Like in a movie (summer rain)

15/08/2008

Fretting leaves flicker in freeze-frame in the furious fervour of the fanciful wind.
Buckets of rain are flushed down so suddenly it seems fake, then it stops.
Drops fall on us, curiously under a bright sky.
These are the paradoxical inconsistencies involved in reconciling “summer” and “Britain”.

Save me from Christian facebook groups!!!

I'm infuriated! Why must people create and/or join facebook groups that are so useless!? I don't think this post is ever going to stop idiotic groups from being created or people from joining them, but I need an outlet for my frustration. Ironically, as my brother pointed out, I'm complaining about complainers, but hopefully I'll get away with it by making some sense in my argumentation.

A few months ago I remember being invited to a group called "let's see if we can find 1,000,000 Christians on facebook" and another one called something like "spread the word, Jesus, the saviour of the world" with gospel presentations in them. The worst thing is that I saw some of my friends join those groups!!! What on earth is a group that has a few Christians on them going to do for the gospel cause??? The most recent one, "facebook MUST ban the group entitled: F... Jesus Christ" is even more stupid and insulting to my intelligence and principles. Why on earth should facebook, a non-Christian service provider ban a group of unbelievers from writing their foolish statements? Why should facebook, provider of a free service, listen to what anyone has to say about their programme, since these people aren't paying for anything at all (thinking about the group entitled something along the lines of "petition to make facebook ban adding friends to applications")! With all the amount of trash that's online, it would be lovely if it weren't there, but telling people they can't say stuff like that is certainly not going to do anything to win them over to Christ! The group itself was invoking articles of British laws against racism and religious offenses (which is weird, since facebook is American to start with), saying it is wrong for anyone to say something bad against someone else's religion... What on earth? Other people may stoop to these petty levels, but Christians know that we are promised persecution and insults by Jesus himself, why on earth should we complain when people discriminate against us??? How was the early church created? Out of persecution! We should answer with intelligent responses, not childish tale-telling.

On top of that, we believe in freedom of speech! Why should we expect people not to say what they wish to say, even if it is trash, when we want people to hear what we have to say? What's more, that kind of title, e.g. "F... JC" is clearly not an intellectual one, the guys just thought it would be funny, which granted, it's not, but I think Jesus doesn't need people to stand up for him in the playground, he's a big boy. What he wants is people to stand up for him in the courtrooms, in the lecture halls, in the real battlefields of the faith!

And I'm sorry to say, but at the same time, glad, that the internet is not one of them, in most cases. Chat forums, facebook groups, those are places where foolish and ignorant people can, with no accountability, vent their anger, uninformed thoughts and frustrations. How is getting loads of Christians on one group going to save anyone? I think it's actually counter-productive to spreading the gospel: how is anyone going to have an intelligent and mind-changing debate in one of these virtual places? Just take a look at the list of posts on the group I'm talking about! There are the racists, the over-sensitive prigs, the zealous followers, the zealous atheists, throwing insulting, self-righteous comments and ungratious internet grenades to each other, taking turns... Which ends up making them more frustrated and hurt, since words do hurt.Finally, someone in that stream of messages said something that made lots of sense, not that I agree with everything he says on this or other of his posts:

"Other than the name, there is nothing wrong with the group and even more wrong with this group. They may say what they wish. It's funny that more people have joined this group than the group in question, so you are making a mountain out of a molehill. You've given them more publicity than they deserved.They say something you disagree with, so you wish to ban them. Their group shows no similar desire to ban you or your groups. Live and let live.I'm off to join them as well. Call it a protest vote."

There's my case... I edit this note singing: "I lay my life down at your feet, cause you're the only one I need... One way, Jesus, you're the only one that I could live for."

Jude

20 Juin 2008

So, I’ve experienced my first few days with my nephew… It’s pretty surreal. So surreal in fact that I don’t take it in all the time and I have moments of realisation during the day where my brain actually understands that this cute little thing that is just under 60cm long and maybe 5kgs in weight is a full-fledged, brand new human being. He is just about seven weeks old, I think that’s the youngest baby I have ever handled, and the things that amaze me about him are the things that come to him naturally: he breathes… No one told him how to do that, but he has picked up that habit and keeps it going; he also loves his mum’s milk and attaches himself to her breast automatically (it was a little weird at first, but since she’s my sister, I can handle it); he swallows what he eats, doesn’t spit it out. These things are part of his instincts… He has blue eyes (for the moment), an inquisitive and very funny face, and twenty tiny digits on his hands and feet. It’s the detail that’s amazing. He’s generally very happy, but even when he cries he looks so sweet, with his cute little pout. The world revolves around him, whatever room he’s in, all eyes are on him. I find it hard not to look at him when he’s in the room, he’s just too gorgeous. He’s so fragile and needy… That’s the thing that makes me fearful and blows my mind the most: he was created totally dependent on his parents. Every time I handle him I’m afraid of breaking him like a porcelain doll, so I am most careful. Seeing his parents love him is a beautiful thing; my sister and bro’s hearts are melted when they talk to him, look at him, think about him… And so is mine. I’m overwhelmed by this new creation. I’m shocked at how God so carefully knit this human being into life and his effect on everyone around him, where old and young men will sing songs to him, old and young women want to play with him, and he doesn’t get bored of gesticulating, watching, lying down, sleeping, breast-feeding, burping, pooping, having his nappy changed (he loves that in fact) and starting over again.

Prophetic Fields

Prophetic Fields, 23rd May 2008

God has taken the habit of using the fields in the back of Wincheap to speak to me... I guess those are the times when I’m most attentive and he jumps in while I’m still listening! Last year, I remember him showing me, through the progression of the stages of growth and harvest, the way in which he is always operating, even when there doesn’t seem to be anything happening for long periods of time, and that is eventually shown in the quantity and quality of the fruit produced, be it fair-coloured hills covered in grain or red, juicy apples that finally get harvested to be put to use.

As I was running yesterday, I noticed that out of the ground that has been looking so arid for the past weeks had sprouted leaves that looked like they might be corn plants, not that I’m a farmer or anything, so I wouldn’t actually know... That resonated in my mind and in my heart, felt like God was saying that fruit is going to come after this period of aridity in my spiritual life... And I am seeing some fruit of his word spoken in my life already, which is really exciting. But I need to be more excited, less apathetic, more ambitious for seeing his promises come to fruition. God doesn’t know how to make small plans, everything works towards his greater plan, to which I have the privilege, along with many others, of being a part.

Poetry on a run

01/03/2008

Waves of blades flutter in ripples across the field
As if the wind were the strings of a bow
Playing gently upon the instrument below,
The music being made, inaudible to me,
but rather than a melody I'd hear, one that I see.

The Right Fight

The Right Fight, 24.02.2008


In over five years living in Canterbury, I have heard many a story about street thugs, but have never actually had to really face-off with any of them, until last Thursday night. This story is amazing to me, and if you would indulge me, I will tell it right here.


I had had a long day: we had taken a group of students on a day trip to Oxford, leaving around 8.15a.m, and due to traffic, we didn't get back to Canterbury until 8p.m. This meant that it was late and everyone was tired, but the students needed to be walked home by their group leaders (since they were twelve-year-old Chinese kids).
I was debating on whether to go to cell group or not, since I was already late upon arrival in Canters, but for some reason, I decided I'd go - passing through Tesco, since I had no food at home – and I started making my way up St. Martin's Hill, where I used to live. As I walked up, I saw a group of my students ahead; my immediate reaction was to think “Oh, no, let's slow down, I'm too tired to start talking to them and on top of that, we're going in the same direction...” (just to show you what a great guy I am), but as I started thinking that, I saw a group of big guys walk through them and push them in the street, a dangerous road at that. My pace quickened as I felt what I can only describe as my first experience of “righteous anger” flow from my heart through my body.
I caught up with the students and they immediately turned to me saying (in Chinese accents): “Oh, teacher, teacher, thank you, teacher is here, those boys...” They explained to me that these guys had bullied them, just as I had seen them do. I asked them where their teacher was; they said “gone home”... I was so annoyed. By this time, these three boys were ahead of us by about 60 metres and didn't seem like they were going to bother the students any more, when suddenly I saw one of them pick up a plank of wood lying on the grass (and by plank, I mean like the side of a barn), and start running towards us! Now, this guy might have been joking, but as I pushed through the students, he slowed down, looking very surprised, until he came to a halt in front of me:
“Hey man, what are you doing?”
“Oh, just carrying this plank...”
“Yeah? Why don't you pick on someone your own size?”(I can't believe I used that line, especially since, by then, I had realised he was about a head taller than me.)
“Yeah? Like you?”(starts pushing me)
“Hmm... Maybe I'll call the police!”
“What, why?”
“Why are you pushing me?”
“Well, you're starting on me, aincha?”
“Why did you push these kids in the street?”
“Well, they wouldn't move, chattin' nonsense and everything!”
“They're Chinese, they don't understand what you're saying!”
By this time, his other two mates had joined our friendly conversation, a fat guy and a little kid on a BMX. The two big ones could easily have been nineteen. The kids stayed behind me as we walked along, but the thing was, we were all going in the same direction, so I had to keep talking to these felons as we walked along, while they threatened to beat us up with their “boys”: one of them was on the phone, pretending to call up his crew. I said to him:
“What are you doing?”
“I'm calling my boys to come over and sort you out!”
“Why would you do that?”
“Well, you're standing up to my boy and everything, you don't even have anything to do with this!” (They always have to say, “and everything”... I don't get it)
“I'M THEIR TEACHER!”
So I kept threatening to call the police, I actually had my phone out and dialled 999 a couple times, but then thought it wouldn't do much good, since this would be over sooner than they could arrive. The fat guy actually said, “You're calling the police? Go ahead, my name's (...)” (Can't remember...)
But he did accelerate his pace.
However, they said “Come on, we'll take you down this dark alley and sort you out!”
When they got to their dark alley, he grabbed a stick and as we walked on, waved it at me threateningly, “Come on then! Where you going?”
“I'm taking them the right way!”, I said.
That's as far as I can remember, the conversation we had...


I would have liked to beat their arses (just to show you what a loving guy I am); I would have liked to have a sit-down and talk about why their attitude was so wrong, their lack of logic so startling, about how they needed Jesus in their lives. I had a lot rushing through my head at that time, but my primary concern was getting my kids home, safe and sound. I texted a friend of mine in the cell meeting to come and meet me at the end of that road, just for safety, but his phone must have been off.
As I walked them on, I thought how brilliant that picture was: these guys trying to lead us down a dark alley in a path of evil and me leading these boys on in a path of light, a path of righteousness. The most amazing thing of all of this is that it had nothing to do with me! I wasn't even going to go to cell group that night! This could have happened a few minutes before and after I showed up and I would have missed it! I remembered that the previous night I had been meditating on how God has prepared good works in advance for me to do, as I walk in faith and his grace operates in me. I believe that it was Jesus who planned it all to happen right then and there, and the result was that there was a peaceful, non-violent solution, because God is a peace-maker and he used me to bring his character in this situation...
As we got into the road where they were staying, which “godincidentally” was the same road where I was going for cell group, in fact, the houses they were staying at were literally opposite my friends' house (except for two who went off to their own house one road up), and I reflected on these things, the adrenaline started rushing out of me, all the confidence built up left me and my emotions started playing up... I told my students: “Next time you're in trouble, ask Jesus to help you, I'm serious... You know why I'm here tonight? Jesus brought me here!” They said: “OK!”, they could see I wasn't joking... Now this might have been wrong for me to say on the work level... But it was true, what else could I say?
So I walked them to their homes, then knocked on my friends' house, where I entered to tell them all the story and marvel in worship at God's faithfulness and sovereignty...

Christianity in the world, part 2: Political Participation

Having set the scene in the first part of this series I wish to continue on discussing the involvement of Christians in politics. As mentioned in the previous part, Christianity is neither left nor right, nor central for that matter; it separates itself from the mainstream political scene, by its completely different set of priorities and values. Having said that, I am often worried by a strange attitude that some Christians have of not participating in the political life of their nation.


I'm pretty sure that if we took a poll, the political participation of Christians would reflect the rest of the population's, showing a great degree of apathy, since in the last forty years there has been a verified decrease in political participation across EU countries (David Broughton, Developments in West European Politics 2, ed. by Heywood et al), going down in the UK from 75% in the seventies to 69.9% in the nineties and then 59.4% at the 2001 national elections. This also has to do with the general sentiment of people concerning politics and the way it impacts their lives: in 1997 an average of 75% of European citizens thought that corruption among politicians was increasing. But surely this sentiment would draw people to do something about that? It seems not.


A phrase which I keep hearing and makes me mad is “the lesser of two evils”, which is what a lot of Christians and non-Christians say, even people I respect: “the choice between the lesser of two evils is no choice at all, that is why I won't vote!” Because there are policies that I disagree with on either side, I won't vote for either! May I say, that is a ridiculous statement and not a good reason not to vote; why instead of focussing on the negative policies, not look at the good ones, the ones that will have positive consequences on society as a whole, maybe look at the priorities of the candidates, see what they have to say that is worthwhile. The last thing we need to do is separate ourselves from the world and become some kind of fundamentalist group of people who don't want to have anything to do with it. That is an effective washing of hands, saying that we take no responsibility for the way our nation goes, but right then, we become guilty of not doing what ought to be done. Need I remind us that democracy has been set up in our nations through lots of social and military battles?


It is indeed frustrating to hear so many American presidential candidates claim to do this and that thing in the name of Jesus, to hear them shamelessly use his name to push their own agenda, but I don't believe that is a good enough reason not to go to the urns. It is also very frustrating to hear of pastors and bible teachers, even very good ones, who tell their congregations to vote for a particular candidate because they are against or for the issues which they consider priorities. I think that a good pastor should not tell his congregation who to vote for, but give good guidelines on how to make up one's own mind about who to vote for: look at what they say, what does your conscience draw you to do, etc. John Piper (a prominent bible teacher) made the brilliant statement in a preach that all candidates are sinners, all are flawed, and that is why democracy is the best system for men and women to live in, apart from Jesus coming back and ruling perfectly like only he can do: because there is at least a consensus over which one of these flawed individuals gets the place of president. On top of that, this person cannot exercise complete authority and in the end, if we don't like them, we can vote them out at the next elections.


As I write this, the campaign race is going on in the US and Italy has lost its Prime Minister, the only man who could steer that crazy boat. I am seriously worried about the future of that country, of which I am a citizen. On top of that, the archbishop of Canterbury has bizarrely declared that Muslims should have the right to be run by their traditional law, thus implying, I imagine, that Christians should be allowed to run themselves, which clearly goes against what Jesus and his apostles say about honouring the government (Luke 20:19-26, 1 Peter 2:13-17). The political world has significance in our lives, though I find it sad that so many are caught up in everything political at the loss of what is more important.


If your conscience draws you not to vote, there's nothing more I can say, but when it comes to it, I would say that Roberto Benigni's (Italian actor, director and intellectual) words are worth considering: “vote for who seems most honest, most truthful”... As simple as that.

Christianity in the World, part I

What I have been reading these days is very thought provoking, and combined with my experiences of the last few months, particularly the time I spent in Italy in November and December, is provoking me to express in written form things that are going to open up cans of worms all over the place, since they have to do with world views that are common to most people, but I think that's a good thing, since one of the worst things I can do for someone, in my opinion, is not tell them why I disagree with them, because then I'm not loving them, not respecting them.

Everyone in this world, eventually, in one form or another, chooses a team to be on, be it political, religious, cultural, often it's a combination of these categories, and interestingly, all these teams of people have something to say about Jesus, who they think he is, and what they think about his Church. They also usually either totally reject Jesus and the Bible, or they pick and choose passages and images from it to push their own agenda, because after all, one can interpret the Bible any way one wishes to, isn't that right? (Rhetoric question, just in case you're confused, the answer to that is a screaming “NO!” coming straight from my mouth)
One of the things I wish to clarify here (in this series, if I manage to write more than one) is the question of Christianity and politics, because a lot of people are rightfully confused about it, since all sorts of people claiming to be Christians do all sorts of things in the name of Jesus.

The first thing I need to do before I start out proper though and before anyone switches off, because they just read the word “politics” is that Christianity and the Bible are neither “left” nor “right”, though they have something to say about all the issues on the political boards across most countries in the world. However, I have never come across a political party that had 100% Christian values as I have never come across a political party claiming to be Christian in whose members there were the visible spiritual fruits of character and behaviour I would expect to see in Christians. Those who know me, probably know my political leanings, which I do not wish to express here, but they might very well show as I continue to type.

As I have mentioned earlier, people have to react to Jesus and to the Bible, there's no way around it, and they usually either reject all of it, or they use what they think they know about it in order to push their personal agenda and world view.
One of the world views which has highly influenced modern history and politics is communism. As a young man (I mean younger) I tried to see Christianity and communism as working hand in hand, but at a closer look, the most obvious thing is that Christianity is not communist (and it is not capitalist either).

The premise of Marxist communism is that every nation of the world is in a constant social struggle of classes: the poor, oppressed, working class against the rich governing class, and the dream of communism is that one day the proletariat (literally, those who for riches have only their children) would overthrow the leading class and change the nations into a government of equality, complete financial redistribution and mutual respect. The inconsistency of communism within itself is this: everyone is equal and deserving of the same respect, unless they disagree with me. The inconsistency there is between communism and Christianity is that communism identifies evil with the rich minority and sees everyone else as oppressed victims, while the Bible tells us that everyone is evil and all need to repent.

In his film called “Il Vangelo secondo Matteo” or “The Gospel according to St. Matthew” (which I admittedly have not seen), Pier Paolo Pasolini depicts Jesus as a Marxist preacher who attacks the powers of his day in favour of the poor people. This would be a perfect example of someone who uses the name of Jesus to push his own agenda, because in no gospel is Jesus rooting for anyone but his Father in heaven. Jesus was telling the religious people of his time that they had distorted the truth of the Old Testament, and never did he say anything against the Roman Empire, which was the real political power at the time; on the contrary, he told his disciples to live peaceably in the world, but that's something we'll talk about later. Pasolini, in his understanding of the world and probably to some degree his respect for the person of Jesus, saw something that was not in the text.

That interpretation, however enticing for those who hold a similar world view, is not shared by all communists, since most of them outright reject the Bible and its teachings, because they see that it is not consistent with their world view, but at least that's an honest reaction and they read the text right. However, I would point them to some places in the Bible they have obviously not read.

The Bible does actually talk about poverty and social iniquity: the purpose of the Law which God gave Moses was primarily to govern a nation effectively and in Deuteronomy we see probably the first mention in the whole of history of the need for social welfare (Deut. 15:7-11). This was revolutionary and that behaviour would indeed shock onlooking nations. The purpose of Israel as a nation was to be a light unto other nations, for them to see that the God of Israel was the one true God and glorify him as such. I add this parenthèse because most people will then say that God was unjust in choosing one nation above others and I would say to you, think about it as God's starting point in redeeming mankind (I would also say, you're not allowed to judge God).

About social and political injustice, the Bible cries out, particularly in Psalms 14 and 73, and the gist of them is this: God will judge those who commit these things, in this life or the next. The scary thing here is that people will say “that's not enough!”, because they look at these people and judge them, then look at their own lives and, making that comparison, declare themselves righteous, and thus doing, they sin, because instead of humbling themselves and repenting of their own pride and self-righteousness, they elevate themselves to the place of God and bring judgement upon others.
The Bible also talks against the rich capitalists who accumulate money and greedily do not pay proper wages to their labourers (James 5:1-6), but it generally talks against loving money instead of loving God! (Matthew 6:24) (Just in case people thought I was communist-bashing.)

My dad has a big problem about the fact that supposedly the Bible does not denounce slavery, which was a big social issue at that time, a very good reason for not believing it to be the Word of God. But what does the Bible say about slavery? Paul says to slaves: “obey your masters with respect and fear and sincerity of heart”. Oh my goodness! So does it condone mistreatment of humans? No! Paul says to masters: “Treat your slaves in the same way” (that is, with respect and fear and sincerity of heart!) (Ephesians 6) The fear he talks about is that of God. Why? Because God says “Love your neighbour as yourself”, and Jesus qualifies your neighbour as meaning everyone! (Luke 10:25-37)

So the Bible doesn't talk outright about whether slavery is right or wrong. Well, this is one of those cases in which we must say, “those were different times” and there were people who were slaves, that was their job and they were happy about it, if their masters treated them well. They were like full-time staff and I make no excuses for the analogy, because the way we think of slaves in our time is not the same as the way people thought back then and when we bring our own thinking to a text that has a different historical and cultural background, we automatically do a disservice to our understanding of it. God made every human being in His own likeness and wishes that all be treated equally. It's not because one's job is to serve another one that they are not equal and deserving of the same respect, it's their response to that that will show what is in their heart. *

But the point I want to get across here is that the Bible, though it sometimes does talk about social issues and social injustice, is not a book about social issues, it's not a book about the struggle of social classes, and it makes no apology for it, because it is talking about things that are far greater than the communist and capitalist world views!

Here's an interesting quote from Paul: “Were you a slave when you were called? Don't let it trouble you—although if you can gain your freedom, do so. For he who was a slave when he was called by the Lord is the Lord's freedman; similarly, he who was a free man when he was called is Christ's slave.” (1 Corinthians 7:21-22)

If you can gain freedom, do it, since in Christ you have freedom, but the one who was free when he became a Christian is a slave to Christ. This might seem very confusing to some, it's talking about being free but a slave at the same time, how does that work? Here's where the vision widens: it's not whether you are a slave or not, it's who you are a slave to! The Bible declares that the whole world is a prisoner, a slave to sin, but that if you trust in Jesus, you can become slaves of righteousness! In God's eyes there are only two teams: the World, a prisoner to sin and Satan... And the Church, those who have been rescued from their sin, by no merit of their own, thanks to Jesus' works and sacrifice! The problem with communism is that it says that when the working class gains power everything will be fine, but the truth is, those who are then in charge will become corrupt, because that is the condition of man's heart! But the great thing is that Jesus can change men and women's hearts by his power, granting them repentance. And the final outcome of the whole of history is going to be a new government, a monarchy, whose king is Jesus, but who will reign righteously forever and his people will all be equals, enjoying one another forever! And that is a far greater hope than any other.

---

* On a side note, when the Emperor Constantine came to power around at the beginning of the 4th Century and the church started getting some influence over his opinion and decisions (which also marked the beginning of the decline of the church, but that's for a different post), one of the things that happened was that they influenced the laws on slave-trade, to the point that people weren't allowed to be branded in the face any longer, which of course is wrong and barbaric, and parents were discouraged from giving up their children as slaves, by giving them a family allowance from the imperial treasuries, a practice way ahead of its time (similar to welfare state laws)! (ref.: F.F. Bruce, The Spreading Flame, p.296) Now, that doesn't seem like much, but the church didn't have all that much influence on matters outside of itself, and that seems like one of the first examples in history where Christian ethics influenced for the better the laws and practices of the Roman Empire, whilst only a few years previously they were getting persecuted by the same empire.

Arsenal VS Fulham, pensées

This is going to be mean, but I said I'd write about it...

Two weeks ago, for work I was invited to accompany our students on an excursion to see the Fulham - Arsenal game in Fulham Stadium... I honestly thought I would get into the atmosphere of the game but...

If I believed in evolution, I would say that evident proof for it is seen in the crowds of supporters at a live football match; I have never seen so many apes together in one place at the same time, standing up and sitting down at random moments, flinging things erratically, making odd hand gestures and sounds that would suggest there might be intelligence in there, to the hopeful scientist...
I mean, come on there is clearly a type of football supporter that is loud, hairy and overweight, with the man-titties that those apes have too, though I couldn't help notice a pair of twin gibbons, sitting fairly close to me, skinny and bald, the sounds they made were more like imitations of everyone else, rather than spontaneous... They frustrated me more than anyone else because they wouldn't shut up! On top of that they started swearing at the goalkeeper from the other team, who was just playing and doing his job!

I honestly tried to enjoy the game, but it was one of the most boring things ever! The players themselves were clearly unevenly matched, Fulham was getting rinsed and I couldn't believe that its supporters were getting angry and frustrated, their team was so far inferior to Arsenal. In truth, apart from the three goals, nothing much happened and actually, being so close to the game just helped me realise one of the saddest things ever: these men here were just playing a game and 25,000 people were watching them. Worst of all, the people watching were there to make a sacrifice to their idol, by spending money, time and standing up to chant nonsensical things and swear at the players of the other team.
That night, over half of those people went home unfulfilled by their religion.


Post-Scriptum: Admittedly, many football supporters are not the way I have just described them, these are just my humourous thoughts about this experience (sorry if you don't appreciate the humour). However, it is a sobering truth that many in this country and abroad organise their lives around football and it becomes their idol and their worship, detracting their attention from far greater things...

Hello... It's been a while!

Hello, I know very few people will actually read this but please believe me when I say I am truly sorry for the lack of new posts which has lasted now for about six months. I do intend to start posting again regularly and to do the things I said in the last post but my life has been somewhat disjointed in the last six months, as you may or may not know! My plans changed for this year, I was unemployed and homeless for a couple months (thank God some great people put me up in that period!) but now I am in Rome, yes indeed, and am following a course with the International House organisation, to teach English as a foreign language... Guess that's the employment path I'm taking, languages, and I'm actually very excited about it, because I get to be pedantic without being made fun of! It's real fun and I am learning so much! There is so much to know and the teaching I'm getting is not only top-notch but also, I believe, the kind in which I thrive: hands on learning, practical seminars, stimulating subjects and self-improvement aims.

I'll try out for the Université de Genève exams in March again, hoping to get in, but this could be a good career path for the next few years... I do want to keep studying and there are so many things to study and learn, but one has to do it one at a time... One thing I really want to do is form my ecclesiology really well; for those who don't know what that is, it's just a smart word to say "the way I believe church should be built and why"; why? To know what I stand for and why, what is un-negotiable and what doesn't need to be that rigid and to be able to convey to people who ask me and who want to argue why it is the best way, not because I say so, but because God does.

A book which I am re-reading and which is greatly, not only stimulating me, but also confirming a lot of my personal meditations on certain church matters is called "Confessions of a Reformission Rev." It is, quite simply, one of the best books I have ever read! Mark Driscoll has been given great insight by God into many church matters through the extraordinary experiences he and his congregation have had in building their mega-church from nothing in the space of a decade. What I love about Mark is his unswerving commitment to elevate Scripture and God's will above his opinion and his unwavering focus on the mission which Jesus has set him on: to reach Seattle with the power of the gospel. I need that attitude in my heart when it comes to ministry, and I want to learn not only to cultivate it, but also to infect others with it!

Right, gotta go, keep checking if you can!

Writing Projects

Hello bloggers and blog-readers! I don't know how many of you out there are still checking this website, I realise the last time I updated it was over a month ago, whoops! The reason for this, apart from the fact that I still don't have internet at home, is also because I am not doing much creative writing. I've got a few ideas in the creative pipeline, but my writing efforts are at the moment being employed in a pretty big project, which should be over soon. I'm writing a chapter for the Youth Work Manual of my church, something I'm very excited about. I get to write about "discipleship", the question about following Jesus, biblical models for it, useful tools etc. It is nearing 5000 words at the moment and might be in the end something like 7000 words. Just like my dissertation, only interesting and helpful to someone! Anyway, that's what I hope...

When I finish that, I have the intention of starting a series of posts on the Bible, writing first about the power of Scripture then going through some books and writing some passage commentaries. Hopefully, they will encourage and feed people who are interested in understanding Scripture better. I'll still be posting my creative writing and other stuff of course.

Great books that I have read recently and recommend:

Chasing the Dragon, the story of Jackie Pullinger
Taming the Tiger, the story of Tony Anthony
No Well-Worn Paths, the story of Terry Virgo and how God started his move of the Spirit in the '60s in the UK.

All three are exciting and encouraging books to read, they are great autobiographies of people who have seen their life being shaped by God's purposes. The first two are very fast-paced and full of exciting adventures, the third one just pumps me up for seeing God use me for his purposes and for seeing Jesus' Church restored to its beauty!

Peace out!

Joey

Gotta love the poetry

I know it has once again been a while since my last post, please forgive me all you ravenous readers out there... I have myself been reading a bit, some real good stuff and I'd like to put some quotes of C.S. Lewis' autobiography up. He is such a craftsman of literature; the way his sentences are built and each proposition is strung after another is a skill I can only hope to achieve one day.
But I don't have any Lewis today, what I have is some Hugo and some Rimbaud.
I found my mum's Oxford Book of French Verse while I was down in Orbetello over the holidays and asked her whether I could take it back with me. It has since been a place for me to delve in and dream and marvel at the magnificence of the verses of some of these French poets. It doesn't seem anything like English modern poetry it has such variety of themes, vocabularies and style figures.
I already loved Arthur Rimbaud's writings after having studied them for my baccalauréat, but I discovered Victor Hugo's verse, something spectacular. This one here is one of my favourites, short and beautiful:

Nuits de Juin

L'été, lorsque le jour a fui, de fleurs couverte
La plaine verse au loin un parfum enivrant ;
Les yeux fermés, l'oreille aux rumeurs entrouverte,
On ne dort qu'à demi d'un sommeil transparent.

Les astres sont plus purs, l'ombre paraît meilleure ;
Un vague demi-jour teint le dôme éternel ;
Et l'aube douce et pâle, en attendant son heure,
Semble toute la nuit errer au bas du ciel.

From Rimbaud, however, the classic Ma Bohème makes me dream everytime I read it, or recite it:

Je m'en allais, les poings dans mes poches crevées;
Mon paletot aussi devenait idéal;
J'allais sous le ciel, Muse! et j'étais ton féal;
Oh! là! là! que d'amours splendides j'ai rêvées!

Mon unique culotte avait un large trou.
-Petit Poucet rêveur, j'égrenais dans ma course
Des rimes. Mon auberge était à la Grande-Ourse.
-Mes étoiles au ciel avaient un doux frou-frou.

Et je les écoutais, assis au bord des routes,
Ces bons soirs de septembre où je sentais des gouttes
De rosée à mon front, comme un vin de vigueur;

Où, rimant au milieu des ombres fantastiques,
Comme des lyres, je tirais les élastiques
Des mes souliers blessés, un pied près de mon coeur!

My own stuff, I've spent some good time writing lyrics and music, nothing I'll put up here today, I'll just give a poor and short thing I wrote in January:

Picturesque Morning Hour

Amidst the kettle on and all my yawning
Time slowed down while making breakfast this morning:
What seemed to take thirty minutes only took ten.

Just as well, since a moment before
my ten minute shower actually took more,
it seems like things evened out in the end.

Ciao!

I'll keep writing

It seems like people are tired of going on this website to find the same posts as months ago with no updates... I don't care, I'll keep writing anyway. Sure, I do like comments and feedback on my work, but hey, whenever you find the time for it, I don't mind. The use of the blog has changed quite a bit anyway, I just post previously written stuff on it. Hey, You remember that poem I wrote about the Tuscan Countryside on a train? I've kind of grabbed some of it and made it into a song.
I have realised that I have quite a pile of creative writing and I really want to finalise the songs I have been in the process of writing for ages. Feedback is essential though, it's really about getting some good criticism. I'd love to be confident enough to perform my own stuff and be an artist in my own right (that sounds so pretentious, doesn't it?) . But more than that, playing with other people who bring something more, something really powerful to the songs, making them really awesome, really special music.
Before I ramble on too much, I'll peace out.

J.T.

Too bad I don't have the internet yet

It's been impossible to post anything for ages since I don't have the internet at home or at work, just thought I'd drop one, though I wonder if any of you have kept interest in this blog. I have been writing loads on paper, I'll put some of that up hopefully. I'm working at a school in Canterbury, been doing that since mid-October, it's been really great, teaching French. I have plenty of time to do youth work too, so I am really thankful to God for this position, which actually came about really miraculously! The French teacher in this school is my English teacher's sister!
Anyway, thought I'd write a bit about life before dropping this:

15/11/2006

The autumn trees that keep their leaves
are carnivals of brightness in blue skies
of sunny November days.

But in the night, in the shade of the streetlamps
they become ominous mountains of forms and thoughts.
Every knot and every curve giving a peculiar personality
to the pensive poplar, or is it a maple?

And every leaf, a thought he's holding on to.
Well, this is the season to let go;
Your precious pensées will plane and pose upon
the muddy ground and grass and gravel
and get walked upon by boots and sandals (if a Franciscan monk comes that way).

But friend, this is no disrespect to you,
no, your leaves give us this season's hues.
And if it weren't for that, November would be grey,
life would be so much more depressing and mundane.

Thank the Lord, who by his wonderful word,
holds every branch and leaf and fold and curve together
letting leaves fall and making this season so much better.

Believe it or not, it's me...

Sorry for keeping things so quiet for so long, I have had a very eventful and unplugged summer. Since my last entry I have finished my year of voluntary youth work and service in the church and am presently enjoying the last of three weeks of holiday, which have taken me through France, Switzerland and Italy. This year has been one of mighty personal growth, but there’s always room for more. I have really enjoyed the studying I have done this year and it has actually drawn me back into reading for leisure. Since about the age of twelve I stopped reading novels because of the rubbish we got given to read year in year out at school; things didn’t get better at university, but I am finally a book eater again!
I was working at an international summer school most of the summer, in between conferences - which were amazing - and earning money I was able to buy some “stuff”, CDs, DVDs, books… Funny enough, now that I’ve been working I have never had so little money! My rent and deposit just vanished it! Now I need a job for the time I get back to Canterbury - lean on Yahweh Jireh (God the Provider) - and I hope over this year to get on the right track for working with languages and find an adequate course to start next September, one which will then direct me to a fitting job. Oh yes, I’m twenty-two and I need to start getting serious about life! Especially if I want to see the things happen which God has spoken to me about…
I’m going to be joining the full-time work crowd, having to fit in any service and ministry - such as the mentoring of young men - in my spare time, just like most people, which will probably be quite challenging. One thing I want to work on this year is roughening up and being more radical in my faith, truly living out the things I believe about God, but I guess that’s what life in Christ is all about, getting to know Him more and more, living for him more and more. A Scripture has been ringing with me for a while, among others, like a real battle cry:

Philippians 1:21: “For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”

That is awesome, to be in the state of mind that everything I do on earth is for the glory of God, but to meet him in Heaven is preferable.
You must think I’m crazy and I want to reassure you that I don’t mean I want to die or go blow myself up in holy war, that’s not what biblical Christianity is about. What it means is that I want to honour God in everything I do in life. Obviously I don’t because I’m not perfect, thank Jesus that my salvation is based on his righteousness and not mine, but that is what my life is all about, there is truly nothing better in life than tasting of the goodness of God! I want to be a reflector of His glory, that others may see that He is the most beautiful thing there is, only Creator, created by no-one…

Anyway, if you have any translation jobs you want done, Yo! (e-mail me!)

Music that is impassioning me lately: anything by the David Crowder Band, check it: www.myspace.com/davidcrowderband

And here’s a little creative writing, I think it ain’t too bad!

27/08/2006

Strumming endlessly
Picking randomly
Jamming into the afterwards.
At the end I still have nothing
(There is laziness in this wishful creator)
I long to make something
(Strip it from me to obtain a beauty-filled creation).

That sound would burst forth originally
From my guitar
Making imagination and sensations of listeners
Run wild
Let sound define their thoughts and feelings
Into stories, musings,
Laughter and tears…

What people are always on the doorstep of
Not daring to step in.
What I’m always on the cusp of
But I never throw myself in.