Archive for Church & faith

Proofreading, procrastination and Proverbs…

14 April, 2008 at 5:35 pm · Filed under Church & faith

A rare evening off the campaign trail tonight, as I’m putting the finishing touches to the church Annual Report. This is really just an editing job, as the real work is done by the many contributors; but I find it a hard one to finish off. Somehow cleaning the sink is suddenly attractive.

The publication deadline is looming, the auditor has finally signed off the accounts, so it’s now or never. Even my Bible quote for the day is weighing in: “The hand of the diligent will rule, but the slothful will be put to forced labour. Proverbs 12:24″. Ok, Ok, I can take a hint….

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Hail and history on Good Friday

21 March, 2008 at 9:53 pm · Filed under Church & faith, Local history, Neighbourhood ·Tagged , , , ,

This morning my delivery round took me to the network of streets between City Road and the canal. These are some of the oldest streets in the area, and there are little bits of history at every turn.

On 32 Haverstock Street, now a private house being refurbished, there is a plaque saying ‘Seminary for Young Ladies’. On the corner of Coombs Street and City Garden Row is a plaque marking the boundary of St Luke’s parish.

Another church, St Matthew’s, used to be nearby on City Road. It was destroyed in bombing in 1940, and Langdon Court now stands on the site. Behind it in Oakley Crescent, the former vicarage survives. It’s now called St Peter’s House; when I first came to Islington in 1992, the then curate of St Mary’s church, Pete Ellem, was living there; we enjoyed many evenings of coffee, philosophy and gossip in his attic flat. What I didn’t know then was that another former tenant was the French poet, Guillaume Apollinaire. Perhaps Islington should put up a plaque?

Even the street names are full of history. Nelson Street and Nelson Terrace were built in1802; Nelson was already a hero from the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801, years before Trafalgar. Elia Street is named after the pen-name of the essayist Charles Lamb who had a cottage nearby on Colebrooke Row. City Garden Row evokes the time when this land was a recreation area just outside the city boundaries. Other streets like Graham Street, Noel Road and Vincent Terrace are probably named after the developers’ families (as are Matilda Street, Muriel Street and Rodney Street in Barnsbury). We like a bit of history. Today’s developers, who seem to go for empty names like ‘The Island’, ‘The Base’ and ‘NorthPoint’, should take note….

Despite being just off City Road, the streets were surprisingly quiet. In fact the only noise came from the refuse collection and recycling teams doing their rounds. On a Bank Holiday? Yes, thanks to the Lib Dem Council and the hard-working binmen. We also have a Friday collection in Morton Road and I’m glad to say both our bins and our recycling were collected as normal today.

The weather this morning was much better than forecast, and perfect for delivery. That changed this afternoon. About 5pm I was picking my way around the steps and basements of Packington Street, when the sky suddenly went dark, and then hail struck. I lurked in a porch while the ice bounced off the pavement and thunder rumbled.

Today is of course Good Friday. As a Christian, I should have gone to church, indeed would have done if I’d not had my deliveries to get out. My church organises a procession on Good Friday; carrying the cross along Upper Street to St Mary’s, starting at noon. They’d have had good weather today. On the first Good Friday, the Gospels record that the sky went dark and the earth shook. So the hailstorm gave me pause for thought as well as a pause in my delivery.

The storm passed and I carried on delivering, albeit with bits of ice inside my collar and making their way down my back…. Still it did make our post-delivery meet-up for a drink all the more welcome. To quote Apollinaire, “La joie venait toujours après la peine”; pain is always followed by joy. Not a bad thought for Good Friday.

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Book of Numbers

13 March, 2008 at 12:45 pm · Filed under Church & faith ·Tagged , , , ,

Between other projects, I’m compiling the annual report for St Mary’s church. This time last year I produced the report for the first time, and we did it formally to meet the requirements of SORP. Despite the Bond villain name, SORP actually stands for Statement of Recommended Practice, for charity accounts. We’ve been blessed in our Honorary Treasurer for the last 3 years, Antony Wedgwood, who is himself an accountant. He does the numbers with ease, so I just have to sort out the words.

This year the report needs updating, but thankfully not creating from scratch. Just as well, as I have significantly less time than last year, what with the Post Office campaign, GLA elections, my Guardian blog and works on the flat… oh and the day job.

I do enjoy compiling the report, not least because it’s fascinating to get the overview of all the different activities associated with the church; St Mary’s is very much an outward-looking church so the report has lots to cover. As well as minstry and music, the report covers the pre-school and youth club run each day, and the Access for All project. The church already hosts groups as diverse as a legal advice centre, a Stroke Club and Alcoholics Anonymous; opening up the crypt, which is the focus of Access for All, is the next big challenge for us. The project has already won lottery and council funding. So lots more numbers for Antony’s successor to crunch.

The report is also a reminder of how many volunteers it takes to run all these groups and the hours they put in. Last month, the Commission on the Future of Volunteering (part of Islington-based charity Volunteering England) published its report. Unsurprisingly they reported that potential volunteers are being put off by all the bureaucracy. You need to recruit people to monitor the people who complete the papers to get the funding to recruit more people who then get vetted to actually do the work…. Now that Britons work the longest hours in Europe, and with a government that discourages stay-at-home Mums, finding people with time for volunteering is harder than ever. I’m amazed at the great volunteers we have and the time they put in. I just hope the report does them all justice.

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Post-conference thoughts; all believers now?

9 March, 2008 at 9:21 pm · Filed under Campaigns, Church & faith, Liberal Democrats ·Tagged , , , , , ,

Featured on Liberal Democrat Voice

Sometimes party conference is an escape into a feelgood cocoon, where everyone is a Lib Dem, and politics is about discussing ideas in the warm not pounding the streets in the rain. Politics is a tough old game and you need that comforting fix, that gathering of the clans, to give you the boost to keep going. Sometimes it’s too much, literally stifling and you have to get out to get some fresh air. Today was different. The blast of fresh air from the real world came into the conference hall, courtesy of the leader. Yes, Nick Clegg rightly attacked the other parties. Did you know that the Labour government pillaged funds for fighting child poverty to cut inheritance tax for the 6% richest? Or that the Government that used to talk about an ethical foreign policy sells arms to 19 of the 20 countries it’s identified as the worst human rights’ abusers?

But he also attacked our own complacency. We’re rightly proud to be the greenest party (greener even than the Greens); but only 1 in 14 people agree with us that climate change is a pressing problem. Nick struck a chord with me when he said we’ve got to do more than simply say “I told you so” when the tipping point comes. And that means really getting out and listening to people not simply doing a PR pose. Labour’s ‘big conversation’ was an invitation-only stunt, listening to hand-picked fans. The Conservatives are listening to all sorts of people, but doing little in response. Nick’s been out listening for real, no cameras, no agenda. A couple of months ago, I went for a mid-week meal with my parents, on the edge of London. That same night Nick Clegg was doing a listening meeting at my old school down the road. I only found out when Nick came to Islington the next week and mentioned it in passing. “You should have said, I could have been there” I said. “But that’s not the point,” said Nick. He’s right.

For all the talk about personalised services, both Government and business are getting further away from people. There are straws in the wind; the BBC ‘White’ season; the fight for our post offices; the revolt against overseas call centres; anger over MPs expenses, Heathrow expansion, battery hens, and more. Even the FA Cup is showing the backlash of the underdogs. When I lost my council seat back in 2006 it hurt like hell, but that didn’t matter; it wasn’t about me. Islington residents didn’t want a Labour council - they’d only just got rid of generations of a dreadful Labour council - but they wanted the Lib Dems to listen. Rival politicians still snigger about election losses; but the residents I talk to don’t care about all that. They want politicians who take time to listen and who remember why they are there. We must never be too busy putting our policies into practice to stop and listen to the people we serve. And we must never simply be there to prop up the Government of the day rather than put our constituents first.

After his election as leader, Nick admitted that he didn’t believe in God. One of my humanist friends at conference teased me yesterday, asking if I thought God believed in Nick Clegg? One of the things that troubles me as a Christian in politics is that so much of what politics plays on hate and fear. People don’t actually like the Orwellian minutes of hate that passes for political debate these days. Private Eye rightly mocks the overuse of the word ’solutions’ but solutions are what we need. Last year I blogged about what I wanted in a leader. Someone who likes people, who sees people as the solution, not the problem. Nick may not be a believer, but his speech today was full of the values that make me both Christian and liberal.

He talked about beliefs, about striving to do what’s right, about second and third chances, about optimism and empowerment, about sincerity and hope. I’m certain God does believe in Nick Clegg. And so do I.

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Mayoral hustings at St Mary’s

12 February, 2008 at 7:45 pm · Filed under Campaigns, Church & faith, Neighbourhood ·Tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

On Monday night I went to Islington’s Commission on Young People & Safety, meeting in St Mary’s church. The Commission, chaired by Lib Dem Cllr Greg Foxsmith, was set up following the murder of Martin Dinnegan in Holloway. Since then another local teenager, Nassirudeen Osawe, was stabbed at the Angel, with other youngsters killed just over the border in Hackney. So the Commission remains sadly topical.

Originally this session was to be for the Commission members - a mix of councillors and independent members - to hear from the young people at St Mary’s youth club. St Mary’s is my church, so I’d planned to attend the youth club visit anyway. Then someone had the idea of inviting the Mayoral candidates, and the event changed completely. It moved from the youth club into the church itself, and became a Mayoral hustings, with a difference. The candidates would have 5 minutes to speak on their policies on crime and youth; then take questions, from young people only.

The anxious adults - press photographers trying to get the best spot, party activists lurking to meet their candidates, council stewards in an unfamiliar venue - were a contrast with the groups of young people who arrived chattering and laughing just before the start. Graham Kings our vicar coped admirably with all this hoo-ha. As one of the token adults in the audience, I sat about six pews back, then got moved further and further back so the young people could sit at the front. There must have been over 200 by the time the meeting began. One councillor said admiringly “We’d never get this many young people into the Town Hall”. We don’t usually get that many in church either.

Whether it was the church or the young people or both I’m not sure, but despite all the photographers, the atmosphere was quite different from the rhetoric and conflict of a typical hustings. And it was the professional politicians who suffered as a result.Boris’ flourishes - there was “a great styrofoam edifice of hype” about crime, “ziggurats of wealth” in the City, a “revolution on a par with de-industrialisation or print” - fell flat. So did some classic claptrap from Len Duvall (Ken’s representative on earth), a side-swipe about budget voting designed to get cheers and jeers; it got neither.

Politicians regularly promise to be straight-talking; this time they really had to be.
Sian made some good points about enforcing existing laws rather than introducing new ones, but bizarrely advocated 10-year funding cycles for voluntary organisations; where’s the accountability in that? Boris didn’t share his plan to confiscate Oystercards from rowdy youths.
Brian Paddick argued that stop and search should be targeted on the bad guys, not all youth, not least because you need to build trust with young people to get the intelligence about who’s carrying knives in the first place. While Boris and Len were advocating a ‘just say no’ approach, Brian advocated having real victims, reformed offenders, people with street cred, to get the message across. He spoke really well, very directly (Boris kept referring to young people as ‘them’), getting the only spontaneous applause of the evening.
“This is great” said Boris, rather wildly. “If I’m elected we’ll do this every month, right here!” Perhaps he should consult the vicar….

After the Q&A, the Chair declared a recess, before going on to take evidence from the youth groups represented. As the candidates mingled with the audience, we rushed into the lobby, ready to thank Brian and get photos. Len left, Boris left, no Brian. Had we lost the candidate? No, he was staying on (as did Sian) to listen to the young people’s presentations.

All the candidates had called for more things for young people to do; youth worker Natalie Suleiman said it’s not ‘more’ youth activities we need but ‘more appropriate’. We have to provide things that teenagers, particularly boys, want to do and that means listening to them. Two lads spoke about how EC1 New Deal (a major regeneration project in Islington) had enrolled them as ‘community consultants’, training them on how to read council policy documents “which aren’t always youth-friendly” and then paying them to respond. The chair pointed out that the papers aren’t always adult-friendly either.

Finally we heard from Abid Ali, a Muslim who is one of the community chaplains from Feltham, London’s youth prison. He provides counselling and support to inmates while they are in Feltham and after they leave. Most inmates have a 75% reoffending rate; for those Abid counsels, it’s 26%. Worth noting in a week when Islam’s relationship with the justice system has been under so much debate.

Afterwards a group of us went for an excellent meal at Isarn Thai opposite the church. Beautiful room and really good food. On the way home I met friends coming back from the Arsenal match. Their daughter had been at the hustings and had already phoned them full of praise for Brian. Plus Arsenal won. A great end to the day….

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Sharia law; thinking aloud

9 February, 2008 at 8:54 pm · Filed under Church & faith ·Tagged , , , ,

While out in Tufnell Park on Friday I met a woman who lectures in Arabic studies. A good chance to discuss the Archbishop of Canterbury’s speech on Sharia law. Her verdict: he’s either ignorant or stupid. You cannot give equal status to a legal system that does not treat men and women equally. I agree - who wouldn’t? However, I’m not convinced that Rowan Williams was saying that, and I don’t believe that he’s ignorant or stupid; perhaps he’s too thoughtful for this soundbite age.

When the news headline popped up on my desktop - Archbishop says Sharia law inevitable - I was totally dismayed. Sharia law, doesn’t that mean executions, amputations, stoning? As a liberal Anglican, I didn’t know what he meant and wished he hadn’t opened up such a difficult issue. And I was frustrated that of all the things to speak out about, he could pick on such a uniquely controversial topic, uniting secularists and fundamentalists, liberals and conservatives, against him. Plus it is giving a great opportunity to his existing critics to have another go. The church is supposed to ‘keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace’ (Ephesians 4:3). Instead we seem to have more factions and rivalries than many secular organisations. Despite being a politician, I dislike church politics intensely. It seems to me to be rival groups of angry men looking for areas of disagreement, instead of uniting around the basics of our shared faith.

Rowan Williams’ job is not to be bland or popular. It isn’t to appease his critics or keep me comfortable. It is to explore the church’s role in the world and Christians’ role in society. It’s to make us think about our faith, not take it for granted. So what do I think about relating Islamic law to our secular state?

I believe the law must apply equally to everyone, regardless of their faith, just as it should regardless of wealth, class, etc. Justice is blind for a reason. But the law should also give the widest possible freedom to people to practice their faith, provided that it does not impinge on the rights of others. So Nadia Eweida should be allowed to wear her cross; but Lilian Ladele should not be allowed to opt out of conducting civil partnerships.

Much civil law is about dispute resolution; divorces, contracts, compensation, debt, etc. Arbitration and mediation are encouraged. So if Muslims choose to have that mediation carried out in a religious context, then, provided the rights of the individual are respected (and yes, I am particularly thinking of women in this context) then I don’t have a problem with that.

Although in many ways we are a secular society now, there is still much ‘cultural Christianity’ that is taken for granted by people who don’t necessarily have a Christian faith or ever go to church. If British Muslims approaching the civil courts find that their faith is acknowledged rather than ignored, that they are allowed to be part of the solution rather than a distraction, if they can be part of the system not simply subject to it, then that is surely a good thing.

Yes, British citizens of all faiths and none must live by our laws and alongside each other in peace. How can we ask people to give their loyalty and respect to a civil state if that state routinely suppresses their identity. As a liberal Christian I believe passionately in multi-culturalism - by which I mean mutual respect for and tolerance of different faiths within a common framework of rights. I want the right to practice my faith in whichever country I live. And I would offer no less to Muslims in Britain.

I’m in the generation that grew up with the Sex Discrimination Act. For the first time, laws and institutions were changing to accommodate women, rather than women being excluded or having to copy men to fit in. So it’s conceivable that in the future some British laws and institutions may change in ways that are influenced by Muslim values. That’s not imposing alien values on Britons; it’s recognising that British Muslims have as much right to shape our common society as anyone else. We should judge all such changes on their merits, rather than a knee-jerk for or against.

This isn’t easy or comfortable stuff, and I’m still struggling with bits of it; but it’s important we can talk about these issues without the hostility and hysteria that the Archbiship is facing at the moment.

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Tears before bedtime

8 February, 2008 at 7:05 pm · Filed under Church & faith, Family & friends ·Tagged ,

Last night we slept on the sofa bed after a leak from the flat upstairs into the bedroom. Not good. I slept badly and woke up depressed by the state of the flat.

I’m signed up to a ‘thought for the day’ email with a Bible verse attached. Today’s was startlingly appropriate: “I am weary with my groaning; all night I soak my pillow with tears, I drench my couch with my weeping. . . Depart from me, all you workers of iniquity, for the Lord has heard the voice of my weeping.”-Psalm 6:6,8

Hopefully tonight my couch wil no longer be drenched…

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Tom in ‘Casualty’

3 February, 2008 at 10:10 am · Filed under Church & faith, Movies & media ·Tagged , , ,

The wonderful Tom Mannion was a guest star on Casualty last night. It wasn’t exactly a speaking role - Tom’s character was incoherent, apparently drunk, but actually suffering from a brain tumour - but fantastically acted. If you missed Tom on TV, you can catch him in Metamorphosis at the Lyric in Hammersmith; the production has just had extra dates added to its run, before going on tour.

I should declare an interest: Tom is a fellow member of St Mary’s church Islington (which may come as a surprise to people who saw him with Billie Piper in ‘Diary of a Call Girl’). Indeed, when I first went along to a service there, back in 1992, the service sheet announced ‘Music by Tom and Gerry’. Irresistible.

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Merry Christmas

24 December, 2007 at 11:50 pm · Filed under Church & faith ·Tagged

Twas the night before Christmas and all over the house, nothing was stirring, except Bridget’s mouse. And keyboard.

The rest of the household is asleep, the presents are wrapped, and I’ve done as much food prep as I can for now. So I’m off to bed then up early to peel potatoes and stuff the turkey before church.

I’ve blogged before about subtitles. Today there was a (Christmas) cracker on BBC News 24. “Across the world, Christians are preparing to celebrate the birth of jeers”. So conscious that I may indeed be inviting the birth of jeers, may I wish you a very happy Christmas; full of the faith of Joseph, the joy of Mary and the peace of the Christ child.

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Advent carols

1 December, 2007 at 8:20 pm · Filed under Church & faith ·Tagged , ,


Today was the first of our Christmas carol service rehearsals. There were just 5 of us this afternoon (and I’m the only soprano – help!) but the choir usually snowballs, adding singers at each rehearsal and even picking up a few on the day itself (16 December at 6pm). Music is an important part of church life all year round, but most of all at Christmas. Perhaps that’s not surprising; after all, we get Christmas carols are played in shops, sung at stations, performed in schools, even warbled in pubs.

The musical mix at St Mary’s normally ranges from choruses to Taize. But the carol service is based on traditional readings, popular carols and anthems. According to Anna, who is leading the music this year, the rule is, ‘you have to have Bach and you have to have Rutter’ – all sung by candlelight.

The candles caused excitement last year when vicar Graham Kings’ notes caught fire - he ended up on YouTube. Hopefully this year, the music and the Christmas story should provide drama enough.

Christmas is a famously stressful time but I find Christmas singing a great stress-buster. Last year a few of us sang carols round some of the estates just off Upper Street. Here in the busy heart of 24/7 Islington, the most requested carol was Silent Night. If your Christmas wish-list includes some peace and joy, then maybe St Mary’s carol service could be the place to find it.

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