The Gospels say that Jesus began his ministry by coming into Galilee and preaching the Gospel. So what was the Gospel he preached? Well, we know what it wasn't: "Jesus has died for your sins", because at this stage, he obviously hadn't. It seems that what he proclaimed as Good News was the Kingdom of God. So what on earth is that? I'm glad you asked...

Meister Eckart said "God is no thing". We are people whose brains seem hardwired to think in terms of things so the great mystic's words are hard to fathom. In this episode talk about how language affects the way we perceive God and how we might get around the shortcomings of language to think of God. 

St. Ignatius Loyola offers a form of daily prayer which is invaluable in developing an ongoing and deepening spiritual life. Today I look, briefly, at the life of St Ignatius and at what he calls "The Examen of Consciousness"

Reality is complicated and puzzling; exhilarating and joyous; bewildering and sometimes dangerous. Reality is beyond our ability to comprehend and difficult to navigate. And so, just to be able to live we need to have a map - or a number of maps - to help us find our way about. Religion is one such map. It is useful, but also has a few pitfalls to watch out for. 
Today I am looking at Religion, as a general concept, through the metaphor of a map. 

Following the example of St Ignatius Loyola, a way of deepening our engagement with a Biblical passage is to imagine our way into the story and inhabit it. This contemplative exercise is a way for you to engage with the story of Bartimaeus, the blind beggar, as it is found in Mark Chapter 10. 

A brief reflection on the story of Bartimaeus, which is found in Mark chapter 10, verse 46-end. 
This reflection is by way of introduction to the Ignatian contemplation on the same passage, which follows in the next episode of this podcast.

Centering Prayer is  a contemporary form of one of the most ancient Christian disciplines:  silent, or contemplative prayer. In this podcast I give an introduction to Centering Prayer and some advice about how you might begin to practice it. 

Meditation is very simple. But it is also fairly difficult to begin and continue a regular meditation practice. Here are some thoughts about how you might do that

Anger is a threat response. When we encounter anger it's illuminating to ask "what is being threatened here?" Threats can be physical or emotional, or, most difficult to identify, existential. We are all involved in the process of Theosis - of being drawn into the fulness God intends for each of us. This means we are often facing the limits we have unwittingly placed on ourselves and, in response to that threat, becoming angry. 
We are invited into something bigger than that. 

Meditation is an ancient form of prayer that has all but disappeared from large portions of the Christian church. Here I am sharing my experience of meditation, answering some of the fears held by some Christians about meditation, and suggesting ereasons why it might become part of a normal Christian spirituality.

The love of God, freely given to the Ninevites, is the central theme of the Bible.
An account of how that has affected me, and of how I have tried to understand it. 

Spiritual progress is often  -or usually - punctuated with seemingly dark periods where deep things are resolved in us. These are experiences of the Belly of the Whale. These are what John of the Cross calls "The Dark Night of the Soul". Tonight I talk about one of my own such episodes. 
A talk from "3 in 1" for Sunday August 9 2026.

Jonah chapter 1. Let's not get too hung up on whether a whale could really swallow a man. This is a story loaded with symbolic meaning for the original hearers, and that's the important bit. 

An address at "3 in 1" on Sunday 26 July 2026.
The book of Jonah as a congenial entrance into the Old Testament. 
This is an introductory talk in a series of five.