The Methodist Church in Great Britain looks set to be the largest Christian denomination to allow same-sex marriage in its churches. I heard this on BBC Radio Leeds on Sunday morning, 27th June 2021. In an interview Rev. Sonia Hicks, the president of the Methodist Conference, said that the move had been overwhelmingly approved by …
God will always be alive – Psalm 102
The 4th book of Psalms Last week, when talking about Psalm 101 I spoke about praying through the psalms in order to personalise them. That was all very well when the psalm was upbeat as that one was, but this is something different, a song of a person in distress. We have to make this …
Five stages of repentance
Let's face it, we all make mistakes. Being in the wrong is part of the human experience, so when we do, what next? Other people mess up too. Here are five steps to putting things right and avoiding disaster: 1) Fully own the harm caused It was your fault. Accept that, there are no excuses …
The Stonewall Inn
On this day in 1969, June 28th, Police raided the Stonewall Inn in the Greenwich Village neighbourhood of Manhattan, New York City USA. One year later on June 27th 1970 were the first gay rights parades were held in Chicago and San Francisco, and a day later, on the anniversary of the Stonewall raid in …
I will walk with integrity – Psalm 101
The 4th book of Psalms "When will you come to me?" asks David in this psalm. But the idea is not a frightening one to David, God is someone whose presence he welcomes. Unlike the double-standards of the work manager who calls spending time talking to people "networking" when it applies to himself and fellow …
Going Deaf?
I clicked on one of those adverts that crop up on social media. It could have been Facebook or Twitter, all I know is that it said free. Get your hearing checked free. Creative commons picture from Hadley Paul Garland on Flickr I am always sceptical of these adverts, I have heard of computers having …
Doing theology is a vulnerable process
I shall start with a quote: Doing theology, daring to speak of God, is always a vulnerable process of self-revealing and becoming, trusting in God’s love and justice. (No wonder those with way too much power and big voices are prone to get a little defensive when new voices dare to speak their truth......!)Revd Dr Ayla …
Get out – Psalm 100
The 4th book of Psalms In churches we hear a lot about confession, and rightly so. The General Confession in the Book of Common Prayer is a bit grovelling, containing the phrase, O Lord, have mercy upon us, miserable offenders. Why be miserable when forgiveness is assured? Outdoor praiseFree image on PxHere The 4th book …
There is a lot more good news than you think
Why is there so much bad news? The reason is that bad news happens fast. Good things tend to be slow. Why is there no smallpox in the news? Because it has been eradicated, the last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in 1977, even then the WHO did not declare it extinct until 1980. Apart …
Continue reading There is a lot more good news than you think
The Gospel takes away our right to discriminate
“The Gospel takes away our right forever to discriminate between the deserving and undeserving poor.” - Dorothy Day. I love this quote. God's care for the poor is because they are poor nothing else. It cuts across governments whose attitude to immigrants is less than generous, especially those who have signed up to the 1948 …
Continue reading The Gospel takes away our right to discriminate
Making an ass of myself 