Learning to Walk

standards in public life

The news this summer, dominated as it was by the MP's expenses scandal, reminded us all of the fact that in high profile positions one's standards are there for all to see and scrutinise.  One group who quite naturally fall into such a position are professional sports people who adorn the pages of our newspapers on an almost daily basis for their choice of car, drink, lover or lifestyle.  So often it is footballers (and their WAGS) who dominate these stories but over recent years rugby has had a growing number of celebrity couples and pin up boys.   The raised profile of elite players has led to a rasing of the games overall profile - clearly a good thing - although it can also lead to far less glamorous or wanted stories.

Such an unglamorous story has, unfortunately, been dominating the back pages over the past few weeks.  'Bloodgate' has cast a shadow over Rugby Union in an unprecedented manner and the sport must now work hard to shine up its somewhat tainted image.  It also forces me to consider some of the actions that I have in the past or may in the future carry out in the name of the team.  For example, in rugby the game cannot go on if a front row player is injured.  This has led to the common practice of a front row player going down 'injured' at a strategically appropriate time, normally when his or her team are extremely short of breath!  The question I, as a front row player and captain am forced to ask is this: "Does this differ at all from faking a blood injury to bring a substituted player back on to the field?"  The short answer is 'not sure'.  In conversation with team mates we have discussed the fact that, ultimately, the 'injured' player receives treatment and the game will recommence - 15 on 15, no changes made.  Yet whilst this is the case the momentum that the opposition may have had will have been lost and, therefore, an unfair advantage will have been gained.

So what to do?  Everyone does it, it always has been done.  But hasn't God called me to live differently to the world?  To be in it but not to conform to its standards?

And so I have my answer.  No more tactical breathers.  But what about all the other areas where we push the laws of our great sport to the limit...

beautiful people

Following on from the "cute guy" in the Mystery Worshipper's review of a morning service at St Silas I was interested to read about the Italian priest who's holding a beauty pageant... for nuns!

Perhaps the SEC might try something similar for clergy?

I wonder who'd come out on top...

'tis the season...

...to be bitten by midges.

Following on from Thursday night's outdoor training session I realised that I have been bitten in several places down my legs.  But perhaps it can serve as some sort of lesson in self control as I attempt not to 'itch' them.

Mental note to self; wear lycra trousers next time!

day in pictures (or not)

Happy Easter!

We had a great service this morning and the church was absolutely rammed.  A few of us had got there a little bit early in order to blow up 300 helium balloons and tie a message from St Silas to each of them.  Thankfully there were just about enough to go around (with a few stuck up somewhere in the rafters no doubt).  The sight of them being released is one of my favourite images of the year - a multi-coloured celebration on this special day.

On the way home we were caught in traffic due to the annual Easter Egg Run which involves lots of motor bikes making their way through the city.  I love watching it and was glad to find a good spot once again.

I took lots of pictures of both events but unfortunately still haven't figured out how to get them onto my computer; so if you want to see pictures (for now at least) you will have to look at last years pictures of the bike run and wait for someone else to publish pictures of the balloon release!

(GV has now posted some pics of this morning.)

no comment

No comment.

(But I wish I could sometimes.)

?

There are less than 24 hours to go until my first valentines day as a married man.  I guess that means that I really should stop waiting (hoping?!) that the post man will have so much to bring for me that he cannot manage it all on one bike, but it also means that I need to up my game when it comes to gift ideas.  So far I am really struggling, and with YKW having said that what she would really like is a DIY book from B and Q and me thinking that something more romantic would be more appropriate she may end up with very little!

At least very little that she knows is from me as anything I send will be signed with no more than a mysterious '?'

second chances

If I hadn't been watching England's awful performance yesterday afternoon then I would have watched Dwain Chambers comeback as he won the 60m final at the world indoor trials (in athletics.)  The problem that is now facing UK Athletics is that Chambers has served a two year ban for taking performance enhancing drugs and they don't want to have him in their squad.  It will be interesting to see how this one ends, personally I hope that he makes the squad and think that it's a shame that high profile figures in British athletics have been saying otherwise, this article in The Sunday Times even suggesting that Chambers should be booed by fans.

The man has served his time, faced team-mates who have lost gold medals because of his actions, and dealt with the shame that such a 'crime' will have brought.  But it is now time for a second chance.  I hope that he gets it.

really?

In my reading and research for the final essay of term I naturally wanted to look at some views from both sides of the 'debate.'  On this website I found the following quote:

"When Christians today condemn homosexual behaviour as a sin and contrary to God's purpose they invariably quote the bible to back up their arguments.  Put crudely, but I don't think unfairly, the argument goes 'Homosexuality is condemned in the bible: the bible is the word of God: ergo, homosexual behaviour is sinful.'  Actually, as I said at the beginning of this book these people are not being honest.  The reason they condemn homosexual behaviour is because they are homophobic, the bible is simply an excuse."

The Oxford English Dictionary defines homophobia as follows:

"An intense aversion to homosexuality and homosexuals."

Based on this definition I would have to say that the statement above is incredibly unfair because even where a person believes that homosexuality is outside of God's purpose the majority of these people (in the case of people I know who take this stand, 100% of them) would have an incredibly warm and welcoming attitude to homosexuals.  It is something of a Christian cliche but it really is a case of 'loving the sinner' whilst 'hating the sin.'  This is also, as I discussed with a friend last night, just one area amongst many which the church needs to be focussing in on in the lives of her members.  Unfortunately the fact that this is the issue threatening to tear the church apart means that it is the one to which most space is given at the current time.

In my essay I also used the following (challenging) quote from Dr Margaret Gill's book Free to Love: Sexuality and Pastoral Care:

"It could be that God is less concerned about the rights or wrongs of homosexual practice than some of his followers."

I am not sure if "less concerned" about this issue is the right way of looking at it.  However I am pretty sure that, as I tried to make clear above, he is 'more concerned' about a bunch of other issues than some of us (myself included) realise.

So; Is it really true that those who oppose homosexual practice on biblical grounds are actually using the bible to cover up their homophobia? I would conclude with a resounding "No" whilst acknowledging that there will be (unfortunate) incidents where this is not the case.  I will finish with part of the concluding section of my essay, which I hope outlines the struggles that I am acutely aware of existing in this area:

"I agree with Margaret Gill who acknowledges at the end of her chapter 'Homosexuality and Same-Sex Friendships' that this is an extremely difficult subject to confront as, like her, I have a number of both close friends and relatives for whom homosexuality and (for some) the faith struggle is a daily issue."

It sure ain't easy is it?  But then who said it would be:

'Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If any of you want to come with me, you must forget yourself, carry your cross, and follow me..."'

A Prayer:

O God, make clear to us each road.  O God, make safe to us each steep; when we stumble, hold us; when we fall, lift us up.  When we are hard pressed with evil, deliver us; and bring us at last to Your glory.

the home straight

The exam this morning went as well as I could have hoped in that I was writing for all but about 2 minutes of the 2 hour exam.  I hope that having learnt enough to write for that long I will have passed!  I have two assignments to hand in tomorrow but they have been completed for a while, or so I thought...

Last week, having just finished the second of these assignments (the other was completed 2 weeks previously,) I went to the final lecture for that class.  At the lecture our tutor decided that they would help out with some advice for the assignment; the assignment which, with exams looming, most of us had already completed!  As I was onto my exam revision I decided to leave it but am now faced with a question:  Do I revise what I have written based on the tutors comments last week (it would involve serious revision and not just adding as I am right on the word limit,) or do I hand in what I have got - which I worked hard on and which I thought was quite good?  The latter is the most likely option, especially as I am cooking for the Alpha Course which is running at church tonight.  But it does force me to ask the question:  Why are lecturers giving essay advice in the last essay of the term when at the beginning of term they advise us not to let things pile up until the end?!

Whatever I decide I will be handing them in tomorrow, which will leave me on the home straight with 5 days to complete my final essay, an interesting topic which I am looking forward to getting on with.  The title for it is; 'A practicing homosexual seeks your help.  He feels what he is doing is wrong but is not sure of the teaching of scripture and has also sought assistance from non-Christian therapists.  Explain the counselling options open to you as his Christian counsellor.'

Did I say home straight?  With the 'controversy' surrounding the church with regards its stance on human sexuality I suspect that this term still has quite a way to run.

we don't do it like that

I have followed a couple of news stories over the past few weeks concerning law and justice in other countries.  Both the stories came from Islamic countries.

In both cases charges were brought against women and in both cases they were found guilty and received custodial sentences.  Had either case been in Britain then there would have been no possibility at all of either of these women ending up in court.  But that doesn't mean that I think that it was wrong that they did because (a fact that it seems many here are missing) they aren't in Britain.

In the west there are established ways of doing things - personally, politically, legally, morally, and I'm sure many more.  But that is not to say that these ways are right; in fact I'm sure that there are many of us who would say that much of what we witness in our own society is less than ideal.  This is also the case in non-western contexts: there are laws, codes and expectations, some of which we may feel are wrong.  If and where this is the case then, of course, we have every right to make our feelings known (so long as we allow such protest in reverse.)  But it would be wrong of us to make the assumption that simply because "we don't do it like that" it means that others shouldn't also.

Unfortunately, I think that that is often how we operate.