I grew up in a fairly low liturgical environment, it was liturgical but in the sense that there was a shared structure and framework that I recognised when I went to other churches from the same tradition. It did, however, avoid a lot of the trappings and paraphernalia one tends to think of in a … Continue reading Is Liturgy a Means? Or an End?
Technopoly and Myth
Recently I've been making a concerted effort to cut down on the volume of email I get but one of the emails I regularly look forward to is Alan Jacob's Newsletter Snakes & Ladders. I first found out about Alan Jacob's after reading his books on: Original Sin, and Christian Humanism in the closing years … Continue reading Technopoly and Myth
China’s ‘Social Credit’ is at home in the West
There was a recent piece of coverage by the Spectator on China’s new attempts to role out its Social Credit system in an effort to better manage its growing populace. I was shocked when listening to the journalists on a recent podcast on the topic discuss the advantages of the system and confess that because … Continue reading China’s ‘Social Credit’ is at home in the West
Christianity as the urban religion
I'm currently reading David Frye's good book entitled "Walls: A History of Civilisation in Blood and Brick" and he uses the construction of walls to demarcate between 'civilisation' on one side and the 'wilderness' on the other. This got me thinking about the disposition and historic residence of the Church along these lines. Walls create … Continue reading Christianity as the urban religion
Images in the Church. Part Three: Conclusion
Introduction In my first entry on the topic of image usage in the church, I looked at how the earliest generations of the Church engaged with imagery. In this, I saw what seemed an exclusively polemical treatment of images against the Paganism of the day. Moreso, a critique of the medium itself in devotional contexts. … Continue reading Images in the Church. Part Three: Conclusion
Word of the year ‘fake news’
Post Truth has been announced as the word of the year by the team behind the Oxford English Dictionary. Discussion around it mainly pertains to the idea that sentiments and emotions rather than ‘truth’ are now dictating the outcome of our political endeavours. This is often in reference to Donald Trump’s victory over Hillary Clinton … Continue reading Word of the year ‘fake news’
The Investigatory Powers Bill
There was a recent article circulated that sums up a troubling development in the UK. The Investigatory Powers Bill was recently passed into law legalising government behaviour in the UK that enables the government total invasive access into the online lives of everyone within its borders. The passing of this bill is troubling but what … Continue reading The Investigatory Powers Bill
Thoughts on music in church
I recently read David Robertson's review of Leonard Cohen's latest album 'You want it darker' in which he states the record to be the "best Christian album by a non-Christian I have heard." Views on the record itself aside it made me think on the state of Christian music and art. Christians themselves have the potential … Continue reading Thoughts on music in church
Interaction, imposition, individualism and technology
What the Net seems to be doing is chipping away my capacity for concentration and contemplation. Whether I’m online or not, my mind now expects to take in information the way the Net distributes it: in a swiftly moving stream of particles. Once I was a scuba diver in the sea of words. Now I … Continue reading Interaction, imposition, individualism and technology
On The Ruin Of Britain 