Pentecost Sunday

Pentecost Sunday

This Sunday (28th May) is the seventh Sunday after Easter – yes, the year is flying by, but more importantly, it means it is Pentecost Sunday and an opportunity to remember, celebrate, re-immerse ourselves in the story of the giving of the Spirit at Pentecost as told...
The End of the World is Nigh

The End of the World is Nigh

The end of the world is nigh, and it’s not just the men with clapper boards on high streets that are saying so.  Martin Rees, the Astronomer Royal, gave humanity a 50/50 chance of surviving the 21st century in his aptly entitled book “Our Final Century”. Meanwhile,...
The End of the World is Nigh

The Challenge of Endurance

What image does the word ‘endurance’ conjure up for you? ‘Endurance’ was the name of the ship that took Ernest Shackleton and his crew to Antarctica. The ship, however, got stuck in the ice. Sealed in and unable to move, the ship sank on 21 November 1915. It was...
The End of the World is Nigh

The Crisis of Powerlessness

Poverty is perceived as a great evil in the world which Christians and people of goodwill must respond to. Certainly, the material deprivation that is the tragic feature of so much of our world, signals our lack of compassion for fellow humans, the paltry reach of...
The End of the World is Nigh

Kingdom-omics

“It’s the economy, stupid.” This was the message that it is claimed, won Bill Clinton the 1992 US presidential election. The phrase was intended to keep the campaign focused on the cost of living crisis faced by American working people. The point, apparently, was not...
Are we there yet?

Are we there yet?

When our kids were young, we would sometimes play a Veggie Tales sing-a-long CD when on a long car trip. One particular tune would stick in my head as an earworm. You can listen to it here if you so wish: VeggieTales Sing-Alongs: Are We There Yet? The chorus goes: Are...
The End of the World is Nigh

Crux probat omnia!

I have on dozens of occasions crossed over the Atlantic Ocean without either flying or sailing! Some of you may have taken the same route over the Atlantic as me, as you leave mainland Scotland and cycle, walk, or drive across the humpback Clachan bridge onto the...
The End of the World is Nigh

Happy New Year?

Yes, you have read the title of this blog right and yes, the question mark is playing a very important role in this title! This Monday, 21st March, is نوروز , Nowruz, the Persian new year, when our brothers and sisters from Iran traditionally say goodbye to winter and...
The End of the World is Nigh

Grace or grudge – you choose.

Payback culture, it’s the way the world works. You scratch my back and I scratch yours. You hurt me and I expect compensation. You let me down and I demand you make it up to me. It’s the law of Karma where our misdemeanours must be atoned for by our good deeds lest we...
The End of the World is Nigh

Faithful

Is God faithful? A few weeks back, via some glitch with our song presentation software we found ourselves singing, “Is God faithful?”   The answer is, of course, a resounding “yes, God is faithful” as a multitude of songs proclaim. Yet the question mark chimes with...