>Public theology

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>Public theology is a funny expression suggesting that there is a choice between private and public theologies, or rather between bad theology (theology that remains private is not Christian theology) and good theology.

Public theology is what is happening when Archbishops etc make their reflections public and relevant. How difficult it is though – and that was illustrated at a meeting of clergy today. A neighbouring clergybod said how she felt she didn’t know enough to comment on various bits of church news when people ask her – in so saying, she was doing a bit of public theology by making her concerns public. She was jumped on by someone with the “right” answer. (Heaven preserve us from those who’ve got the last word!) I reckon theology to be a process to be undertaken publicly as the church through collaboration. Theologies develop through interaction with others and through prayer – never the finished article because there is always an OTHER to be heard from somewhere.

It is very difficult being Christian in public and doing theology in public. There are always those ready to twist what is said and done – whether it is my friend Jane, Rowan or Jesus – and the public aren’t always very interested in finding out what we really meant. Jesus did not try “that’s not what I meant”. He just suffered the consequences of public theology.

And this isn’t public theology – I don’t think – but it’s Spike Milligan.

http://www.youtube.com/get_player

Second best

David HerbertLeave a comment

>There are some very good bloggers out there. I wish I could be as amusing (or write/draw as well) as Bishop Alan and Dave Walker – but what the hell! I don’t do it to amuse anyone but myself. Anyone’s welcome to look over my shoulder, so long as they remember that it is me who is amused – it’s far better keeping all my thoughts in one blog than scattered all over the hard drive. I never could remember what they were all filed as. Someone who wanted to sing was told that she didn’t have the best voice in the world but it dodn’t stop her singing. I’m not the fastest runner/jogger/shuffler in the world, but that doesn’t stop me jogging/shuffling (running isn’t an option!). This may not be the best blog in the world but that’s not going to stop me blogging.

>Sharia and the Archbishop

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> The width of the gap between what we say and what gets reported depends on what the reporters of a conversation want to make of it in grabbing a story. Happens all the time, even to the most local conversation. We hear what we want to hear and see what we want to see.

It’s particularly true of our leaders as their comments are continually (mis)construed. Apparently Archbishop Rowan was acknowledging “as a matter of fact certain provisions of sharia are already recognised in our society and under our law” – he wasn’t proposing a parallel system of law, but was instead exploring ways in which reasonable accommodation might be made within existing arrangements for religious conscience. The issue affects everyone with a conascience – he raised the example of the Christian doctor who would like to assert his/her right not to conduct abortions in the context of a secular legal system which permits abortion. Orthodox Jews already have their own system of Beth Din over, for example, dietary laws, divorce and tenancy disputes.

The media has portrayed Rowan as “gone barmy”. In fact, his comments were part of a lecture given to over 1000 people at a lecture at the Royal Courts of Justice chaired by the Lord Chief Justice. Presumably amongs this 1000 there are some pretty good judges (!) who would presumably have been protesting more loudly if they thought it was all barmy.

Maybe the Archbishop was articulating what is a real challenge to our society. If he was to keep silent he would be abdicating his leadership. Here’s what he actually said. And here’s what Bishop Alan has to say about Abdul the Bogeyman.

Who am I?

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According to Billy Graham, our questions boild down to four basic ones. They are
  • who am I?
  • Where have I come from?
  • Where do I belong?
  • Where am I going?

If we heard God asking those questions what answers woudl we give? If God says “where do I belong?” the answer is ……………………

Jesus asked his disciples a similar question. “Who do you say that I am?” They scartched their heads and told him what other people called him – but he wanted to know wno they thought he was.

>The writing’s on the wall

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The longest piece of graffiti was over 4000 characters long and made by a student in the toilets of his college in China in 1915. (To do list – order extra nitromors and rubber gloves). The artist went on to be founder of the People’s Republic of China. He was known as Chairman Mao.

Nobody knows much about Banksy though, except that he is a Bristol born artist. He has become famous by people not knowing who he is. Nice irony – as is most of his work.

“People say graffiti is ugly, irresponsible and childish ……… but only if it is done properly.”

>Capello’s Law of the Meal table

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The family that eats together stays together. Likewise, our new saviour and manager of the England team believes a key to success is for the England team to eat together. I hope Mr Capello has more success than we have had as a family. We managed Sundays sometimes, but at least the England team won’t be prevented from eating together by all the crayons/paints that we’ve had on our table. American research suggests that children who eat with their parents are less likely to abuse substances, have less sex, be less suicidal and have better nutrition. Sorry kids!

Leonardo da Vinci pictures the Galilee team eating together with their manager – with Judas being told he can leave the table early. Jews and Christians have always appreciated the importance of eating together – hence the table in all their gathering places.

>Managing anger

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> Anger management is something we hear a lot about. Some of us find it difficult to control our anger and it soon spills into violence.
But we need to manage to be angry. Bede Jarrett protests; “The world needs anger. The world often continues to allow evil because it isn’t angry enough.”
Anger needs to be tempered with patience because without patience it becomes short-tempered searching for short cuts to destroy its cause.

According to Augustine of Hippo, anger is one of HOPE’s beautiful daughters.

“Hope has two beautiful daughters. Their names are anger and courage; anger at the way things are, and courage to see that they do not remain the way they are.”

Born of hope, and twinned with courage, anger is a virtue. In any other family anger is destructive – one of the seven deadly sins.

Anger as the sensitive response to injustice is a very distant relative to the anger which expresses itself irritably and hurtfully. That anger we have to manage, but the other we also ought to manage.

>Funny thing about prayer

David HerbertLeave a comment

>When I go to church to pray this is what I do:

I shift some books around, put waste paper in bin, rearrange furniture, sit down, stand up, fiddle.

Except if I am not on my own, when this is what I do:

read the psalms, read the Bible, pray for the peace of the world and those who I know who are in trouble.

When I jog, this is what I do:

entertain random thoughts which seem to rearrange my priorities and set my mind on higher things, and as if that wasn’t enough prayer, a “You lift them up, I put them down” prayer as the road rises up to beat me.

When I want to pray, what should I do?

Go for a run, I guess, or at least, when I go to church, give thanks for the others who help me to pray.