Tag: featured

Resurrexit Sicut Dixit

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IC

The other day I was sitting in a church which I normally don’t visit, the Immaculate Conception in Old Town, San Diego. After communion I was looking at the crucifix behind the altar and saw the words “Resurrexit Sicut Dixit” written above it. Rather embaressingly, it occurred to me that I couldn’t say for certain what the English translation of these words should be. I’m always amazed at the number of times I come across things while visiting an unfamiliar church building. Good to see all that money spent on my Catholic education didn’t go to waste!

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Easter: The Pagan Conspiracy

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Creepy EasterI meant to write this post in the weeks leading up to last Easter, but I’m afraid it completely slipped my mind. Unfortunately, this meant that when Easter Sunday rolled around and all the “Easter is a pagan festival!” comments started to appear on Facebook and on blogs, I was repeatedly forced to write some off-the-cuff comments in response, rather than having something prepared here to which I could link.

I was reminded that I had intended to do this post a couple of days ago while reading an article in the Telegraph. The article in question was talking about how the Church of England has plans to create a new Pagan church to attract new people . Inter-faith dialog is one thing, but this sounds like something quite different. I’m intrigued as to what this’ll end up looking like. We’ll just have to wait and see…

So, I know Easter Sunday has long since passed. In fact, Pentecost has also been and gone and we’re even nearing the end of the Apostles’ Fast. However, I’ve decided to write a quick blog entry here in preparation for next year so that when we’re in the run up to Easter I’ll be ready 🙂

A festival by any other name…

The main thrust of most the comments I saw this year was over the word “Easter” itself. It was pointed out, ad nauseam, that the word “Easter” is most likely etymologically related to the word “Eostre”, a Germanic deity from paganism. The “logic” goes that, since the word “Easter” has pagan roots, the celebration itself must also be pagan. Makes sense, right? Err….no.

I’ll admit that when I see such comments I get a little irritated because I don’t think they’ve really thought through what it is that they’re saying nor have they applied their position consistently.

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Open hearts and sweaty palms

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Today I would like to discuss briefly a liturgical question of our time: should the congregation hold hands during the Our Father? In 1963, the Beatles sang “I wanna hold your hand”. Well, that’s all fine and good, but there’s a time and place for everything…

A couple of weeks ago a friend of mine sent me a link to an article which argues why the congregation should not hold hands during the Our Father. Broadly speaking, I agree with the arguments made in the article. However, when people bring up this subject, I often take a different tack to the explanation presented in the article…

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PWJ: S2E30 – AA – Justin Brierley

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Several times on Pints With Jack I have spoken about another podcast, “Unbelievable?”, hosted by Justin Brierley. Earlier in this Season I spoke about reading Justin’s book, remarking on the considerable number of C.S. Lewis quotations found throughout.

Following that episode, Justin and I connected on Twitter and I invited him onto the show to talk about C.S. Lewis, his faith, his podcast and his book.

S2E30: “After Hours” with Justin Brierley (Download)

If you enjoy this episode, you can subscribe manually, or any place where good podcasts can be found (iTunes, Google Play, Podbean, Stitcher, TuneIn and Overcast).

Time Stamps

03:20 – Drink-of-the-week and quote-of-the-week.
04:44 – Justin’s faith journey
08:30 – What was the genesis of your show, Unbelievable?
12:08 – Who have been some of your most memorable guests?
13:37 – How do you stay so calm during the debates?!
17:07 – What motivated you to write your book?
19:11 – Why is God the best explanation of human existence?
25:05 – Why is God the best explanation of human value?
30:19 – Why is God the best explanation of human purpose?
35:03 – Why does materialism undermine reason?
39:25 – How can we come to understand who Jesus is through Lewis’ Trilemma?
42:45 – How can you defend the Resurrection with the “Minimal Facts” approach?
52:26 – What does it mean to live in the Christian story?
55:03 – Upcoming “Unbelievable?” Projects
58:55 – Competition Details

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Meeting Christ in my father’s death

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Dad-3

My Dad’s birthday party (2007)

Today’s article is one which I’ve wanted to write for some time. You see, 2015 has been a very eventful year for me, but unfortunately much of it has been less-than-pleasant. In fact, I think I can say without exaggeration that this year has featured some of the most painful experiences of my life. Not least of these events was the death of my father in July. Up until now I haven’t said much about this publicly, but I would like to share a little bit about it today…

I had spent Independence Day with friends on Whidbey Island. It’s a truly delightful part of the world and I had a wonderful time there. We spent the day at the pool and had an evening of fine food and board games, followed by fireworks at the beach. The following morning, for some inexplicable reason, virtually everyone in the house rose early and went for a three-mile run. Since it was early on the day after a national holiday, we pretty much had the island to ourselves and in the crisp, early morning air, we passed several deer as we made our tour of the island. It was beautiful.

It was after breakfast that I received a message from my family back in England, asking me to call. A knot formed in my stomach; I had a suspicion as to the reason for this message. I excused myself and went out to my car, where I called my Mum. She confirmed what I had feared: my Dad was dying.

You see, my father had been diagnosed with Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma several years before. After several rounds of chemotherapy, his health seemed to be under control, but in recent months things hadn’t been looking so good. Infections had become increasingly common, necessitating numerous speedy trips to the hospital. My Mum said that Dad had suffered yet another infection, but unlike the previous ones, this one was certain to kill him. She told me that the hospital staff said that there was nothing more they could do and that it was unlikely he’d last another twenty-four hours. After hanging up the phone, I composed myself and went back into the house, said my goodbyes and was soon on my way back to Seattle.

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