The Christmas New Year hiatus, in the life of the congregation here, seems to last about three weeks. For me, this used to be vacation time, along with most of the rest of Australia. Some time ago, I decided this wasn’t the best idea. Recessed programs could have one sitting back and twiddling one’s thumbsContinue reading “Work is cranking up again!”
Category Archives: Personal
Praying for Tunisia
Churches around the world who participate in the Ecumenical Prayer Cycle will focus this coming week on the North African nations of Algeria, Libya, Morocco, the Western Sahara and Tunisia. Tunisia is very much in the news right now; rioting as the result of widespread dissent has led to the sacking of the government andContinue reading “Praying for Tunisia”
Responding to Natural Disasters
After checking on family and friends in the Queensland danger zones, I now turn to a question that has arisen in several forums over the last day or two – “but this is what underdeveloped countries are facing constantly, and they don’t have the infrastructures in place to respond as we do.” On this day,Continue reading “Responding to Natural Disasters”
Fire & Flood
While Perth endures a highly- fueled bush fire season, Australia’s other natural nemesis is making it’s presence known in Carnarvon and even more devastatingly in the eastern states. Incoming news reports speak of the unfolding drama affecting thousands of people in south-western Queensland, the well populated areas from Toowoomba to Brisbane and the Gold Coast. Even though theContinue reading “Fire & Flood”
What happens when we pray for others?
If you have moved beyond the idea of prayer as some sort of cosmic slot machine – where you put in a request and hope that a combination of piety, good will and divine mood will line up and discharge a favourable response – then what do you expect happens when you pray – particularlyContinue reading “What happens when we pray for others?”
Cultivating Mindfulness
Every so often a word grabs attention because it seems alien to everyday speech, yet begins to appear prolifically. It begs investigation. Yesterday “mindfulness” appeared frequently in a Virtues Project workshop hosted at our church. Later in the evening, I received an unrelated invitation to complete the final phase of a survey being conducted byContinue reading “Cultivating Mindfulness”
‘No grey areas’ in stance on whaling, says minister | The Australian
Politics is always going to see the tension between environmental striving and so-called economic necessity. This is a given. But why try and hide it? When all comes to light, as it inevitably will, our lead negotiators are revealed as disingenuous, saying one thing (a lie) for public consumption while sealing compromise behind closed doors.Continue reading “‘No grey areas’ in stance on whaling, says minister | The Australian”
Craft for a Dry Lake by Kim Mahood
Part of my summer reading is an autobiography that weaves the theme of attachment to land by settler and Aborigine alike. The death of the author’s father prompts a personal pilgrimage to the remote station lands of her childhood. Her connection to the land is marked by ambiguity – it is a wrestling with identityContinue reading “Craft for a Dry Lake by Kim Mahood”
We Three Kings of Orient Are…
… but not the magi of Bethlehem in Matthew 2:1-20! We don’t know how many there were – tradition varies from the popular three to the less known twelve. The magi are not described as “kings” – there are two kings in Matthews’s account – Herod and Jesus – and the nature of their respectiveContinue reading “We Three Kings of Orient Are…”
A New Year’s Resolution awaiting fulfilment…
A bit of bush doggerel for a job I have to get done… I sit by the fountain on New Year’s Day; the bricks shimmer and shine in burning heat. Through the parched bowls the leaves swirl and sway; no streams of water – the pump is beat! Beneath the cover the water is brackish;Continue reading “A New Year’s Resolution awaiting fulfilment…”
Wondering Pilgrim 