Quote of the Day

Brian [McLaren] makes such a good point about the importance of the subjective encounter with God that he tends, I think, to minimize the importance of the objective truths of scripture. Unlike Brian, I believe that objective, propositional, ultimate truth is of absolute importance.

"We ought not to follow those 'modern scholars'", Brian writes, "who abstract principles from the stories and various declarations of the Bible and then apply those in contemporary settings to inform us how to believe and act". But that's exactly what I think we should be doing.

Tony Campolo.



(Missing the Point, p246)

Book Notes: The Dominance of Evangelicalism by David W. Bebbington

One of the best things about having a term off college is having the time to read some of the books I have wanted to read for ages but which I haven't been able to get to. Here's another; David Bebbington's contribution to the 'History of Evangelicalism' 5-part series (of which parts 2, 4, and 5 seem rather reluctant to appear).

The book presents a nice overview of the period, ideas, politics, theology and some main characters analysing why they developed as they did; and the effect that developments of this period have had for the church. It's easy reading, with themes all nicely illustrated anecdotally from primary sources. So much of what happens in church life today harks back to this period, that understanding us requires understanding them. As my history tutor at Uni used to say, "if you want to be a leaf that doesn't know it is part of a tree - don't study history".

New and Improved

Our church has got a new website (at last!). Out goes www.perthbaptist.org.uk and in comes www.perthbaptistchurch.org.uk - much better I hope you agree.

Latest Read

It is an old cliche that geniuses are tortured eccentrics. In her book "Spike Milligan: An Intimate Memoir" his long-time manager and publicist (add life-organiser, psychologist and general cleaner-up-afterer) paints a picture of a deeply troubled man, given both to bouts of unbearable depression and flurries of frantic anarchic creativity. While the world laughed at Spike's antics, Spike raged at the world, raged at his wives and girlfriends, publishers and broadcasters - and at Farnes. It's not as good a book as Humphrey Carpenter's biography of Spike - which is better written and more perceptive; but she knew the subject very closely.

Of the three Goons, Sellers is acknowledged to have been the greatest performer and also the most damaged individual; a man whose eccenticities crossed the line from malevolence to evil. A man of a thousand characters who professed to have no idea who he was. Milligan was the creative force behind the comic revolution of the 50s and 60s, and the surreal world of Goonnery flowed from his troubled mind. It was also Milligan who was the most troubled of the three, taking to his bed for a week when overwhelmed with gloom after seeing some vandalism; and lashing out at those he cared about - unable to maintain relationships with normal people. (Farnes it turns out manages him by herself being a person of unusual character). Then consider Harry Secombe. Farnes describes him as the least talented of the Goons. He was a genial TV host, a good singer and famous giggler; but not the explosive force of Milligan or an international star like Sellers.

However, both Sellers and Milligan said that they were jealous of Secombe. Why? Simply because of his happy home life with his wife to whom he was singly devoted for the entirety of their very long marriage. Sellers and Milligan with their strings of girlfriends and affairs, both during and in-between their marriages knew that he had something they didn't.

So, if it were the case that genius and self-destruction were linked, and that the less-talented are happier; which would I chose for my children (if I were able to do so)? Would I like them to have Milliganesque destructive brilliance, or Secombe's contended decency? Having chuckled to my Dad's Goons tapes as a kid, recited Milligan's poetry, loved his war memoirs and laughed at his novels, and having read Farnes' book about her life working for Milligan; I'd offer them Secombe's contentedness every time.

Deafness Update

Young Norris was visited in Nursery by the hearing specialist yesterday, who made some very interesting observations. Firstly the nursery itself is in a very echoey hall, meaning that he will be able to distinguish very little speech from the backgound noise. Secondly he is spontaneously begining to lip-read, and reacts better to adults to speak directly to him than other children who don't. Thirdly his behaviour is typical of children with this condition and nothing to becomed too alarmed at because experience shows that grommet insertion usually has a positive effect on behaviour.

She also commented that 'glue-ear' cuts out the higher frequency sounds first, meaning that it is actually harder to hear a woman's pitch voice than a man's. The pitch of the female voice can apparently just become lost in the background noise.

My wife is sending me for grommets immediately.

Crawling

Little Doris has started crawling. No longer can I leave her in one place with a few toys, safe in the knowledge that she will remain safely where I left her. Guarding stairs, coal buckets, extra cleaning, safely storing away small objects; with three mobile kids, parenting threatens to get frenetic.

Book Notes: The Curious Enlightenment of Professor Caritat by Steven Lukes

I spotted a reference to this book and followed it up thinking that it sounded entertaining. I wasn't dissapointed. The novel charts the adventures of Professor Caritat as he travels through different countries each of which enshrines a different ideology as its organising principle; Militaria, Utilitaria, Libertaria etc.

Without long and detailed explanations of each system, Lukes provides a hugely entertaining introduction to the benefits and foibles of each; as his character ends up imprisoned in Utilitaria and destitute in Libertaria, for example. The book gets off to a rather slow start, and only really gets going when the Professor escapes from Militaria and begins his travels. The first few chapters are worth persevering with in order to enjoy what is then to come.

What makes the book all the more fun is the authors penchant for throwing in dreadful puns and some barely disguised caricatures of real people. Who could the free-market obsessed female Prime Minister "Jugula Hildebrand" possiby be? Or indeed the Rev Thwaite, communitarian priest and hostage negotiator?!

The book has reviews which suggest that it does for political philosophy what "Sophie's World" did for general philosophy and there is a parallel. While it is hugely enjoyable, provides loads of insight into political ideology and is carried along at a rip-roaring pace by the strange narrative; it isn't as subtle, engaging or absorbing as Sophie's world. Nevertheless, great fun and thought provoking reading.

Attenboroughing

Norris, Doris and myself have spent a happy afternoon watching a seal fishing in the Tay in the centre of Perth. The river was teeming with fish today, so he was in the right place. Norris' delight at seeing the seal up close was expressed a little too loudly for the seal, who took fright and dived under, only to re-appear a few hundred metres downstream.

Young Norris can whisper or yell; one day he will develop the ability to achieve something between the two.

What Have We Ear Then?

Young Norris (3) has been seen at the hospital today, had various tests and proddings and pokings. He has been put on the waiting list for the insertion of grommitts in his ears and the removal of his adenoids. I was a year or so older than he is when I had my adenoids removed and so remember well the bewilderment that my hospital stay caused. What we long to see is an improvement in the wee-man's behaviour and social skills, what concerns us is the thought of the little soul having general anaesthetic.

Really Nothing To Say

Really Nothing To Say

One of the more honest blogs I've read

Red Face of the Week

II am both ashamed and proud to announce that I have been awarded the red face of the week award. The wife and I were in a bit of hurry getting ready to leave our hotel to get to St Leonard's church, Padiham; for John & Vicky's wedding. All was going well until I realised that although I had packed my shirt, tie, shoes, and jacket - my suit trousers were msising. The only trousers I had with me were a pair of pale cords which somehow didn't quite go with my dark suit jacket and black shoes...

I couldn't just dress-down and sneak in at the back for the service either..... becuase I was preaching at it! Stress!!

Fortunately an Asda store 10 minutes from the hotel were able to furnish me with a cheap and cheerful pair of black trousers in a hurry. They did look a little perplexed when I ran from the changing room and jumped on the the checkout so that they could scan the trousers which I was wearing, though!

Gladly the farce ended before the proceedings got underway and the service went off smoothly. John and Vicky, had a great day celebrating with their friends and family. We enjoyed meeting all the weird and wonderful characters that make up these occasions, having our eardrums bleed in the loudest disco in the North, and are still trying to successfully imitate the Lancashire accent!

'No Vacancies'

So my little daughter has graduated from being a 'baby' and is now officially enjoying her first day as a 'little-girl'. Contrary to popular misconceptions however, this does not create a vacancy.

Happy Birthday

Little Doris is 1 Today.

Not crawling, never mind walking. Just smiling!

Quote of the Day

"This is when people get to see if I really believe all I've been preaching about all these years".

The late Nigel Lee, the respected evangelist, on learning that he had terminal cancer.
(Friends report that "they have and he did").

"All" My Diseases?

2 Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits
3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases

In Psalm 103, David couples together two reasons to praise God - complete forgiveness and healing. However, despite the fact that in this verse David treats the two equally, most Christians believe that while the former is offered completely and immediately, the latter is at best sporadic.

Ps 103:3 is then problematic for us, in that if we wish to exegete it consistently we are invited either to proclaim at best a sporadic and patchy forgiveness of sin; or adopt an extreme Pentecostal view of healing in which the presence of pain is the result of a failure of faith. Sadly, the only attraction of either view is its consistency. The patchy-forgiveness approach falls at the hurdle of the rest of Psalm 103, in which our sins are removed "as far as the east is from the west"; the believers confidence in total forgiveness being one of the main points of the whole song. The illness=sin view is not only pastorally outrageous, but stumbles at numerous other texts, not least Job, 2 Cor 12:7, or John 9:1-3.

What then can we do with Psalm 103:3? In my church housegroup last night, several ways of interpreting it were suggested: Cultural, Sociological, Literary, and Eschatological.

Perhaps we can handle this text culturally in that there is a tendency for western Christians to individualise promises of God made to communities. Most of the proof-texts used for prosperity (health and wealth) theology involve taking promises of God to bless the nation of Israel and misapplying them to individuals. So, where Deuteronomy promises that the people will not just survive but thrive in the land, it means that God will provide the nation with sufficient health - not that every individual will live a pain-free life.

Perhaps we can handle this text sociologically in that the notion of what constitutes 'good health' is not a biological absolute but a social construct, governed by expectations and experience. Is it not feasible that David might have been praising God for his health, in the same physical state that we might be moaning to Him about our infirmities?

Then perhaps we could handle the text in regard to its literary type. This is, after all, a song not an epistle, an outflow of praise from the heart, not a thesis in systematic theology. David might be merely then expressing a testimony of what was true for him at one particular time but doing so in poetic absolutes. That a poet might have once have "wandered lonely as a cloud" is not lessened by being read during thick fog.

Or then perhaps we might interpret Psalm 103:3 eschatalogically as a reference to a future state in which healing will be as absolute as forgiveness is now. Certainly some commentaries take this line. More properly perhaps we might want to view this statement as proleptic, that is to say that David experienced the incursion of the future reality into the present. This view would see the healing David testifies to as a foretaste of the universal healing to come.

What then are we to make of these views? Last night's consensus was that the cultural method was probably true in regard to many other texts especially in terms of handling prosperity promises - but not this one where David is speaking personally. Psalm 103 starts off personal and ends up cosmic its scale and this verse is located at the heart of the personal section. The sociological view was thought to be generally useful in handling texts but not ultimately solving our dilemma.

The literary-type approach was far more helpful for most people. If David's praise is testimony, then we are invited to join him in praising God for the measure of life and health we enjoy. We need neither deny the possibility of healing, not universalise its immediate availability. This in turn is compatible with some of the sociological insight that we considered, especially in regard to the fact that many in our world joyfully and profoundly thank God for their daily survival, while we complain if our elevated western expectations are not met.

The eschatological approach was also found to be biblical and theologically powerful, undoubtedly true, but in all honesty probably not what David had in mind when he wrote this Psalm. However - that should not prevent us from interpreting the Old Testament in the light of the New and finding more hope in these words than the author intended. Just as Jesus rose from the dead - so we will rise from the dead, not as disembodied spirits but completed with non-decaying resurrection bodies.

When we are finally with The Lord, our constant testimony will match this outpouring of praise for God's total healing that David offers here. In fact, there is no good theological reason why we may not begin to praise Him for that already! While the Psalm is dominated by spiritual forgiveness, the 'benefits of the Lord' do not exclude the physical; and so it is inappropriate to miss, skip, ignore or Ps103:3. Far better to praise God now for the life we have had, do have and will have in Him - if as the rest of the Psalm stresses, we walk in fear of Him and embrace His forgiveness.

2 Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits-

3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases

Merely a Private Matter?

Today Gordon Brown has defended John Prescott, under pressure because the press have reported that he has been unfaithful to his wife - conducting an affair with a secretary.

The chancellor has offered the usual line of defence in these instances, "its a purely private matter". But is that actually the case? I think that personal relationships are indeed private, and usually nothing to do with the press or the public. However the situation is different when it involves marriage. Marriage is not a private matter - but a public contract, made before witnesses and the law (and frequently invoking God too). Whether someone has honoured or dishonoured a public commitment can be many things -but surely not "private".

That is not to say that someone who has erred cannot continue in public office; history tells us that many great statesmen's personal lives were less than exemplary. What it does mean is that "he is doing a good job" is a reasonable line of defense to try to advance, as a person can be judged on their record. However when it comes to marriage, "it's a private matter" just doesn't work.

Quote of the Day

R. H. Strachan commented, on the act of Jesus washing the disciples' feet in John 13:1-4.

"...the great truth that this divine self-consiousness of Jesus, confronted by the final assault of the devil directed through his instrument Judas, manifested itself not in a sovereign display of omnipotence, but in an amazing act of self-humiliation."

Book Note: The Heavenly Good of Earthly Work by Darrell Cosden

I'm 2 chapters into this little book at the moment. I have had a couple of modules from the author at college, and as he is always so thought-provoking (not to mention provocative and controversial!) in lectures I assumed that his writing would be as well. So far I have not been dissapointed, although I have to say he is more irenic in print than in person!

The book sets out to demolish hierachical and dualistic thinking amongst Christians; in order make daily work part of our Christian mission in the world. In the introductory chapters he assaults traditional understandings of "soul-only" salvation; and points toward the rest of the book in which he will argue that the so-called 'mundane' aspects of our lives can equally be saved and gain eternal significance.

In order to do this he is going to examine key biblical passages and theological debates; and establish an eschatology based more on continuity and renewal than on complete abolition and reconstruction. (This will also have important implications for environmental theology).

Is our earthly work, (when done for, and with God), only of use in terms of being the context in which we forge relationships with God and others, or is it of eternal intrinsic worth? I have always just assumed the former. I'm interested to see if Darrell can persuade me of the latter.

More than Balance Required

As someone involved in Bible teaching in the church, I resolve to do the following:

Preach free grace until they accuse me of antinomianism; and preach discipleship until I am accused of legalism!

It's just not enough to strike a balance between the two and sell each absolute short.

Eight Hundred Miles and Forty-One Words

We've just arrived home from an Eight-hundred mile round trip to my brother-in-law's wedding, which was held at the remarkable Treowen House, near Monmouth in Wales. They filled this lovely ancient house with friends and family for the weekend to celebrate their marriage and formally exchange the forty-one words that constitute the civil wedding contract in British law. Around those required legalities they devised a lovely ceremony that captured both the seriousness of and the joy of marriage, and the heartfelt lifelong commitment that the vows taken demand. The ceremony, with its music, poetry, vows and words was moving in the way that it reflected both those values, as well as the people getting married. The celebrations continued with a great meal (Venison cooked in red wine!) and an evening of chat, log fires and an absolutely brilliant jazz band.

I haven't been to a civil wedding for a few years and was intrigued by it. Obviously with our faith, we didn't choose a secular wedding when we got married ten years ago - but that doesn't mean we couldn't fully enter into the spirit of this wedding or were any less thrilled for them. In fact every word said and sung in the ceremony was excellent and meaningful. Unlike the previous civil ceremony I went to, the celebrant and registrar were excellent and were really personal in their approach. I wouldn't have wanted them to take away anything that was said or promised on Tuesday.

My theological perspective (with which you have every right to disagree!) is that marriage is a gift of God (as distinct from merely an evolutionary convenient arrangement) whether you acknowledge Him or not! So, while I cheered out loud and shouted 'hooray' as we celebrated love and commitment on Tuesday, in my heart there was an echoed Amen! We all wished them a long and happy life together - I hope they'll forgive the fact that I prayed it too.

Mopelo

Today Boris has invented a new word, "mopelo". Where we live, transatlantic flights pass thousands of feet above us, leaving white trails of vapour in lines accross the sky. These, as of today, are "mopelo's".

Days of Dung

Time spent at home with Boris, Noris and Doris is usually a fairly entertaining experience. Today however, I am trapped here as two of my three delightful little offspring have tummy bugs and are puking and pooing their way through a malodorous day of dung-digging, poo-portering, crap-carrying and any other alliteration you care to add. All plans to take them for a day out in the spring sunshine have been cancelled in favour of tummy cramps and sprints to the toilet - some of which we make on time.

I am also learning that there must be some hidden art to washing puke out of babies’ hair, without missing great chunks behind the ears - which I clearly haven't mastered yet. The other skill I need to acquire is the observational power to notice such infant hygiene blunders and not leave them for immediate discovery by said child's (stressed) mother upon her return from work.

My father-in-law is a farmer - and as such is well acquainted with dung of various species, types, textures and odours. He collects it, he spreads it, he drives tractors through it and has even been known to wear it. All this without murmur or complaint! The thought of changing a human nappy though, fills him with complete horror and disgust - to the point that he never has done one, despite rearing a large herd of humans himself. I think I'm beginning to see where he's coming from......

Book Notes: A Bitter Revolution

I'm currently reading "A Bitter Revolution: China's Struggle with the Modern World" by Rana Mitter. My contacts with the Chinese Fellowship in Dundee made me interested to find out more about their history. Then I wisely listened to the counsel of Dr Stumpy Greenisland who pointed out that an astonishing array of cheap books is made available from Oxford University Press in their annual sale. When the OUP e-mail arrived earlier this year, this fascinating book was listed at a most aluring bargain price.

I have read the first third, about the 19th and early 20th century assaults upon the hierachical Confucian worldview which had dominated China for centuries, including Nationalism, capitalism, individualism, Christianity, colonialism, and communism. The book also looks at some of the social patterns which reflect this breakdown of the traditional order, women's rights, family structure, publishing and journalism, and political engagement - much of it told through some specific individuals and groups used to illustrate wider trends (within the so-called "May 4th Era"). Lines of continuity and contrast through the various movements are also helpfully outlined.

I can't really evaluate the stuff I'm learning as this is the only text on Chinese history I've read. However the writers blind acceptance that Christian mission work was the ideological component of the Opium-war-fighting British empire was dissapointing. The self-aggrandising aims of the opium traders and the self-impoverishment of so many of the missionaries should have been enough to demand a more nuanced view of this subject. The relationship between these two elements of westernisation was more complex than Mitter allows, and the writers prejudice at this point outruns his research. This however has been a minor criticism in comparison with the wealth of other stuff I have been learning.

On now to discover how Maoism emerged victorious.........

Am I a Hypocrite?

I spoke at church yesterday on the hypocrisy of the Palm Sunday crowd in Jerusalem, who proclaimed Jesus as Messiah on Sunday, but within a week demanded his execution. The point of such follies being in scripture are not so that we can judge them (and feel smug), rather that we judge ourselves and make sure that our profession of faith is not merely temporary, convenient, and hypocritical - as we are swept along in a crowd; but real.

How then can I know that my profession of faith is genuine? In short, how can I know that I am saved? I used an old formula to answer this question. It comes in the form of 3 tests.

Test One - the all important test

1) Have I truly 'come to an end of myself' through conviction of sin and cast myself entirely and exclusively on Christ? If so, I am saved by faith alone. (John 3:16)

Test Two - the subjective evidence

2) If I am really a Christian I will be learning to discern the Holy Spirit's inner witness. (Romans 8:16), and know His guidance through my life (Romans 8:14). However if we grieve or quench the Spirit we will be denied this blessing!

Test Three - the objective evidence

3) If I am truly a Christian I will observably be in the process of being changed by God, fruit, character, priorities. "A good tree produces good fruit" said Jesus. Not that perfection is required, just evidence that God is at work in us.

It is important to distinguish between the 1st test and the other two. The first test is about becoming a Christian, the other is merely evidence of it. If we find that we are not genuinely Christian the solution is not to be found in seeking experiences or doing works but in coming to the foot of the cross and trusting Jesus. Because here is cleansing, forgiveness, and assurance based not on presumption but on the promises of God in Christ, and His ability to save. "Bold I approach he eternal throne" says Wesley's hymn.

Monday Reinstated

Thanks to the loan of a camera from young Boris..

I Hate Soaps

I Hate Soaps, by which I mean the nightly televisual feast upon which the nation gorges, not the bodily cleansing stuff, with which I am more personally aquainted than some of you might imagine.

Why is it that normal, pleasant, friendly, yea intelligent people, allow their brains to be mauled by the third-rate ratings-chasing fodder that is 'Enders, Corrie and the like? Poor stories, weak acting, drawn-out repetative endings, stereotypes and cliches abounding, contrived cliff-hangers, and sensationalist claptrap they undeniably rejoice in, but far worse than this is their sheer banality and mind-numbing futility.

Yet, normally clear-thinking, sensible people are drawn in and their craniums deprived of adequate profusion by the tedium of soap. The 'need for escapism after a hard day' argument is a poor excuse, because the soaps seem to poison the minds of the unsuspecting even on holiday!

My theory is that soap addiction can only be explained because the stories are immediately accessible and full of human drama, and require absolutely no mental engagement. However they lure the uncritical in by steadily eroding the critical faculties of the viewer until they are unable to separate the wheat from the chaff. The moderately addicted actually start to become emotionally engaged with the story-lines, while hard-core users have even been known to be unable to separate fact from fiction, actor from character.

Soap-watchers beware, your short life is dripping, second-by-second down the drain of eternity! Your mind is being numbed, minute-by-minute. Press the off-switch on the telly, before it presses the off button of your mind.

Monday Cancelled

My camera has given up on me. Not slightly, not partially - but completely. New batteries failed to elicit any response from the wretched thing. So, Monday has been cancelled as a result.

While you still can

A charity, whose aim is to further democratic participation in the UK, has set up a website called "Write to Them". The idea is that you go to the site, type in your postcode and it not only tells you who your elected representatives are (Councillor, MSP, MP, MEP) but also enables you to e-mail them directly via the site. Added features include a guide to which issues should be addressed to which tier of representation, and the site monitors responses, exposing any lazy MP's. A related site is called "They Work For You" which tells you what your MP has been doing in parliament, their attenance and voting records, tabling of questions etc.

Democracy is a privilege not available to all, and under threat. Let's use it while we can.

Friends, Romans, Countrymen......

Young Norris (3) has shown the first signs of improvement in his hearing since late November!

In the last few days he has misheard less, and in an amazing turnaround actually turned the T.V. down - saying that it was too loud! (we have been listening to kids programme's at an incredible volume for three months!). The fact that his deafness is fluctuating is a good sign because it indicates that it is probably nothing more sinister than fluid blocking the inner ear, causing the problem. This means that even if he still needs to have surgery, the insertion of bilateral grommits could well solve the issue for him. What we really long to see, of course, is the return of the contented, co-operative boy we saw before. Still this improvement is an answer to prayer, and a great encouragement at this stage.

Goodbye, Farewell and Thanks for the Whisky

This weekend we said goodbye to some good friends who strangely want to swap THIS for THIS for at least a year. I think that our Skype software is going to be put through it's paces over the next few months. Although we'll miss their conversation, odd-humour, faith, fellowship, hill-walking trips, wisdom and their lovely little boy; every cloud has a silver lining. In this case the silver lining came in the form of an unfinished bottle of Bruichladdich which they hadn't managed to polish off before fleeing the country. They very wisely didn't waste it but found it a good home. I had forgotten what a strong, full, smooth whisky it is - definitely has to be one of the top three varieties commonly available.

As I am such a light drinker, a bottle of malt lasts me over a year - so I have to be very choosy about what I get. To my uneducated palate this has taste of sea without the mouthfull of salt that you get with Oban, has a pungent aroma like Laphroaig minus the antiseptic aftertaste, plenty of peat to savour and is nice and spicy. It's not as firey as Lagavulin, but equally doesn't cost £35 a bottle! It's as flavoursome as my other favourite, Bowmore, but smoother I think.

So, seeya then. Goodbye, farewell, and thanks for the whisky. Our prayers go with you (but the Bruichladdich stays here).

Film Notes: Slaughterhouse Five

Over the weekend I watched the film of Slaughterhouse 5, having recently read the book. I was really dissapointed with the film, and not just because it's 1972 vintage makes it seem rather dated (that's usually a positive thing in my book). The dissapointment came with the way that the film just didn't seem to capture the atmosphere or spirit of the book at all. Vonnegut himself was excised from it (either in the autobiographical introduction) or properly as Kilgore Trout, his alter-ego - but that wasn't the problem. The strength of the book isn't the narrative, its the message, pathos, and bleak whimsy that tells. The film reverses this (inevitably perhaps) and overblows the action, losing the force of the book. No where is this more apparant than in the death of Valencia Pilgrim. Where Vonnegut announces the death almost in passing, the point is to contrast it with her husbands near-death survival. The film errs by making the death a farcical extravaganza, only hinting towards the author's sense of the incident when corpse and survivor's bodies pass each other on hospital trolleys. Why the reverse-bombing of Dresden wasn't the central point of the film remains a mystery - it is certainly a key to the book.

I'll read the book again one day. As for the film- well, it's one for the archives I suppose.

What price efficiency?

Last week I listened to Law in Action on BBC Radio 4, discussing the new "Legislative and Regulatory Reform Bill" about to go through parliament. The bill, designed to end red tape and speed up governmental business appears in fact to be the most significant shift in power from legeslature to executive in UK law for centuries. Presently, reform of bills already passed by parliament, can only be done by parliament. This new act would allow the government to reform bills passed by parliament in order to free parliamentary time, the goverment says. However, as well as doing so, the executive would gather to itself unprecedented and uncontrolable powers to change bills voted for by our elected representatives. The bill, naturally, has many safety features built ito it to prevent this new power being abused - but critics point out that this bill also contains within it, the mechanism for the unilateral abolition of these very safety features!

"Commentator Daniel Finkelstein ... thinks it is a nightmarish prospect that keeps him awake at night. And Cambridge Law Professor John Spencer QC says the bill would significantly weaken the power of parliament and allow the creation of an "elective dictatorship."" (from the BBC site)

My MP hasn't heard from me for a while, I think I can feel a new letter coming on. Watch this space......

Monday View

This morning is dull - however you want to look at it

Dedication

Today I went here, as two of my friends were having their little baby dedicated. The dedication service was really good - giving thanks for the miracle of life in general and for little David in particular. It was a great family occasion, for them and the church too, the place was packed with their friends and relations from all over Perth and the country. I was also asked to do a talk at the service, so I based it on the previous post here contrasting thanksgiving with spoiled brathood!

Am I a spoilt brat?

One thing about young children that really annoys me, is their frequent incapacity for gratitude. Everything done for them is 'expected' and even when a cursory 'thank-you' is offered, it can appear to be ritualised behaviour, rather than the overflow of a grateful heart. Genuine appreciation of what others do has to be taught, it rarely comes spontaneously. In all honesty, who doesn't cringe, when in the street you overhear a parent offering a child some kind of treat - only to hear it being thrown back in their face. "Its the wrong one, I didn't want that one, it's not fair!"

Part of the problem is that kids learn more by observation than they do by instruction. What I tell my children to do has only a minimal impact in comparison with that of my day-by-day behaviour. And here's the problem - I have re-discovered that spiritually at least, I am a spoiled brat!

Many years ago, these words were written:

One does not have to be in agreement with all of Finney's theology (or taste in beards) to acknowledge the power of this quote! Many years ago I did as Finney suggested and sat down and wrote down every good thing I could think of that I had never thanked God for. What I thought might be a ten minute novelty turned into an afternoon of soul searching. As my sheet of paper filled up, I needed another, and another and another - and I realised that by nature I am a selfish brat. I take and take from God (who gives so generously) and allow countless blessings to be taken for granted with barely an acknowledgement - let alone heartfelt thanksgiving to my gracious creator. Sometimes I even have the audacity to complain about His provision.

If a grateful, thankful attitude is something that I need to cultivate in my children. It is something I first must nurture in myself.

Deaf Update

Little 'Norris'' hearing continues to decline. Putting him to bed the other night, I said before turning the light out, "God bless you", to which he replied, "I love you too Dad". More and more he replies to what he anticipates you have said to him.

The view from Monday

Snow still lying on the hills, although now only on higher ground. It's late March, but more snow is promised.

Birks o' Aberfeldy

The neighbours suggested taking all our children for a walk in the snow up the Birks o' Aberfeldy. We had a great afternoon, the kids were pretty well behaved, the spring sun shone through the woodland and glistened on the snow. The waterfalls looked fantastic too. Doris was riding in the pack on my back - and getting heavier and heavier with every step! However a tiring walk was followed by coffee and cake in a cafe in Aberfeldy - followed by the drive home, a beer by the fire and steaks to follow!

The photo was taken by Boris (when he was 5) last year.

Chinese

丹地華人基督徒團契

On Friday night I spoke at the Chinese Christian Fellowship. It's a place that I really enjoy going to and catching up with friends there who I have known for several years. They had asked me to speak on "integrity" - so I used a text that I know well and have spoken on several times, contrasting the integrity of Barnabus with the hypocrisy of Ananias and Sapphira.

Book Notes: Slaughterhouse Five

World of the Strange

I have just finished reading Kurt Vonnegut's classic novel "Slaughterhouse Five". After having it highly recommended and it sitting on my Amazon wish-list for a few years, I have finally bought it and read it, thanks to some birthday money from my Grandma.

I have read several rather odd books in my life, and this is certainly one of them! If someone had told me that a 150-page novel could contain, autobiography, time-travel, alien abduction, war, sex, concentration camps, optometry conferences, authorial cameos, a theory of time being concurrent rather than linear, mental illness, the illusion of human free-will, and death (lots and lots of death, so it goes) all revolving around the firebombing of Dresden I would have thought them mad. Yet here it is.

In fact, madness might be exactly the point. The author appears it at times, the central character Billy Pilgrim is accused of it by his family and the narrative told without reference to the normal conventions of chronology is frequently chaotic. In fact this method of storytelling would drive anyone who delights in tidy narratives without loose ends, completely nuts! But aside from the author presenting us to himself as maybe mad, the central character likewise and the maddening effect on the uptight reader; the real madness only becomes apparent if the lense is pulled back from the individuals to see the madness of humanity - especially as demonstrated at Dresden.

Written as "rolling thunder" bombing raids flattened vast areas of North Vietnam; it was quickly seen as a powerful anti-war book, gained cult status and was made into a film in 1972. I can't imagine how any director could do justice to the constantly changing mental landscapes with which Vonnegut bombards the reader. I have heard that a remake is planned for the near future and would love to see it.

Among the many, many highlights in the book are the famous reverse-bombing raid in which Pilgrim travels through time backwards and watches Dresden being "un-bombed", with aeroplanes sucking the fire up into their bomb bays, compressing it into canisters to be safely dismantled in factories. There was also the savagely ironic moment which during the firestorm Billy and his German captor both spot some naked women in the showers - and for a brief moment all enmity between them is forgotten as they are united together in sheer lust. There is also the lovely take on the famous prayer of St Francis: "Lord grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." Among the things that Billy couldn't change were the past, the present and the future". The soldier executed for the theft of a teapot, while tens and tens of thousands lie all around torched by bombing is another key moment. Each death in the narrative is followed by the words "so it goes" and the inevitability of death and the lunacy of killing is mocked, whether it be murder or genocide.

Never was comedy so black and funny, or so deeply disturbing. I wonder if ebay have the 1972 DVD going cheap anywhere?

World of Slush

Lend Me Your Ears

Little 'Norris', my three year old - was back at the audiology clinic today. His hearing has declined significantly since his last test a few months ago. The clinic are fast-tracking him for the insertion of gromits into his ears, and if that fails hearing aids for both ears. The 'fast-track' still involves several months wait for surgery, and with his behaviour and social skills suffering - that's a long time.

Film Notes: Good Night and Good Luck

Quality T.V. and the Guantanomisation of Justice

I'm just back from the cinema, where my wife, myself and about ten other people, watched George Clooney's new film, "Good Night and Good Luck". It's the historical-biography of campaigning investigative reporter Edward R. Murrow, and his battle against McCarthyism in 1950s America. It is all dialogue, little 'action', and shot entirely in black and white.

The cultural atmosphere of the times is nicely built up, with oddities such as cigarette advertising, and company marriage policies thrown in; to compliment the obvious visual setting. The fear, suspicion, and danger of the 'witch-hunt' era is well done, as journalists battle with the military, with advertisers, media owners and most of all their own consciences as to what issues to cover. Not content to hide in the safe waters of celebrity interviews and gossip, Murrow and his team decide to tackle McCarthy through documentary TV program making.

The strain on the characters is well played, as they anticipate the reaction from the McCarthyites, in response to their challenge. David Strathairn is excellent at Murrow (above), Clooney good as his writing partner, and Frank Langella as CBS boss William Paley is brilliant. Murrow's furrow-browed monologues to camera are compelling, and are made all the more dramatic as his 'on-air' studied concentration gives way to nervous glances around the studio on completion of the pieces.

The film makes two incisive contemporary points:

It is not co-incidence that a film about the McCarthy era has been made in 2006, in the USA. As Arthur Miller sought to expose McCarthy by historical precedent in 'the Crucible'; Clooney and Co, have used Miller's target narrative as their historical precedent. One of the critical points repeated in the film was Murrow's exposure of the failure of McCarthy to adhere to constitutional principles of justice, because of the perceived imminent threat of an outside malign influence. Murrow's consistent view was that circumventing 'habeas corpus type rights', abrogates our responsibility to maintain the moral high ground, thus strengthening the position of the 'enemy'. Furthermore, it demonstrates an inability of the perpetrator to win the battle of ideas, belying an insecurity - which all the protestations to the contrary do not remove. The fact that America is now holding hundreds of 'enemy combatants' without due process of law hardly needs to be stated.

The other major attack this film wages is against the idea that television and film can do no more than entertain, and ultimately numb and insulate the population (er, that's called dumbing-down today). The fact that the film starts and finishes with excerpts from Murrow's speech at an awards ceremony in which he rails against this, is significant. The writers clearly wanted to broaden the scope of the film's impact from the civil liberties issues, and into the realm of what television is for, and what standards of excellence it should persue.

Right, I'm off to watch "Today with Des and Mel".................

Springtime in Scotland

Boots!

Today I bought my 3rd-ever pair of walking boots. They were a present from the wife for my birthday, but being tight, I waited until the sale before going to the mountain shop! Once again I have gone for Raichle's - not because I am driven by brand names but because they seem to be the only ones that fit my feet. My last pair lasted 9 years and took an absolute kicking - if these perform even close to as well, I'll be happy.

Best of all though, if she has bought them for me - it would be illogical if she were to try and stop me going out to the hills to use them wouldn't it?

So the constraints of logic on human behaviour are about to be put to a scientific and irrefutable test! Watch this space for results during 2006.

Another Essay Taking Shape

Phot

Richard Dawkins and "The Root of All Evil?"

Many people were fascinated by Prof. Dawkins attack on faith in his recent TV series "The Root of All Evil" (Channel 4, 9th/16th Jan). What has been interesting has been how scientists with a Christian faith have responded to his claims. The following link points to an insightful review by Denis Alexander, first published in The Times Higher Ed Suppement.

Click here to view article.

Monday Pic on Tuesday

M-Way Madness

In the last four days I have driven to London and back, a nice little 1000mile trip. With 14 hours of driving, backache, and depressing depreciation on the car!

Now whenever I close my eyes, I can see the white road markings going past me - my own version of white line fever I suppose.

Boris, Noris and Doris were very well behaved on the long journeys, mostly due to the fact that my wife won an in-car DVD player on ebay and they were Disneyed into complete submission, if not stupifaction.

David Scott 1932-2006

On Monday, we went to the funeral for David Scott, who died the previous week. He was a warm hearted, gentle, sincere man of God, who had trusted Christ for decades. He had a wonderful, almost unique, ability to make individual people feel welcomed, loved, and valued both in the church community and elsewhere. Born to missionary parents in China before the war, David's family was imprisoned by the Japanese and then expelled from China by the Maoists. They moved back to Scotland, first to Wishaw and then to Perth, where they lived in the house we now own. David's parents lived in this house for the rest of their lives, and David visited us recently to look around the place and reminisce.

He had been ill for some time, and re-appeared at church at the end of 2005 for a few weeks, when he thought he was beating the illness. His final decline was rapid, and though that means he was taken from us sooner than anticipated, medically this was a mercy. My wife saw David shortly before he died. He still radiated love and delight at seeing people, and the enormous hug he gave her was full of strength.

So many people remember his smile, his warmth, his deep Christian commitment, his strong handshake and bear-hugs. We miss him because the love of Jesus radiated from him. Our thoughts and prayers are not with David, as he is now safe with The Lord - but with his wife Anne, and their children.

A Hazy Shade of Monday

thoughtfortheday

"For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." (Eph 2:10, NIV)

Whilst I am not convinced by that old line that "God has no hands but ours....", which seems to make Him dependent on our co-operation to achieve His purposes; I am concerned that unless I co-operate, I will miss my opportunity to be involved in what He is doing.

I pray that I will have the discernment and wisdom to know what good I should do today, and the responsive will to do it, and the servant's heart to do it joyfully. We may be God's workmanship - but judging myself alongside that prayer, I know I'm but a work in progress!

Number Thirty-Five

Happy Birthday to Me! The day got off to a fine start, then Boris, Norris (and to an extent Doris, too) sang Happy Birthday to me, and gave me some nice hill-walking related presents. 35 - that's OLD!

MP3 Bible Teaching

An amazing range of sermons is available for free download (you have to register - but there's no fee) from www.allsouls.org . You can search the sermon data base either by Bible passage or by preacher's name. If you do so - you'll find that virtually no corner of scripture is left untouched, while some of the well-known speakers include John Stott, Don Carson, Dick Lucas, Luis Palau, Alec Motyer, Alister McGrath, Rico Tice, Derek Tidball, Elaine Storkey, Peter Jensen, David Jackman and more.. (so loads of variety in both style and emphasis). Do yourself a favour - if you have an iPod and a long journey anywhere ahead of you - begin with John Stott's (pictured above) series on "The Integrated Christian".

Monday

Next Winter's Wood

Next winter's wood has arrived. I've spent many happy hours splitting and staking it.

An Answered Prayer

Feeling gloomy and dispondent last Thursday at Glasgow's Queen Street station, I prayed on the station platform; "Lord, I'm feeling miserable, please let me meet someone who will encourage me". Someone came and sat in the seat facing me and pulled out a book on church planting which he was studying intently. He is a minister in Arbroath and was enthusing about the potential growth of the church there and all he'd like to see happen in the town for God. It was hugely encouraging!

This was an unusually direct (and fast) answer to prayer - for which I was extremely grateful. So grateful in fact that I am directing you, gentle reader, to his church website.
http://www.arbroathstandrews.org.uk/

Fogged Up Monday

When negative is so positive

Last weeks drama came in the form of a pregnancy scare, which thankfully was only a scare. The thought that Boris, Norris & Doris were to be joined in October-time by a little Horace was too grim to contemplate. When I say I "thank God" it wasn't, I say it sincerely and quite literally.

Tim Keller Articles and Sermons

There's a website about Tim Keller here:
http://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/articles/bio/timkeller.html

It's a good little page with many of his articles and several sermons (MP3's) available for free download. There's some superb and inspiring teaching here. There's not only detailed studies of the Bible's text but some very perceptive applications and analysis of contemporary culture and society. Although Keller ministers in New York, many of his most telling points translate to the UK context too. His own church website www.redeemer.com is very fancy, but you have to pay for many of the sermons there!!

Lookalikes

.....Straw ................................. Headmaster

The similarities between these malevolent manipulators are too uncanny to be mere co-incidence. Surely they must be related. I think we should be told.

NHS Today

Never Not A Dull Moment

There's never not a dull moment round here, is there?

East Lomond

The Webbs took, the Mrs & I, Boris, Norris and Doris up East Lomond hill this morning. A great walk it was too, and despite the dreary half-light, the views were more impressive than I'd expected. We could see snow on the Ochil's, the Pentlands, the Forth Estuary, Kinnoull Hill, and many dark shadows of big hills in Northern Perthshire, but it was to dark to pick out their shapes. Boris was a bit whiney, and although the climb was well within his limits he was suffering from not having been put to bed by Gnat-the-crazy-babysitter until very late. Norris' three year old legs managed it amazingly well, while little Doris rode on my back and enjoyed the ride. Following pic not mine - nicked from a tourist guide!

Book Notes: In The Beginning by Alister McGrath

"IN THE BEGINNING: THE KING JAMES BIBLE AND HOW IT

CHANGED A LANGUAGE, A CULTURE AND A NATION"

Just finished reading this Chrsitmas present on the way home on the train today. It's a good read, and a fine story, well told. However - it's not as good a book as it shold have been, given the matter in hand and the credentials of the illustrious author. One of McGrath's skills is his ability to pitch his writing at various levels, and this one is certainly 'popular' in approach. His attempts to assume little or no background knowledge and to explain terms as he progresses is well intentioned, but occasionally awkward. The story rattles along well, and builds nicely with the post-Medieval, Renaissance background, and mechanics of printing described in detail. The religious ferment of the Reformation is briefly sketched and the ongoing debates from Henry VIII, Edward VI and Elizabeth's reign examined alongside Mary Tudor's counter Reformation. The various translations of scripture from this era are also assessed in a lively fashion.

What then ultimately dissapoints is the second half of the book. It is subtitled "how it changed a culture, language and a nation" - but the book is so weighted towards the background and production/translation questions that the influence of the book is compressed into a mere chapter and afterword. The book ultimately fails to satisfy because of this serious imbalance. To be honest, it looks as if the author got carried away with the research into the first half of the book and ran out of the time and space to do equal justice to the following four centuries promised on the title page! Perhaps McGrath has fallen victim to an overly ambitious publication rate? !

Whatever the answer to that speculation, I still haven't recovered from reading his self-confessedly outrageous comment on the nature of the translation of texts:

"Translations are like women, if they are faithful they are not beautiful, and if they are beautiful they are not faithful".

Another Week

The Perils of Leadership

Having recently been given some leadership responsibility in my local church, the following is a sobering thought. In 1Sam5 (1-8) the people of God are lead into the disastrous kingship of Saul because of the folly of the last judges (Samuel's sons). Poor leadership had huge implications for all the people. While that didn't excuse many of the poor choices the people went on to make, it certainly prepared the way for harm and led the people into great danger.

Ff-FF-Frrrreeezing!!

As a Post

We received the concerning news that young Norris is deaf. Well clinically he's actually right on the borderline of deafness. The timpanogram showed that the conductivity of sound through his ears is very poor indeed - barely responding in fact. The cause is a build up of fluid behind the eardrum due to infection, apparently. The treatment will be the insertion of gromits into the ear to drain the fluid - which should restore hearing quickly. The problem is that this will expose a 3year old to the dangers of general anaesthetic. However this will be worth doing if his development (and behaviour) continues to be affected. I am realising that some of the time I thought he was being just naughty and defiant - he was just not hearing me.

Santa and the Tooth Fairy

Christmas is a very strange time of year. Like many Christian families we find ourselves uneasily trying to celebrate with the usual round of friends, family, colleagues, school parties etc and trying to recognize the birth of Christ as the central point. This isn't without it's tensions either.

For a start, what about the Christmas tree. For years I have hated the wretched things. Never mind the paganism, they are dirty, take up too much space and drop needles all over the house. I never bothered having one, however my wife has always bought one every year. To be honest this year it grated the least that it has ever done and I didn't resent bringing the thing in at all. This is for a number of reasons, firstly I'm probably just mellowing with age (!), secondly the kids are now at an age when the tree thing really thrills them in innocent joy, thirdly I think that in terms of making Christmas 'Christian' by making Christ central - I reckon there are bigger fish to fry (starting with my own attitude to material things).

Then we come to Santa. Put aside for a moment the oft-noted fact that he is extremely mean spirited when flying over world trouble-spots and disaster zones, but buys the whole of Toys-R-Us for western kids....... Here is an issue on which my wife and I disagree. She was raised in a home where Santa was strongly pushed and believed in - I wasn't. I can't bring myself to straight-facedly tell the kids stuff I know to be false (why then should they believe anything I say?) whereas for the Mrs, Santa was a treasured childhood memory she wants to pass on. I have always been evasive on the subject and this year young Boris noticed (for the first time) the discrepancy between the two stories. "Telll me the truth Daddy, is Santa real, I MEAN THE TRUTH" he said! I mumbled something about his beard looking awfully white for someone who had come down a sooty chimney and tried to change the subject sensing wifely dissaproval!

As for the tooth-fairy. Boris lost his first tooth on the 18th and stashed the tooth under the pillow. Amazingly the tooth fairy failed to show up. Next they'll be telling that she isn't real either.

Monday Pic 2006

MonPic Christmas Week

A Turning Point

We've just moved our third (read "last") child out of our bedroom. The cot has moved to Doris' own room and she is in it - howling the house down in protest. No more babies in our room! A strange feeling of liberation but yet another sign of age, another era passed. Bring on the grey hair and wrinkles.

It's Monday Again

A day marked out so far only by its unremarkableness.

I'm Lost

Young Norris (aged 3) gave his mother the slip in a big electrical shop today, and she couldnt find him anywhere. Amazingly, he had marched himself to the customer services desk and announced, "I'm Lost".

Afterwards he said, "I was sad - but I wasn't frightened".

Sunset on the Carse

The frightening power of the Bible

I realised again this weekend how frightening the Bible actually is in practice. I have the job of doing some of the preaching at church, and the relationship between preaching and life is a curious one. What I have experienced over this last year is that whatever I am planning on preaching on, on the Sunday, I get tested on during the week running up to it. Preaching on Hannah (and on sacrificial giving) co-incided with a family financial crisis. Preaching on 'households' in Ephesians 5, meant disruption at home. The week I had to speak about pride was horrendous!!... and so it goes on. This wasn't some kind of self-fulfilling prophecy either! These were things which happened from outside my control.

There is a theory in the study of 'homiletics' that the preacher should first of all ensure that the word is applied first to the preacher. It is often spoken about as if this was some form of duty or task to complete. This is however far from the case. I am increasingly finding that the same God who calls you to preach, also inflicts the lessons of that word on you in unmistakable ways. Mr H. suggested that I preach a series on 'abundant blessing' therefore! It's a fine suggestion, perhaps I'll start with Song of Solomon! :-))

What I have discovered is that a mere theory of the inspiration of the Bible is only a start. You know the inspiration of scripture is real when you almost tremble opening its pages for the effects it will have on you and your family. This is no tame book - but a living word.

Monday Thing

Beautiful cold winter's day.
Just as it should be in December!

But how can another week have gone past already? Having adjusted to a completely new routine in life, with Boris at school, Norris at nursery 4 days and Doris here with me, while 'she who must be obeyed' is at work - life seems to dissappear faster than I thought possible. Yikes! - that's what old folk say.