Coffee Theology

A new drama series by Jimmy McGovern finished a couple of weeks ago on the BBC. Broken  tells the story of Roman Catholic priest Father Michael Kerrigan, a broken person ministering to other broken people in an unnamed northern city. It's still available on BBC iPlayer and I would encourage you to watch it - only be prepared for a few grim hours. I'll try to avoid spoilers here. Michael has a problem: whenever he celebrates Mass (which I think in the Roman Catholic Church is every day), he has flashbacks. At the moment of consecration - the point at which, Catholics believe, the bread and wine physically become for us the body and blood of Christ - he remembers every shameful thing he's ever done, and every shameful thing that has been done to him. We see his mother screaming at him that he's a dirty, filthy little boy; young women crying because he has treated them badly; mistakes he has made as a priest; people he has let down. His voice falters and he struggles ...

Last Saturday marked the official end of my probationary period as a Newly Accredited Baptist minister. After finishing my teacher training in my early 20s I spent a year as a Newly Qualified Teacher with certain assignments to complete (and slightly fewer teaching hours); in a similar way, after completing their theological studies and being ordained, Baptist ministers spend three years in which they complete assignments and attend conferences alongside their work in the church. Most of the ministers I have met see the 'NAMs' period as a massive pain in the backside, after which they will be free to do what they want. Certainly I won't miss the essays and book reviews, but I am glad that there is extra support for people who are new to a demanding job. Well, it's not really a job, more a way of life, but that's a whole other blog post. After shaking hands with various Baptist Union dignitaries I sat in the auditorium thinking about the earlier stages of this jour...

[To preempt any future lawsuits, please note that the stories below are not true.  Yet.] ‘Refugees welcome in the USA,’ declares Donald Trump , announcing his plan to receive up to 12 million refugees from Syria to be given US green cards. Fortune 500 companies unite to end HIV/Aids .  Apple, McDonald’s, Walmart and Coca-Cola pledge 50% of their net profits over five years to supply HIV antiretroviral medication and health education programmes to 47 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, where 71% of those living with HIV/Aids globally can be found. Mahmoud and Netanyahu declare peace in the Holy Land . President of Palestinian National Authority Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have issued a statement confirming a resounding success in the latest year-long peace talks between the Palestinian National Authority and the state of Israel.  The leaders of the Palestinian and Israeli people are confident that a lasting peace will ...

Mark 7.24-30 From there [Jesus] set out and went away to the region of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. He said to her, ‘Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.’ But she answered him, ‘Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.’ Then he said to her, ‘For saying that, you may go—the demon has left your daughter.’ So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone. I wonder what Donald Trump would make of Jesus’ words here? Let the children be fed first Or, in the New Living Translation: First I should feed the children—my own family, the Jews. "My foreign policy will always p...

This is a good film which made me feel very uncomfortable indeed.  I often like to read a few reviews of a film after I've seen it, especially if it has impacted me in some way.  I find myself quite perplexed by the Telegraph reviewer who dubbed this film 'cosily enjoyable'.  It's a good film, but cosy is not a word I'd choose in describing it. I thought it would be both cosy and enjoyable.  I saw the trailer when The Lady in the Van came out in 2015, thought it looked a delightful comedy romp, and made a mental note to see it.  It's a dramatisation of the true story of a destitute old lady, Mrs Shepherd, who lived in a camper van in the driveway of playwright Alan Bennett's north London house for 15 years.  When it popped up on iPlayer over Christmas I was pleased. But this story is a bit too close to the bone for me.  We actually ended up watching it in two sessions as we found it so depressing.  Unfortunately we were eating dinner during one...

At the carol services I prayed that we would all hear God speaking to us in the Christmas season, as he spoke to the wise men in the stars. If you have had a joyful day, may God deepen your joy. If you have had a stressful day, may God bless your rest. If you have had a restful day with no work demands, may God bless you in this gift of sabbath. If you have felt excluded and alone, may God meet you in the margins. If you have had plenty, may God give you the gift of seeing the needs of others. If you have not had enough, may God fill you up. Whatever the day has held and whatever tomorrow brings, may we all become more and more aware of the God who walks alongside us.

In a comment on my last post I wrote about human brokenness and how limited we are in our capacity to do good.  Today I spent a whole day running the church coffee shop and lots of good things happened: A lady from the Catholic church opposite donated a large box of Christmas crackers to the winter night shelter for the homeless, which the Southend churches are running. Towards the end of the day a man came in to say he had three bags of good quality winter clothing for the night shelter. Nearly £150 was donated to suspended meals.  This was made up of lots of smaller donations.  Several people came into the coffee shop specifically to give to suspended meals, without ordering anything themselves.  Some people added a few extra quid onto their bills.  Several asked how much they would need to give to pay for a whole meal, and I explained that most of our homeless customers choose the all day breakfast at £6.60. We also received a cheque for £100 fo...