Had a very nice farewell lunch today with my colleagues from BCNZ’s Centre for Distance Learning. After 5 or so years of doing Internet and IT support for them I’m moving on in a week or two to concentrate more fully on my research and lecturing. It’s been fun and the CDL staff a great to work with.

If you think that you might be interested in dipping into biblical studies, theology, missions studies or spiritual formation have a look at their web site. Students come from both NZ and around the world. (Fulltime NZ students can qualify for things like student loans and allowances if the appropriate criteria are met).

ASIA GRACE by Kevin Kelly is the web site that accompanies the book of the same name.The book consists of about 600 photographs (and no words) of life in Asia.

There’s a slideshow you can turn on that moves from photo to photo. You can pause it, read about the photo and add your own story/notes to it.

(Found this when I was looking for some biographical information in Kevin Kelly who is an editor for Wired Magazine).

More insight from Karen Stone on When you look at art. (See blog entry below).

Flicking through the new books at the BCNZ Library today I came across an interesting book by Karen Stone called Image & Spirit: Finding Meaning in Visual Art. Looks like it’d be worth reading sometime (after I’ve cleared the other million books off my desk).

Did a quick search for her on the net and found an article she’s written for Christmas this year (The Lutheran | December 2003 | Three images for Christmas). In it she says

I see: I know, I understand, I believe. Sight is our usual metaphor for understanding because we are image-makers. Images come before words. Artwork communicates when words fail us. They are timeless: Places, times and language may change, but art continually takes on new meaning and conveys enduring truth, the deep truth of our faith.

Sounds good to me.

“God be between you and harm in all the empty places where you must walk.”
   From Babylon 5, “A Distant Star” (Season 2)

Added some updated information about me to the blog. Prompted by meeting a fellow blogger a while back who didn’t know what I looked like. See About me

Trying to finish a paper for a conference in about a weeks time (4-5 Dec) on the spiritual nature of technology and in particular the spiritual narratives that are found in technological agendas. Here’s the abstract.

This paper focuses on the religious and spiritual narratives that are interacting with emergent technologies and in particular with the concept of cyberspace. Rather than being “spiritually-neutral”? evidence can be found for technologists being motivated by religious concepts from Christianity, Gnosticism, Eastern religions and neo-Paganism in their desire to create and use these technologies. On one hand these concepts produce new versions of the gospel complete with apocalyptic “technoraptures”?, while on the other existing religious stories are used as analogies and inspiration for technological developments. As a result the emergence of new technologies provides both challenges and opportunities for theological dialogue with wider Western techno-culture.

Hopefully in a couple of days time the paper will be finished. (It had better be)

We’ve been working through the book of Revelation for our sermons at church for the past couple of months at got to Rev 21 today. I was on the roster to give the “children’s talk” today – the bit in the service where someone has the children come up to the front of the church and then talks to them about faith and life. So I just had to do some “eschatology for infants”.

I really like the imagery used in the Bible that expresses Creation’s response to God (e.g. Pss 96 & 98). The sheer joy, exhultation, partying and whole-hearted response to the return and presence of God. And I wanted the children to remember that somehow in a way that was fun and had impact.

Then I remembered Jonny Baker’s worship trick 59 – pentecostal ducks with the lemonjelly ducks video. So with the help of the old iBook and the data projector we got psychedelic colours being injected into creation, a bearded dancing man dancing with disco-ing ducks, swinging squirrels, gyrating giraffes and rocking rhinos, and some toe-tapping music. Hopefully they’ll take that image with them through life.

Mixed responses from the adults in the congregation but the kids seemed to get off on it – which was the aim. (I think I’m still treated with some suspicion after a children’s talk when I told them the answers to almost all Sunday School questions were “God”, “Jesus” and “love”. Remember that and they were “sweet”.)

On a more serious note, Psalms like 96 & 98 have this great response in them. But it is a God of justice that creation rejoices to see. Our eschatology sometimes forgets that judgement has an aspect linked to how we have related to Creation, not just to God and other people.

Steve Taylor and his family’s last service at Graceway today. An emotional time for all. Drop on by and wish them well at steve emergent downunder

I don’t have an iPod yet (it’s on my things to buy that are probably techno-idols list) but I did see this interesting posting on the social dynamics of some iPod users. Seems that the little, white box opens the doors to a new, non-vocal form of community based on sharing one’s taste in music with others. See Wired News: Feel Free to Jack Into My IPod

Might be something to link in with jonnybaker: gadget of the minute – alt worship potential?.

See my previous posting on iTunes playlists too.