word | spirit | world | church
Jesus in the Tabernacle VII We turn to the altar for incense in Exodus 30. This slightly complicates the flow I’d described from inside to outside, as we step back from the courtyard—perhaps with the high priest we’ve just met—into the holy place to a new, third, item. They are instructed to make a small… Continue reading Let Incense Arise
It’s a dreary winter Saturday. Frost has limned the limbs of trees with a stark outline against the grey sky. The house is slow and lazy as we sleep and read and emerge into the world. A small bowl of hastily made dough has been waiting overnight, doubling in size as it prepares itself for… Continue reading The Story of Bread
Jesus in the Tabernacle VI Next the narrative moves through two sections I included earlier in this series, the boundaries of the courtyard and then the oil to burn in the lampstand. The instructions for the construction of the tabernacle then seem to be interrupted in Exodus 28 for a digression on the clothing of… Continue reading High Priest’s Clothes
How do we deal with being angry at God? Is that a legitimate emotion? It’s tempting to just point to the book of Job and encourage you to meditate there—which is not bad advice, though it’s a complex book—but it is an experience that we have all had at some point I imagine. Life under… Continue reading Being Angry at God
Jesus in the Tabernacle V The Altar is another box, though not a perfect cube this time. The acacia wood—tabernacle wood—is made into a box slightly shorter than the square on its top is wide. It has horns on its corners, but made of one piece with it. That’s skilled carpentry. The whole thing is… Continue reading The Altar
I’m a charismatic, and an occasionally whacky one. It’s not uncommon for people in my circles to highlight the importance of a 'spiritual realm' to how we understand the world. That’s where it can start to go off the rails. There are many mad things said under that heading, but it’s having a resurgence in… Continue reading Seen and Unseen
Jesus in the Tabernacle IV After the lampstand, the instructions given to Moses turn to the tabernacle itself, the tent in which ark and table and lampstand are placed. It’s made of ten curtains, with entwined blue and purple and scarlet yarns, woven with fine white linen. It’s made a very specific size. The intricacy… Continue reading The Tent
As I write the UK Parliament has voted ‘yay’ to the second reading of a bill to legalise assisted suicide. It’s been wildly reported internationally as being legalised, which is a slight misunderstanding of the system as another vote is required, but it seems likely it will continue to pass. Assuming it does, this is… Continue reading The Church After Assisted Suicide
Jesus in the Tabernacle III Next, Moses is instructed to build the lampstand, which sits in the holy place with the table for bread. The lampstand is shaped like a styilsed almond tree. Picture a menorah, but with the cup each like an almond flower, seven of them. It is made of pure, hammered gold… Continue reading The Lampstand
This is a guest post from Aaron Stead, responding to my post about a Theological Vision for Ministry, which was inspired by the book Ancient Wisdom for the Care of Souls. Aaron is studying for an MTh with Union School of Theology. Some time ago I was talking to a vicar who after 50 years… Continue reading Against Executive Pastors
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