tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53630202011-04-22T05:47:18.755+01:00Being a journal of theological reflectionMichaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comBlogger291100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1117035830598560152005-05-25T15:25:00.000+01:002005-05-25T16:43:50.633+01:00

"If anyone wants to be my diciple they must deny themselves, take up their cross, and follow me."Recently I have been undergoing a process of denying the certainty of many of my religious assumptions. However, this has not happened as a result of doubt or disillusion. It has happened as part of my ongoing spiritual practice. The journey to God has led me to the point where I regard concepts of

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1109081308527150292005-02-22T14:08:00.000Z2005-02-22T14:08:28.526Z

American Scientist Online - Richard Dawkins I normally find Dawkins unbearably arrogant, but this was very interesting. I was struck by his comments on the 'tyranny of the discontinuous mind' and ethics. Much of our ethics assumes a special place for human beings, and Dawkins thinks this is related to the way that we seem so obviously different to other animals. But if our evolutionary

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1106901969382070182005-01-28T08:46:00.000Z2005-01-28T08:46:09.383Z

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Turin shroud 'older than thought' There are some other links of of this page that are interesting. Some interesting points from these are the weave on the shroud itself which matches a weave used at Masada in Palestine from the 1st century, and the presence of a combination of pollen grains that could only come from the region around Jerusalem. If it could be shown

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1105702109775056982005-01-11T08:30:00.000Z2005-01-28T10:36:23.496Z

On the night of Jan 10th 2005 I was lying in bed awake as I often do. It is normal for me to wake up a lot during the night, and sometimes I am then awake for several hours. On this occasion I suddenly heard this sound in my left ear; I don't mean that the sound was to my left, but the sound was experienced as being localized in my left ear. The sound was like that of a radio tuner looking for a

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1103886142843688852004-12-24T10:42:00.000Z2004-12-24T11:02:22.843Z

My Christmas musings, while sitting in contemplation. My experience of God has become truly trinitarian, so that the trinity is not an obscure and difficult to understand doctrine, but a way of being. It is indeed the experience of Jesus that brings this to pass. For in Jesus the Word of God, the image of God, is incarnated in Mary by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit incarnates the image of

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1098458972307777362004-10-22T18:00:00.000+01:002004-10-22T16:29:32.306+01:00

I have read several accounts in which one of the things that gurus do is give energy to others. This energy has various effects, but they all seem to be connected with awakening the spiritual senses. It is this aspect of guruhood that made me think of Jesus, rather than the aspect of a teacher of enlightenment. Jesus Christ is heralded in the gospels as the one who will baptise with the Holy

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1092670085472914412004-08-16T14:29:00.000+01:002004-08-16T16:28:05.473+01:00

I do not often set aside 'prayer time'. I tend to pray on the hoof, while walking from A to B. I find this unsatisfactory on the whole, it is much better to be able to devote time to prayer for then I can be focused and I feel that I am in God's presence. This lunchtime I found a quite place with the intention of spending a few minutes in prayer. There were no chairs so I had to kneel on the

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1089116495425591902004-07-06T12:58:00.000+01:002004-07-13T11:26:43.083+01:00

The model of sacrifice seems essential to Paul's theology. In order to understand the model it is important to recognise that the current evangelical concept of sacrifice, at least as I have encountered it, is determined by evangelical atonement theory. The doctrine of penal substitution says that Jesus' death is a substitution for our own death, the penalty for our sins. This feeds back into

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1070472745526741782004-03-30T08:37:00.000+01:002004-03-30T08:40:26.170+01:00

According to Jonathan Magonet (A Rabbi's Bible, 1991 London: SCM Press) the use of the term 'knowledge of good and evil' elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible indicates that which a child lacks, or more general wide-ranging knowledge (good and evil being opposite poles). Magonet seems to interpret it as being knowledge of the possibilities open to us. Possession of such knowledge thereby involves a

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1075365705820767112004-01-29T08:41:00.000Z2004-01-29T08:43:20.296Z

KRT Wire | 01/26/2004 | Dual minds may duel to determine behavior Interesting article about people having two minds. System 1 is the older animal mind, instinctive biological responses arising from physical needs (such as hunger, thirst, danger) and learnt responses (such as not touching hot pans). System 2 is the reflective mind that can consider possible future actions and outcomes, holding

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1074675829417820872004-01-21T09:03:00.000Z2004-01-21T09:05:16.293Z

Russian mathematicians work out that the famous miracle could have been caused by freak conditions

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1073669189191794232004-01-09T17:26:00.000Z2004-01-09T17:27:44.263Z

Isaiah of Jerusalem, Micah, Hosea and Amos.

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1073637064055205182004-01-09T08:31:00.000Z2004-01-09T08:32:18.686Z

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Richer, stouter, and no happier Consumption is an end in itself, and more of the world's people now enjoy the consumption lifestyle once the preserve of the rich. But it has not led to happiness, but debt, obesity and environmental impoverishment.

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1060358249664706782003-08-08T16:57:00.000+01:002003-08-18T17:29:28.546+01:00

www.brethrenonline.org/faqs/Brethren.htm Shawn Abigail October 2001 Last accessed by myself on 8 August 2003 To What Should We Be Loyal? MacDonald, William Kansas City: Walterick Publishers users.bigpond.net.au/joeflorence/loyal.html Argues that Christians should not be loyal to a specific church or denomination, but be loyal to Scripture alone. He applies this as much to Brethren assemblies as

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1059669163529886442003-07-31T17:32:00.000+01:002003-08-08T12:27:27.120+01:00

Christian Theology: An Introduction McGrath, Alister E. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers Ltd. 2nd edition, 1997 The Word of God (p199-200) The phrase 'Word of God' has three meanings: 1. Primarily in the NT it refers to Jesus Christ, as the incarnate Word of God. 2. It refers to the gospel of Jesus Christ that is proclaimed by the church. 3. It refers to the whole of Scripture. Karl Barth in

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1058964341710573362003-07-23T13:45:00.000+01:002003-08-08T12:28:15.910+01:00

In my studies of church and sacrament, one of the things I have noted is the rejection by some Protestant churches of the idea that God works through material elements, at least in regard to the sacraments. This seems to go back to the Swiss radical reformer Zwingli, and has been influenced by Enlightenment rationalism. The result is that in some churches, such as the Brethren church I was a

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1058458596566257692003-07-17T17:16:00.000+01:002003-08-08T12:29:40.436+01:00

Worship in Transition: The Twentieth Century Liturgical Movement Fenwick, John. Spinks, Bryan Edinburgh: T & T Clark Ltd 1995 Characteristics of the Liturgical Movement 1. The struggle for community. Protest against individualism in society and church. 2. Participation. The decentralisation of worship from an activity of the clergy to something involving the whole church. 3. A rediscovery

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1058357850354759822003-07-16T13:17:00.000+01:002003-08-08T12:30:28.803+01:00

Interesting article from the Biblical Archaeology Review about Literacy in the Time of Jesus. It seems the evidence now favours the view that reading and writing were widely practised among common people in 1st century Palestine. This means that it is entirely possible that many of Jesus' words that we now have in the gospels could have been recorded at the time by those who heard them. This

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1057957965032774452003-07-11T22:12:00.000+01:002003-08-08T12:32:29.010+01:00

Jesus and the Victory of God Wright, N.T. London. SPCK 1996 Jesus believed that to be the Messiah is to be the focal point (the fulfillment) of Israel. He would fight and defeat the real enemy: Satan, not the Roman occupiers. He would bring about the real end of the Exile that Israel had experienced for hundreds of years, the renewal of the covenant, the forgiveness of sins. He was to

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1057925070517264412003-07-11T13:04:00.000+01:002003-08-08T12:33:30.003+01:00

Groundwork of Christian Worship White, Susan J. Peterborough: Epworth Press 1997 Worship as an aspect of theology (p2-16) 1. Worship as service to God. We offer to God what we have already received from God, namely our lives, though the sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving. 2. Worship as a mirror of heaven. Our worship reflects and participates in the worship of the saints and angels in

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1056544985460578482003-06-25T13:43:00.000+01:002003-08-08T12:34:24.780+01:00

Christian Theology: An Introduction McGrath, Alister E. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers Ltd. 2nd edition, 1997 The Doctrine of the Church (p461-493) Early Developments of Ecclesiology During the first five centuries there was a wide consenus on the following elements: 1. The church is a spiritual society, replacing Israel as the people of God. 2. Christians are made one in Christ irrespective of

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1056472178636098792003-06-24T17:29:00.000+01:002003-08-08T12:35:17.630+01:00

'The Gospel Made Visible': Toward Renewing Sacramental Worship in the Congregational Tradition. Peay, Steven A. International Congregational Journal Feb2001 Issue 1, p87-98, 12p Congregational understanding of Eucharist derives especially from thought of Calvin: God's offering of the New Covenant in Jesus is by Word and Sacrament, the latter serving to seal and make vivid the promises of the

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1056040425610993182003-06-19T17:33:00.000+01:002003-08-08T12:35:54.090+01:00

Ecclesiological and Ecumenical Implications of Baptism Kasper, Walter Ecumenical Review Oct2000, Vol. 52 Issue 4, p526-541, 16p Despite the considerable consensus achieved by the Lima declaration Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry (1982), there are still many unresolved questions, such that all churches still do not recognise each others baptism. (p526) The greatest differences are between the '

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1054569676712677402003-06-02T17:01:00.000+01:002003-06-02T17:01:16.720+01:00

Reflections on Anglo-Catholic church ministry After being part of an evangelical church in the loose Brethren tradition I started attending an Anglo-Catholic church. I did this because I found that in the sacramental worship I felt that I was coming into God's presence more than in the singing and preaching of my former church. The focal point of the main Sunday service is the eucharist, and

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1054226059728279572003-05-29T17:34:00.000+01:002003-05-29T17:34:19.720+01:00

Last night I received a sense of being part of the body of Christ. I don't know why. Jo had gone to bed early and I was lying next to her, just looking at her, when I had a distinct but not overpowering feeling. The feeling has carried over into today. It has two main features. The first feature is the awareness of being 'a member' of the body, and hence an awareness of the rest of the body.

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1053002701656703612003-05-15T13:45:00.000+01:002003-05-19T13:54:47.276+01:00

Church and State The notion of secular government is historically recent. There may be exceptions, but most societies have always had strong ties between the governing and religious authorities, even to the point of the two being combined. The writers of the US Constitution set out to prevent this in the First Amendment: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1052497635199225402003-05-09T17:27:00.000+01:002003-05-09T17:27:15.160+01:00

Theology Uncertainty Principle What becomes increasingly evident to me as I study theology is that so many of the things that I thought I knew about God turn out to be somewhat imperfect images, metaphors and models. They point towards God, they say something about what God is like, but ultimately they cannot describe God truly. Not only that, but some models that we find useful are sometimes

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1052324458121209382003-05-07T17:20:00.000+01:002003-06-02T16:39:50.470+01:00

Reflection on evangelical church ministry, in the Brethren tradition For 8 years, between 1990 and 1999, I was a member of an 'evangelical' church. The church's roots lay in the Brethren movement but when I joined it had already begun to move away from strict Brethren practice, and this movement continued during my time as a member. The church had good contact with the other evangelical

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5363020.post-1052217090891695472003-05-06T11:31:00.000+01:002003-05-06T11:33:24.303+01:00

Theology Corner - God on the brain Finally got around to watching God on the brain the other night. Quite interesting. The way the program put it, religious experience is hardwired in the human brain. When people have religious experience, certain things happen in the brain. Conversly, those certain things happening in the brain can also trigger religious experiences, especially for epileptics.

Michaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01678659105993082708noreply@blogger.com