Church Under Fire

Some time during the past 24 hours, our Church came under fire. Our stained glass took about thirty hits (see photo). What kind of a gun (or guns) it was remains for the police to find out. We'll also need to decide whether to claim from insurance. The damage is not as simple as, say, a cricket ball hitting the glass -- it is peppered all over. OBSERVATION: An obvious question is: motive?

"Free Manse"

It is not unusual for a minister to be provided with a "free manse". However, the term is misleading, for two reasons. Firstly, the minister pays more than a tenth of his/her salary to the state for the privilege. Secondly, "free" generally means that there is no provision in his/her salary for (retirement) housing. Consider: "free" effectively means that assets are diverted from the minister to Church and state. OBSERVATION: In my own original call, there is provision for housing. However, this has not yet been implemented. I am on the "free manse" model in the interim.

Vandalism

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Something that is "par for the course" in urban ministry is vandalism. This morning I walked into the Church to discover that the cry-room camera mount had been snapped in two (this may have been attempted theft, but the camera remained), and I found that the brass plaque at our manse was missing (pictured -- or should I say, not pictured). The plaque said Brendon, after Brenda and Donald, former owners of the house.

Uniondale Congregational

Uniondale is a town just east of Oudtshoorn, off the beaten track. Strangely, there seems to be a buzz around its Congregational Church as there is around few others. The sanctuary is dominated by its magnificent wooden ceiling (pictured). You may click on the photo for VGA.

Motivating Factors [2]

Behind the scenes (the statistics), my post Motivating Factors has recently been my most popular "ministry" post. I referred there to nine motivating factors for ministry that Dr. Bobby Clinton identifies -- then I added my own. Dr. Clinton's factors are: ♦ finishing well ♦ the return of Christ ♦ one's giftedness ♦ confidence in the power of the gospel ♦ a burden to minister ♦ the resurrection ♦ handling God's Word for impact ♦ the perspective of eternity, and ♦ love for Christ. That's in his book Titus: Apostolic Leadership (much expanded there).

Tough With People

This week, I went to see an elderly congregant who is terminally ill. She said: "You are one of the great ministers here. You kept that Church going where many others failed." She was referring no doubt to the patchy record of the Churches in our urban area. I think there are many reasons why I kept the Church going, most of all God's grace -- but it was partly because I was tough with people. That is what comes to mind in this moment.

"Live And Let Live" Theology

In a recent class debate, a fellow postgraduate student commented: "Thomas, your live and let live theology from below is a fresh and empowering approach that could have transformational impact in the lives of believers. ... Can you elaborate on how this works in your Church? Does a member get to write his or her own creed for their own life? Are they free to interpret Scripture situationally without regard to exegetical integrity or a commonly upheld hermeneutical understanding? Does this happen by a committee of the priesthood of believers?" OBSERVATION: These aren't easy questions, and I won't try to answer them here. What I said was basically the following: that our Church's (vernacular) theology is enriched and shaped by diverse spiritual input, or ministry by members -- however, one needs to take certain risks in order to do that, and some Churches won't entertain it. We sometimes need to wink an eye at what we hear. I do agree that our approach is "fresh and empowering".

Bibles / Basic Materials

When it comes to Missions and Evangelism, our Church has tended over the years to distribute Bibles, and to publish basic Christian materials -- in various languages. With regard to the materials, we tended to choose projects where there was nothing of the sort previously available. The image on the right shows one small project we undertook: the Sinner's Prayer in I-Kiribati, Ana Tataro Te Tia Bure (click on it to enlarge). With extreme humidity and paper-eating insects in mind, we had this laminated. We distributed packages of the prayer to many Island Church Councils.

198 Days For Spare Parts

By South African standards, even this is a teensy bit of a stretch. I ordered spare parts for my Mahindra vehicle. It required 27 days to place the order, 169 days for the parts to arrive, and 2 days for me to be invoiced = 198 days. I received a note today from the McCarthy Mahindra Service Department: "I do understand your frustration with this delay." OBSERVATION: It's nice that they interpret this as a delay. A customer service complaint on Hello Peter might have been the turning point.

Background Check

As a Church, we have kicked ourselves a few times for not running background checks on applicants for membership. However, it can be difficult sometimes -- for instance, if an applicant comes from a disaster area, or if they previously were drifters, or if their old Church folded, and so on. Sometimes, applicants have no background -- if they are new Christians. This week I ran a background check on an applicant, and regrettably there were alarm bells. This is not often the case.

Striking A Pose

I took a fairly ordinary photo of this youngster. He took a look at it -- but didn't like it. He asked me to try again -- and struck this pose. Then he was satisfied. You may click on it for VGA.

Deathbed Counsel

People have difficulty imagining, sometimes, what counsel one might give at a deathbed. Apart from spiritual counsel and the reassurance of God's love and mercy, there is in fact a lot that one may talk about. Here are some examples of questions I might answer: "Should I share my fears with my family?" "Should I accept treatment?" "How will I pay for this?" "How do you assess my situation?" "How shall I keep my spirits up?" "Should I know what is wrong with me?" "What shall I do to right what is wrong?" "Should I be cremated?" "Should I believe in a miracle?" "Should I have a formal funeral?" With all of these questions and more, a minister may be genuinely helpful -- and may in fact be the only person who is providing answers.

Back To Work

Back to work after my leave, there are a few things I am getting down to in the first few days. My first priority was to put my thoughts in order for the Sunday service and sermon, and to consider input into the service by members -- then to put my thoughts in order for a Church Meeting on Sunday (our highest executive) -- the agenda, my reports, and what I have previously referred to as my "Ammunition Belt". I also gave some thought to my general spiritual emphasis on my return. Tomorrow I'll check with the office, and write up a to-do list -- likely to be the usual impossible list, which will then need prioritising -- and applying.

Hedgerow

The UK in particular is known for its hedgerows. According to Hooper's Hypothesis, the age of a hedgerow equals the number of woody species in a 30 metre / yard distance multiplied by 110 years. Here is a South African hedgerow. I was told only that this is "the thin aloe" (not the fat one). I took the photo near Montagu.

Perplexed?

This young girl was full of laughter and play, spinning around and around, when suddenly she crouched on the floor, perhaps only for a second, and looked perplexed. Holding my camera almost to the floor, I caught the moment. What did she see? I don't know. You may click on the photo for VGA.

Motivating Factors

I recently read an article: Motivating Factors for Ministry, by Christian leadership professor Dr. Bobby Clinton. He asks: "What motivates you in ministry?" and lists nine factors. Yet it is interesting to note that my own most crucial motivating factors are not on the list -- not even at the bottom of it. I'd put this down to typical differences between Global North and South. For instance, near the top of my list would be -- to put it very simply -- God's faithfulness. OBSERVATION: Related to this, there is little if anything in Dr. Clinton's (750-word) list to suggest that God does anything but work in me, in my ministry.

Donkey Cart

This is a typical scene in rural South Africa -- the donkey cart. I snapped this one last week. Usually donkeys are used in teams of two like this. The carts are typically built from old car / automobile parts. See also Horse-Drawn Traffic.

Open-Air Shower

I stayed in a remote South African town last week, in an old cottage. The shower was outdoors -- which would have been fine if it hadn't been the crack of dawn, with snow on the mountains. I took this photo of the "apparatus" -- a redeeming feature being a hot water tap.

Journeying

Tomorrow I am setting out on a journey. I anticipate that I shall be beyond the Internet for a few days. On Tuesday I shall be back on duty after my winter leave. OBSERVATION: This should also provide opportunity for my (currently) over-heated blog to cool off!

The Gatekeeper

I have been involved in very many situations of death. Not seldom, a dying person dictates his or her last will and testament, then signs it before witnesses -- and leaves most of his or her estate to just one or two persons. This is where the Gatekeeper may come in. The Gatekeeper is a person who stands to inherit, say, ten million -- and certainly does not want any family member, friend, adviser, or even minister to bring about a re-write of the will. Usually, access to the dying person will not be denied, yet the Gatekeeper will hover over every last living moment of the testator or testatrix. OBSERVATION: If one is that way minded, it would seem to make sense to take out weeks or even months of one's life to secure the inheritance.

Academic Stuff: The Bee's Knees

Two or three weeks ago, having gone on winter leave, I shifted the emphasis of my blog towards the academic (I am currently completing my last term at Fuller Theological Seminary -- now working on Week 7/10). Since then, my blog has risen about one-third in the South African rankings. This has rather surprised me, as I thought that the increase in academic posts would have sent it downwards in the rankings. Unless something else is driving this.

Leaving More Than Money

I went to see an old man who was dying. I asked him: "What would you want to leave behind?" He said: "What do you mean?" I said: "What kind of a situation would you like there to be, the moment you are gone?" I didn't think that this would have much effect on him, but it did. He radically changed the "state of affairs" around him. OBSERVATION: This is an example of what I might call a narrow field of view -- which one comes across fairly often in ministry, particularly in counselling.

Land Of The Free

Imagine that your (prestigious) e-mail service suddenly and without warning blocked access to all your e-mails -- Inbox, Sent Items, Drafts -- then demanded that you consent to surveillance before you saw them again. This is what my US seminary did, early this year. Since then, I have sought to discover a) what the purpose of this might be, and b) what safeguards are in place. I have asked them, too, whether they might re-route my now sequestered mail. I have had no meaningful response. OBSERVATION: I rest my case. And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave o'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Family Car

Now here's an idea that I like -- a lovely family car. And that's not a joke. (My present pickup belongs to the same family of vehicles). I know, the kids might get wet, but kids are too soft these days anyway. Click on the image to enlarge to 200k.

Psychologically Regressive

At a recent theological forum (see below) I encountered something I have frequently encountered in recent theology, and it disturbs me. In the debate, alternative theological viewpoints were characterised, dozens of times, as being "psychologically regressive" or "regressive". Similarly, in my postgraduate studies, free Church tenets have been described as "dangerous", faith-based leadership as "irresponsible", and so on. OBSERVATION: Personally, I don't think such language belongs in theological debate, even if it is backed up with charts and graphs.

Third Marriage

I went for lunch with an international businessman. Our conversation turned to his third marriage. He said: "Married three times ... I feel a bit ashamed about that." However, his third marriage had been happy and enduring. I asked him what had changed. He said: "I worked on it." I asked him what he meant by that. He said: "I used to walk away from troubles. But I learnt to face up to them. I learnt how to talk about things. And I learnt that the grass isn't greener."

Tourmaline Deposit

On a walk today, I found this strange pattern in some rocks. I sent a photo (here in false colour) to son M., an archaeology postgrad. He shot back that it was "towards the cable car [on Table Mountain] ... and not that high up". He was absolutely right. It was just below the cable car. Apparently it is a tourmaline deposit.

Not Looking Good

This one's not for the faint-hearted. A minister friend went to see an old woman in hospital. He thought she really needed some attention, so he went looking for a nurse. He found one (one needs to go looking sometimes, in our hospitals), and he said: "She doesn't look good at all!" Well, it turned out that she was dead.

Union Congregational

I attended Union Congregational Church this morning -- sometimes known as Kloof Street Congregational Church -- the "Mother Church" of Congregationalism in Southern Africa. Rev. Craig Hounsom, a loquatious minister, evidenced deep faith. I left the Church feeling: "Yes I want that!" Rev. Hounsom is to be inducted into the ministry at Union on the 7th of August at 9:30 am. OBSERVATION: Lighting was difficult here, so I applied a Retinex filter.

God And Violence

Tonight I attended a theological forum of the Anabaptist Network. The topic was: God and Violence: Is God Violent? OBSERVATION: It was interesting to observe the forum. The subject has important implications, and I was pleased to note that I was more or less on top of it. However, it is a rather tired subject. Thankfully the meeting didn't come to blows (that's a joke).

Moonrise

I pulled up outside our Waterfront helicopter port yesterday, just as the moon was rising over the distant escarpment (pictured). I steadied my camera on the rooftop of my pickup, and took this photo. For a more impressive moonrise on this blog, see Berg River Moonrise.

Attuned (Or Not)

It's a legendary situation: you write a paper from a point of view that your professor doesn't like, and he/she fails you. I haven't encountered this personally, though I do know people it has happened to. However, there is something I have indeed come across. Papers are about tracing relations -- between mass an energy, or soteriology and eschatology, or mentoring and dropout (but ultimately, about far more subtle relations than these). And here is the problem: if your professor is attuned to the relations you are tracing, you are probably on safe ground. However, if he/she is not attuned to the relations you are tracing, you could be in trouble. From this point of view, a lot may depend on where your professor is coming from. As an example, I wrote a paper on epistemology which was graded by an ethicist, and I was almost sunk. A re-mark (I didn't ask for it) radically changed things.
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NOTE: I posted this using Linux Pardus -- to see how well one can actually do things with that "distro". Pardus impresses.

Taking The Plunge

Full marks to son M. on falling off a canoe into the River Wear. If I were the University of Durham, I'd put him in the Reserve Team. A bystander got a video and posted it on YouTube, so his embarrassment is already complete.

Antipathy

When I first embarked on postgraduate studies in Christian leadership in/through the USA in 2004, I was disquieted by our first prescribed book, by Oswald Sanders. John Mark Ministries published a review at the time, which represents my early impressions. I transferred to South Africa in 2007, then I "returned" to the USA this year -- first for some theological courses, then (at the moment) for a final course in Christian leadership. This was intended partly as a "retrospective" -- to see, through this course, where I had come over seven years. I did not expect what I found. I found that I have arrived at a place of deep antipathy towards the content and style of Christian leadership studies in the USA.

Electronics Q & A

It's been a long time since I did serious electronic design, yet I still receive mail almost weekly, asking me questions about old designs. I received one on this blog today. My answer briefly explains CMOS technology and supply decoupling in a metal detector design (see Recent Comments on the left). OBSERVATION: I try to reply where I can, but unfortunately don't always get to it.

Adjusting A Paper

It seems that it's an Academic Posts Week this week (I am on leave, and doing a lot of study). Earlier this year, I wrote a paper for my seminary on "Reconciling the Personal and Social Dimensions of the Gospel". It obtained 98%. Therefore I worked it into a journal article. Last month, it was conditionally accepted for publication -- the core condition being that I should (as I described it to a friend) "stuff it with Bible verses". However, it wasn't that kind of an article. It was philosophy of religion. So today I adjusted it for a university in the Netherlands, and submitted. We shall see.

Camps Bay United [2]

Here's another photo of Camps Bay United Church (or Christian Life Church), this time of its exterior. The Church originally had an old-fashioned sanctuary (on the right) and a manse or rectory (on the left). An executive gave the Church a R1 million tithe on a business deal, and they decided to build a modern sanctuary in the middle, and relegate the old sanctuary to a hall. In my view, it was an inspired decision. See also Camps Bay United.

Malmesbury Shale

This is a typical view of the coast from our suburb. The rocks are informally known as Malmesbury Shale, and the floating bits are seaweed. The photo is taken at a wreck site where son M. and I (and friends) extracted Mauser bullets and gold coins, among other things.

Yale Electronic Resources

Academic research from Africa can be highly problematic. Even if one has access to the world's largest evangelical libraries (as I do), in reality one's use of them may be obstructed, from Africa. Yet free academic resources are few and far between. With this in mind, some electronic resources I have used fairly often are those of Yale Divinity School. While many are restricted to Yale students alone, some are easily accessible from Africa, and very useful. As an example, I have recently drawn a lot on the Encyclopedia of Religion and Society.

Nehemiah

I completed draft work for a group study of Nehemiah tonight. Typically, in Christian leadership studies, Nehemiah is presented as a man of character. Ted Engstrom epitomises this approach: “We see how great he was." Yet what I have discovered through the study is that the breakthroughs of Nehemiah's leadership are routinely preceded by an appeal to the acts of God. For instance, he informs the citizens of Jerusalem "of the hand of God which was good on me". It is then that the people respond: "Let us rise up and build." Or when faced with their first major adversity, Nehemiah proclaims: "The God of heaven, He will prosper us." It is then that "Eliashab the high priest rose up." OBSERVATION: In my own ministry, I continually seek to reveal what God is doing. There are important parallels to this dynamic in the Bible, e.g. Moses and Aaron (Exod 4:31) and Paul and Barnabas (Acts 15:12).

Muizenberg Station

Here's another photo I took on my travels yesterday. It is Muizenberg station, on the east coast of Cape Town. The clock -- like any station clock worthy of its name -- does not in fact work. You may click on the photo for VGA.

St. James Beach

I passed through the suburb of St. James today, on the east coast of Cape Town. I took this photo of the change cubicles on St. James beach. There is a beautiful walkway which runs along this coast, close to the water's edge.

African Theology

I met today with an African theologian, and our talk turned to the scarcity of theological writing in Africa. He explained to me that there is no literature at all in some fields of theology in Africa, for two reasons: a) theologians in Africa are at the coal-face, and b) they struggle to make ends meet. Often, there is no opportunity for research or writing. OBSERVATION: And I can think of some reasons besides.

Stained Glass

For good measure, here is the stained glass centrepiece (pictured) in St. Peter the Fisherman Anglican Church -- one of three Anglican Churches in the parish of Hout Bay, on the south side of Cape Town. St. Peter's is a small stone Church which seats about 80 people. It was consecrated in 1895. See also my recent post Hout Bay Anglican. OBSERVATION: When Jesus fed the multitude, it was two fishes. What therefore does this depict?

Last Conversation

My late wife Mirjam and I, on the 4th of January, held our last conversation together. I considered many times whether I should post it here -- now here it is. She told me that God would fulfil my calling, therefore I shouldn't concern myself about it. She told me that I should be sure to be balanced in academic debate. She asked me: "Am I very sick?" I said: "Definitely." She said: "Am I going to die now?" I didn't know how to answer that. I said: "I think it's approaching the end." She said: "What do you see when you say that?" She motioned with a hand over her body. I said: "Your eyes ... But it's an intuition, it's everything." She smiled at me from her pillow (I thought a lot about that -- I think I figured it out). Then for a brief moment she looked scared. A specialist took me aside. He said that they could commence radiation therapy immediately -- then after three months, they could follow up with a bone marrow transplant. Would I speak to my wife about this? I said: "Professor, I am a minister. I see what I see." I spoke to Mirjam. She responded: "We'll see." Her last words were: "You pray for me. I'll pray for you." The photo was Mirjam's favourite of the two of us -- taken about ten years ago. You may click on it to enlarge to VGA.

Hout Bay Anglican

This morning I attended St. Peter the Fisherman Anglican Church in Hout Bay (pictured), some 16km / 10mi south of my own "parish". Rev. Godfrey Taft Walton preached a short message on the parable of the Sower. What impressed him, he said, was "the generosity of the Sower ... he was sowing all over!" Yet it is only in the good soil, he said, that love, goodness, and compassion grow.

"Modern History"

Our Church is so diverse, and the people it intersects with so diverse, that I have joked that I know the modern history of all of Africa without having looked in a book. Part of the history I have obtained through others' first-hand experience is that of Southern Sudan, which gained its independence today. OBSERVATION: At the moment, we have people in our congregation from (to my knowledge) ten African nations.

Leadership Not About Leadership

I wrote to my US leadership professor today that Christian leadership in Africa may, in an important sense, not be about leadership. To put this in other words, a Westerner may not recognise African leadership training by looking at the curriculum or the textbooks. US leadership training typically focuses on the leader, while African leadership training often focuses on aspects of leadership thought to be more central than the leader himself/herself: the Holy Spirit, homiletics, prayer, the task at hand, and so on.

Tampering

Since Mirjam's death, her Internet account has been accessed and tampered with. Also, her Skype account has been active. Both of these actions require her personal password (and some information besides). I sought professional opinion. The reaction was one of alarm.

Rhodes Memorial 3D

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The moment history has been waiting for ... here's Rhodes Memorial in 3D. It is a memorial to South African politician Cecil John Rhodes (after whom Rhodesia was named), and has a panoramic view over Cape Town. It was designed by Sir Herbert Baker. OBSERVATION: Click on the image to enlarge to 380k for enhanced 3D. To see the 3D, lazily squint your eyes until the images overlap and snap together. Your eyes need to be in line horizontally.

Hysterical

A past member, a Central African, called me from Houston today. She asked me how dear Mirjam was getting on. I stalled. I said: "I'm so sorry for you, I do not have good news ... Mirjam has passed away." She went hysterical -- Central African style -- which I don't think I have ever witnessed of anyone of European stock. Thankfully she put down the phone, as I would have been incapable of continuing that conversation myself. Sweet woman.

Treacherous Woman

During the past week, I received three offers of love. For the first time, I decided to run a check on one of these women: "Yours with love & hugssssss." It turned out that she was treacherous -- blacklisted multiple times. I wondered how she can keep up the chutzpah. OBSERVATION: The check was merely out of curiosity. I have not responded to such offers. I value the simple life. See also Offers of Love.

Big Conundrum

I received a letter this week from the Swiss government. It arrived in my postbox through a twist of fate that was not, I think, meant to be. It contained a statement of Mirjam's total wealth, calculated on the basis of detailed submissions she had made to the Swiss government. I did not know her total wealth. However, the government figure is stunningly out of joint (millions of rands) with the figure obtained by her executor from reliable sources. One thing seems certain: we have a big conundrum, in more ways than one.

Diesel And Temperature

My vehicle has what one might call a "primitive" diesel engine. This works on the principle: compression = heat = ignition. It has no glow-plug or spark-plug. But then, consider that temperatures typically vary about 25 degrees C in Cape Town (45 degrees F). This is problematic when temperatures drop. At 10 degrees C, one might need three or four attempts to start the engine, and one or two minutes' warm-up to get traction. But at 35 degrees C, it starts first time every time, and may need only ten seconds' warm-up.

Mennonite Missionaries

I met this morning with Canadian Mennonite missionaries Andrew and Karen Suderman. Among other things, they are establishing an Anabaptist network in Southern Africa. I asked them what theological differences they have found between Canada and South Africa. Among other things, they said that spiritual warfare is big in our local Churches, yet typically doesn't feature in Canada.

Communion Glass Heist

Usually, our communion glasses are simply stolen from the Church (see Vanishing Glasses). Last month, however, we encountered a new phenomenon. Half a tray of glass communion glasses had been replaced with plastic ones. That is, on the surface of it, there weren't any glasses missing -- yet they had been swapped with an inferior product. OBSERVATION: Small glass communion glasses typically cost a few times as much as standard drinking glasses. But also, they have rarity value -- you need to go a long way to find them.

Brickwork

Being at a loss as to what to post, here is some of the brickwork in our Church manse's yard. The moss is an amazing green. OBSERVATION: Actually, I have no shortage of things to post -- but if I did post them, I could probably count the hours rather than the days between now and my (figurative) lynching.

Bargaining Over An MTh

There was some interesting "bargaining" at the start of my South African MTh in 2007. A professor in the USA had recommended that I combine the fields of theology and linguistics, with my future in mind. So to put it very simply, I proposed that I critique some theologians by turning their own words on themselves. My South African seminary said no, I had to turn Scripture on them, not their own words. I said to my supervisor, give me a chance, let me show you what I mean. He gave me the chance, and said don't worry about the seminary. In the end, the seminary published important aspects of my work.

Studying vs. Promoting

There is a difference between studying something and promoting it. For instance, between studying riots and promoting them. A major problem I have with my US degree is that they won't study a subject, they'll promote it -- and they'll promote it relentlessly, flattening everything that a student holds dear.

Act Of Heroism

This post is about what I would describe as an act of heroism on the part of our Church. Our Church's medical policy, which was put in place shortly after I arrived, was by no means bomb-proof -- and we touched on this in a number of meetings. For most of my ministry, the arrangement was that, where medical aid came short, the Church would take care of additional expenses. However, one didn't anticipate the ultimate disaster -- and Mirjam's bone marrow cancer was about it. Yet the Church took away all our worries, and did not make any mention to us of the costs or the effort. To this day, I do not know how much the Church did. I can only imagine that it was much.

Camps Bay United

I attended Camps Bay United Church (or Christian Life Church) this morning (pictured). On the whole, its profile might be described as "on the other side of yuppiedom" (the side at which one exits yuppiedom). The service was focused throughout on a living God. The minister scattered thoughts like confetti. OBSERVATION: This Church originally was an outreach of our own. In fact, we owned it.

"Unsubscribe" In Arabic

Since a tussle between my blog and the Arab world last year, I have been wishing I knew how to recognise the word "Unsubscribe" in Arabic (see the image from my e-mail Inbox). OBSERVATION: Not to speak of some other languages in which I wish I could recognise "Unsubscribe". But that is another story.

Literal Version

I use the free Xiphos Bible on my Linux platform (pictured -- you may click on the image to enlarge). There are very many free Bible versions available for Xiphos -- in English, about fifty. I find myself continually leaning towards certain versions. A version that I use frequently, which may be little known, is Green's Literal Translation (LITV). While it is no replacement for Biblical Greek, it enables me to get a good grip on the original text quickly and easily. It is interesting how very often translations do interpretations of the original words.

Morning Protea

We have a greater diversity of flora on our Cape Peninsula than there is in the entire United Kingdom. Here's a protea that I snapped in the morning sun, on the lower slopes of Table Mountain. You may click on the photo to enlarge to VGA.

Dagger-Man

I was busy with counselling in my vestry, and kept a man waiting for an hour. He had been attacked, and was trembling, and dripping blood even when I saw him. He pulled out a big knife and said: "Thank God I didn't get a chance to use this!" That was all I needed, I thought. A man trembling, dripping blood in my vestry after a street fight, pulling a dagger. He said: “I just want to get out of this town!” So I took him to the station and put him on a train.

Working On My Spirit

My final seminary course was working on my spirit. It was tedious. It ran against my grain. I considered that I have nothing to gain, nothing to lose. By South African standards, no matter what I do now, I have obtained cum laude for the degree. So I decided to give them fireworks. I told my former academic mentor that I'd decided to be the "guerilla". He responded: "So glad to discover you are your usual combative self." I hope to shred the course -- intelligently. For starters, the title of my major assignment reverses the title of the course.