’s Church where I am surrounded by Christmas trees. Some of you may have been in the church to take part in the Christmas tree festival this year. I wonder which Christmas tree you voted for? There are so many wonderful Christmas traditions, including decorating trees, from carol singing and crib services, to Christmas food such as turkey, mince pies and Christmas cake, the giving and receiving of presents. Which traditions do you enjoy the most? These traditions are very comforting aren't they? And whether you are with family, on your own today, or at work, nearly everyone in our nation will be celebrating in a similar way. We are all united in this Christian festival. But, behind these comforting traditions and rituals there is a deeper mystery for us to take part in, if we stop...

We can never know where God will take us in our lives and this season of Advent as we have been adjusting to living in Rugby , I have been reflecting upon the nature of the Christian journey. Within our Christian journey we all experience both familiarity and difference. New places make us aware of how particular and individual life and experience is; they make us aware of what we have grown familiar with. At the same time they confront us with the transitory nature of all our experience and with the limits of our experience so far. Life’s journey at points can be very testing: experiences of loss or of illness both mental and physical can bring us to points of crisis. We may have limited ability to relate to others, we may lose any real sense of personal identity. At these times we rely on others to be our stability and memory and most importantly of all we rely on the church to tell the story of God’s continuing presence with us. The church has a duty to be that which, whether i...

WATCHFUL WAITING AND NOT KNOWING Advent is a peculiar season of the year but one with profound insights about the nature of human existence. Its themes of ‘watchful waiting’ and of ‘not knowing’ for me are particularly resonant and I hope meditating on these themes might be helpful for you too. Advent is a season that enables us to remember what has already happened (Jesus’ birth) and to look forward to what we believe will happen (the last days, Jesus’ return). In so doing it is a season of the year which has an element of great familiarity and comfort to it, here we are again, it’s December and we’re getting ready for Christmas. That build up to Christmas couldn’t be more nostalgic and comforting. We know the Christmas rituals so well.   Yet at the same time it is a season that helps us to see some of the huge gaps in our knowledge – it asks us to think about the themes of Christian judgment, end times, eternal life, heaven and hell, areas of Christian life...

My kids love baking –they especially love doing the mixing; they want to be involved, be active and play their part. They want to hold the wooden spoon, mix in the flour and butter, and they do it with enthusiasm and relish; they and we get very messy in the process, but the results are usually pretty good. Stir-up Sunday reminds us to literally start baking for Christmas. It’s a heart-warming tradition - think of all the people preparing their Christmas cakes weeks in advance to allow lots of permeation of the fruit with alcohol! Preparing for Christmas we think not only about getting celebration food ready but we are also reminded that God wants to continually stir up our hearts and wills. God wants to move us, he wants to impact upon us, he wants ultimately to change us. And it is part of our duty as Christians to keep enabling that stirring up of ourselves. Of course stirring up is not a neutral thing. Someone who is a stirrer is thought of as being a trouble maker. An...

It has been just over three weeks now since we have arrived in Rugby and it feels like a world away from South London. If I was used to being in what is generally thought of and written about as a post-Christian secular world then Rugby looks and feels very different. There are a proliferation of churches across Rugby which are very active in working together for the good of the town. There seems to be a genuine Spirit of God's love working across Rugby in impressive ways that I'm not sure what century I am in! It is surprising to find a town that works so hard in regenerating and reinvigorating all that it is and it feels like an enormous privilege to be here.  Not that South London was any kind of spiritual desert! It was also a great privilege to work there and see how God can still be so central to people's lives in the 21st century. If the image we get from the newspapers and national media is that God is redundant in the modern age it seems that the reality is very ...