Critic Cal

world-view   n.  [after German Weltanschauung  n.] a set of fundamental beliefs, values, etc., determining or constituting a comprehensive outlook on the world; a perspective on life; = Weltanschauung n.  ( OED Online. Oxford University Press, June 2015. Web. 15 August 2015 ). I've been endeavouring through  N.T. Wright 's  Resurrection of the Son of God . It's a weighty tome in both senses (or would be if I hadn't opted for the e-book version) but he does have a lovely clarity of thought and expression which renders complex academic ideas comprehensible even to (reasonably determined) laymen. I especially appreciate his framework for describing and comparing world-views via the answers to five major questions: Who are we? Where are we? What is wrong? What is the solution? What time is it? The exercise of unpicking cultures and belief systems on this basis seems highly instructive, at least when he attempts it (more on that later). Bu...

Mr W. and myself have been unanimous, this week, in our delight at the long-awaited start of the season. We have not, however, been quite so unanimous as to the which of the said season. He seems to think it is the Premier League lays rightful claim to our delight; I'm pretty sure it is the Great British Bake Off . However, my attempts to reason with him have fallen on deaf ears. "I honestly don't understand what's gotten everybody so ridiculously hyped," he marvels disdainfully. "It's not even real." Well, he's right about the hype. My Facebook newsfeed is testament to that. And it doesn't seem to be peculiar to my online peers: 9.3 million tuned in for the opener; 2 million more than the equivalent figures for last year. The Telegraph even provided a live text update  of the first episode, football match-style, for people (I guess?) who were unavoidably away from their TV screens between the hours of 8 and 9 last Wednesday evening b...

Picture CC from haily.baily on Flickr Alright, already! Even the confectionary they gave us on the aeroplane to stop our ears from popping as we landed seemed to pester me to let go of my agenda and anxiety and simply trust in God. I wrote some weeks ago about my reluctant agreement to travel to the US to present some work at a conference. I guess I'd be hard-pressed to stir up sympathy for the fact that I 'had' to go on a paid trip to sunny California... Most would be extremely grateful for the chance, but for me, well, 's complicated. I came up with all sorts of strategies to wriggle out of it, but in the end I glumly reconciled myself to the reality that opting to get on and  meet my 'obligation' was the action which, under the circumstances, most demonstrated faith -- in God's protection and provision, in His desire for me to be challenged and transformed, and in His bigger picture which goes way beyond whether or not I'm comfortable or havin...

"Christians are like Revels " was the postprandial proposition up for debate. I'm not sure if we were discussing denominational diversity, or the fact that some of us make other people want to vomit. Sadly, there was a parting of ways long before the topic had been fully explored; the metaphorical significance of re-sealable pouches barely even got a mention. By Evan-Amos (Own work) [CC0], via Wikimedia Commons Well, now that my dinner's gone down I've decided that Christians are not supposed to be like Revels: superficially similar but fundamentally different. In the interests of seasonality, I am going to suggest that we should be more like Mini Eggs : superficially different but fundamentally the same. By William Warby (originally posted to Flickr as Mini Eggs) [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons Not "the same" in a boring, uniform, restrictive way. I am most definitely up for celebrating diversi...

No, not the Dining Cryptographers Problem (that sounds rather too much like the sort of thing I should be writing about, now that I'm officially 'writing up'). Rather, I refer to a recent outing with the wonderful research group that is nurturing me through my PhD, the experience of which struck me profoundly enough to depart slightly from my 'usual' themes and turn temporary restaurant critic. And so I give you: the 'all-you-can-eat' buffet. All the flavours of the world on one plate...and when you reach shiny ceramic - in that pause before you go up for more - a mirror to your soul. What a worthy service - forcing us to hold our appetites up against our actions, throwing into sharp relief a fundamental characteristic of the human condition: the stark contrast between what we want to do and what we do. Of course, we all have our different battles, and perhaps it is just me after all…but every time I set out with the intention to ignore the invited...