Finished

Yes. The dissertation is all over. 15,842 words plus bibliography. It's very strange having completed it - I feel quite blank and empty, and also convinced it's complete rubbish.

I once heard Sting say he never completed an album, he only ever abandoned them - there are always more overdubs you can do. Sting, I'm not, but I feel I have abandoned this. There are always some more edits you can do, but it's going in warts and all. I can be a normal human being again (well as normal as I get)

Atheism

Enjoyed the end of the Today programme today, dealing with the 'simple' question: "Is God dead?" They had Profs Keith Ward, the theologian, and Peter Atkins to debate the point. It's funny hearing Prof Atkins, as I read chemistry at Oxford, so I went to his lectures on physical chemistry. (That's the physics of chemistry, not strenuous chemical experiments). I also own a book of his on the subject.

Peter Atkins is a remarkably confident and certain atheist, which I could respect in a weird sort of way, if it weren't for the fact that he comes across as so dogmatic. For him, all talk of God is vain superstition. In a funny sort of way, he has a lot in common with fundamentalists. There is just no room for argument or negotiation.

What was so striking was the way he bought into a dualist way of talking about God (although, of course there is nothing on one side of the dualism for him) For me, the reason the universe is in any sense comprehensible for the good Prof is proof enough of a rationality beyond and within it.

He would obviously disagree.

Bit Quiet

I have been a bit quiet on the blog front for a few days. It's been a combination of dissertation, other work, catching a bit of football and having a cold. It all left me a bit empty of ideas. I realised I needed to post something.

Last night I went to hear Tom Wright, the Bishp of Durham, lecturing in Blackburn. It was a lecture against secularism and fundamentalism, advocating a more considered and open conversation about faith and theology in the 'market square'. Having recently done a module on what's known as Radical Orthodoxy, a lot of the ideas were fairly familiar (not that Rt Revd. Wright is a member of that movement), but it was good to see a fullish cathedral listening to these ideas and engaging with them.

Essentially the point is that secularism and fundamentalism in Western culture are both products of the Enlightenment, which privatised faith, and ensured western discourse about faith was all centred on a secular/sacred dualism. Therefore, a 'secular' society finds it very difficult to have any kind of conversation with faith(s), which it sees as irrational and probably imaginary, and fundamentalists view the secular with a suspicion that it is evil and only the 'spiritual' is important. There is no integration or interface at any meaningful level. Both view all others as people who need to be persuaded to think like them.

If we can only 'get over' the Enlightenment (misleading name I have always felt) then an integrated approach which rejects that duality opens up the possibility of much more positive conversations between those who are adherents and believers, and those who are not in shaping communities.

It also means you can have a much more positive theological understanding of science, social science or other studies. If the material isn't 'evil' or even secular, then it may inform the person of faith. That's why I'm not a creationist (see earlier post) Why would the universe tell lies about itself, if we believe it has its origins and existence in God? Ironically, those who are most keen to advocate a literal creationism are most suspicious about any scientific conclusons drawn from the handiwork they attribute to God.

If faith isn't just imaginary and about escapism, it might offer useful insights into this world. But we can only earn that right if we take other people seriously.

Sorry I deviated from the good Bishop's talk, but just needed to muse for a bit. I'll come back to this one again.

Royal email?

A great moment when I opened the inbox today. An email from King David on a change of address. Interesting. Maybe he came back to Jerusalem to find his house buried under 3000 years of religious division, and needed a new royal pad?

Here's a screenshot of the relevant bit for evidence


No, it was an email from someone called David King in response to a message I submitted about an error on a website.

Still, a great way to attract attention in a sea of junk mail.

Nice one, David.

Slower progress

Ok. Only 11,500 today, but it was an England match. 2-0. Job done, a few misses. Things need to improve, but 6pts and none conceded is worth something

Even more words

Hit 11,000 words and still got to see NYPD Blue on More 4. Can things get any better? I suppose a thumping England victory tonight would help (especially if we can break the second half goal drought).

Word count

I don't suppose anyone else is remotely interested, but the dissertation hit 10,075 words tonight. It just helps to keep putting the milestones somewhere!

Pushchair conspiracy

The other day I was nearly run down by one of the latest generation of pushchairs. It was one of the deluxe padding, safety cage, Michelin ZX tyres, air-con... variety. Even more intimidating, it was double-width for twins, and was MASSIVE.

Not that long ago, most push-chairs were of the "fold up nearly as small as an umbrella, except for the wheels, which have a bit of dog poo attached" variety. What happened?

My theory is that it is a conspiracy between push chair manufacturers and the makers of big 4x4s and SUVs. The bigger the baby vehicle, the bigger boot (trunk to US readers) you need. So it's in everyone's interest to expand. Always thought it was a bit suspicious that some pushchairs were made by McLaren. Just wait, there'll be Volvo and Honda ones soon.

whyTunes?

Bought a track on iTunes the other day, and noticed at the bottom of the screen a little feature (this is the Mac OSX version) called Just For You or something similar. So I clicked it. It gave a set of recommended tracks, based on previous purchses. The truly distressing thing was that a Celine Dion track was on the list! What have I done to deserve this?

Then, relief. Of course - it was the Kelly Clarkson track my 8 year old bought. Must have triggered the random female power ballad algorithm. Relieved to see Buffalo Springfield listed further down the list - that's more like it!

Anyway, it's the Beta version - ie slightly unreliable test version, so hopefully Celine will soon vanish from my projected preferences

Mind you, Amazon did suggest a book called "Is it me, or is everything s***". They obviously have me sussed

Therapy music

Actually it's a question and a chance to write one of those lists. Our Church has a listening course, and after the exercise, they wanted to play something over the PA to signal to people to come back together. The idea is to have something amusing, but vaguely connected.

Candidates so far:

1) Shout - Tears for Fears
2) Listen - Buddy Holly.
3) Talk Talk - Talk Talk
4) I Don't Want to Talk About it - Everything But the Girl/Rod Stewart /(for purists) Crazy Horse*

*sung by Danny Whitten the writer of the song, who died Nov 1971.

Other contributions welcome

PS Dissertation count 9176 words (excluding footnotes)

Footballing thoughts continued

Sorry if this is a bore - I'll post something lightweight on the theodicy of Acts Chapter 5 in a bit.

Aussie view of World Cup football. 
"It's the 84th minute, we're a goal down, so we'd better win it or the bloody Poms will have one over us!" 

Genius! Result: Oz 3, Japan 1. Apparently they even have a plan as to how to beat Brazil. Aim high, fellas!

Also contemplating the most appropriate beer to drink during a World Cup match. Most people obviously go for Carling, or Budweiser (sponsor and source of those American ads in the ITV coverage). I have just bought some Brazilian beer from our local store, which was one a B.O.G.O.F offer. Somehow the taste of a winning nation seems appropriate. However, if the Aussies do it, I may restock with Fosters.

Full tasting notes will follow at a later date.

Footie first thoughts

Phew, through the first match and three points on the board. What did you think?

"Well, it was a game of two halves." [it actually was - in both senses]

OK I'll stop the cliches there, but England have got off to their usual shaky start, this time a little more successfully. No doubt the media will be full of "why did he take Owen off, put Hargreaves on, we're a striker short..." talk until the next shaky performance. Still, it was a great free kick that earned the goal.

Wonder what difference it would have made to our prospects over the years to have had a UK team?

Ryan Giggs would be one name that springs to mind, and what about George Best on the field in that fantastic match against Brazil in 1970? We'll never know, but I suspect more success may have come our nation's way. After all, it's very odd that one sovereign state should have four (weakened) teams. The privilege of being first in the game, I suppose. Also means we can't enter the Olympic soccer tournament.

We'll have to settle for how things are, but let's hope they play a bit better next time.


PS 8750 words.

8500 and counting

Those who know me well are aware of two truths about me:

1. I work to deadlines - by which I mean I finish things very shortly before the deadline, never long in advance.
2. Any planning I do looks like shapeless chaos for a long while, and then it comes together. I am rarely able to draw up a neat plan and then execute it.

I have often wondered what it must be like to plan a piece of work - like an essay or a dissertation with methodical sections. Anyway, my 15,000 word dissertation is now moving from the amorphous stage to something readable. Maybe I'll finish it. Possibly I'll even get it bound and handed in on time. Over half way through getting typed up, so you never know...

Cartoon by Dave Walker. Find more cartoons you can freely re-use on your blog at We Blog Cartoons.

Omen or just a few numbers?

Saw some quite amusing coverage concerning today's date on the BBC website, called the Nick of Time. It all centres around the fact that today is 06/06/06 or 666 if you are going to be dramatic about it. You can enjoy the Beeb's coverage here Rather in the same way that the Millennium (that's two 'l's and two 'n's) occupied some people's imaginations to a superstitious degree, so the number 666 seems to have a grip on certain kinds of Christians (ironically the ones who would be most damning of anyone being superstitious!)

The number itself gets dismissed by one Satanist group as a Christian number, but at least it's an excuse for a good party. The origin is of course the number of the Beast in the book of Revelation (Rev 13:18). The best explanation I have seen is that it is a way of naming Emperor Nero in code - that's the way the whole book works, as far as I can see. I quote from the BBC again:

"One theory is that the letters "add up", in the form of numerology called Gematria, to Nero or "Neron Caesar", written as "Nrwn Qsr" in Hebrew letters
r = 200; s = 60; q = 100; n = 50; w = 6; r = 200; n = 50 Total: 666"

It all comes down to a rather arbitrary calculations of dates and times, and no doubt it will be marked by occultists and Christians alike for very different reasons. Personally I won't be joining either of them!

Bits 'n' Pieces

No, not another excursion into 60s music - I'll leave it there with Arthur Brown. Just that I don't have any deep and meaningful paragraphs to write - too busy with a dissertation to write (15,000 words. about 6,000 in the machine!). However felt the need to provide a brief update on previous entries.

The entertainment posters on the A6 are displaying the local entertainment fare again. This time it's a 'Glenn Miller Sound' orchestra, Country legends (i.e hairy blokes in jeans you've never heard of), something non-memorable, and a band called Talon, who sound like they should be a thrash metal outfit, but are in fact an Eagles tribute band. Take it Easy, fellas.

The garden birdlife has taken on a new a noisy feature - blue tits are nesting just under the eaves of our house. Mum and dad can be seeing ferrying food in and out of an unbelievably small hole in the woodwork under a tile. Each time they do, a chorus of cheeping starts. Just like human families, then?

Pentecost revisited

Just to say that my best suggestion for a Pentecost song would be 'Fire' by The Crazy World of Arthur Brown. You can view it here!! How good is that?

Particularly excellent entry by my good friend Steve Tilley on Pentecost

Mustard Seed Shavings: All Night Party

Pentecost

When I was still vicar in a middle-of-the-road parish in Coventry, Pentecost hymns were fairly easy to choose - Breathe on Me Breath of God to the less-miserable tune was about as lively as it got. O thou who camest, Come down O love divine... filled the list out. Since being in a place where much more contemporary stuff is used again, it's been interesting to see how few lively Pentecost worship songs there are. They are usually quite slow and even a bit dreary.

The surprising thing is that you would expect charismatics to be enthusiastic about Pentecost. Feeling the need to write a song, but I know I never will. If only I was a completer-finisher (and knew how to use the subjunctive properly).

Cliché

A recent radio programme was lamenting the number of clichés being used by presenters and newsreaders. It made me wonder when something becomes a cliché. How many times does a phrase have to be used before it qualifies, and why do some phrases escape the label? After all, no-one says "God is love" is a cliché.

I suppose repetition and meaninglessness have to be qualities of a good cliché. Politicians have a particular skill at their deployment, along with the legendary linguistic skills of English football managers. Ernest Bevin once described a fellow politician as "clitch after clitch" (His pronunciation left a little to be desired!) I am sure we can agree on that, but what about Christian clichés? Maybe we ought to try and start a list.

Please contribute, because at the end of the day, I'll be over the moon to hear from you and sick as a parrot if I don't.