Having spent the majority of my life living in Northern Ireland, I have seen the damage that holding on to hurt and pain as communities can cause. I have seen more news reports on bombs and shootings and deaths than there ever should be.
Category Archives: theology
This is the (Match of the) Day That The Lord Hath Made.
I was -1 when Northern Ireland lost to France 4-1 in the World Cup in Spain on a Sunday in 1982. For many, the world cup is still considered to be the pinnacle tournament for any player to be a part of. Millions of kids dream of getting the opportunity to play for their country in a World Cup match.
On that Sunday against France though one player, Johnny Jameson the Glentoran winger decided he didn’t want to play as he was a born again Christian. The one and only chance he had to play in a World Cup and it was gone. Continue reading
Why Giving Up is the Only way to beat addiction. Part 2.
If you strip it down to its core essence, essentially all addiction is about worshiping an idol.
Now I realize that the term idol has a lot of religious connotations which will put off many people, but I think that the word idol fits well here. Especially if we rethink what it means.
So let me come up with a definition of an idol that hopefully will resonate with anyone struggling with an addiction, regardless of belief. Here goes. Continue reading
Why it’s OK to swear. Or at least not the point.
There is an idea among many Christians that once we die we will grow some wings, this old sinful broken world will be destroyed in a massive fire and we will all float up to the gates of Heaven, give St. Peter a high five and pick up the keys to our swanky new mansion. This is a nice idea except for the fact for the first Christians that it’s not the way they thought about the afterlife. It’s not how they talked about Heaven.
Actually what’s more likely is that this world, the one we are on now will be joined with Heaven and restored in a new and incredible way.
So if we think of the future in this way, what does this mean for the present? Continue reading
Why the DUP are the new Pharisees.
The recent banning of the Reduced Shakespeare Play of the Abridged version of the Bible is more than just about censorship. It is more than just about a political party exerting control over the arts and much more to do with fear.
The fear of some Fundamental Evangelical Christians that their rights as Christians are being torn apart. The fear of their version of Christianity being slowly eroded which would leave them in a position of vulnerability. The fear that Christianity will come tumbling down because of a play. Continue reading
Worshipping worship.
Everyone knows why prayer is important right? Everyone knows why we should read our Bibles? These seem like pretty obvious ideas for Christians to implement. But what about worship?
I used to think worship as something that not everyone was supposed to do. I mean I have heard some people sing and I’m not quite sure how those noises can bring Glory to God. Regardless of my or your musical ability, worship is something that I think we can all benefit from partaking in.
So first off, perhaps the fact that some of us have been blessed with a good ear while others it seems were last in the line for musical ability. shows that worship is more than just music.
I think that much should be clear to most people; so how then can we move forward and offer a definition of worship that can welcome everyone.
Let me suggest one. Continue reading
Anger and Hope: How NI haass to embrace forgiveness.
What is it about someone saying something we disagree that gets us all riled up? Is it bad to get angry or is it more important how we react to anger? Anger can lead to hate which can lead to violence. When there are individuals or groups of people who stand against everything we believe in, our initial reaction is to get angry.
Coming from Northern Ireland, a country that has been damaged by people who have hurt each other over and over in ways that have caused the deaths of thousands of people, I have seen first hand how anger can take over.
Not all anger is a bad thing though.
An Easter message for Christmas: Flags and our identity
There is a story in the Bible about the moment just before Jesus was taken captive by the Government. Jesus was about to experience unimaginable pain and torture. He was going to be humiliated and He was going to face death. His best friends had recently deserted him at the time when He needed them most. One of whom was responsible for turning Jesus in.
Up steps Peter, the same Peter who denied knowing Jesus three times. He had a chance to redeem himself so he takes out his sword and cuts off the ear of one of Jesus’ captors.
If there was a moment for the son of God to use all the powers He had at His disposal, this was it. This was the moment that they had all been waiting for. Jesus could now accomplish what he promised and there would be no chance for anyone who stood in His way. The violence that they had planned for Jesus would be no match for the revolution He could now unleash.
Except, that’s not exactly how the story went. Continue reading
Reclaiming Christian cliches: We’re all sinners!
Romans 3v 23. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…
Do you know what is the most horrible experience you go through when you are a kid?
Finding out that the tooth fairy doesn’t exist?
No.
Finding out that Mum and Dad have consistently lied to you for years every Christmas?
No. (Which by the way explains why they were always so keen on leaving treats out for Santa; I always doubted his ability to fly a sleigh after a glass of mulled wine or three) Continue reading
Russell Brand, Addiction and the Church
I caught up with Russell Brand’s (fast becoming one of my favourite people in the spotlight) show about addiction last night.
It was encouraging, discouraging, hopeful and despairing all in one drug fuelled (the topic of the show, I’m sure the producers were completely professional) BBC3 show. In fact that’s a lot like the emotions you go through when you’re addicted to something.
You’re up and then you’re down. You see light at the end of the tunnel and as Karen , one drug addict featured on the show commented, the next minute a train is coming towards you.
Watching the show made me realise how much different addictions have in common. There are huge differences too of course. You can’t say that crack addiction is the same as a shopping addiction or even a porn addiction but there are huge similarities. Continue reading
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