Categories: uncategorized
Date: 20 November 2012 10:21:53
I was on the bus yesterday when I heard one of those snippets of conversation which grabs your attention. A woman who I'd estimate as being late 50's or early 60's was describing the Diwali celebrations she'd been hearing about. She was very struck it seemed by the fact it lasted 5 days and they focused on something different each day. That bit of their conversation concluded with "perhaps we should swap it with Christmas".
She was laughing as she said it and was, I am fairly certain, joking. But it did highlight how there has been a change in how people look at religion, spirituality and celebration. One of the key people who's researched this is Linda Woodhead and there is an interesting article based on an interview with her in the New Humanist.
Where does this leave us as Christians and as members of churches? I think as people who need to continue praying (yes) but also as people who need to be listening/ continuing to listen to those outside our church buildings. We also need to be ready to engage in serious exegesis; being ready to look at how we respond to it all.