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Science and God
I am sometimes greeted with surprise when people find that I am a vicar and also a scientist. Around 20 years ago, some prominent scientists did try to take on religion but their arguments soon faded, not least because they often attacked ideas of God that few people of faith hold. When I attend scientific…
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The Agony and the Ecstasy
And so another football season draws to it close, this Sunday (24th) with the last round of games of the Premiership. Some matters have been decided, but not all; glory or dejection still await the supporters of Spurs and West Ham, Bournemouth and Brighton. I am basking in Manchester Utd finishing 3rd and qualifying for the Champion’s League…
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Betrayal
Today (Friday) is St Matthias’s Day. Who?…. He is one of the many one-hit wonders of the Bible; elected by the remaining disciples to take the place of Judas who betrayed Jesus, never mentioned again. For obvious reasons, the Church does not have a St Judas’s Day, but Judas features as much in this day…
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David Attenborough, Nature and God.
It is unlikely that you will have missed that Sir David Attenborough is now 100; the BBC have been celebrating this for the last month. He has combined his passion of natural history and his skills as a TV presenter to shape the way nature documentaries are shown on the television. He has very largely…
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Thick and Thin Places
By the time you read this, I will be coming to the end of a week’s holiday on the Shetland Isles. For over 30 years I have had an annual trip to a Scottish island with a group of friends. When we started, we would think nothing of stopping off en-route to climb a Munro;…
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God and politics, again.
It may not have escaped peoples’ notice that there has been recently been an exchange of views between two prominent Americans; the US President, Donald Trump and the Pope, Leo XIV. It began with the Pope pointedly saying the Christ rejected the prayers of war mongers; the President responded by accusing Leo of being weak…
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Science and friendship
This last week I have been in Zurich, attending the 11th International Meeting on CGRP. CGRP (calcitonin gene-related peptide), is a chemical found in most nerves in the body. It mainly seems to play a role in protecting us from damage. Sometimes however, if it is released inappropriately from nerves, it can cause problems. This seems…
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Easter
In Glazeley Church, there is a stained glass window next to the pulpit, in memory of Lt Philip Crooks, who was killed in the First World War. It is a fine piece of work; it shows Philip, drawn from a photograph welcomed by angels; actually portraits of his sisters. In the background is a field…
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Palm Sunday
The church’s calendar builds to its climax over this coming week; as I write I am putting the last touches to the service for tomorrow, Palm Sunday. It is a bit rushed; I am just back from 5 days in Venice, largely spent in glorious churches. Most have representations of Palm Sunday; all have numerous…
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Passion Sunday
I have recently been doing a lot of funerals. I am a vicar, this is what we do. Each time I do a funeral I am aware that this is something poignant; a life has come to an end and there is usually grief associated with that. Sometimes it is possible to draw comfort from…
Benefice of Highley with Billingsley, Glazeley and Deuxhill and Chelmarsh
Knowing Jesus and Making Him Known
