Author Archives: northumbrianreflections

Remembering the Good Friday Agreement 20 years ago.    An agreement was ratified in a referendum,(where the issues and implications were clearly slept out and understood) on both sides of the Irish border. 71% backed the deal in Northern Ireland, … Continue reading →

To all my many friends, a hope-filled new year to you and your kin. After eventually moving into our new home just before Christmas and enjoying a wonderful time of gathering the family to be together to share in the … Continue reading →

I appreciate the rhythm of the monastic day and the seasons of the liturgical calendar. I’m indebted, not for the first time, to the writings of Tom Wright, who has provided me with a series of Advent Bible readings and … Continue reading →

Advent Sunday: I woke and listened to Sunday Worship on Radio 4 from Cardiff, recognising the voices of friends Roy Jenkins and Susan Stevenson reflect on finding hope in the wilderness. Remembering the words of John Muir, founder of the … Continue reading →

I’m on the road again. A preaching, teaching and conference speaking tour sees me for 10 days in the south of England and with it traffic congestion and hold-ups. Yesterday the M40 between Oxford and London suffered serious delays following … Continue reading →

I am intrigued, encouraged and challenged by the election results. For the Prime Minister, it was a bad judgement call, exposing her weaknesses as a leader. She and her party got what they deserved and she should sack her manifesto … Continue reading →

Regular readers of my blog will not be surprised at my political leanings, forged years ago in the 1980s on Teesside where I witnessed first hand the political decisions and economic policies that destroyed communities, damaged people’s lives and accelerated … Continue reading →

I wander’d lonely as a cloud That floats on high o’er vales and hills, When all at once I saw a crowd, A host of golden daffodils, Beside the lake, beneath the trees Fluttering and dancing in the breeze. Lines … Continue reading →

Waking up and hearing the news from the Netherlands following their General Election, I feel proud to be European. Thank God for the Dutch people who have, in the words of the Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte, “said ‘stop’ to … Continue reading →

A Blessed St David’s Day Today marks the celebration in Wales of St David’s Day. Many will mark the day by wearing a leek or a daffodil, the national emblems of Wales, or by displaying the flag of St David, … Continue reading →