Pull up a pew (or a fetching plastic chair) Religion Chat Thread No 6

[madhairday]

Helloooooooooo!

A shiny new thread :)

How are we all today?

DS seems to have the beginning of what may be chicken pox so is in bed feeling sorry for himself. My laptop is playing up - a picture fell on it yesterday and killed the b key - it takes ages to make it respond now grrrr - and cracked the screen, so not sure what to do :(

[Tuo]

Done! It's ... umm ... 'acceptable' would probably be a generous description!

[niminypiminy]

We'll done on the ironing front Tuo! I'm thinking of buying myself an alb -- it's not the the one I use is exactly dirty, but some there are some really smelly robes in the cupboard where they're all kept (yuck).

It's been one thing and another here this week. On Tuesday I was knocked off my bike by another bike cannoning into me at speed, so I have an impressively bruised face incl. black eye, and then DS1 repeated something he'd been told at school by another child which I can't bring myself to write down here, and I wrote to the head saying he wasn't coming back to school until it had been sorted out (actually this happened the day before half term started so not too big a deal in fact), and the fence has blown down. (I know this is nothing compared to being made homeless by floods, but still.) And now DH has revealed that his dearest wish is to have a monkey puzzle tree in the front garden. One thing and another, you see.

[Dutchoma]

Oh Niminy that all sounds pretty grim. And a monkey puzzle tree .
You could amuse yourself with making Spoonerisms with it? Trunkey muzzle pee? etc

[niminypiminy]

Apparently they are only suitable for parks or very large gardens. Perhaps I can persuade him it will be unhappy.

How are you doing, Oma?

[PandaG]

hello all. This thread has slipped under my radar for ages. Anyway, I am plodding along, starting to come to terms with Mum's death. We've bought one of the multi-picture frames, to put pics of all the close family in. Realised apart from niece and nephew, (and a couple of the 4 of us) we don't have any family photos up at all, and I want one of Mum and Dad, and my sister and in-laws. Spending this afternoon trawing through to find suitable pictures.

[Tuo]

What a week, niminy! Poor DS1 - I really hope that the Head will act. And poor you - I hope your bruises fade soon.

I share the about the monkey puzzle tree. Years ago we had neighbours who had one which overhung the fence at the end of the garden. I walked into a branch a couple of times (short-sighted and easily distracted) and it really hurts!

Sympathies re. the smelly robe cupboard. Ours is the same, though I have cut the bottom off a suit cover thing from the dry cleaners and try to keep mine vaguely clean by keeping it covered. (I have also cheekily - though it's not 'mine', just the one I wear - put my name on the cover, meaning that mostly other people leave it alone!)

[Tuo]

X-posted, PandaG. That sounds like a good idea about the pics, and hopefully with some photos around your mum will feel close to you. Thinking of you!

[SchrodingersFerret]

Hello! Just dropping in to introduce myself. I'm an old timer MNer, who has just rediscovered faith after a period of atheism. I attend an anglican church which is pretty much 'open evangelical', though my bent is probably more towards the traditional style of things. I consider myself a feminist and am looking forward to women bishops! I find the CofE maddening at times, but it's my spiritual home after quite a bit of 'searching'. I've pretty much done it all, from loose living to ultra conservatism. Anyway, that's me, with my shiny new namechange! :)

[cloutiedumpling]

Hi Schrodigers

Can I admit to liking monkey puzzle trees? There is a house near us that has one in the garden and I like it. I think it's a bit unusual and quirky. I think they are quite slow growing.

I must take more family photos too. Don't take nearly enough

[niminypiminy]

Welcome SchroedingersFerret! I think there'll probably be a big party on this thread when the first woman bishop is appointed. Bring it on!

In the meantime, it's great to see you here for Christian-related chat. We have a questionnaire for newbies (usually administered by Nickelbabe), some of which you've answered already, although the key question is 'Graham Kendrick: thumbs up or thumbs down?' (You're more than welcome too on the prayer thread or the Bible-study thread)

I am pretending DH and I have never had a monkey-puzzle related conversation. It's not that I don't like them in the wild in Chile, I just don't want one in my front garden!

Panda hope you manage to find some good pictures. I'm not much of a photo person but I do have a big collage of pictures of my mother-in-law! who died a few years ago, and who I still really miss. It helps to be able to see her, and, of course, to talk about her with the DCs, who were too young when she died to remember her very well.

[SchrodingersFerret]

Hmm, Kendrick. I did enjoy his album that he did Rock of Ages on, and a song with Matt Redman and Martin Smith, but I think it's in the loft. I'm going to go for a tentative thumbs up, relative to me being quite a soft sort since my reconversion.

[niminypiminy]

I'm softening towards Kendrick -- I'm at a Hymns Ancient and Modern (or Hymns Ancient and More Ancient as it should be known) church at the moment and we sing a lot of rubbish there too.

[madhairday]

Welcome Shrodingers :) Can I ask you about your faith journey from atheism to faith, would be really interested :)

Hello all - been quiet here lately.

Definitely celebrations all round when we finally get the first woman bishop :) :)

[SchrodingersFerret]

Hi madhairday, well, I started out as an atheist, then became a seeker, then got into fundamentalist Christianity. Eventually I burnt out with that and pretty much lost my faith and went back to the happy, contented atheism of my youth. Things were going quite swimmingly until I realized that for all it's faults, I was actually a nicer person when I was a believer. (no offense meant to nice atheists, I just wasn't one myself) I was more outward focused.

But I couldn't go back to the fundies, because that way lies oppression and frankly, madness. So I thought to myself, 'can I do faith without religion' - could I do the church thing without all the horrible anti-woman, anti-gay, anti-human stuff? So I tried it out for a bit again - doing practical stuff with a local church (volunteering, parenting courses etc) and eventually, I realized that if push came to shove, I'd probably have to say I was an agnostic when it came to a divine being.

Then one morning, I went with my kids to the front for a blessing at communion time, and I suddenly knew I had faith. Not perfect faith, not no-questions-asked faith, just I believed that Jesus was alive and changing lives. The fact that he did it through people like me was amazing.

There's more to it, obviously, and MN was instrumental in a big part of my journey - and I know that any self-respecting atheist would rip my testimony to shreds, but there we go. Can't please all of the people all of the time, eh?

[Dutchoma]

That's quite an amazing story Schrodingers. I have long given up trying to 'defend' my faith with self-respecting atheists: there's none so blind as won't see, I think the expression is. It gives me hope that when people do open themselves up to God He does speak into their lives and changes them.

[madhairday]

That's brilliant, Shrodinger - and in full agreement re toxicity of the more fundie churches. Wow - love hearing stuff like this. How was MN instrumental

[SchrodingersFerret]

Well, I might out myself, tbh if I say. But suffice to say, MN introduced me to different ideas and helped to challenge the homophobia I'd been taught, along with the teaching about women, like only voting as your husband voted, covering your head and wearing flowery dresses and long denim skirts, home educating so your kids would remain 'pure' yada yada yada. Oh there's so much. I could write a book about it!

[madhairday]

That's great Shrodinger - I'm so glad you got so much good from MN :) likes flowery dresses but only with leggings and biker boots - it must have been difficult to break away when it was so entrenched, but what freedom to get away from such toxicity :)

[PandaG]

just had a weekend with Dad - wierd to be there without mum, and have come home with bagfuls of clothes that may be of use to me. Feels so odd to be contemplatiung wearing her things - used to borrow stuff when she was alive, but emptying her drawer of new packs of pants...

Shrodinger, great testimony. :)

[madhairday]

Oh Panda.....no words, just love and prayers...this must all be so very hard. May you know God holding you in the storm.

[PandaG]

thanks MHD. Am doing well tbh, genuinely, but helping Dad sort stuff is hard - he can only manage a bit at a time which is totally fair enough, but I would like to get it all over and done with. Need to do it at his pace though.

Friend from church came round this morning, was good to catch up with her.

[thanksamillion]

Hi all, just popping in to say hello

[Dutchoma]

Hello back. How are you doing? Do you still have snow?

[madhairday]

Hello milly :) How are things over there? I often think of you and remember you in my prayers with the amazing things you're doing.

Oma - how are you today dear one?

Panda - so glad you are coping OK...continued prayers for strength.

I'm struggling a bit with dh away in DRC, but coping.....trying to get together our monthly service without him is hard!! Getting there.

[thanksamillion]

We're ok thanks! We do still have snow but it's been a mild winter in general with only about 3 weeks of really cold temps (daytime -10 - that kind of thing!). We're really hoping this is the last of winter and I can see signs of spring - my bulbs are starting to come up and the trees are starting to bud.

We've been watching closely what's been happening in Ukraine as DH is organising a sponsored bike ride that ends up there! Also because the situation isn't all that dissimilar to here and we have elections at the end of the year.

Next week we have lots of concerts at school as it's the first day of spring (1st March) which is a big (if quite pagan!) celebration. Women give each other Martisoare which are little crochet broaches in red and white or flowers, then it's Women's Day on 8th March which is treated kind of like Mother's Day. We have 3 DCs at different schools/kindergarten so they each have a concert and I'm helping with another one at the Community Centre that we're involved in!

Our little fellowship group is still going well. We were 16 including us and children on Sunday which we're really pleased about. We generally have about 8 to 10 on a Thursday afternoon and then all go to visit a local church on a Sunday morning. It's interesting to see people at the very start of their journey of faith and a good reminder about how much we take for granted with new believers.

Sorry that was a long post! I do follow on here even if I don't post all that often and you are all in my prayers