In case you missed it … 19 things I’ve recently(ish!) shared elsewhere.
(1) Excellent documentary, quite moving! “Organ Stops: Saving the King of Instruments” “In a Durham church, a wonderful organ is discovered that becomes the redemptive story at the heart of the film.” Organ Stops: Saving the King of Instruments
(2) Great little video. “Everyone has faith — what’s yours?” via @SpeakLifeUK @glenscrivener hat tip: @thinktheology @AJWTheology
(3) Prompted this morning (by @PetrocTrelawny on @BBCRadio3 Breakfast) to dig out my CD of Monteverdi Teatro d’Amore (L’Arpeggiata, Christina Pluhar). Glorious! Here’s a related video…
(4) I’ve been taking part in Matt Summerfield’s Reboot Your Leadership training over Zoom over the past month or two. Really helpful to learn from Matt’s experience and also to get to know a small group of fantastic Christian leaders and learn from them too.
(5) Finally got round to watching Tom Holland’s Theos lecture, “Humanism: A Christian Heresy”. It’s good.
(6) Does τετέλεσται (tetelestai), “It is finished”, mean “paid in full”? ‘“Paid in full,” while an attractive and harmless suggestion, is based on a misreading of evidence, doesn’t fit the context well, and was never suggested before the 20th century.’ “Paid in Full”? The Meaning of τετέλεσται (Tetelestai) in Jesus’ Final Words
(7) Quite nostalgic listening to this, as Justin Brierley (@UnbelievableJB) hands over the reins for “Unbelievable”. I don’t think I’ve ever listened “religiously” (so to speak), but I’ve been an occasional listener for most of the time the show has been running (possibly as far back as the pre-podcast days, 2005-7, listening to the broadcasts on Premier Christian Radio). It has been a constant companion over the years, as my faith has been seeking understanding. Unbelievable? Celebrating 17 years - Justin Brierley, Ruth Jackson, and Vince Vitale
(8) In our church home group, we often start by listening to some music. Here’s a sneak preview for tonight. This is beautiful. “He will hold me fast”, sung by Selah.
(9) Sad but inspiring to read about fellow Hitchin-ite Catherine Heymans (@AstroRoyalScot), who I vaguely knew as a teenager (two years older, different school), who has gone lights years further than I ever did in astronomy and cosmology, and about whom I hear occasional updates through parental connections active in amateur classical music-making in Hitchin… The dark universe: can a scientist battling long Covid unlock the mysteries of the cosmos?
(10) Love this from Jeremy Begbie: Bach’s boundless abundance: the making of a musical genius
(11) I noticed the other week that people were actually looking at my blog, which is unusual. It turns out that I had been linked to by none other than Richard Dawkins! His words immediately before the link to my blog are: ‘But post-Darwinian “sophisticated theologians” should know better, and their learned treatises are harder to respect’! Replying to Jordan Peterson
(12) Managed to find one of these Allan NIV Bibles on eBay, and I was almost as excited as this guy when I opened it yesterday afternoon…
(13) I’d never seen the video of this before - love it! I’ve had it on CD for years. Apparently recorded in 1992. Ancient of Days - Ron Kenoly
(14) Really interesting discussion about death and funerals. Striking growth in “no fuss funerals”, apparently due to TV advertising. Striking response too: “fuss is another word for love”. @RelMedCentre @Theosthinktank
(15) This is great, from Professor John Barclay, who I had the privilege of learning from in Durham. “For many [children], [Santa] becomes a bit like God, and as such, shapes their image of God as normally absent, occasionally useful, and generally benign.” Santa Claus and how not to give gifts
(16) “Glory to God! Glory to God! In the highest, in the highest, in the highest! Peace be on Earth, peace be on Earth To the people whom God delights in.”
(17) Great article to look at on your phone » You have one life. Do you really want to spend it looking at your phone? You have one life. Do you really want to spend it looking at your phone?
(18) I should be glad to receive fewer bad news. Lev Parkin: ‘Soooooooo I have bad news for less/fewer purists.’ Less and Fewer
(19) Nice coincidence that just after I remove social media from my phone I find a podcast urging me to do precisely that… Darren Whitehead’s 40-day digital fast (detox): 10 days detach, discover, delight, discern Reclaiming What Matters with Darren Whitehead’s 40-day Digital Fast