Until I was
Nearly fifty
I rarely thought
Of age
But now
As I approach
Becoming
An elder
I find I want
To give all
That I know
To youth.
Those who sit
Skeptical
With hooded
Eyes
Wondering
If there really
Is
A path ahead
& Whether
There really
Are
Elders
Upon it
Yes. We are
Growing Older?
Posted on by James Woodward
The first fifty years of life give us the text;
the next thirty supply the commentary on it.
-Arthur Schopenhauer
light
Posted on by James Woodward
A poet
is someone
who can pour light
into a cup
then offer it
to refresh
your beautiful
parched
and
holy
heart.
Hafiz
Israel(4) Desert Places
Posted on by James Woodward
The Judean Desert is an area with a special morphological structure along the east of the Judean mountains. It stretches from the northeastern Negev to the east of Beit El, and is marked by terraces with escarpments. It ends in a steep escarpment dropping to the Dead Sea and
Israel (3) The Garden Tomb
Posted on by James Woodward
The Garden Tomb is believed by many to be the garden and sepulchre of Joseph of Arimathea, and therefore a possible site of the resurrection of Jesus. The Garden is owned and administered by The Garden Tomb ( Jerusalem) Association, a Charitable Trust based in the United Kingdom.
Israel – January 2011 – part 2: the Sea of Galilee
Posted on by James Woodward
Matthew 4.13-23
13He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the lake, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:
15 ‘Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali,
on the road by the sea, across t
Israel January 2011
Posted on by James Woodward
Last month I was fortunate to be able to go to Israel (10th -17th of January). I has been a very transformative experience and given me a great deal to reflect upon. I plan to share some of the images over the next few days.....
May the God who called our father Abraham to journe
Silence
Posted on by James Woodward
Silence is living, dynamic, and liberating. The practice of silence nourishes vigilance, self-knowledge, letting go, and the compassionate embrace of all whom we would otherwise be quick to condemn. Gradually we realize that whatever it is in us that sees the mind games we play
peace
Posted on by James Woodward
THE PEACE of great doors be for you.
Wait at the knobs, at the panel oblongs.
Wait for the great hinges.
The peace of great churches be for you,
Where the players of loft pipe organs
Practice old lovely fragments, alone.
The peace of great books be for you,
Stains of pressed
Sabbath
Posted on by James Woodward
Love in the triune God is open, connecting, freeing, playful, painful, transforming. Its two faces are labor and rest, ministry and sabbath. Such love is the fulfillment of all the commandments. For this we are born. Yet this love does not come easily. We are an open Dr. Je
printing
Posted on by James Woodward
For all the mysteries, engines, instruments, wherewith the world is filled, which we are able to frame and use to thy glory.
For all the trades, variety of operations, cities, temples, streets, bridges, mariner's compass, admirable picture, sculpture, writing, printing, song
Power and Influence?
Posted on by James Woodward
This rates very high amongst the endless pages of political memoirs produced in recent months.....
Taking Machiavelli first, Powell marshals voices from Napoleon to Isaiah Berlin to remind us what an extraordinary work Machiavelli's The Prince is. It grapples with the politica
GOING BEYOND EGO
Posted on by James Woodward
"In the earlier parts of your life, up through your mid-years,
you switch identity from ego to soul by doing spiritual practices.
In aging, life itself takes over a bit more. It becomes the practice
that takes you to the soul. Aging is the stage of transition and
ch
What is my question?
Posted on by James Woodward
"I think one of the great questions we can ask ourselves
is, What is my question? What is the question I am living,
what question have I been living since the moment I was born,
what is the essence of the pattern, and what’s the fierce,
leading edge of that pattern and t
Christians ‘indispensible’ to Middle East societies
Posted on by James Woodward
I thought this worth pondering upon.....
A leading commentator on Middle East issues has said that faith and civic leaders in the region have a responsibility to challenge "regimes that muzzle and polarise their peoples" along with the "religious totalitarianism" that fuels vi
Passing Judgement on Others?
Posted on by James Woodward
One of the most frequent ways in which this(sin) becomes visible, they suggest, is inattention, the failure to see what is truly there in front of us - because our own vision is clouded by self-obsession or self-satisfaction.
There are several variants of a story in which some
Human finitude
Posted on by James Woodward
Learning by suffering—pathei mathos in Aeschylus' phrase; but this means more than being undeceived: 'what a man has to learn through suffering is not this or that particular thing, but the knowledge of the limitations of humanity, of the absoluteness of the barrier which sep
Cathedrals
Posted on by James Woodward
In a way that seems to be more and more crucial to the modern quest for the spiritual, cathedrals can offer a transforming experience. If religion appeals to duty, it seems spirituality must deliver a tangible personal intuition - 'the tug of silver'.Cathedrals welcome the visi
Theology and Life?
Posted on by James Woodward
Basing theology on the lived experience of God has another important benefit: by including the experience of the whole person, rather than just their intellect, it allows for a theology that is as much of the heart as of the mind.
Theology is not compartmentalised, kept separa
generosity
Posted on by James Woodward
Lord, said David, since you do not need us,
why did you create these two worlds?
Reality replied: O prisoner of time,
I was a secret treasure of kindness and generosity,
and I wished this treasure to be known,
so I created a mirror: its shining face, the heart;
its darkened