Last weekend, I attended a new monasticism conference in London. My interest in new monasticism primarily concerns how parish church might be influenced and, in some way, become “new monastic” in character. These are my reflections, then, from a parish church perspective.
This is the third in a series of posts about new monasticism in parish church. Here, I begin to ponder what items might appear in a rule of life for a parish-based expression of new monasticism. I’ve been preaching on these things so, where appropriate, I’ll include links to sermon recordings/transcripts. We’ll start with just two or I’ll never get round to publishing…
I am very pleased. For years, now, I have striven to develop a clean and simple temperature control algorithm for my coffee machine which gets it to a stable temperature in the minimum possible time. This weekend, I cracked it: two minutes to a stable 95°C on my Gaggia Baby Class with no oscillations at all1That’s not quite all that is needed – the brew head needs bringing up to temperature as well. But that’s a different topic and I’m still working on it. Two minutes is also not an absolute minimum because the boiler power can be increased. Also a topic for another day. For the purposes of this post, we’ll use the stock 1350W the machine shipped with..
This is how I did it…
| 1. | ↑ | That’s not quite all that is needed – the brew head needs bringing up to temperature as well. But that’s a different topic and I’m still working on it. Two minutes is also not an absolute minimum because the boiler power can be increased. Also a topic for another day. For the purposes of this post, we’ll use the stock 1350W the machine shipped with. |
I would hope that anyone who has experienced any significant measure of the grace of God would be able to agree that the phrase “fight fire with fire” isn’t really the sort of thing we hear Jesus saying. I would hope that we’d be more inclined to fight fire with fire extinguishers. To pour oil on troubled water. But, I wonder, is this enough? Might it be that one person’s “fire extinguisher” is another’s “fire” or, at the very least, the other’s “water cannon”? Might one person’s oil on “troubled waters” be another’s oil on a “raging blaze”. Recent escalations in the disagreement between a number of prominent (on social media) Christians seem to suggest so.
Want to know what I’m talking about? Have a look at what Adrian Hilton is saying about Jayne Ozanne and vice versa. But, for goodness sake, don’t join the fray!
Who can comment with any certainty on the current state of British politics? In the surge of the present media maelstrom, so many words and phrases have bubbled briefly to the surface before sinking again out of sight. Chaos reigns. But in the chaos, I think some things can clearly be said and, indeed, need to be said to call our leaders to account. Indeed, it is the very chaos which most excites comment.
Where does this chaos originate? Why could calm not have followed in the wake of last week’s referendum? Indeed, would a period of calm reflection not have been exactly the thing that was needed in the circumstances? Do we not, in emergency situations, praise the people who are able to keep their heads and help everyone else to respond calmly? What airline would want the crew to ran about screaming and inciting chaos in an emergency? Or to begin fighting each other? Indeed, cabin and flight crew are trained to do exactly the opposite: to keep their cool and to help everyone else to respond in a calm and ordered manner.
So, here’s an interesting thought experiment. Before I go on, I should say that actually implementing this idea would possibly be very stupid. So, let’s just keep it as a thought experiment for now.
[Update: I’ve done it. It’s great. It’s documented here.] Continue reading
So, you’re obsessed with implementing the perfect temperature controller for your Gaggia Baby Class (or Classic or any other derived model)1Oh, you’re not: is it just me then?. You’ve realised that you really need to know the values of some important parameters and the only easy way to get those is to take the boiler apart. And you don’t want to do that2Are you sure you don’t? If you do, you can take the opportunity to improve the brew head temperature.. The good news is I’ve done it for you3Where I also took the opportunity to improve the brew head temperature.. Here is everything you need to know4At least, I hope so: I don’t want to take it apart again.: Continue reading
| 1. | ↑ | Oh, you’re not: is it just me then? |
| 2. | ↑ | Are you sure you don’t? If you do, you can take the opportunity to improve the brew head temperature. |
| 3. | ↑ | Where I also took the opportunity to improve the brew head temperature. |
| 4. | ↑ | At least, I hope so: I don’t want to take it apart again. |
Over recent weeks, I have wasted invested a lot of time investigating the Gaggia boiler thermodynamics. (All part of my master plan to have the entire machine at a stable temperature inside 2 minutes from power on.) A major obstacle to getting a stable temperature quickly is that the brew head takes for ever to warm up. Whilst thinking about this, I hit on an idea for improving the heat transfer from the aluminium boiler shell to the brew head: put heat-sink compound in the join between the shell and the brew head. Continue reading
Usually we don’t see
— we pass by so fast —
The world that waits in stillness
But night watchmen know:
The freeze-frame streets:
Where the calm of ages falls
Between the odd passing car
and night revellers.
The expectant hush.
Every root and every branch
Every rock and every stone
Waiting for His return.
Yesterday for morning prayer, we had the story of Caleb and Joshua and the spying out of the promised land from Numbers 14. I was struck by how the Israelites were so fearful of entering the promised land, full of God’s bounty and, instead, wanted to go back to slavery in Egypt. I think we are often like this: God’s generosity is an unknown quantity and feels scary. Egypt is unpleasant but it is a known quantity and that feels safe.
Isn’t this true? Do we not all sometimes think “Better the Egypt you know than the promised land you don’t”?
What is so sad about the Numbers 14 story is that the promises were lost to the people. That entire generation had to pass away. Forty years had to pass by before God’s promises could, finally, be fulfilled.
Oh Lord, help us to trust you and not to rob ourselves of the bounty you have laid up for us.