Category Archives: Random Musings

Zadok the Priest

‘May the king live forever’ struck me as a strange thing to say, so I took a deep dive into whence that line came. Continue reading

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Sermon: In favour of the Voice to Parliament

The final paragraph of the Uluru Statement is: ‘In 1967 we were counted, in 2017 we seek to be heard. We leave base camp and start our trek across this vast country. We invite you to walk with us in a movement of the Australian people for a better future’. I do hope that Australians will walk together with First Nations people and approve the Voice, in numbers comparable to the 90% who voted ‘Yes’ in the 1967 Referendum, because doing so will be, I believe, an act of love. Continue reading

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There is no ‘war on Christianity’ in Australia

This was going to be in this Sunday’s sermon, but there’s no room for it. But it took me ages to find the correct Synod Minute, so I’m sticking it here so that I will remember it. There is no … Continue reading

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Reflection: The Offering

What I explained over the course of that year is that as a worship leader I stand up every single Sunday and tell a congregation something along the lines of, “Everything that we have is a gift from God, given to us to share”. If I mean that about my money, and my time, and my talents, then I could also mean this about a spare kidney, if I had one. Continue reading

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Covid19 Diary 12

Samuel Pepys: October 5, 1665The Bill, blessed be God, is less this week by 740 [deaths] of what it was last week. Today, for the first time in months, the number of deaths from covid19 over the past twenty-four hours … Continue reading

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Covid19 Diary 10: Signs of the Times

Samuel Pepys: July 20, 1665 … walked to Redriffe, where I hear the sickness is, and endeed is scattered almost everywhere – there dying 1089 of the plague this week … But Lord, to see how the plague spreads; it … Continue reading

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Covid19 Diary 9

I have seen enough disasters in my time as an emergency chaplain to know that they don’t change people. The generous are still generous; the greedy still greedy. People act either courageously or with cowardice, but the roots of both were always in them. Continue reading

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Covid19 Diary 6

The dead were being raised from their graves! The angels were going to escort the white-robed death up (definitely up, look at all those raised arms and faces) to Jesus in heaven. Continue reading

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Why the Uniting Church should be louder about its LGBTIQ inclusion

There is evidence to suggest that being louder about the fact that the Uniting Church unconditionally welcomes LGBTIQ people as members, ordains LGBTIQ people as ministers, and allows same-sex couples to be married in churches, is just good advertising. Continue reading

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Letter to the Sunday Age

My letter was edited for space, so here is the full thing. ‘Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father,’ says the letter attributed to James, the brother of Jesus, ‘is this: to care for orphans and widows … Continue reading

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