Pray the SJ way…

Posted by David Ward on 17/08/2016
Posted in: Books/Articles, Personal thoughts, Prayer and liturgy, Software, Spirituality. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

Although I’m not a Roman Catholic I’ve learned to value many aspects of Catholicism, not least many aspects of the Jesuit approach to life, faith and prayer.

Mark-E-Thibodeaux-SJOne Jesuit author that I’ve found particularly useful is Mark Thibodeaux SJ, whose main ministry focus is in the areas of prayer and discernment/guidance.

One of the Jesuit/monastic practices that I have long found tremendously helpful in my prayer life is the practice of the Examen, a way to review the day and become aware of God’s presence and absence in your life and experience during that time. In the short term it gives opportunity for gratitude and thanks and confession and healing, in the long term it can make us aware of long-term areas of weakness and opportunities to grow in our walk with Jesus.

Some time ago I started to use Thibodeaux’s “Reimagining the Ignatian Examen” Reimagining appregularly. It suggests lots of ways to adapt and vary the traditional pattern of the Examen, focussing on different issues and areas of life. It is a great book!

Just recently I became aware that the publishers of the book, Loyola Press, have made an App, based on the book, available on both Android and iPhone/iPad platforms.

I’ve been using the App on my iPad for a couple of weeks now, and it is a really good addition to the digital world of Christian spirituality. Worth checking out, downloading and, above all, using. Did I mention that it’s free?

Mark Thibodeaux has a number of other books that I’ve also read and enjoyed. They are:

“Armchair Mystic…easing into Contemplative Prayer”, Franciscan Media, Cincinnati 2001

“God, I have issues…50 ways to pray no matter how you feel”, Franciscan Media, Cincinnati 2004

and “”God’s Voice Within…the Ignatian way to discover God’s will”, Loyola Press, Chicago 2010

Being Christian…

Posted by David Ward on 16/06/2016
Posted in: In the Media, Personal thoughts. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

Pope and gunman” You can become a Christian in a moment. But to become Christian is another matter. In our evangelical churches we are very adept at teaching people how to become a Christian – how to receive the forgiveness available in Christ. We have not been nearly so adept at teaching people how to become Christian – how to become Christlike in a way that helps flood a world hell-bent on vengence with the grace of forgiveness. But as you read the New Testament, you will find that Christ and his apostles place far more emphasis on becoming Christian than on becoming a Christian.

I fear we have contented ourselves with the self-congratulation of becoming a Christian, when the call of discipleship is to become Christian, to become Christlike, to become imitators of Christ in a fallen world where true imitation of Christis radically counter-cultural and deeply counterintuitive. To meet hate with hate, vengeance with vengeance, violence with violence is the way of the fallen world, the way of fallen angels, the way of fallen man. It’s the way that seems right, but it always ends in death.

The way of Christ is the way of the cross and radical mercy, leading to eternal life…”

Brian Zahnd, “Radical Forgiveness” chapter 3, page 56

Songs and the Small Church

Posted by David Ward on 20/05/2016
Posted in: Communication, Music, Personal thoughts, Small churches. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment
spring-harvest-2015

Spring Harvest 2015

One of the Christian communities that I am pleased to call ‘home’ recently invited me to lead some worship, including songs, once a month. I already play in the worship band at a once-a-month special evening meeting, so I guess this is an extension of that.

I am old…by the standards of most contemporary worship bands and leaders…but I enjoy worshipping with Chris Tomlin, Beth Croft and Matt Redman along with the best of them (if my fingers are perhaps a little stiffer and slower than they once were). So I decided it was probably about time I had a look at what’s on offer in the way of new worship music songs…what’s out there in the contemporary praise and worship music scene.

That’s when it hit me…

It seems that everything contemporary is being written and arranged with the large Christian gathering and a large, talented (professional) band ‘performing’ in view.

The band of which I am currently a part is made up of a number of perfectly competent but highly under-confidant musicians…we enjoy what we do, and play to the best of our ability but we have to work very hard to make what we do playable and singable in our context, and inevitably we don’t have hours to spend practicing.

It would be so good if someone would think about small  gatherings when writing and arranging worship songs. After all the vast majority of Christian gatherings are smaller, and those that still want to include sung worship need a resource tailored to them.

Of course, one of the biggest problems is that recordings made of a solo instrument and voice are not incredibly popular in the world of digital media (although there are occasional accoustic albums)…they don’t sell well. Consequently most worshippers come with an unconscious expectation that the song they know so well from their Matt Redman album will sound exactly like the way Matt and band play it…and I suspect musicians like me do the same. We struggle to reproduce the ‘feel’ that everyone is expecting…and why should we. I’m certain that there must be resources out there that I haven’t found yet, so if you read this and know of any, please add a comment! Please!!

So please understand…this is not a moan about big churches and worship as performance…I very much enjoy my visits to places where the sung worship is a bit more high-octane…it is simply a plea to remember the vast majority who don’t have the inbuilt advantages and person-power of larger expressions of church, and hopefully, someone will hear me and do something to help.

Only saying!