Fiery Preaching

One of local vicars is a member of the Magic Circle, so it shouldn't surprise me that not far from here is another who breathes fire:

A fairly unforgettable way to mark Pentecost, nice little video clip here. The vicar Nick Davies comes across very well, and there seems to be a decent amount of media savvy here, with the local BBC cameras being present to film the service. Turns out he's not the only fire-breathing vicar.

Great way to present a good message. There are vicars all over Gloucestershire now learning how to gargle turps, and no that's not in preparation for General Synod.

Cardboard Cathedral

Christchurch Cathedral in New Zealand, damaged beyond repair in the recent earthquake, is being replaced by a temporary structure made partly of cardboard. The new building will cost only $4m NZ dollars, which is roughly £2m. It will seat 700+ people and can be built in 3 months.

Cardboard is an ideal building material because it’s readily available, recyclable and surprisingly strong. “The strength of the building has nothing to do with the strength of the material,” says Shigeru Ban (the architect). “Even concrete buildings can be destroyed by earthquakes very easily. But paper buildings cannot be destroyed by earthquakes.” It’s also consistently low-cost. Normally after disasters the price of building materials goes higher, but since this is not a traditional building material, it’s very easy to get,” he says. Ban’s temporary buildings are weatherproof, fire resistant and secure, and have lasted for upwards of 20 years. They can be transported easily and deconstructed and recycled when their working life is over. If the Christchurch 'Cardboard Cathedral proceeds, the cardboard tubes will be locally produced.


more pics here. Bit late on this, as it was in the papers last week, but as an Anglican I see it as my duty to be slightly late on social trends. Can't help but feel it might get uncomfortably soggy if they built one in the UK, but I'm sure they've thought of that.

Prayer Spaces in Schools

Prayer Spaces in Schools Teaser from Prayer Spaces In Schools on Vimeo.

An excellent new website, packed full of ideas and information about how to set up prayer spaces in primary and secondary schools. It's emerged from grassroots practice, and seems to be catching on all over the place. From the site:

In the UK, prayer spaces are spreading, and they're spreading fast.

Schools and youth workers are finding that these creative, prayer/reflective spaces provide a simple, effective way to communicate and to welcome children and young people into an experience of the Christian faith. They offer an invitation to 'belong' without requiring any particular 'belief'.

"I’ve never seen prayer displayed or experienced like this before. It’s made me realise how many different ways prayer can be appreciated. it’s opened up religion into my life. Thank you!"

Teachers and other educational staff are finding that prayer spaces (or 'soul spaces' or 'sacred spaces' or whatever other names they're being given) fit well with different curriculum areas - R.E. and Citizenship being the most obvious, but not the only ones - as well as with wider aspects of school life.

"Thank you for the amazing prayer experience that you have given us as staff, parents and for the students. It will have a totally transformational effect for many people. We are so appreciative of all that you have done for our school community, for all the unsociable hours, for the energy and strength you’ve injected to our spiritual life."

There are separate sections with ideas on prayer stations (interactive places for prayer), lessons and curriculum links.

And because they can be used by children, they can be used by adults too, so if you're after some creative ideas for prayer in regular worship, Messy Church, all-age worship, in the home or for your cell group, it's worth a browse as well.
A full version of the video above is being posted on 8th Feb.

Bible Word Clouds

Some clever people have rendered all 66 books of the Bible as word clouds, like the Mark one here. The full collection is at Sixty-Six Clouds.

Would make a great time filler for preachers meetings: give them a few of these and see if they can work out which book it is. (though the name at the bottom might be a giveaway....)

Ht Mark Meynells excellent Q treasure map.

How to Use Your Church Noticeboard

superb idea, done for a Baptist church in the US, via Church Marketing Sucks.

I'm not sure if this is one of those which only works if you stand in one place. Our church is by a main road, so we'd maybe need a sign with a pair of eyes that would 'follow' cars being driven at roughly 20 miles an hour. Or we could go really hi-tech, and get a number-plate reader, and have a sign which announced 'driver of AD55PTL, God wants you to cycle!' or something.

Bit like the talking ads in Minority Report, but without Tom Cruise, and in Yeovil.

We'd have to be careful not to get done by Lambeth Council for talking about God in something higher than a whisper.

Blessed: Preparing for Worship

Found this on FrSimon, I've been looking for some videos/meditations for a while to use before worship, which aren't the US-style 'countdown' version which you can buy from Sermon Central for $20, or whatever.



Simon has also uploaded stacks of vids onto Youtube, I particularly like this renewal of baptism vows, but there's plenty of other ones to browse. Probably not the sort of thing to use at Book of Common Prayer Evensong. Though you never know.

Missing the Joy?

"Adults who can't play aren't really mature enough"
"We think the world can't get along without us. One day a week it's good to discover that it does just fine."

Great meditation on Sabbath, rest, creativity and community.

Missing the Joy from The Work Of The People on Vimeo.

If you were after an alternative to Nooma, this might be it. Really provocative series of videos - this is No. 15. HT Evangelist Changing, who posts a really moving clip featuring my old theological college principal, John Goldingay.

How did they do that?

No idea what this song is about, but an incredible bit of artistry to put this video together.

Crosby Beach Labyrinth

Ht Jonny Baker, really creative act of 'guerilla worship' by the Dream network, and something that anyone could do on pretty much any beach, if they got down there early enough one morning at low tide. Inspiring.

Advent Calendars: from the novel to the nova

If you've not yet visited the Beyond blog to see/read about the Beach Hut Advent calendar currently happening on Brighton seafront, then go visit now, fantastic.

Equally fantastic is the Hubble Advent Calendar (ht Metacatholic, via Steve Tilley). The heavens declare the glory of God....