Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) lived at a critical juncture of western culture when the arrival of the Aristotelian corpus in Latin translation reopened the question of the relation between faith and reason, calling into question the modus vivendi that had obtained for centuries.
Blog: Pictures-Books-Reflections
Being at Home
Posted on by James Woodward
The effect of being cherished is to make us feel ‘at home’. That is to say, we experience a feeling of at-home-ness that does not depend on being in a certain place or with certain people, but is an experience of welcome, strengthening, acceptance, care. There are people wi
Is the Church in Decline?
Posted on by James Woodward
I understand the neccesity not to give way to cynicism or despair - and to see the postive even or especially in difficult times but it is difficult to read these statistics in any other way than that of decline. How the Church responds and especially its Bishops will be fascinat
Conversion of St Paul
Posted on by James Woodward
Acts 9:1-20
9Meanwhile Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 2and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any who belonged to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jer
Will we work for Justice?
Posted on by James Woodward
And yet we know we cannot as Christians, or just as well-intentioned human beings, deny its claims upon us. Biblical Christianity is rooted in justice; the whole concept of righteousness, right relationship, begins with justice, with equal rights, opening out into an explosion o
How do we treat people?
Posted on by James Woodward
I remember that she was the most classless person I ever met. She treated everyone exactly the same, either as friends or as potential friends. She approached them with the same expectation that they had only been waiting for this opportunity to her the story of their lives. Wh
Who am I?
Posted on by James Woodward
Real
I’m not a symbol
I’m not a statistic
I’m not the inches in somebody’s column.
I’m not admirable, but
I’m not pitiable either.
I’m simply human.
If you turned me inside out,
you’d find fury, fear, refret and sorrow
struggling with the love and the
Ageing: Blessing or Burden?
Posted on by James Woodward
Last weekend I spent in Sarum College ( above) with a delightful and interesting group of people exploring the nature of age....
Here is a reflection from one of the members of the group:
‘Age: Blessing or Burden’ by Paul Scott
These are first thoughts, having just ret
Wulfstan
Posted on by James Woodward
St Wulfstan lived c. 1008 - 1095.
He served as Bishop of Worcester under the last two Saxon kings and the first two Norman kings. After the Norman Conquest he was responsible for the dismantling of the old Saxon cathedral and the building of a new one, of which the crypt is
How do we know God?
Posted on by James Woodward
He came to know God, that is, not by way of undoubted and self-evident truths but by the way of truths and opposing truths, by way of ‘’a coincidence of opposites.’’ These are two essential parts of insight, ‘’a learned ignorance’ (coincidentia oppositorum), as if
The Queens Six
Posted on by James Woodward
One of the pleasures of working at Windsor is the rich and varied diet of music. Our lay clerks work hard to maintain the discipline and quality of music in our daily services. It is a rich and illuminating diet of song.
Some of them have other work including singing. If you
Books
Posted on by James Woodward
Melvyn Bragg
12 Books that Changed the World (Hodder 2006)
What do we think about when we consider the great events of the history of the world? War, revolution, political upheaval or natural catastrophe?
Bragg shows us that there have been other places where great things ha
Better Care for Dementia?
Posted on by James Woodward
Dementia services in England are not getting the priority that was promised, the National Audit Office has said.
It urges the Department of Health to demonstrate that its dementia strategy, published last year, is not just words.
The plans include action to boost early diagno
Discernment and detachment?
Posted on by James Woodward
Designed to enable a person to regard all of life with an open mind and a willing heart, detachment – hold indifference – is the foundation of spiritual discernment. To discern is to choose between available options of the grounds that both are good but that one is more lik
Aelred of Hexham
Posted on by James Woodward
Aelred was born at Hexham in 1109. His father was a priest and he entered the Cistercian Order at Rievaulx in about 1133, after spending some years in the court of King David of Scotland. He became Abbot of Revesby in 1143 and returned to Rievaulx four years later to become abb
HM Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother
Posted on by James Woodward
I take some pride in the fairly challenging task of having read all 1100 page of this seven year research project! Good to learn more about Windsor from a slightly different perspective....
In 2002, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother’s coffin lay in state in Westminster Hall a
The Baptism of Christ
Posted on by James Woodward
Luke 3:15-22
As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, 16John answered all of them by saying, “I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worth
Energy Art Movement
Posted on by James Woodward
Chicago's cultural scene is soon to be energized by the most unusual art
movement to date, emerging from across the globe - the Energy Art Movement.
These artists uphold values and paint with a message. They look within
themselves to express their vision of what our world could
Quick Vegetable Curry
Posted on by James Woodward
A holiday discovery...... try it!
Ingredients
2 large aubergines, cut into quarters, thickly sliced
other veg as available
salt
good glug groundnut oil
2 onions, peeled and roughly chopped
3 large, juicy garlic cloves, peeled, chopped
finger-length piece fresh root ginger, p
The Music Room by Willaim Fiennes
Posted on by James Woodward
An ice bound Wales gave me every opportunity to dip into the bookshelves are here is one gem that is an exceptional read!
The Music Room is, at one level, a portrait of Fiennes’s broad-moated house, the source of his belonging, and his upbringing there until the age of 17 wh