Poem: Pilate reacts
Poem: Pilate reacts
by Marjorie Dobson
Poem: Pilate reacts What kind of king are you, you Jew? The priests condemn you for they say you spite them, yet you will not fight them. They say you claim to be a king to rule them. Do you just fool them? They throw your talk of kingdom in your face. You say that it is not your…
Matthew for Everyone Part 2 - The Wise and Wicked Girls
Matthew for Everyone Part 2 - The Wise and Wicked Girls
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Wise and Wicked Girls Matthew 25.1-13 The guests had all arrived and were seated. The organ was playing. The bridegroom and the best man had been there half an hour in advance. The photographers were waiting. The flowers had all been beautifully arranged. The choir had practi…
Imagining the Lectionary: Appearance and separation (Proper 27B, Ordinary 32B)
Imagining the Lectionary: Appearance and separation (Proper 27B, Ordinary 32B)
by David Perry
Imagining the Lectionary: Appearance and separation (Proper 27B/Ordinary 32B) Reflection accompanying images “Autumnal kaleidoscope” and “Autumn leaves fallen” We all fade like a leaf and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away (Isaiah 64:6) As he taught, he said, “Beware o…
Matthew for Everyone Part 2 - Warnings against Scribes and Pharisees
Matthew for Everyone Part 2 - Warnings against Scribes and Pharisees
by SPCK - N T Wright
Warnings against Scribes and Pharisees Matthew 23.1-12 The man in the camping shop was good at his job. ‘This is the kind of tent you’ll need,’ he said. ‘It’ll last through all weathers, enough room for all your kit, easy to put up.’ Gratefully, I added it to the pile of maps, so…
Matthew for Everyone Part 2 - The Parable of the Wedding Feast
Matthew for Everyone Part 2 - The Parable of the Wedding Feast
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Parable of the Wedding Feast Matthew 22.1-14 ‘The trouble with politicians today’, my friend said to me the other evening, ‘is that they always tell us that if we vote for them things will get better. If only they’d tell us the truth – that the world is a dangerous place, tha…
Matthew for Everyone Part 2 - Paying Taxes to Caesar
Matthew for Everyone Part 2 - Paying Taxes to Caesar
by SPCK - N T Wright
Paying Taxes to Caesar Matthew 22.15-22 It was election time. The politicians were out campaigning. The journalists were everywhere, interviewing people, taking photographs, setting up debates. Radio and television seemed full of it all. But this time round everyone seemed jumpy.…
Matthew for Everyone Part 2 - The Parable of the Tenants
Matthew for Everyone Part 2 - The Parable of the Tenants
by SPCK - N T Wright
The Parable of the Tenants Matthew 21.33-46 I had a dream last night, and the frustrating thing is that I can’t remember what it was about. I know that when I woke up it seemed very important; indeed, so important that I wanted to write it down, but I didn’t have the time. By the…
Matthew for Everyone Part 2 - Peter's Declaration of Jesus' Messiahship
Matthew for Everyone Part 2 - Peter's Declaration of Jesus' Messiahship
by SPCK - N T Wright
Peter’s Declaration of Jesus’ Messiahship Matthew 16.13-20 The Tibetan Buddhists believe in the transmigration of souls. When someone dies, they suppose that the soul of that person goes immediately into a different body, the body of a child born at the same instant. This belief …
Matthew for Everyone Part 2 - Jesus Predicts His Death
Matthew for Everyone Part 2 - Jesus Predicts His Death
by SPCK - N T Wright
Jesus Predicts His Death Matthew 16.21-28 When Lewis Carroll had become famous through his story Alice in Wonderland, he decided to follow it up with a second book in which both he and his readers would need to learn how to think inside out. In Alice through the Looking Glass he …
Unexpected Kindness
Unexpected Kindness
by Peter Cross
Unexpected Kindness I forgot my lunch today! I face the prospect of going hungry for a few hours. That is not important There is food at home, I can eat later, But anxiety begins to grow, The others remembered their sandwiches, They feel they must share whether they want to or no…
The Dustbin
The Dustbin
by Peter Cross
The Dustbin Today, my wife cleared out my wardrobe. She threw away an old shirt with torn sleeves and a stain down the front. I pretended it was my favourite, but really, I hated it. I didn't want to wear it but I felt I ought to - after all - it was I who had ripped the sleeves …
Poem: Ruth
Poem: Ruth
by Marjorie Dobson
Poem: Ruth Today I look with love upon this child - the baby that I never thought to bear - and, when he hears the story of my life, he’ll know he owes his being to God’s care. Those days in Moab seem so long ago, my family home a strange and distant place, for I have learned to …
Poem: Saintliness
Poem: Saintliness
by Marjorie Dobson
Poem: Saintliness The loss will hurt, but memories linger on and when the pain begins to ease and tears are drying – even if only for a time – the legacy that love has left begins to demonstrate its value, as words and looks and shared experiences drift through the troubled mind …
Monologue/drama: My Troubled Son
Monologue/drama: My Troubled Son
by Marjorie Dobson
Monologue/drama: My Troubled Son If you’ve got a few minutes to spare, I’d like to tell you about my son. Oh, yes! I’ve got a son! He doesn’t live round here any more, of course! Hasn’t done for years. No, my daughters look after me – and my sons-in-law - and it’s lovely to have …
Poem: Confusion
Poem: Confusion
by Marjorie Dobson
Poem: Confusion Overwhelmed by things we cannot explain and questions for which we have no answers, we struggle to make sense of anything we thought we understood. Along the way, we lose sight of truths that once formed the bedrock of our faith. Continues... ©Marjorie Dobson
Poem: Taste and see
Poem: Taste and see
by Marjorie Dobson
Poem: Taste and see. Whatever your taste – whether it’s for a bacon sandwich, or a cream scone, or fish and chips, or rare roast beef, or a fine wine, or a strong dark coffee, or an extra-strong peppermint – the thought of the taste and the imagination of the sensation of eating,…
Paul for Everyone: Galatians and Thessalonians - Paul's Ministry to Thessalonica
Paul for Everyone: Galatians and Thessalonians - Paul's Ministry to Thessalonica
by SPCK - N T Wright
Paul’s Ministry to Thessalonica Thessalonians 2.1-8 The ancient world, like the modern one, learned to be cynical about almost everything. If a letter arrives offering me a wonderful free gift, I know it’s a trap to lure me into paying for something I don’t really want. If someon…
Poem: Wealthy, or wise?