One of the most beautiful times in art and architecture—and some may say in sophisticatedsocial life—was the Edwardian period, the time from the beginning of the 20th century to the First World War (even though Edward VII died in 1910). In Europe, this time was known as “La Belle Epoque”—the beautiful period, which is generally…
Earlier in the year, controversial broadcaster John Banks’ contract with a radio station was terminated, because he seemed to agree with a caller that Māori were from a stone-age culture. Many commentators were enraged by such an offensive comparison. People pointed to signs of sophistication in traditional Māori culture to show that the caller was wrong. For me as an archaeologist the…
This Sunday is Palm Sunday. It is the day when we remember how Jesus was welcomed with enthusiasm into Jerusalem. The crowd waved palm branches, shouted for joy and welcomed their hero. And then, a few days later, the crowd called for Jesus to be crucified, to be done away with. Jesus was no longer…
If you would like to support St Paul’s, the Anglican Missions Lenten Appeal or CBA (Christian Broadcasting Association), thank you – and here is how to. For St Paul’s – an offering is collected during the service for you to give as you feel led. There are Anglican Missions Appeal envelopes available in the church…
As we could not meet for Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent was somewhat lost in the Alert Level changes. Nevertheless, there have been pointers to this season of Lent in our worship here at church. Lenten worship is simpler, as shown by the absence of flowers in the church and the omission of the…
The other day I was standing in the kitchen preparing dinner—that mainly involved the washing and preparation of vegetables from our garden. From the adjacent room I heard the soundtrack of the movie that the ladies of the house were watching together. The music conveyed the mood of the film at each point, the beauty,…
We don’t often talk about finances, but they are part of church life. The provisional results for last year are now available and we will hopefully consider audited results at the Parish Annual General Meeting. As expected, there was a deficit last year and the Parish had to access some savings. The deficit, however, was…
Last year I wrote about the church and politics. I had quite some feedback, so I decided to read a book on the topic. It is called “To change the World” by James Davison Hunter. The book includes a lot of background analysis. In the modern period it looks mainly at the interaction between Christians…
Thank you to all those participating at the Future Directions Meeting last Sunday. Through the meeting we realised that we needed more prayer and more analysis, but were also clear that the process could not be drawn out. We want to be responsible stewards of what is entrusted to us. As we look into the…
The early missionaries to New Zealand were instrumental in the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. They put the trust others had in them and their own skills to good use by working for the good of all people. At times the work they did was hard. Their motives were questioned by many, but they…