“The path to paradise begins in hell.” ― Dante Alighieri – There’s a room in my life where hell sleeps. Sleeps every so lightly. And over the last few years, it often awakens, moving swiftly through the corridors, to be part of the many conversations I have had with people whose life narrative has been…Continue reading Haunted by Hell: Part 1 – Dante’s Legacy
Category: Religion
The Table of Life: Despair and Hope
“Despair is the price one pays for self-awareness. Look deeply into life, and you’ll always find despair.” ― Irvin D. Yalom, When Nietzsche Wept – Lately, I find the world increasingly loud and overwhelming. I flinch as I scroll through my various social news feeds: The faces of the destitute that have been stigmatised as…Continue reading The Table of Life: Despair and Hope
Letting Javert Go
“One can say that Javert is our conscience. The ever lurking presence of the law and our own condemnation. The tension between who we were and who we are and who we can be. Javert represents that inescapable, shameful past that forever haunts and pursues one’s conscience. Javert is the man of the law, and……Continue reading Letting Javert Go
Neither Here nor There – The Many Voices of Liminality
‘Jesus, on whom be peace, said This world is a bridge. Pass over it but do not build your dwelling there.’ (Inscribed in Persian on Buland Darwaza, the main gateway to the palace at Fatehpur Sikri, south of Delhi, India by the Moghul emperor Akbar I in 1601) Last year, I had the opportunity…Continue reading Neither Here nor There – The Many Voices of Liminality
Tattered Teddies and Tattered Hearts
Once you are Real you can’t become unreal again. It lasts for always. -Margery Williams, The Velveteen Rabbit – It was a very difficult decision to let Baer go. However, Baer had gone to God. His little teddy body could no longer be mended. There were now gaping holes where once his beautiful brown glass…Continue reading Tattered Teddies and Tattered Hearts
On Being a Feral Priest
Dedicated to all the Ferals out there xx I found tears running down my face as I read this blog post. It was not because I was particularly sad, for that matter. It was because Colin Coward (author) was able to eloquently articulate something that resonated so deeply with me. Thank you, Colin, for your…Continue reading On Being a Feral Priest
On Burning Bridges
The hardest thing in life to learn is which bridge to cross and which to burn. – David Russell – During the Roman Empire, it was common practice for military commanders who were concerned about their armies retreating during intense battle to burn the bridges they crossed in order to block any form of escape. It…Continue reading On Burning Bridges
Celebrating the Birth of the Homeless, Oppressed and Marginalised
“Christmas is built upon a beautiful and intentional paradox; that the birth of the homeless should be celebrated in every home.” -G.K. Chesterton – If we had to paint a picture of the Christ that many of us celebrate at Christmas, what would our portrait look like? If the sound bytes that accost us on…Continue reading Celebrating the Birth of the Homeless, Oppressed and Marginalised
And are you ok with that?
‘Do not avert your eyes. It is important that you see this. It is important that you feel this.’ – Kamand Kojouri – This year has been filled with many conversations. My life is richer because a collection of friends and strangers were willing to take a study journey with me and share some of…Continue reading And are you ok with that?
Who were the Celts?
“Their aspect is terrifying … their hair is blond, but not naturally so: they bleach it, to this day, artificially, washing it in lime and combing it back from their foreheads. They look like wood-demons, their hair thick and shaggy like a horse’s mane. Some of them are cleanshaven, but others … shave their cheeks…Continue reading Who were the Celts?