The traditional Scottish drinking cup of friendship is called a Quaich, the word is derived from the Gaelic cuach ‘cup’. It is a small shallow bowl like cup with two handles or ‘lugs’ – a Scottish word for ears! Its origin is unknown but it has often been described as a drinking cup of HighlandContinue reading “Auld Lang Syne”
Monthly Archives: December 2024
Nativity
Bethlehem, sitting on the West Bank, remains a difficult place to get to. On my first and only visit in 2008 I felt I was back in Belfast in the days of my youth in the mid 1970s. with check points and heavily armed soldiers present on every street corner. Their presence, intimidating! The photoContinue reading “Nativity”
Immensity
I turn today to John Donne (1573-1631) and his poem Annunciation which is the second of seven sonnets under the title La Corona – yes Corona (Crown) a term we lived with for the best part of three years and sadly some continue to live with the mark of the Corona Virus. Donne uses theContinue reading “Immensity”
“For years I counted hugs.”
I could not imagine an Advent season without T.S. Eliot’s poem – The Journey of the Magi Please take a moment to delight in Eliot’s poem and ponder the Wisemen’s question – were we led all that way for Birth or Death? The poem is long so I shall be brief. Perhaps what was travellingContinue reading ““For years I counted hugs.””
Kenosis – Self-emptying of God
Sadly, what I wrote this time last year seems to be the most appropriate words to post today. With one small edit I repost from last year. – The spontaneous ceasefire on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in 1914 came about as British, Belgian, and French soldiers put down their weapons and climbed out of theirContinue reading “Kenosis – Self-emptying of God”
Prayers, Poems, and Christian Ponderings 