Tag Archives: Advent

Advent Voices – Elijah the Tishbite

‘Tis the season of obscure voices from long ago that speak into our contemporary scene – voices that call us to wake up and pay attention! The Hebrew reading set for today is 2 Kings 1:2-18 – a confronting tale of a prophet, Elijah, who exacts some considerable collateral damage in awakening a king. The haplessContinue reading “Advent Voices – Elijah the Tishbite”

Joy in the midst of tragedy?

Church had a challenge wrestling with the Advent theme of Joy today. Already keenly attuned to this world’s dark places, many were processing the still-fresh news of the Connecticut school shooting tragedy. Today’s worship leader, Linda, was thoroughly tuned in.  As we focused on the Lord’s Supper, itself a connection between the sad sorrow ofContinue reading “Joy in the midst of tragedy?”

Peace is a Pair of Shoes

I love preaching at my church – it opens up so much thoughtful dialogue. This week we tackled the Advent theme of peace in relation to charitable giving. It had been the week of a photo of a NYPD cop buying a pair of shoes for a homeless vagabond. It had gone viral. Something ofContinue reading “Peace is a Pair of Shoes”

Peace is a Pair of Shoes

I love preaching at my church – it opens up so much thoughtful dialogue. This week we tackled the Advent theme of peace in relation to charitable giving. It had been the week of a photo of a NYPD cop buying a pair of shoes for a homeless vagabond. It had gone viral. Something ofContinue reading “Peace is a Pair of Shoes”

Advent Reflection – Love: action,not sentiment

Last week was tetchy. People were tired and stressed. Meetings were terse and abrupt. Summer storms, both meteorological and emotional passed swiftly over. The combination of festive preparations and end-of-year wrap ups added to the testy cocktail. Yet there were moments of pause and reflection – little oases of reality that emerged through the fluffContinue reading “Advent Reflection – Love: action,not sentiment”

Advent Reflection: Joy, anticipated and celebrated

Ever have some odd quirky thing from years ago that sticks in your mind that you can’t get rid of, no matter how hard you try? One of mine is a segment from a Rem and Stimpy cartoon – inevitably triggered when I hear the word “joy”. Perhaps because I have been in so manyContinue reading “Advent Reflection: Joy, anticipated and celebrated”

Advent Reflection: Peace – not absence of conflict

It may strike one as absurd that a day given to reflecting on peace revolves around that fiery wild figure that stormed out of the Judaean desert preaching repentance and baptism for the forgiveness of sins. John the Baptist seems an incongruous figure for what we imagine to be peace – serene narcosis wrapped inContinue reading “Advent Reflection: Peace – not absence of conflict”

Advent Reflection: Hope, not optimism

Pollyanna gets a bit of stick these days. The name of the main character from Eleanor H Porter’s work of classical children’s fiction has become an epithet for anyone deemed to be unrealistically optimistic. In the novel made even more well known by Walt Disney’s cinema version in 1960, Pollyanna invents “the glad game.” NoContinue reading “Advent Reflection: Hope, not optimism”

Wembley Downs shops. Signs of things to come…?

  One year and one month after the fire that took out our local shops, and 13 months after expressions of an anticipated rebuilding and re-opening for this Christmas, the site is looking pretty bleak. The tremendous welling of community support and comfort for those who had lost livelihoods and a community meeting place haveContinue reading “Wembley Downs shops. Signs of things to come…?”