Whoever has an ear to hear...

For those with family members, friends and senses that understand, an excellent mini TED talk...

P

Why does my heart feel so bad?

 

Blackie - from birth circa 1995 to 27th September 2011

Dear Lord, thank you for Your creation and for our Blackie.

Thank you for bringing her into our lives and the joy that she gave us.

Thank you for the home, comfort and security we were able to share with Blackie.

Now as we say goodbye help us to remember the joy and warmth we feel for her as we wipe away our tears.

Earth to earth, dust to dust...

In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Amen

Listening and watching the moment Lexie says goodbye in Monarch of the Glen...

Loving your neighbour...

Some serious wisdom from Russell Brand about the past week in the UK:

But I know, as we all intuitively know that the solution is all around us and it isn’t political, it is spiritual. Gandhi said 'Be the change you want to see in the world.'

In this simple sentiment we can find hope, as we can in the efforts of those cleaning up the debris and ash in bonhomous, broom-wielding posse’s. If we want to live in a society where people feel included, we must include them, where they feel represented, we must represent them and where they feel love and compassion for their communities then we, the members of that community, must find love and compassion for them.

Read Russell's full article here.

PB

Wednesday Wisdom...

Some recent links that caught my attention (and that, maybe, have yet to write about!)...

Music:
Mike Rimmer's eulogy for Gravy Train's guitarist, Norman Barratt
Have to confess the news of Norman's passing came as a tough one. Here was one of my contemporaries, we played many of the same stages, I admired his never flashy, expressive technique... The image of him playing his favourite cherry red Gibson 335 (special edition with Bigsby tremolo!), always reaching for the controls betwixt every phrase, while carefully chosen notes swooped and soared above everything else going on... He was a true musician's musician and a special guy.

Education:
Shane Claiborne and the Simple Way guys give out packs for school kids... click to help

Quirky:
A brilliant set of online jigsaw puzzles

Money:
Financial Times comment on the C of E's money troubles

Faith:
St Luke's church Kentish Town gets, ahem, born again

P

And the greatest of these...

LOVE WINS. from Rob Bell on Vimeo.

Seems the fundies are already up in arms... I thought we were supposed to WANT hell to be empty?! Oh well, seems I must be a post-modern, semi-evangelical, universalist something or other...

PB

Jesus is a Rochdale girl...

From Elbow's much heralded new album Build a Rocket Boys! comes this unplugged version of their song about love and care, sentiments described in the video by singer Guy Garvey. I love the lyrical layers, no idea if it's intentional or subliminal, sounds a lot like the passage in Matthew 10 that my buddy James The Artist (and musician!) drew attention to this week...

P

I Wish So Bad...

The Voice Project is a brilliant website that was setup to support Northern Ugandan women that have suffered much over the last few years. On a visit by The Voice Project the ladies sang their local songs and then asked to be taught one by their visitors. They learnt 'Suitcase', written by Joe Purdy, which was filmed as they sang it a capella. This video was eventually shown to Joe and the idea of filming artists performing, typically, an unplugged version of another artist's song which would then be then passed along as a 'baton' in a musical relay to the next artist.

As well as some rock premiership names including Peter Gabriel, which I featured here, and Mike Mills of REM who, impressively, recorded one of Billy Bragg pieces there are number of excellent lower league contributions as per the video above.

I find these very uplifting, as, taking The Shivers (above) for example, the performers clearly love the song they've chosen and their interpretation is uniquely special. They take ownership of the song giving these candid films a moment which captures the passion and emotion they pour out of their spirit.... Wonderful!

P

Haiti refugee camps - Sprawl with Arcade Fire

An incredible trailer for a forthcoming film called 'The Country Club' featuring superimposed images of the refugee camps and stores in Haiti over Google Earth maps of the area set to Arcade Fire's haunting track Sprawl (Flatland)...

the only golf course in Haiti has become an impromptu home to tens of thousands living beneath tarps due to a devastating earthquake. Out of the estimated half-million left homeless, this short documentary follows one 12-year old boy struggling to find hope despite heavy rains, instability, and a future unknown.

h/t coolpeoplecare

P

In the words of the rebel Jesus...

Re-post from last year - still listening and admiring Jackson Browne nailing it...

This amazing song from Jackson Browne is one of my fave Christmas pieces with so much truth and depth compared to other commercial stuff and what we sing in church. Verse two is really hard hitting linking 'Temple Trading' to both the church and environmental issues way back in the early nineties:

Ah, they call Him by the "Prince Of Peace"
And they call Him by "The Saviour"
And they pray to Him upon the seas
And in every bold endeavor
And they fill His churches with their pride and gold
As their faith in Him increases
But they've turned the nature that I worship in
From a temple to a robber's den
In the words of the rebel Jesus

In the last verse he apologises for appearing to be judgemental (which I wonder if that's another sideswipe at the established church!) before closing the song with the fantastic proclamation:

So I bid you pleasure and I bid you cheer
From a heathen and a pagan
On the side of the rebel Jesus

P

Stand up, stand up for Emmanuel Jal...

An Advent meditation from 'ethical rap' artist Emmanuel Jal, endorsed by the peacemaking initiative The Elders, in support of We Want Peace. Emmanuel has appeared at the Greenbelt Festival twice plus the stunning biographical film about his life 'War Child' was previewed there. That turned out to be one of those Greenbelt 'moments', as, when the film show became very delayed, a member of the audience, Shaz Brown, volunteered to perform some of her stunning and earthy urban poetry while we were waiting, everybody there will remember how amazing that was...

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me... he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners.

Isaiah 61:1

P

The Farmer's Prayer...

A distraught farmer finds all his cows frozen in the snow. He prays to God for help. A woman appears, puts her arms over his icy cows. They immediately defrost and start walking again. "Thank you so much", said the farmer, "you must be an angel sent by God?". "No", she said, "I'm Thora Hird"...

P

So Human, so divine...

 

For the next couple of days the painstaking task of bringing the Chilean miners to the surface goes on... it is impossible not to be deeply moved by the sight of the rescue capsule 'Fenix' appearing out of the top of the metal encased shaft with its precious cargo on board.

How cool is it that the Chilean Navy torpedo experts went to work to design and build the capsules? How special is it to see rescue teams using lifelong manual skills working in conjunction with some basic Newtonian Mechanics restoring families and stimulating prayers of thanks and joy?

May the process continue in safety and reach the conclusion that everyone longs for.

Greenbelt Festival 1974-2010 re-United...

 

Every so often a little bit of self promotion is unavoidable...! So here goes:

Saturday week 16th October 2010 After The Fire are delighted to have been asked to be part of this event to help raise funds and awareness the plight of the Dalit people of India via Life Association, a charity headed up by the noble Simon Hawthorne. The main attraction of the evening will be the re-union of the Bill Mason Band with the aforementioned Simon on guitar. Along with ourselves (After The Fire) and 70s legends The Movement Family Band the lovely songstress Hannah Atkins will be performing bringing the Greenbelt Festival connection right up to date after her stonking set in the Performance Café this year at #GB10.

For details of how to get tickets (via a PayPal donation) for this special one off event follow the Life Association link.

See you there?!

The Deadly Diarrhoea Song...

Nope, this is not just blokey toilet humour, it is a serious campaign creatively tackled by WaterAid with the byline: Dig Toilets Not Graves...

Something to donate this weekend?

PB

The Voice Project with Peter Gabriel

Using music as a tool for social change is one description of this brilliant video of Peter Gabriel covering Tom Waits song 'In the Neigbourhood' for The Voice Project, a strategic alliance with Oxfam America:

The Voice Project is a song-driven movement inspired by the women of Uganda who are using their voices as vehicles for change in the war-ravaged region of Northern Uganda, Southern Sudan, and Eastern Congo, an area that has been marred by violence for the last 24 years. The Voice Project is an attempt to support these incredible women and the peace movement in the region, and an effort to see how far a voice can carry.

It transpires, on reading more about this project on the Gabriel website, that one of the The Voice Project's founders is Peter's daughter Anna:

"Music has always been a part of my life and I believe it's one of the most powerful and effective tools to bring about change. My father has inspired me with his humanitarian work and has always been supportive of my work as a film maker so shooting this video bought together all aspects of my life in an amazing way."

P h/t @martinwroe

Kofi Annan and Didier Drogba’s World Cup guide

A challenging perspective on the World Cup from the Africa Progress Panel (APP). Above is a section of the Stats Table, download the full guide here (11Mb) from the APP website.

h/t @theElders

The Village People rule OK

Sometimes I'm really glad I do actually say what I think! For a while I have been commenting on how wonderful the in-house honey and mustard salad dressing tastes at the very best eating place on Mersea, The Art Café. I've been calling it 'Jungle Juice' and they've kindly been giving me extra helpings! Then on Friday, at our staff training lunch, the proprietors, the lovely Maggie and James presented me with my very own bottle of their delicious nectar!

A very chuffed and smiley BanksyBoy!

Blessed are the poor...

 

Easter suffering... fuel for forgiveness

From work of the people found on their blog.

P

Street Child World Cup... Lent 1

A noble initiative from the Amos Trust, the Deloitte Street Child World Cup takes place Between the 14th and the 23rd of March 2010 in Durban, South Africa, with endorsements from footballers David Beckham and Theo Walcott.

Check out the video on the Street Child website here and also Simon Mayo's excellent Telegraph article. Do get involved, people power and donations welcomed...

P