Virtual Methodist

I do not like to focus on fear... the tabloids (both the paper and TV varieties) do enough of that... be it fear of Muslim extremists, Roma-child-abductors, flesh-eating microbes, rampaging poisonous spiders... You name it, they will try to turn it into a phobia -with the word phobia being used in its sense of irrational fear... Dig deep into most of these stories and you will find little of substance. I also am not into those who build their ministries on a "gospel" of fear... Yes fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom , but it is only a beginning... There are those for whom fear (either at a specific point or a more general fear) was a major feature in their spiritual journey, including Martin Luther, John Newton and John Wesley. Indeed last night I was at a meeting where a Catholic priest spoke of the fear that he had as a child growing up in a mixed area of north Belfast of his home being attacked and he or his family being killed, and how that was a powerful fact...

Two years ago today I was involved with one of the most bizarre services of worship in my entire ministry. I've disparagingly called it the Dr. Doolittle Service , but it was actually a service of blessing for pets in Faith United Methodist Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan where I was serving on exchange for a summer. It was actually the first time they had ever run such a service (I was very grateful to my exchange partner for letting me be the guinea pig... to use an inappropriate metaphor), but it went so well they decided to have another one last year. Don't know whether it is happening this year or not. It's certainly not going to be happening in Dundonald Methodist any time soon. Given that I am absolutely terrified of dogs, I'm not too sure who was more traumatised by the event, me or the single cat surrounded by over a dozen dogs of all shapes and sizes. Certainly afterwards I had to go and lie down in a darkened room for a while. But the whole event reminded me...

Doing a blessing service for animals while I was on exchange to the US this summer was mildly amusing, and did make me think about the place of pets in people's lives... But once a year... if not once in an entire ministry, is quite enough for me! But how about a church that has started a "Woof and Worship" service for parishioners with "pious pooches." Only in America... And please God let's keep it there! Cheers

Well, I've put off blogging about it long enough... but it is now time to comment on last Sunday's service here in Faith UMC, which was outdoors and included an act of Blessing for Animals... It supposedly came about as a suggestion by the Worship Team here, to which Geoff Hayes, the incumbent minister said, "That's a really good idea... But I'll be in Northern Ireland!" I suspect it may have been his revenge on me for leaving him to feed our cat, even though he is allergic! But lots of people on both sides of the Atlantic have laughed their legs off at the whole thing, especially since I am borderline phobic about dogs. Different people helpfully suggested different incidental music, including, Bob Dylan's "Man Gave Names to All the Animals", Dr. Doolittle's "If I Could Talk to the Animals", or the theme tune from the Vicar of Dibley, in tribute to an episode of that dreadful sitcom when the said vicar hosted a similar service. I w...