Blog on the Learig

  2 April 2026 – Maundy Thursday Jesus stimulates our imagination throughout the drama   of the Last Supper. Food and drink and the exercise of hospitality characterises his ministry. The table is the place where people are befriended, loved and changed. The central feature of our celebration is what we call ’The Action’ where the minister pointedly raises the bread to full view and breaks it and lifts the cup and repeats the memorable words of Jesus. As well as the drama of the action, there is the imaginative association which Jesus makes with the bread and the wine. ‘This is my body which is broken for you.’ he says . ‘This is my blood which is shed for you!’ Note that the pouring of the wine like the pouring of Christ’s blood is not just for church members.   ‘It is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.’ says Jesus. This word ‘many’, in its Semitic use,   really means ‘everyone’! So the Sacrament of Holy Communion is not simply a mark of the...

  1 April 2026 This is not an April Fool. But if you walk into the main library in Oslo (and, by the way, there are twenty-three libraries in the capital) you will discover no less than 1,100 chairs for people to read their books. Everyone is full! Can you imagine that in Scotland? Our reforming forebears were keen on reading. They not only wanted the Bible to be translated into English but they wanted everyone and children, in particular, to be able to read so that they could absorb the good news of Christ, his ministry, his passion and resurrection. They were successful although it took time to establish schools in every parish. And when the Kirk handed over its schools to the government in the late Victorian era, they handed over an inheritance which has blossomed save in one essential, the gospel which has been squeezed out of our schools ever since. The Norwegian government made a big mistake. In 2016, every child who started school was given an i-pad without any paren...

  31 March 2026 Darton, Longman and Todd has just published a book to coincide with the enthronement of Archbishop Sarah Mullaly. She is the first female Archbishop of Canterbury and so her enthronement marks an important historical milestone for women, for the Church and for the world. The book begins with a brief biography of the Archbishop and is followed by ‘ten urgent challenges for the Church of England’. They have been written by ‘ten leading Anglican writers’. The list doesn’t sparkle for it is not surprising. Here are a few of the titles, ‘The Separation of Church and Hate – Spirituality and the Church of England’, ‘Sitting Outside Encountering Christ – The Church of England, LGBTQIA Inclusion and Same-Sex Marriage’, ‘Falling Among Thieves: Understanding and Responding to Church-related Abuse’ etc. At the very end of the book, there is an ‘Afterward’ written by Rowan Williams, a previous holder of this office. ‘If an archbishop has the freedom to listen and share g...

  30 March 2026 Somethings have to be done once – breaking the four minute mile, climbing Everest, travelling to the moon. Once these things have been done, the way is open for others to follow. But the one who does it first has to have the courage to tackle what was regarded as impossible. On 25 January, Alex Honnold, an American rock-climber, attempted to climb the Taipei 101 building in Taipei, Taiwan. He was being filmed by Netflix and presumably was given a handsome fee for carrying our this extraordinary feat. The result was a documentary entitled, ‘Skyscraper Live’.   What was most astonishing about this climb up a skyscraper of metal and glass was Honnold’s determination to complete the feat without any assistance whatsoever. The only prop which he carried with him was a little bag of white powder, chalk maybe, which he carried on his waist and continually placed his right hand into it to remove the moisture created by the climb. He had no rope, no safety harne...

  29 March 2026 An elder expressed concern about the increase in ‘Giving to Grow’ payments. The increase was noticeable. ‘I think other congregations are facing the same situation of increased payments.’ I replied. ‘But that doesn’t make it good.’ he concluded. I said no more. But I did remember life in my first charge. In those days, we made a ‘Mission and Service’ payment to benefit central funds and the work of various departments – Education, Social Responsibility, Overseas Council etc. Like ‘Mission to Grow’, the sums increased year by year. It was my youthful perception that it was a source of pride that the congregation’s allocation increased for it meant something significant was happening – the congregation was increasing its weekly contribution to the offering plate. More significantly, Kirk Sessions and Congregational Boards were encouraged to add more to their annual payments. One of the most regular contributors was the Guild. In Forth:St. Paul’s this amounted ...

  28 March 2026 – From My Diary 1996 Parish visiting is still dominated by the massacre at Dunblane. A son thought the tragedy speeded up his father’s demise. An old woman had difficulty sleeping. A child told me about soft toys in his classroom which came from across the globe.   They were invited to choose one, cuddle it and think about   those affected by the tragedy. I visited an older woman returned from hospital. ‘I will have more peace dead.’ she said. Another gave me £100 for the refurbishment of the organ. ‘Do you remember the hundred pounds which you gave me from the kirk fund when I needed it?’ she asked. I didn’t. ‘Well, I dinnae want to dee without payin’ it back. I’ve been saving up.’ An old man in hospital told me, ‘I’m the happiest I have ever been.’ It was surprising because of his failing health. ‘Why are you so happy?’ I asked. He replied with a rare simplicity, ‘Christ, my Saviour!’ He wrote hymns for personal devotion. Thirty people sat down a...