from Inward/Outward’s site
To Give My Life
Oscar Romero
I have often been threatened with death. Nevertheless, as a Christian, I do not believe in death without resurrection. If they kill me, I shall arise in the Salvadoran people. I say so without meaning to boast, with the greatest humility. As pastor, I am obliged by divine mandate to give my life for those I love.
Source: The Nonviolent Coming of God
#1 I’ll go crazy if I don’t go crazy tonight – U2 Artificial Horizon 2010. I dislike the original track of this song from No Line On The Horizon, it seems like the track out of place in the album – an echo of past styles – so when I secured Artificial Horizon I was well-pleased to hear this upbeat dance track live mix – the little surprise on the U2 360 tour.
#2 Beyond here lies nothing – Bob Dylan Together Through Life 2009. Dylan’s new album is a mixed bag but in this opening track he is at his lively crusty best.
#3 Little Favours – KT Tunstall Drastic Fantastic 2007. While KT could name her albums better, I enjoy the uncomplicated rawness of her songs – she is especially good to watch live (well on DVDs if the truth be known). Her being part of Neil Finn’s Seven World’s Collide project was what put me on to her).
#4 Loveblind – The Church Sometime Anywhere 1994. The Church have become a firm favourite in the last month or two – choosing two songs for this compilation over others has been a real challenge. My brother Dave has sent different songs over from Melbourne over the years but it has taken me a while to catch on. I love the completeness of this song – an interesting story and lovely music to bring it to life.
#5 Moment of Surrender – U2 No Line On The Horizon 2009. This is the second successive year this song has made the list. I rate it among U2’s best two or three songs – sublimely simple.
#6 Up to you now – Ben Harper & Relentless 7 White Lies For Dark Times 2009. The musicianship of this whole album is quite stunning – the Relentless 7 guys can really play – the guitarist, bassist and drummer are each individually brilliant yet bring it all together to make it a whole.
#7 Little suitcase – Luluc Dear Hamlyn 2008. Dave also sent over with these gentle soulful songs from this folk duo from Melbourne, Zoe Randell and Steve Hassett.
#8 I and I – Bob Dylan Infidels. I first heard this album in the year it was released but didn’t realise its value until recently. I would rate Infidels as my favourite Dylan album.
#9 Blessed one – Steve Kilbey Dabble 2001. It was this song from The Church leader that got me back into their music.
#10 Could you be loved – Bob Marley Uprising 1980. A little bit retro here! I got a copy of the CD after having had the LP when it was first released.
#11 Forever man – Eric Clapton & Steve Winwood Live From Madison Square Garden 2009. What a song, what a concert!
#12 In my secret life – Leonard Cohen Live In London 2009. There is a lot warmth, grace and humility of Cohen’s concert, as well as great musicianship – it was hard to choose a track for this compilation.
#13 Black silk ribbon – Bic Runga & KT Tunstall in the 7 Worlds Collide CD The Sun Came Out 2009. This was my introduction to KT and a nice blend of voices with NZ’s Bic Runga. Interestingly both artists have a part-Chinese heritage.
#14 Cortez the killer – The Church A Box Of Birds 1999. The original Neil Young & Crazy Horse song made it on last year’s list – here is a cover version that is arguably an equal, which is a big ask. The mood set by the band with the excellent guitar work and vocal power is a real delight – it is a long track and my pick for the best track on this compilation.
I also want to express a word of lament – it is harder to get Cd’s in this country. This love affair with downloading is undermining the CD industry – I (probably operating from a getting old perspective) love handling the CD – I love browsing the sleeve – I love the tactile placement of the CD into the machine. I love being able to put a collection of Cd’s together in the machine and pushing ‘random play’, and I love removing one of the Cd’s if it doesn’t quite fit. I love these things in the way I loved LP’s.
I subscribe (for free) to a daily quote from Inward/Outward from the Church of the Savior in Washington: http://www.inwardoutward.org/
This thought appeals!
Freed From Taking Ourselves Too Seriously
Conrad Hyers
Those who live in grace are freed from the necessity of taking themselves, their circumstances, their morality and opinions, their piety and beliefs, too seriously. They are free to laugh and play as children of God. As important as repentance is, we are not saved by our much weeping, any more than we are saved by acts of penitence. And the expression of salvation freely given and received is not weeping but laughter, or at least a weeping become laughter. Laughter and lightheartedness, at their fullest and freest, are the gift of divine grace.
Source: And God Created Laughter
I’ve often enjoyed David Hayward’s take on the world in his Naked Pastor blog – his cartoons are provocative – mostly for the church!
For the last 5 years near to or on my birthday I have put together a compilation of the songs I have enjoyed listening to the most over the year. I’m transferring the lists from my blogspot blog onto this one in preparation for my big 50 one in May.
Here’s 2007’s list:
Here’s my cd of songs I’ve enjoyed through the last year… the list is in order of making it a good mix more than actual preferences although #1 and #2 are tops with me.
Explanation for some of the choices included…
city of blinding lights – U2 opening track at the U2 concert we went to in Melbourne… alluding to the new Jerusalem???
isn’t it amazing – hothouse flowers
I used it at a memorable church service & went to a concert last year and they sung it!
lungs – cowboy junkies
part of an extra group of covers on the one soul now album ’04
my black heart – the ghost who walks
this is neil mccormick, rock critic and author of the brilliant I was Bono’s Doppelganger & U2 by U2 – I imported this from the UK and love it. He also released a song after the London bombings – you can see it on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DECobDuX_YQ Neil is in the middle of the clip holding his child.
wired – mephymology
this Dunedin NZ band are finding their way – a great bunch who stayed on their way north to tour in the summer. Check them out at http://www.mephymology.co.nz/ They have some tracks on their my space site from a great concert last year.
window in the skies – U2
used this at church after Easter… great lines esp in opening verse
accustomed to the light – dave dobbyn
Dave is one of NZ’s heros he played this one evening in ChCh this summer with band & orchestra – profound! As was his version of Cohen’s Hallelujah.
map of the problematique – muse
me and my boys enjoy these guys, i love this following dave’s song
magic bracelets – hothouse flowers
from the latest flowers album – full of optimism.
fade into you – mazzy star
a song on my brother’s compilation that struck a chord, one of my daughter’s favourites as well
not ready to make nice – dixie chicks
the most ‘pop’ of the songs on this list… i like the anger but hope they find a way to move on from their stand re George Bush and the stuff that came at them because of it!
nothing wrong with me – the audreys
also on the compilation… they won the best blues & roots album in Australia 2006 check them at http://www.theaudreys.com.au/
thunder road – cowboy junkies
A springsteen’s song in junkies style also from the one soul now extra cd
red right hand – nick cave & the bad seeds
a close competition with their song do you love me?
angel – massive attack
enjoyed this played on The West Wing end of series 4
forever young – bob dylan
I honestly hadn’t really heard this song until this year!
I will post the 2008 list shortly
We (Knox, St Giles & St Stephen’s) had a surprise reporter and cameraman turn up at church today. We featured in the 6pm bulletin on TV1: http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/change-venue-christchurch-easter-services-4139578
TV3 missed out because their reporter on Good Friday picked Jesus rising on Easter Monday!
We will try to put them right and invite them to join in next year!
17-4-11 St Stephen’s in Bryndwr Philippians 2:5-11
Reflection as we enter Holy Week by Mart the Rev
We enter Holy Week and the story is not new to us. From our childhoods we have known the sequence – the palm branches being waved and Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey – but within days a change in mood – Jesus the threat to the religious authorities – Jesus overturning tables in the temple and driving out the money changers – Jesus weeping over Jerusalem – the authorities cooking up charges – Judas trading information for silver – the washing of the feet and Last Supper in the upper room – the Garden of Gethsemane – the sleeping disciples – the arrest – Peter’s denial – Herod – Pilate – the crowd calling for Barabbas to be freed – the whipping – Pilate washing his hands of the whole thing – the crucifixion – the burial – and the third day.
And in the middle of this, Jesus… living out what he taught – Jesus, being found in human form… humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death – even death on a cross.
In the middle of the betrayal, denial, fleeing disciples, trumped-up charges, corrupt leadership, and the inevitable scapegoating, is Jesus. Innocence attacked. Truth sidelined. Love rejected. Life wasted.
We would wish that this sorry story was the end of such sequences. We would wish that the resurrection meant a once and for all end to violence and hate and corruption – that the kingdom of God revealed by Jesus would take root in the hearts of all people and God’s way of being would be the reality for all.
But we know that the kingdom come is also a kingdom coming – not here in its fullness even though we are invited and enabled to live into its fullness now.
No, the sorry cycle of betrayal, denial, fleeing disciples, trumped-up charges, corrupt leadership, and scapegoating continues on. It is as if the cast of Easter reappears in an endless cycle in the human story. And we get caught up in it as participants, sometimes intentionally and often unknowingly.
For we know of the corrupting powers at work in our lives – leaders who turn on their people, people we trusted betraying us, institutions set up to enable a cohesive society becoming forces that begin to oppress us, and once loyal friends gossiping behind our backs.
We know of untruths being peddled as dogma – we know of the truth being twisted for individual gain – and we know of people being scape-goated. And sometimes we participate in this willingly.
Jesus wasn’t the first or the last to be a scapegoat was he? It is easy to pull out a Saddam Hussein or a Colonel Gaddafi every year or two and vilify them – they are easy targets and of course they have done many things to oppress their people. It is easy to dismiss them, but a much harder task to scrutinise the systems that created space for their oppressive rules. Few seem interested in questioning the politics of arms sales and backroom deals that enabled these dictators to emerge (like who exactly sold the arms used against the Libyans to their government?). Few seem prepared to admit their hand in supporting these regimes while choosing to turn a blind eye to the myriad of horrible things that have been dished out on innocent people for years and years.
No, just hand over the scapegoat when it suits. Give us a Bernie Madoff or two and we can forgive the greed of a whole host of practices that led to the latest global financial crisis. (or in New Zealand Allan Hubbard who, whatever he has or has not done, does not fit the usual profile of a scapegoat!)
Let’s label someone as the black-sheep in the family and lump on him or her all of our collective derision so that the not so good stuff in the rest of us can be brushed over.
Let’s sack the coach when the team play badly.
Let’s set aside people from some other nationalities to be the focus of our strange need for one-upmanship and superiority: Moslems, the Maoris, the Asians… are we really any different from those who set up apartheid in South Africa – we may not have gone so far as they did but the seeds of hate are there. Why do we do this?
Holy Week unfolds before us, giving us opportunity to reflect again on the worst of what humanity can do and be, but also on what Jesus, the best of humanity, offered and offers.
Jesus shows us that with God, betrayal, denial and death does not have the last word. The corrupt and oppressive cycles of death in human life that seem to dominate us, do not need to continue. We are Easter people called and enabled to live by another code – the kingdom of God code – always life – always hope – always truth – always love.
Holy Week is a time for us to watch and walk alongside Jesus and reflect on who we are, what we are about, and where we are going.
More and more of the city centre is being opened up – the cordon is shrinking. While many damaged buildings are fenced off, the gaps in the streetscapes where broken buildings have been completely removed takes some getting used to.
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