Comments for Graham Stacey

Comment on Greenbelt Reflections 1: Questioning Rob Bell? by Richard

Richard — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 23:02:49 +0000

Just reading through past posts and your comments gel with thoughts I have been having since we recently moved and joined a fresh expression anglican church whose vision is evangelism and social action but where I see no ongoing discipleship within its planning. get them in then …. There seems no space for reflection and thinking and working out faith in the present context. There is New Wine theology of God at work in the dramatic answering of prayers, without a theology of suffering or a theology of waiting or a theology of getting on with the job. Definitely the danger of life as a sprinter rather than life as a long distance runner. A syncratism of the instant and without effort because I’m loved. Sorry for the ramble. enjoying reading the posts.

Comment on A Pedagogy of Practical Theology by Paul Morriss

Paul Morriss — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 13:40:44 +0000

It sounds like those who teach you need to go on the “Learning that Lasts” course:
http://eurotp.org/uk/Session.asp?SessionID=229

I can highly recommend it.

Comment on Stipendary Futures – part one by Paul Morriss

Paul Morriss — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 13:41:17 +0000

We are well thank you. I hope your business grows satisfactorily – not too little and not too much!

Comment on Stipendary Futures – part one by Graham Stacey

Graham Stacey — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 19:58:17 +0000

Hi Paul
Thanks for watching out…
I have often had conversations about stipend and salary with various people, usually volunteers, I have had the privilege of working with. These often centered around whether what I was doing at the time counted as ‘work’. The point being that since I don’t get paid to work, then what I did was not therefore ‘work’!
This question brings to the front some of the problems I have been struggling with. Facing the prospect of not being stipendiary and ‘tentmaking’ instead. I have been working at raising my design and print business from being a glorified hobby to an income earning concern. As you might imagine, this is taking a lot of time. My struggle is that I have not had to do this before, I really have been free to follow whatever I saw God doing. I am sure this series of blogs, albeit spaced out ones, will grapple more with this.
Hope you are well…?

Comment on Stipendary Futures – part one by Paul Morriss

Paul Morriss — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 12:56:35 +0000

It’s good that you’re blogging again.
Do you think that there’s much of a practical difference between a stipend and a salary, even though there is a philosophical difference?
After all its regular money coming into the bank isn’t it?
Or is it more about what you do, and different expectations of 9-5 workers vs. ministers?

Comment on Evangelical Diversified by Paul Morriss

Paul Morriss — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 12:46:26 +0000

“embarrassingly charismatic”, hmmm, interesting comment. Perhaps the internet isn’t the place to follow you up on why you came to that conclusion. Another time maybe.

Comment on No new theme but new focus by Paul Morriss

Paul Morriss — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 12:43:14 +0000

We are thanks.

Comment on No new theme but new focus by Graham Stacey

Graham Stacey — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 19:26:59 +0000

Thanks Paul, I hope you are well and your gang?

Comment on No new theme but new focus by Paul Morriss

Paul Morriss — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 13:52:40 +0000

I was thinking the other day that I hadn’t read a blog entry from you for a while. I made a mental note, which I then forgot, to see if you’d switched blogging service again. So I’m glad you’re back!

Comment on The Jigsaw of Theology, or Theology at the Edge. by brett jordan

brett jordan — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 12:54:06 +0000

It occurs to me that the piece you reject has a very good chance of being a corner piece.

Comment on The Jigsaw of Theology, or Theology at the Edge. by elizabeth

elizabeth — Sat, 17 Feb 2007 19:35:32 +0000

I must add though that I’ve learnt things from you too, I’m pleased to have stumbled across your site. (More) pax et bonum

Comment on The Jigsaw of Theology, or Theology at the Edge. by elizabeth

elizabeth — Sat, 17 Feb 2007 10:31:58 +0000

I cannot imagine what context there might be other than the creation; we cannot be outside of it… except perhaps through prayer (now there’s a clue:-)). And I do believe that understanding fellow Christians is not merely a “worthy persuit” but an absolutely essential step on this steep path of ours and that it is often HARDER to do than to understand other non-Christians (family squabbles are usually the most poisonous (see attitudes to synagogues and “The Jews” in gospels of Matt and Jn). Anyway your jigsaw puzzle isn’t a bad idea, I think I detected a note of snobbish intolerance in your december posting about the sacraments and that’s what inspired me to write. I have to say that I came across your blogg quite by accident whilst looking for something else. Actually if for a moment one considers that there is no such thing as coincidence then instead of getting cross about it, it is worth taking note of what I have said because seemingly it is something you were meant to hear. pax et bonum

Comment on The Jigsaw of Theology, or Theology at the Edge. by Graham

Graham — Fri, 16 Feb 2007 09:21:37 +0000

Elizabeth: Thanks for dropping by and indeed thoroughly reading previous posts.

I reply though, I agree the the edge pieces are very elusive and complex and almost certainly beyond our small brains. Certainly one of the common outcomes of studying theology is realising how much you don’t know and probably won’t Butâ€¦

We can discuss our approach, which is more where the jigsaw image fits in for me. Whether evangelical with a focus on the Cross [at least traditionally] or catholic with a focus on the Eucharist [probably underselling] the jigsaw image is there to help think through the place of the focus. Inevitably though you are bound to meet the hermeneutical circle and wonder for a long time where to start and when to finish.

“understanding your fellow Christians” always seems like a good place to start, indeed it is why I, from charismatic evangelical experience, would choose to come here to Ripon College Cuddesdon, with a liberal catholic background, to train for ordination in a broad church. Yes, understanding fellow Christians is a worthy pursuit. What is perhaps more demanding is understanding my fellow humans “Christian” or not, in the context of a creation that God loves so much.

Comment on The Jigsaw of Theology, or Theology at the Edge. by Graham

Graham — Fri, 16 Feb 2007 08:32:37 +0000

JP, glad you had a good holiday.

I think this image is a helpful first step in trying to think about theology and what my hermeneutic might be as I approach various theological situations. I have often used this image when beginning to teach various groups as it helps to understand why we might need to spend do long on trinity, creation, relationships and community before we get to the ‘exciting’ bits of the passion. I say exciting because that is often all their is in the theological tool box of most of the people I have taught. Once some of the edge has been done though, the ‘exciting’ parts of the picture often take on a whole new level of meaning and depth.

I agree that Jesus Christ belongs on the edge, I mean in the middleâ€¦ oh dam that hermeneutical circle again!

Comment on The Jigsaw of Theology, or Theology at the Edge. by Graham

Graham — Fri, 16 Feb 2007 08:31:17 +0000

Brett, sorry for the slow response – I have been in bed for a few days now trying to hold back flu type things.
Anyway – modernist tends to sound a little like an insult now-a-days. Not for one moment that I think you were insulting me, but it was interesting to note my reaction when I read you comment. So much so that I think I will be replying with a new posting later today.

Comment on The Jigsaw of Theology, or Theology at the Edge. by JP

JP — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 19:45:26 +0000

Very interesting image, Graham. I’ve cross-posted on my blog – hope you don’t mind!

Do you think the Trinity is the first edge piece, or the centre of the picture? Either way, Jesus Christ has to be one of the cornerpieces – but I’ll leave deliberately vague whether or not I’d emphasise the Incarnation or the Passion …

Comment on The Jigsaw of Theology, or Theology at the Edge. by Elizabeth Simoneau

Elizabeth Simoneau — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 11:50:34 +0000

The thing is, that you’ll have just as much a job at explaining the Trinity as you do understanding the “mysteries” beloved of anglo-catholics and evangelicals (07/12). St Augustine spent years trying to get a handle on the Trinity and, according to an old Burgundy-based monk I spoke with recently, was one day walking on the beach and saw a small boy running to the sea, filling a jar with water and then running back to a hole he had made in the sand. As he tried to fill the hole with water so it immediately drained away. Augustine laughed and said to the lad “you’ll never fill that hole with water” but the boy answered “and neither will you ever understand the Trinity”. I wish you luck finding the edges but I’m afraid you’ll find them oh so elusive. Studying theology is indeed a great joy… but you can’t put the Infinite into a jigsaw puzzle box. Which is precisely why, my brother, the Catholics cannot explain their mysteries – for how is it less logical to bow before a “real presence” than to simply claim “Jesus is alive today” or “God is present throughout his creation” or “Jesus is the second person of the Trinity wholly man and wholly God”? The real presence is an ancient way of crystalising all that is marvellous and all that is transcedendant in the notions of the incarnation, the resurrection and the continued presence of Christ in creation, just as the evangelicals’ falling to the ground is the quite understandable reaction of small weak human beings in the presence of God (which also has an ancient heritage stretching back into the dawn of time – though it would be nice to brush such things aside with a sensible Chruch of England attitude, God is rather bigger even than the Broad Church and brings his sheep into the fold in all manner of different ways). You wil never understand the Trinity (nobody can), you will never find the edges to your jigsaw (nobody can!)but you could begin by trying to understand your fellow Christians whatever their denominations.
I wish you all the best. By the way I was born in Sutton Coldfield too but I fear a good deal longer ago. All the best Graham with your Theological studies.

Comment on The Jigsaw of Theology, or Theology at the Edge. by brett jordan

brett jordan — Mon, 12 Feb 2007 18:08:28 +0000

graham, i never realised you were such a modernist :-)

brett

Comment on The Pit Workers of Canary Wharf by Graham

Graham — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 14:47:59 +0000

Paul [2b]: when we spoke to Anna about it she said “Mummy I am not going to hear anything I don’t already know.” I will also be explaining to her that words mean different things to different people. She already has a clear idea about past and present use of the word ‘gay’. What matters is that words only exist in the context of relationship. If it is not offense to the hearers then it is not offense. One of our parenting drives for Anna and her sibblings is to “be kind and gentle with your words”. Lots of words can be offensive without necessarily being on the culturally driven list of ’strong language’.

But to actually answer your question: the stageplay is set in the working north in the 80’s and the language rightly reflects that.

Comment on The Pit Workers of Canary Wharf by Graham

Graham — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 14:42:42 +0000

Paul [2]: don’t know off hand any books on alternative economies, but interesting excersise to think through ‘rampant materialism’ in the same way as we think about disease or the natural state [distribution of fertile land etc]. These things exist and so does the Kingdom of God. The former gives the later the chance to shine.
I guess I am heading towards how do we live as communities of disciples in a world that has such huge disparities, including the disparity between those who have and can easily have more and those who have not and do not have the opportunity to change that.