The church is dead... long live church...

Pitching far too High

All that I know now
I'm pitching far too high
I cannot behold
The gilted angel's robe
The guilted pierced soul
I cannot behold

And the heavens roll
And the trumpets blow
And the sun outside burns this uncertain soul

All my learning stops
Whilst trying to join the dots
That pin-prick the night
Sun streams its life through the glass
Scriptures and sermons elapse
Suddenly, I'm with you
I'm old enough now to decide
To leap out and loosen these ties
But something is grounding me
And it's something I like

And the heavens roll
And the trumpets blow
And the sun outside burns this uncertain soul

The truly wonderful Hope & Social - download this song Pitching Far Too High

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Peter Gabriel - Thought for Sunday

The story behind the song 'In Your Eyes' in the build up to the release of his New Blood CD where Peter Gabriel's songs have been re-interpreted with orchestral arrangements. Peter talks about ambiguity in love songs, of hearing a spiritual 'layer' in addition to the literal interpretation. The topic of 'Redeeming Culture' has been tackled in a number of previous posts including:

• We might as well be strangers - A song from Keane interpreted as the topic of the nativity
• Hymns and Spiritual songs - Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood 'In the presence of the Lord' 
• Music is a Voice of God - Billy Preston and Mary J Blige 'taking it to church' 
• Redemptive Rock and Spiritual Songs - 30 Seconds To Mars music, lyrics and engagement 
• Art, Music and falling short on GodPod - "There's got to be a better song to sing than this?" 
• Redeeming Culture - a video explaining the thinking behind curating mainstream music for church services of worship

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A Musical Missionary?

This little gem I picked up from Shane Hipps' Twitter stream. Shane is now partnering Rob Bell at Mars Hill, I first came across him as the author of one of my favourite books Flickering Pixels. Formerly he was at Trinity Mennonite Church in Phoenix, Arizona, a church I was privileged to offer some musical advice to recently...

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Priests just wanna have fun!

Filmed in Hungary and set to the very fine music of Blink 182 (explicit lyrics warning!) whose songs were featured in one of my fave TV series 'All the Small Things' as imaginative choral arrangements... h/t Andy Piercy

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The Anglican Matrix

Some of the things I'm beginning to learn about the Church of England with help from various sages:

clergy	jews
laity	gentiles
choirmaster	god
choir	trying
robes	robes
flower guild	see above
psalter	rare book
book of common prayer	red book
common worship	read book
hymn book	new book
sunday school	lambs
baptised (C of E only)	sheep
the rest of us	goats
administrator	donkey
treasurer	bankrupt
PCC	deluded
eastenders	never watch it
cleaners	angels
wardens	heroes

With respect to the lamented Beaker Folk of Husborne Crawley

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What's making y'all tick...

Still can't help it... must be the music biz heritage!

Top viewed BanksyBoy Briefings February 2010:

1 Why modern worship songs are crap - my most read post ever!
2 Let me through I'm an Anglican... not!
3 The Digital Economy Bill - Oxymoronic
=3 Take me Higher - A Lent thought with the short film 'Sign Language'
5 All the Small Things really matter - Choirs and stuff
=5 From Candleford (to Lark Rise) with Love
7 Christendom or Christianity and the controversial T-Shirt
8 Pete Rollins on Insurrecionist Theology
9 A welcome return for the Prog Rock definition post!
10 Seth Godin seems to get it right every time - here he completely nails it!

All Time top views (since Dec 2009)

1 <> Why modern worship songs are crap - my most read post ever! New at No 1!
2 >1 Ashamed Anglican? Bravo Father Tim and shame on you Archdeacon of York - should have stood by your man
3 <> Let me through I'm an Anglican... not!
4 >2 One of After The Fire's youngest fans comes up with a brilliant CD design
5 >4 Angels from the realms of... er, Norway! Breathtaking and truly wonderful music
6 >3 Great tidings of joy in the Brit film Nativity!
7 >6 Brilliant article in blokes mag Esquire by Greenbelt Festival speaker Shane Claiborne
8 >7 Whilst we allow poverty through inequality we are culpable for disasters like Haiti - Thank God for cancellation of Haiti's debt since
9 >5 After The Fire becomes International Rescue as ATF ring tone finds mobile in snow drift
10 <> Mumford & Sons, music to mend and inspire!

Top referring blogs February 2010 - A new No 1 up from 10 last month

1 <10 evangelistchanging.blogspot.com (Joe Haward)
2 >1 theartistandthetartist.blogspot.com (James & Maggie)
3 <8 cyber-coenobites.blogspot.com (Archdruid Eileen)
4 <> theconnexion.net (Richard Hall)
5 >2 elizaphanian.blogspot.com (Revd Sam)
6 >3 diggingalot.org (Graham Peacock)
7 <> churchmousepublishing.blogspot.com
8 >4 philipstreehouse.blogspot.com (Phil Ritchie)
9 <> bishopalan.blogspot.com (Bishop Alan Wilson)
10 >9 ocicbwneighbourhood.blogspot.com (Madpriest)

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All the small things... really matter

Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction... however, the wonderful 2009 BBC drama series 'All The Small Things' represents fiction which so closely matches Mersea truth it's uncanny.

This song is a choral version of American popular teen combo Blink 182, one of many excellent musical pieces on the DVD which should be watched by every church choir, pastor and congregation. The plot covers an comprehensive array of social, religious and family issues that touch the spirit deeply... it is a tragedy that plans for a new series have been dropped... buy this gem on DVD.

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