Deadlines for my studies are pressing in on me so I went out again tonight to my local coffeehouse to hit the books for a couple of hours.
Alister McGrath, in the introduction to his Christian Theology: An Introduction, says that theology is one of the most exciting subjects to study. Some people may choose other words than exciting, but I would tend to agree with him. I'm not sure why people oppose Christianity as something only for weak or simple minded people. Yes, these people have much to gain from Christianity, but there is so much more to getting your head around the things of God. Should you desire you can plumb the depths of all things historical, philosophical, moral and eschatological within theology. For me tonight it was Christology - thinking about Christ.
One view which has really struck me in my reading this evening was the thought of a cosmological Logos Christology. (Now there's a Phrase to bring up at a dinner party.) In essence, seeing Jesus Christ as the Logos (Word/Reason/Reality/Wisdom) of God who always has and always will hold the entire cosmos together like some sort of ontological cement. To reject this Logos is to reject reality and begin to slip back into pre-creation non-being. But this Logos became incarnate in flesh and blood (Jesus) in order to redeem creation and prevent a return to disorder by repairing the fabric of the universe so that humanity can become participants in the divine nature.
That's pretty heavy, I know, and I'm not sure I fully grasp it. But that's what makes theology exciting, I suppose - the wanting to grasp it.
Tuesday, 20 March 2007
Tea 'n' Biscuits
Walking home from the coffeehouse tonight I needed to pop in to Tesco's to get some tea, biscuits, bread and a magazine for my wife who seems to have finally caught up with the rest of the household in suffering through the family cold.
McVitties chocolate digestives were on special offer so I opted for them rather than the usual 'Tesco Value' rubbish. Afterall, nobody makes them quite like McVitties do. (Hmm, McVitties. What a strange name.)
Suffering from the aftertaste of a couple of (not that great) cups of coffee I decided to open the packet of biscuits on the way home and enjoy a couple. Yum.
I didn't have any tea though as the kettle lead doesn't stretch that far.
McVitties chocolate digestives were on special offer so I opted for them rather than the usual 'Tesco Value' rubbish. Afterall, nobody makes them quite like McVitties do. (Hmm, McVitties. What a strange name.)
Suffering from the aftertaste of a couple of (not that great) cups of coffee I decided to open the packet of biscuits on the way home and enjoy a couple. Yum.
I didn't have any tea though as the kettle lead doesn't stretch that far.
Sunday, 11 March 2007
Worship
You can tell someone who has absolutely no social life because he goes out to a coffeehouse on a Saturday night. Alone. To study.
Hello. That's me.
In an attempt to catch up in my studies I'm taking spare moments here and there to do some reading. At the moment I'm studying a unit on the practice and theology of worship. So I decided to listen to some worship tracks on my mp3 player on the way to the cafe. Flicking through the choices I stopped on a song by Matt Redman called Lord, let your glory fall. I like this song so, as I hadn't listened to it for a while, I repeated it (three times I think). The song expresses a desire to see God reveal himself in glorious ways just like he did in ancient Biblical times.
Yeah. I like that. That would be amazing.
The particular focus of my studies on Saturday was looking at incorporating music in to liturgical worship. It's interesting because my faith background is very musical, but in no way liturgical - in the traditional sense of liturgy anyway. The books I was reading emphasised that the liturgy was the main act of worship and music should only be used to complement these words, not used as a stand alone form of worship. Hmm...I'm not sure about that.
However, I have found myself in recent years moving away from musical expressions of worship and being more interested in delving into the ancient traditions of the historical Church. But then I start to get confused and question myself as to who I am as a person of faith. Actually I've been doing a fair bit of that in recent years as I explore what I understand of theology, Christian mission and worship.
I suppose worship is something that, because of its eternal qualities, gives you a sense of connection to something/someone bigger. A kind of anchor, I guess, while you ask questions.
The ancients repeated a helpful phrase, a liturgy, a kind of anchor, which can be found in some of the Psalms of the Hebrew scriptures and which Matt Redman uses as a refrain in the song above. Addressing God then/now they/we sing:
You are good,
And Your love endures forever.
Hello. That's me.
In an attempt to catch up in my studies I'm taking spare moments here and there to do some reading. At the moment I'm studying a unit on the practice and theology of worship. So I decided to listen to some worship tracks on my mp3 player on the way to the cafe. Flicking through the choices I stopped on a song by Matt Redman called Lord, let your glory fall. I like this song so, as I hadn't listened to it for a while, I repeated it (three times I think). The song expresses a desire to see God reveal himself in glorious ways just like he did in ancient Biblical times.
Yeah. I like that. That would be amazing.
The particular focus of my studies on Saturday was looking at incorporating music in to liturgical worship. It's interesting because my faith background is very musical, but in no way liturgical - in the traditional sense of liturgy anyway. The books I was reading emphasised that the liturgy was the main act of worship and music should only be used to complement these words, not used as a stand alone form of worship. Hmm...I'm not sure about that.
However, I have found myself in recent years moving away from musical expressions of worship and being more interested in delving into the ancient traditions of the historical Church. But then I start to get confused and question myself as to who I am as a person of faith. Actually I've been doing a fair bit of that in recent years as I explore what I understand of theology, Christian mission and worship.
I suppose worship is something that, because of its eternal qualities, gives you a sense of connection to something/someone bigger. A kind of anchor, I guess, while you ask questions.
The ancients repeated a helpful phrase, a liturgy, a kind of anchor, which can be found in some of the Psalms of the Hebrew scriptures and which Matt Redman uses as a refrain in the song above. Addressing God then/now they/we sing:
You are good,
And Your love endures forever.
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