Well – it’s all real now. I am going to be ordained Deacon at Bradford Cathedral on Saturday 1st July 2017, to take up my curacy at St Mark’s Harrogate one day a week (plus Sundays). While the journey is by no means ending on the 1st July, it is a significant milestone, and many would hold that I will be something different after the Bishop has laid hands on me (the posh phrase is an “ontological change”) – and again when I am priested in 2018, God willing. I personally find it unhelpful to set clergy too far apart […]

It is now just over 3 years since my 365 project turned into more of a “100” project, and I’ve been looking back over some of the photos I’ve taken, and reflecting on the fact that I actually really miss doing it. If you needed any further persuasion as to why it’s a good undertaking, this is what I got out of doing it, and what I miss about not doing it. 1) It made me look at the world. And I mean really look. Since stopping taking a photograph everyday, I’ve drifted back into a sort of haze again […]

Imperial Shuttle Chocolate Cake Equipment 20cm square baking tin, greased and lined on the bottom Modelling clay Cake board, black fondant icing, silver shimmer powder Ingredients: Chocolate Sponge Cake: 350g softened butter 350g caster sugar 6 large eggs 350g self-raising flour 2 tbsp baking powder 2 tbsp cocoa power (optional) Milk Chocolate Ganache (filling and crumb coat): 150ml double cream 150g good quality chocolate (dark or milk as desired) White Chocolate Ganache (detailing): 100ml double cream 100g good quality white chocolate Chocolate Mirror Glaze: 150ml double cream 135g caster sugar 55g cocoa powder 3 gelatine leaves Tempered Chocolate Wings: 500g […]

The second discovery we made this summer was The Forbidden Corner, up near Middleham. What an extraordinary place, and well worth a visit. It’s quite hard to describe in many ways. A common description is “folly” or “maze”, and they seem as good as any. It’s essentially a very large, enclosed garden (in the sense of a walled garden, not in the sense of having a roof), which is organised internally as a complex maze with several distinct areas, and at least two substantial underground sections. (I never quite managed to establish in my mind whether all the parts of […]

We made a couple of discoveries this summer of good places to visit, both on the recommendation of friends. The first is Redcar beach, which was a great place to visit. At only just over an hour from Harrogate, it is probably the closest beach to us in terms of travel time, and it’s pretty much motorway or dual carriageway the whole way. The beach is enormous, especially at low tide, and – at least when we were there – largely empty. I did one of those fancy panorama things on my phone, which gives the idea of just how […]

Just a quick shout out to LightReaders (www.lightreaders.com) who sent me a lovely e-mail, asking for permission to use this photo of mine (right) in their advertising this year. They “have presented Christian music with Biblical storytelling to numerous churches and organizations in Ohio for the past twelve years. We present for the Audience of One, only accepting freewill donations, often presenting free of charge, and operate on a shoestring budget.” Very nice to be asked! They even asked if they had to pay (to which I answered no). In general, I’m very happy for people to use my photos […]

I have now successfully submitted an assignment in PDF format via the Common Awards Moodle, including analysis by TurnItIn!! I did have to do a few more tweaks, so I’ve updated my Using LaTeX for Common Awards page with the final instructions/template for anyone mad enough to do the same.

While I was at this year’s Easter School in Durham, I have the chance to attend the book launch of a new book, which has several contributions from YMC tutors. The book looks excellent, and is available now in paper and Kindle format from Amazon. Once I’ve read a bit more of it I’ll do a more detailed review.

Prayer is the lifeblood of the church, and having discussed personal quiet times, it is worth thinking about corporate prayer – or prayer meetings. Sadly these can make the heart sink, at the thought of sitting in a cold, uncomfortable chair for 20 minutes in silence without 3 other people who are looking at their feet! However, there are many models of prayer that enable a group of people to pray in a way that is exciting, relevant, and powerful. The nicknames of these models are not my own, they are how I have heard them referred to over the […]

If you attended a Christian Union (or equivalent) as a schoolchild or student, you will already be familiar with the concept – if not always the practice – of “Quiet Times”. What is it? For those who aren’t familiar, the “Quiet Time” is a (ideally) daily exercise of taking some time out, and spending it intentionally with God. It usually involves elements such as worship, bible reading, prayer, journalling, meditation, and so on. Morning Prayer, Evening Prayer, and Night Prayer (or compline) are very structured way of doing this, required of all Church of England clergy as a part of […]