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Monthly Archives: May 2009

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Bad sums

For the fainthearted . . .

Good teachers are going to lose their jobs this summer as a result of Government spending cuts; class sizes are going to increase and grants for necessary work are going to disappear.  The teachers’ problem is that they did not pursue the path of reckless greed and irresponsible borrowing; had they done so, the Government would have found money to assist them.

A country that is closing wards in children’s hospitals, a country that can’t afford a proper out of hours service to protect children at risk, a country that …

Dangerous trade

For the fainthearted . . .

The BBC carries sombre news this evening of the deaths of two British soldiers in Afghanistan. It seems a pointless and unwinnable war; no-one has ever successfully conquered the entire country and victory seems as far away as ever.  But young men and women still join up, it is not as though they are unaware of what lies ahead, this war is eight years old.

Why do people join up?  It is four years since RTE covered the British forces in Basra in southern Iraq.In contrast with the usual …

Community lessons

For the fainthearted . . .

‘Letter from Dublin’ for broadcast on Downtown Radio on Sunday 31st May.

The wind has blown the election posters on the lamp post sideways so one of them looks directly in this direction. “Marius Murgatroyd, Full Time Community Activist”, it declares. We have six councillors in our ward of the county, I could name five of them off the top of my head, but, hand on heart, until his posters went up, I had not heard of Mr Murgatroyd.

This is not through any lack of effort on the part …

Trains through time

For the fainthearted . . .

Michael is heading home on the DART.  The last of his eight exams is over and his first year at Trinity College is complete.

For a moment, images return.

Catching the District Line train from Kew Gardens to Waterloo, carrying a case that could only be moved in fifty yard bursts, the weight of books being so heavy.  The tube train defying the label ‘underground’ as it made its way through the scenery of west London, only dropping just below street level as it approached the centre, like an uncertain …

Sermon for the Day of Pentecost, 31st May 2009

For the fainthearted . . .

“They were all filled with the Holy Spirit” Acts 2:4

Being good members of the Church of Ireland, we read the story of the Day of Pentecost on the fiftieth day after Easter each year, and it leaves us feeling a little uneasy. Strong religious experiences are not part of being traditional Protestants; inexplicable supernatural events disturb us. What we cannot do, however, is to try to ignore this story. The disciples “were all filled with the Holy Spirit” and, if we are to be faithful to Scripture, we must …

Little bits of happiness

For the fainthearted . . .

South it is then. Hold on, little Shirelings. I always like going south. Somehow it feels like going down hill.” The Lord of the Rings

Treebeard’s delight in a detail as small as the direction in which they would walk prompts thoughts of the many small things in which are found contentment, peace of mind, a sense of the world being a good place.  Even with conflict all around, Treebeard is able to draw on past memories of heading southwards.  Is finding a sense of well being in trivial details …

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