Jon Jolly

This week I’ve had a number of discussions with Christian friends who were planning to go see The Golden Compass movie as a fun-filled family outing. No problem there! But when I asked these people if they were going to have a chat with their kids after seeing the movie, I received a number of blank stares. Now I’m never one for jumping on a bandwagon, but the lack of understanding of the themes contained in the movie by parents was quite surprising. It seems the predictable Christian boycott outcry (a la ‘Harry Potter’) has passed a large number of people by.

I’ve not yet seen the movie nor read the books, but a few years back I bought Northern Lights (The original English title for The Golden Compass before it was Americanized) for a non-Christian friend without realising the strong anti-church themes contained in the story. This led to a great deal of discussion between us (much of which has been helpful) and I’m thankful for the dialogue. My hope is that other Christians will take the opportunity this movie presents to talk about the issues it raises rather than attack them as heretical. In fact some Christians see the movie as purely positive.

What Pullman encourages is unmediated, critical thinking – the only antidote to the mental stupor that today’s culture cultivates in young people. And Pullman does so in multiple ways. For example, by turning the familiar story lines of Genesis, Narnia, and the like, on their heads – thereby prompting the reader to reimagine those stories for him- or herself. In short, Pullman doesn’t tell his readers what to think, but how to think. And to think, period. This, I suspect, is what Pullman’s critics really find unnerving.

For more in-depth and thoughtful responses to the movie, check out Tim Abbott’s and Dr. Headley’s posts on the subject with some great links to other resources so you can make up your own minds.

We’ve recently been tackling some difficult themes at Fuel, our church youth group for 15’s+ and the most recent was the topic of Homosexuality and the Bible. The following is the notes that I prepared for the evening and they were designed as a discussion starter. As such they are in no way a comprehensive essay on the issue, nor are they supposed to put across any particular point of view.

Respect
Homosexuality and Christianity is a very emotive subject with people having wildly different views. Before we talk about our own opinions on gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transvestites, lets be clear that God loves all of these people and we should therefore love and respect them too (Jesus’ teachings on loving both our neighbours and our enemies makes this clear). Rude, offensive or homophobic comments are not acceptable under any circumstances.

Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. 1 John 4:7-12

History
Since it’s beginning, the Christian church has generally condemned homosexual relationships as ‘sinful’. Certain verses in the Bible seem to back up this belief and various writings throughout history have encouraged this idea.
More recently theologians and historians have challenged traditional Christian understanding with different interpretations of scripture that suggest homosexuality can be acceptable to a Christian.
Because of these arguments about the meaning of Bible verses, Christians across the world now have a wide range of beliefs about homosexuality; on the one hand some think you can be homosexual and a Christian with no problem, on the other hand some think that being homosexual is totally sinful and can’t have anything to do with Christianity. There is of course, lots of views in between too!

What do you believe?
On the next pages are some Bible verses that are often used in the argument against homosexuality. Read them through including the verses before and after, discuss them with friends and answer the questions. It’s up to you to decide what you believe for yourself, but here are some tips:

1. Read the Bible to learn about God’s character. Don’t just go on what you think God might say.
2. Pray about it. Ask God to give you wisdom and insight so that you can make the right response.
3. Think about it. Make up your own mind and don’t let others tell you what to believe.

If you want to ask questions or talk about this subject further, then please contact one of the leaders.

Read Genesis 19:1-11
Lot has two angels staying in his house. The men of the town surround the house wanting to rape the visitors. To protect them, Lot offers the crowd his two virgin daughters instead. The crowd are not satisfied and break the door down - the angels then make the intruders blind and Sodom is eventually destroyed.

• God destroyed the town of Soddom because of the wicked people. Why do you think God decided they were wicked? Was it because of their homosexuality, the attempted rape or simply everything they did?
• Does this story prove that homosexuality is wrong? Why?

Read Leviticus 18:22
It is part of a chapter that explains God’s rules on sexuality for the Israelite people. Some Christians argue that these rules were cultural and only meant for those people at that time and do not apply today.

• Read some of God’s rules on sexuality before and after verse 22. Are these things acceptable today? Why?
• Do you think these rules still apply? Can we be selective and choose the ones we agree with?

Read Matthew 19:5
In teaching about divorce, Jesus quotes Genesis 2:24. He is clearly saying how important marriage is between a man and a woman but doesn’t mention homosexual couples.

• Is Jesus telling us that homosexual relationships are wrong or is this passage nothing to do with homosexuality?
• Do you think his views on marriage could apply to same-sex couples? Why?

Read Matthew 19:11-12
Jesus is saying that some people don’t get married and this is OK because it’s more important to look after your relationship with God.

• Some Christians think that Jesus was referring to gay people who couldn’t get married. Do you think this is what Jesus meant?
• Do you think it’s OK to be gay as long as you put God first? Why?

Read Romans 1:26-27
Paul is writing to the Romans where he talks about people who started to worship things other than God. Paul’s words are quite strong here and he seems to be saying that homosexuality is a result of disobedience to God

• Some Christians believe that Paul is talking about male prostitutes, not gay couples in ongoing relationships.
• Do you think homosexuality is a result of disobeying God? Why or why not?

Read 1 Corinthians 6:9
When writing to the Corinthian church, Paul says that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God. This includes homosexuals.

• Many people argue that Paul’s writings were only meant for that time. Do you think this verse applies today? Why?
• Do you agree with Paul that thieves or drunkards will possess the kingdom of God? Does this change your mind about homosexuals?

Does anyone have any thoughts about these discussion starters? Have you used anything similar before? What are your own personal views?

Here’s a link to a list of the 9 most Badass Bible Verses as chosen by cracked.com. Although funny and irreverent with plenty of swear words and sexual references (you’ve been warned), it provides a enthusiastic view of some of the more interesting biblical passages from a non-christian perspective.

Our hero Ehud came up with the idea of concealing a weapon by strapping it to his body several thousand years before John McClane did in Die Hard…
After bypassing the tight security, Ehud continues to act like a Bruce Willis character by busting out a snappy one liner: “I have a message from God for you,” he declares shortly before whipping out his blade and shanking the evil, grotesquely obese King Eglon in the belly.
Really, the only way to improve on this would be by shoehorning an awful pun into it, such as “You should really cut down on your fat intake!” or “Looks like being king takes guts!” As he leaves, Ehud shows he hasn’t forgotten his good manners by considerately shutting the door behind him.

It’s not a bad list, but there’s plenty more that should have made the grade! Got any suggestions?

Ht: Boing Boing

I had the privilege of preaching to the church yesterday on the topic of Naaman’s healing in 2 Kings 5. There’s so much in that passage, I had to really condense it to make it suitable for a family service. If you want to have a listen, click here. You can subscribe to the weekly podcast from there too.

On Friday we spent a fantastic evening at the Parish Church of St. Stephen Walbrook (home of the London Internet Church) for the first ever Christian Blog and Web Awards!

The whole event was really well organised with an amazing four-course meal and a great string-quartet providing a touch of class to the proceedings. Thanks must go to Maria for putting it all together and hosting us so well.

I posted before about being entered for an award and I was short-listed for the Best Christian Newcomer category against some great bloggers. Unfortunately I missed out on a trophy but had a lot of fun watching Tom Smith trying to blag an acceptance speech on behalf of Tim Hughes!

You can see the full list of winners on the Christian Blog Awards website and watch the edited highlights on Premier TV very soon (Kristie Winsen promised us)!

Later today, Kirsty and I are off to the Christian Web and Blog Awards ceremony in London. I mentioned back here that this blog had gone through to the final rounds and we’ve now been invited to go along to the event tonight and see if I’ve won anything! It’s a black tie affair and I was amused to discover that we’ll be having a time of worship after the champagne reception.

I’ve held off from posting too much about this before as I’m really not sure what to expect from the evening. I am of course excited about the possibility of winning something, but I’m also a bit apprehensive about drawing lots of attention this way (yes, I know that’s the point of a blog). The main reason I started writing here was to help me document some of my experiences in youthwork and to clarify my own thoughts by reflecting on my practice. It’s great that others enjoy reading it, I’m just aware that there are a lot of other great Christian blogs out there that deserve some exposure. Click some of the links to the right to see what I mean.

This morning at church I was privileged enough to be involved in the baptism of Dan, one the young people in the church. I’ve been Dan’s youth leader in one capacity or other for around six years so when he phoned during the week to ask if I would help, I was really keen. In fact, I think I was a little too excited as my voice went up a few octaves while I babbled “Wow! That would be great!” as if someone had just offered me a year’s supply of free coffee. Thankfully Dan wasn’t put off and said I could still dunk him.

I’m not sure of all of the differences between baptism across the denominations but in our church, due to holding our Sunday services in a school sports hall, we’ve come up with the practical solution of a collapsible ‘tank’ that is assembled at the front of the hall where we submerse people backwards from a sitting position. The tank is about 5 foot long and the fact that Dan is around 6′ 8″ caused some logistical problems but we got there in the end! The part I played was to kneel alongside Dan and, with his father, actually baptise him.

I’ve been involved with a few baptisms over the years but they never fail to excite me, I just love the fact that the person is making a public statement about their faith and what Jesus means to them. In the case of Dan, I’ve watched as he’s grown in his understanding until ready to make that statement. Youthwork really is the best job in the world!

The other day, I was in Tesco’s queing at one of those self-scanning checkouts. At the till to my right I noticed a young girl aged about 10 or 11 putting in loads of coppers to pay for a 6 pint of milk. Pretty soon all the coins in her hand had gone into the machine, but the display still showed a balance of 9p. With a scared look in her eyes, the girl glanced around before putting the milk in a bag and quickly walking out the door with it.

Although I stood still and did nothing, I thought about calling over a staff member to point out how I had witnessed a terrible and blatant theft. In my head I told myself how outrageous it was that a child would do something so morally wrong and I began to imagine how badly her parents must have taught her - they were probably alcoholics anyway…

As I watched, the guy next in the queue walked up to the checkout. I looked closely to see his anger when he realised what had happened. He saw the outstanding 9p on the screen, smiled, and reached into his pocket. He then quietly paid the remaining money before scanning his own items.

In those few seconds I was shamed. What a great example of the gospel played out before my eyes. The generosity of someone who paid the debt of another happily. And there I was a signed-up follower of Jesus ready to heap judgement and scorn on a child who was a few pence short. I’m so grateful that just when I think I’m doing quite well, God sends a little reminder to let me know that I’m still in need of a saviour too.

If you could change one thing…

Originally uploaded by bobweasel.

Kirsty and I spent the weekend in Cornwall, exploring the beaches and countryside and staying in a tiny tent. It was great! Part of our trip was spent at The Eden Project where we looked around the biomes, wandered the gardens and learned about the importance of plants within our world. It’s a fascinating and brilliant place that everyone should visit (although I found it a little too humanistic with its emphasis on the potential and greatness of people).

Eden currently has an interactive exhibition called ‘towards the edge’ which included lots of great creative ideas (click here for the full Flickr set).

Part of the display included thousands of tags with various questions printed on them. People were invited to write their own answers and hang them up with others on a clothes line. As I stood looking at the display, this particular tag caught my eye. Among thousands of others, it really captured my own thoughts and reminded me that God is doing His work in the unlikeliest of places.

If you could change one thing in the world what would it be?

Yesterday as I was walking to my car, I bumped into a group of teenagers that I hadn’t seen for a few months. After the initial greetings of “alriiig?” one of the group, Jason, told me he was learning to be an extreme skater. Now this surprised me quite a lot as Jason has always been downtrodden, demotivated and generally not sporty at all. As it turns out, it seems that Jason’s long-dead Great Grandfather spoke to him during a seance telling him to stop being lazy as he would later start to earn around £30k a year doing sports. Jason decided it should be extreme sports and his friends were keen to encourage him.

As we stood there chatting, the guys asked if I believed in spirits and paranormal activity. I explained that as a Christian I believed in God and knew there was a spiritual dimension (although not everything was helpful or healthy). This seemed to excite them a lot and they asked if I wanted to come to the next seance - it was only £3 a time and you get tea and biscuits.

It suddenly struck me that in their minds there was no conflict in being a Christian and attending a seance, in fact they were both ’spiritual’ activities so we actually had a lot in common. Despite the inherent confusion and spiritual danger in mixing these beliefs, I was left wondering if their enthusiasm for spiritual development was something worth celebrating and nurturing? Maybe this is the beginning of their journey to meeting Christ. I just hope I can play a small part in that.