Goodhand in Banbury

Wednesday saw us taking the opportunity to meet up with old friends from our Stoke days in Birmingham. The city where I trained at the Queens Foundation for ministry and while I have been back occasionally the City centre has changed so much. Having managed to find each other!!!!  We set about the important task of getting coffee and cake and where better than the beautiful Art Museum Not a bad setting to start catching up, get the first coffee fix of the trip- oh plus the cake. Just so good to see old friends, to hear about their children and grandchildren. Most strange none of us appear to be missing work!!!! Duly fortified a wander around the art work.   Jacob Epstein Lucifer, 1945 It certainly stands out as you walk in. Joe Lycett - 'Mona Lisa Scott-Lee, 2024 'Some have commented that this is the greatest artwork of the 21st Century, marking a huge cultural renaissance for western civilisation. Others have said it's an ok painting of Lisa Scott-Lee from steps as the Mon

A short thought - The eternal Christ became Jesus In reading Richard Rohr’s   book ‘The Universal Christ’ he writes the following words. Christ is God, and Jesus is the Christ’s historical manifestation in time. Jesus is a Third someone, not just God and not just man, but God and human together. Two sentences which give so much to ponder and yet for me gives such clarity. As he writes elsewhere, ‘Christ is not Jesus’s surname'.   For those of us who tentatively understand God as Trinity, and so often speak of Father Son and Holy Spirit, it’s really helpful to widen and deepen what or who the second person of the Trinity is. For clearly the man Jesus did not pre-exist as his life takes place at a moment in time. But the Word who brought into existence everything and whose DNA is within all, did pre-exist and so in the incarnation of Jesus divinity and earth became one.   It won’t be long before the season of Advent is upon us and looking forward to the incarnation will become the fo

 Going to bed hoping that the people of America would elect Kamala Harris and not a convicted felon who is a narcissist, liar, rapist, useless businessman and non christian posing as one.  Yet I awoke to the news that in spite of his track record Trump will once again be the American president.  This is not a good day for democracy, and certainly not a good day for the women of America whose rights have already been eroded, and one can only suspect will further be eroded.  If he does what he says he would do, then Ukraine's future is in doubt, the rule of law in the united states will further be eroded. His presence will only encourage populist far right politicians around the world to act without restraint. He will undermine the NATO alliance, mess up the economics of the world with tariffs which will in fact hurt the very people who have elected him, as he gives further tax breaks to the super rich, and he will further divide people with his particular anti immigration stance.  H

We have always wanted to visit Brugge and just never seemed to get the opportunity.  So being on grandparent duty in London we took advantage of being in the capital to leave the car at our daughters and head for St Pancras International. It was a good trip out with a change at Brussels before we arrived at our destination. Quick drop off at our hotel in the centre, and then we sought out somewhere to eat, which we finally did being very hungry and it was getting late. The Golden Monkey Hotel did the trick and we could head back for a good nights rest after our travels. Rested and duly fortified with a good breakfast we set out to explore the city with fine weather adding to the enjoyment. So of course we took in a couple of churches as you do.  Saint Antony's with some amazing art work. and a wonderful set of station at the cross figures which may well appear in my future use . Jesus speaking with the women on the way amazing. Jesus falls. Then onto Saint Saviours Cathedral Of cou