Lego

It’s the 50th birthday of the Lego brick. I’d read somewhere that originally Lego did not make green or brown bricks so that no-one used the bricks for tanks or war toys. Now that weaponry’s more sophisticated there are a good number of Star Wars, Batman or alien battles to be had – ‘though still no tanks.

Batman doesn’t make it to the Brick Testament (unless there’s a reference in The Boy’s Bible with its strapline, ‘Finally a Bible just for boys’) but there are a few jokes.

We looked at Mark 10 on Sunday which included the camel and eye of the needle trick. The answer to the camel and needle seems to be either to grease the camel and invest in a large liquidiser and a big syringe – or when that doesn’t work, go, sell, give to the poor and follow the Rabbi Jesus.

I had 31 verses to get through on Sunday so it was definitely a case of less is more. I remembered afterwards that there was a good camel-
shoving quote from Richard Branson in 1994 when he was asked why he wanted to run the lottery franchise for charity and not for profit and he said:

Well, I hope to make the eye of the needle a little bit larger when I come to the end of my days.

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Now playing: Pete Seeger – Little Boxes
via FoxyTunes

Hopetimist

Because it fits in with the last post, and because we love Howies

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Now playing: Gwen Stefani – Early Winter
via FoxyTunes

Prisoner of hope

‘The categories of optimism and pessimism don’t exist for me because I am a prisoner of hope’ Cornel West (who might or might not have been commenting on the American political process). Being imprisoned by hope isn’t a bad way to start the new year. It also helped to finish the year in looking at the Magnificat, and Mary being imprisoned by hope of a bigger story.

Mary’s Song

And Mary said:
“My soul glorifies the Lord
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has been mindful
of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
holy is his name.
His mercy extends to those who fear him,
from generation to generation.
He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things
but has sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful
to Abraham and his descendants forever,
even as he said to our fathers.”

Luke 1
We said the Magnificat most days of the week in college chapel and it’s one of the first things I remember remembering as someone new to the stuff of Christian hope.

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Now playing: Findlay Brown – Come Home
via FoxyTunes