My sixth Christmastide reflection on that beautiful carol, O Come, O Come Emmanuel, focusses upon its third verse’s first two lines:
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,
And death's dark shadows put to flight.
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Posted 17 hours 17 min ago
Posted 17 hours 18 min ago
Anyone visiting Salem Chapel on Tuesday would have seen a remarkable sight. The valley over which our chapel looks was filled with fog, but the sky above was blue and the higher land perfectly visible. It gave the impression of being a large expanse of water or, even more imaginatively, being high up in the sky, peering down on the clouds below, as folk do when they jet off to sunnier climes.
Posted 1 day 17 hours ago
My fifth Christmastide reflection on that beautiful carol, O Come, O Come Emmanuel, focusses upon its third verse’s first two lines:
O come, Thou Day-Spring, come and cheer,
Our Spirits by Thine Advent here;
Posted 1 day 17 hours ago
On Monday, I submitted my back to a sharp blade. Thankfully, it was being wielded by a doctor who had the best of intentions (though I noted his dark humour when he remarked to a nurse that she might have to “pass him a chainsaw for this one”. I pretended to laugh as I lay face-down on the bed, peering at the floor through a breathing hole.)
Posted 2 days 17 hours ago
My fourth Christmastide reflection on that beautiful carol, O Come, O Come Emmanuel, focusses upon its second verse’s last two lines:
From depths of hell Thy people save,
And give them victory o'er the grave.
Posted 2 days 17 hours ago
St Peter’s Church in the middle of Hereford claims to be the oldest parish church in the city. Despite its age and collection of historical styles and features, its nave is populated by grey, plastic chairs and banners of a decidedly evangelical or charismatic provenance.
Posted 3 days 17 hours ago
My third Christmastide reflection on that beautiful carol, O Come, O Come Emmanuel, focusses upon its second verse’s first two lines:
O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan's tyranny
Rod of Jesse is a strange expression, and originates in the mysterious writings of Isaiah the prophet:
Posted 4 days 17 hours ago
My second Christmastide reflection on that beautiful carol, O Come, O Come Emmanuel, focusses upon its third and fourth lines:
That mourns in lonely exile here,
Until the Son of God appear.
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