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“When the Holy Spirit will come upon you, you shall receive power ... to be my witnesses” (Acts 1:8). Being baptised in the Spirit of God in quite a spectacular way was the experience of the first disciples of Jesus in response to their obedience to his instruction to “Go wait in Jerusalem”. The image of the tongues of fire used perhaps by Luke to demonstrate the intensity of their experience, although we know fire was often an image used of the power of God even in the Old T

Acts 1:6–14 Picture the scene. Eleven men, a handful of women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, standing on a hillside outside Jerusalem, craning their necks at an empty sky. Jesus has just ascended into heaven, and two angels — because apparently two angels in white are required for moments like this — have appeared beside them with what might be the mildest rebuke in all of scripture: "Why do you stand here looking into the sky?" It's almost funny, isn't it? These are the peop

We owe much to the sixteenth century Reformation which, in theory, established our reliance upon faith and scripture. You can probably sense a ‘however’ coming here. Permit me to explain. I have been for a long time interested in how faith and religion develop, and especially how recognisable Christianity evolved from what people did by way of religion before there were features that we would understand. This is part of the anthropology of religion. Not too far away from my h

Did you know that today is International Dawn Chorus Day? A global celebration held on the first Sunday in May, inviting people to rise early and listen to the extraordinary symphony of birdsong that fills the air at daybreak. It began in the UK in the 1980s, started by environmentalist Chris Baines, and has grown into a worldwide event encouraging people to appreciate nature and support bird conservation. The dawn chorus reaches its peak in early May, when resident birds and

I don’t think that the word is printed within any version of the Bible, but it’s important anyway – ‘anthropocentric’. It describes the issue of humans treating themselves as if the universe revolves around them. Regarding the Bible, it includes the very common approach that results in people only finding within the writings what they want to find, which often results in partial or even misguided interpretation. Much damage is done this way. Drawing your attention to a short

Ephesians 6:10-17 As you read this reflection, I will be in a field. Rather an unusual place for me to spend a Sunday, I will admit, but this field is actually on an RAF base. RAF Wittering to be precise, and I will not be there alone. I will be surrounded by around 300 cadets and staff at the annual Wing Field Day for the South and East Midlands Wing. The day incudes inter-squadron competitions on activities including drill, aviation, first aid, orienteering, fieldcraft and

John 20:19-31 I have a confession to make. I reserved this spot, this Sunday. But I can’t remember who for! I didn’t write their name down. I can’t even find the email connected with it. I just sat here waiting for the email to drop with a nice little reflection in it. And the deadline approached. And still nothing. I’m beginning to doubt myself. Still, that’s quite topical. So I hope you don’t mind me writing two days in a row but I’m in a bit of a fix ... a bit like Thomas.

If someone dies, will they live again? All the days of my hard service I will wait for my renewal to come. (Job 14:14 - NIVUK) As Descartes, the French philosopher said, “I think therefore I am”, I wonder if I might add “and what will I be when I no longer am”? This is a question that Job and most people ask themselves at some point in their lives. Scripture tells us that Jesus’ resurrection from the tomb, where his human body had been laid, was the first fruits of his trium

Human nature is interesting to speculate about. However, rarely is the contrast between God and humans more evident than in the Gospel accounts of Jesus entering Jerusalem. It’s well worth thinking about this contrast. Very similarly to the historical account of Jesus’ ministry, our times are shot through with ambition and self-aggrandisement. Not only do the self-proclaimed social and political ‘leaders’ look for recognition, but also a comparable motivation is clear within

Congregationalists are not bound by the Lectionary, although many preachers find it useful. The set readings for today include a reading from John 11 which relates the raising of Lazarus. Jesus, Mary, Martha and Lazarus make a compelling narrative but this means that the reading from the Hebrew Scriptures (Ezekiel 37:1-14 – the valley of the dry bones) often gets neglected. I was fortunate to be brought up by parents who loved popular music; my first knowledge of the Ezekiel

Today we celebrate Mothering Sunday, the day each year when people returned to the church they grew up in and were baptised in to worship. These days it has turned into a day people refer to as Mother’s Day, when people honour their mothers as a time for celebration and the giving of gifts. It is a day when our thoughts turn to our own childhood, and our own mothers and give thanks and celebrate them. It’s a time when mothers and grandmothers hopefully receive attention from

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body,

Urdd Gobaith Cymru is one of those phrases that doesn’t translate easily into English. And yet everyone in Wales will know exactly what it is, whatever language they speak. It’s the Welsh youth movement that was formed in 1922. It has over 55,000 members between the ages of 8 and 25, supports 200 apprentices and is supported by 10,000 volunteers. Since 1929 it has held an annual Eisteddfod: this year’s festival on Ynys Môn, will welcome 100,000 visitors during the Spring Ba

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.” – Matt 13:45-46 Often, increasingly often, I find myself in the company of half-smiling sceptics who want to poke fun at my claim to be Christian. I really enjoy such encounters as it provides me with an opportunity to burst some bubbles. This was a recent skirmish, over coffee and cake with an ex-colleague and s