“I was hungry and…?”: Pilgrims to ‘The World Beyond’ in Children’s Fiction – C. S. Lewis, Henry van Dyke & John Bunyan.

The Last Judgment: The Gospel of Matthew tells us that the last ‘parable’ Jesus told before his trials and crucifixion was that of ‘the Final Judgment’, depicted above. It really reads more like an allegory, because of its intense symbolism: When the son of man comes in his glory … Before him will be gatheredContinue reading ““I was hungry and…?”: Pilgrims to ‘The World Beyond’ in Children’s Fiction – C. S. Lewis, Henry van Dyke & John Bunyan.”

Mythical Hymns of Creation: The Radical Story of Genesis and the Covenants of the Bible.

The Very Root and Origin of All Creation: According to dictionary definitions of ‘radical’, from the Latin radicalis, for ‘having roots’ or ‘proceeding from the root’ and meaning ‘fundamental; reaching to the centre or ultimate source’. The twentieth-century philosopher Raymond Williams wrote, in his 1976 publication Keywords, that ‘radical’ had been used as an adjectiveContinue reading “Mythical Hymns of Creation: The Radical Story of Genesis and the Covenants of the Bible.”

‘Something About Jesus’ – The Judaean Ministry and His ‘Last Week’: Gospel Stories.

The Servant King: Jesus’s close friends and followers from Galilee had great difficulty in getting out of their heads the widespread Jewish conviction that God’s chosen leader when he came would establish some kind of national kingdom, with a king and government. They had grown up with this idea, as Jesus himself had done, andContinue reading “‘Something About Jesus’ – The Judaean Ministry and His ‘Last Week’: Gospel Stories.”

Jesus as Story-teller and Poet: The Authenticity and Urgency of His Message.

Narratives from Nazareth: Jesus put what he had to say into stories. As Alan T Dale wrote in his Portrait of Jesus, he must always have have loved telling stories, even in his boyhood: Evening meals in Nazareth must have been hilarious times, and people must often have dropped into the builder’s yard for moreContinue reading “Jesus as Story-teller and Poet: The Authenticity and Urgency of His Message.”

Advent to Candlemas: The History of the Gospel Narratives of the Incarnation, Nativity and Epiphany.

Have put up your Christmas tree yet? For many people, especially in Britain, the beginning of Advent, or even earlier, is the time to put up the Christmas decorations. In Central Europe and in parts of the USA, it is more traditional to wait until Christmas Eve, 24th December. The ‘Twelfth Night’ of Christmas, theContinue reading “Advent to Candlemas: The History of the Gospel Narratives of the Incarnation, Nativity and Epiphany.”