Christianity and the arts
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What’s this? Two posts in two days?! You might be forgiven for wondering whether there is good reason for this lack of parsimony, dear readers. And there is. For I was informed on Monday evening that my work has been shortlisted for the inaugural Marcella Althaus-Reid Spoken Word Theology Competition. The competition, an element of
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The first thing to say about Stephen Nelson’s new chapbook from the little red leaves textile series is simply how gorgeous an object it is. In this era of the mass produced, something so beautifully handmade — using old bedsheets and remnant fabric to construct the cover — is a rare joy indeed. This pamphlet
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What a week it has been! The retreat, the review and almost the revealing of the new book. And, to boot, the sun was blazing all day yesterday. I returned home on Sunday from the retreat tired and not exhausted but enriched. It felt like a significant weekend in ways that are hard to articulate
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This week, I’m busy preparing for a poetry retreat I’m leading at Nether Springs, the mother house of the Northumbria Community, this weekend coming (12 to 14 April). I’m excited about this because it’s the first extended opportunity I’ve had to put together poetry and spirituality. My previous visits to Nether Springs — always as
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The times and venues of my appearances at this year’s Greenbelt festival have just been confirmed. First up is a poetry workshop at 2 pm on Saturday 27 August in Crest. The workshop is entitled “Lines Home” and will probe the idea of home, tying into this year’s Greenbelt theme. That’s followed on Sunday 28
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My friend the Belfast poet Ray Givans published his first full collection, Tolstoy in Love, with Dedalus Press last year. The collection, which was one of only four books shortlisted for the Eithne Strong Award, is by turns playful, passionate and contemplative but always well crafted. I caught up with him over Facebook to explore
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I’ll be busy on Saturday: besides the Word Power reading (see the post below), I’ll be popping up along with Rob A Mackenzie at the thePROJECT2. Twice, in fact: 2 pm at the Lot and 7:30 pm at the Pleasance Cabaret Bar. Booking information here. It’s a varied and interesting programme. thePROJECT is an exploration
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Interesting short post about Christianity and poetry on Todd Swift’s blog Eyewear. Swift says: Christian poetry, in Britain, has become nearly as invisible as God – partially due, no doubt, to the fear on the part of would-be practitioners of such verse, that such discourse would lead away from the irony, or ambiguity, expected (or
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Last year, I exhibited three poems at an exhibition at the offices of our church here in Linlithgow, organised by my wife. This year, the exhibition has moved to the bigger space of the church building, expanding its range of media–already wide last year–and the reach of its contributors to include several people from outside
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Dropped by a wee gathering tonight at The Tun, the first throw in an fresh attempt to establish a self-sustaining network of Christians in the arts, media, entertainment and new media in Edinburgh. My friends Paul Thomson and the painter David Martin are behind this endeavour, a network that aims to encompass the blues and
Amy Jo Philip 