Hitchhikers guide to God

St Patrick - father of the Irish church St Patrick's Day, or the Feast of Saint Patrick day is held on 17 March, in commemoration the date of his death (c. 385 – c. 461) He is of course regarded the father of the Irish church Saint Patrick was a part of the wonderful Christianization of the Celtic religion of the 5th Century - and a poet extraordinaire. He was a key figure in the creation of the early Church. Thanks to the Emperor Constantine the Romans had stopped persecuting Christians in c.313 when he issued the Edict of Milan - which accepted Christianity. Within 10 years it had become the official religion of the entire Roman Empire. Patrick was born in 385 (Maewyn Succat) to a wealthy Roman Britannia family in the modern-day town of Dumbarton, Scotland.  His father was a Christian decurion and so a member of a city senate. St Patrick was therefore not Irish but from Scotland. He had a Christian background but as is the case of so many of us his faith was yet fully manifes

Candlemas - The Presentation of Christ.   This is one of the most beautiful and prophetic scenes in the New Testament Mary and Joseph brought the baby Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem for His Ceremony of Presentation - as their firstborn son and His Mother Mary’s purification: 40 plus days after the birth, (thus is distinct from the circumcision which is 8 days),   We can join the Holy Family early in the morning as they set out from Bethlehem to take the two hour walk up to Jerusalem. As they neared that great city, they would have caught sight of the newly rebuilt temple on the hill.  It was immense, covered with gold ornamentation and would have shone like the sun in the morning light. Once inside it would have been packed and noisy. They would have been lost in the crowd of priests, worshipers and traders! Incredibly they were suddenly picked out in the crowd and welcomed by a stranger who knew and received them like long lost relatives. It was the wonderful Simeon!  He was not a p

 Can declining churches revive? Answer is YES! I once helped start a business networking breakfast for a local Chamber of Commerce. It was based around four vital principles. These were that breakfasts were to be held when people were available, include business networking, a good breakfast and a relevant talk - to help people develop their businesses. It was an immediate success. Soon 30+ people joined us for every breakfast. However, after a couple of years a new Chamber team took over. They limited the networking time and replaced the business talk with a Chamber update (Yawn!) Within months we were down to half a dozen. Happily, the earlier format was soon restored and the buzzing breakfast was back to normal – to the great benefit of the business community. This proved that all four principles were vital for a business breakfast to be successful. Miss one at your peril!  After over sixty years in the pews and latterly as a Lay Minister I would suggest the similar principles apply

The identity of human beings – and all beings! We know for certain that we have identities. Descartes' often quoted phrase is “Cogito, ergo sum” (“I think therefore I am”). If we were to agree with him, we see independent thinking identities all around us - in our pets, in wild animals and the fish of the sea - in fact, in all living life forms. Every ant in an ant’s nest, every bee in a beehive appears to have independent identities. Furthermore, when these identities cease to animate their bodies, they die – just as our bodies die when ‘we’ leave them. For more than fifty years University of Virginia’s Division of Perceptual Studies documented more than 2300 case histories suggesting that our human identities, or our souls, pre-existed their birth and survived death (search ‘Virginia University reincarnation’). We know for certain that human prodigies have always existed. We think of Mozart who played the harpsichord and was composing music at five. Around two billion people or a

Parable of the Sower -  Matthew 13:1-9 This has to be one of the most important parables in the whole of the New Testament.  Interestingly I find that it applies to each one of us in different ways at different times! Our Lord is the Sower and the Seed -  His message.  How do we receive it? How do we receive it?  Do we ignore it or welcome it and allow it to grow and multiply in our lives? We start off thinking that we are surely receiving seed – the word of God. However perhaps sometimes we are more like the priest in parable of the priest and the sinner . You will remember that the priest was at the front of the temple because he thought he was a pious man and gave half his income to the poor. We think we are doing OK. However perhaps we should be more like the sinner at the back and acknowledge our failings – our inability to receive the Lord's seed Some seed fell on the path and the birds ate it.  The seed on the path represents people who hear the message, but it is immediatel

Unbelievable truths associated with Easter and Holy week - and Jesus's ministry One of my favourite BBC 4 programmes is the amusing quiz game Unbelievable Truths. In it contestants deliver a short talk on a subject – but containing a string of falsehoods and fantastic untruths. The winner is the one who includes up to five unbelievable truths - which of course sound like lies.  For instance, it is said that Donavan swapped an Andy Warhol painting for a sofa – which was true! (The painting is now worth £850,000) I always think Holy Week would make and excellent subject for a programme - provided the participants were all atheists or unbelievers In short you couldn’t make up all the unbelievable but necessary truths associated with both Holy Week or indeed the whole of Our Lords Ministry ·        Who would have believed Our Lord’s detailed prophesy of His own death and resurrection ·        Who would have believed that he raised Lazarus after being in his tomb for 4 days. However, it

How can we be the 'lights of the world'? (Matthew 5:13-20) and what are the benefits (Matthew 6:25-34) I have always had great difficulty with both these New Testament passages In last week’s Gospel we were asked to be ‘lights to the world’ – How can this be - flawed as we are in so many ways. What is the Who, What, When, Where, Why of being global inspiration! How do we be a light and how do we shine?  Fortunately, our Lord gave us clues in His Sermon on the Mount earlier in the chapter. For instance, Our Lord said: Blessed or fortunate are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. – Whenever we do actually manage humility helps us become a  little light Blessed or fortunate are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.  Whenever we do manage to thirst for knowledge again we become a  little light Blessed or fortunate are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.  Whenever we succeed in being merciful, we become