JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2021 FREE

NEW BEGINNINGS NEW YOUNEW YEAR

JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2021 FREE

NEW YEAR NEW BEGINNINGS NEW YOU

I READ THE ENTIRE BIBLEIt wasn’t what I expected

January / February 2021

03I READ THE BIBLEEVERY WORD!Not all of us have the time to do this. Here's one person who did, and what he learnt - you may be surprised.

05TICK TOCK BODY CLOCK Can you lose weight by eating earlier? Alan King investigates.

11INSPIRED TO FORGIVEWhat would you do if you came face-to-face with the person complicit in your sister's death? Concentration camp survivor, Corrie Ten Boom did just that, and this is what happened

12WOODLAND WORSHIPAfter a chance conversation , Ian Woodley steps into the cathedral of creation with surprising effects.

09FOLK STONESMaggie Mitchell reflects on a recent visit to the seafront cliffs of Folkestone where she was met by a huge art installation made of 19,240 pebbles - all numbered.

06WHAT I LEARNT FROM RABBI JONATHAN SACKSWhen he spoke, people listened. Former Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks died on 7 November 2020. Here's why the world is worse off.

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All Scriptures unless otherwise stated are quoted from the Holy Bible, New International Version.Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984International Bible SocietyUsed by permission of ZondervanBible Publishers

AT A GLANCEForgiveness says you are given another

chance to make a new beginning

– DESMOND TUTU

I READ THE BIBLE -EVERY WORD!

Photo: Priscilla Du Preez, unsplash.com

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BY MICAH WARDinfo@because.uk.com

I set out a few years ago to read the entire Bible. That’s right, everything from “In the beginning” to “Amen”. I have finally finished that quest, every single word. Since I am not a scholar, I am going out on a limb here, but bear with me and let’s see if I can make sense of what I read.This isn’t something you decide to do over a rainy weekend; it took me 2 years to read from cover to cover. This isn’t like binge watching the Tiger King. I began by reading 2 chapters a day, one from the Old Testament and one from the New Testament. The New Testament is much shorter so when I finished it I simply started it again while I toiled on through Numbers, Deuteronomy, both Samuels, both Kings, both Chronicles. (I have to be honest. It was tough getting through certain parts of the Old Testament.)I admit skimming through the sections which

outlined who begat whom and who they begat after that. Then after finishing the New Testament a second time I decided to concentrate on the Old Testament and by then I was into the prophets who, in line with their titles, prophesied. A lot. Now I can see where the old-time fire and brimstone preachers got their sermons. But I also realised that each one of these books contained the message that God would rather forgive us and have us reach out to him than rain down all that destruction upon us. Love and forgiveness. That is what really stuck with me from my trip through the Bible.Another favourite from the Old Testament, and not just because we share the same name, is the prophet Micah. In the 6th chapter of his book, the prophet is expounding on what it is that God wants from us. The answer starting with verse 8 is: “to be fair and just and merciful, and to walk humbly with your God”. As far as being a template for how to live life, it is kind of hard to beat that one.As templates for life go, though, it is hard to beat the teachings of Jesus. The New Testament is the story of Jesus and the beginning of Christianity. There are some confusing thoughts about Jesus. Some believe he is the son of God and a separate entity from God. Others believe he is God in human form and, even

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more confusingly, that Jesus is both. I don’t know and I’m not going to worry about it. I just like what the New Testament says; that Jesus is The Way. It is simple to say, as many Christians do, that the way to get to heaven is to believe in him. And that brings up two questions. What is that way of Jesus and what exactly is heaven?The Bible isn’t really detailed about what heaven will be like. I tend to think of it as a state of being completely in the presence of God. How will that manifest itself? Will it be streets of gold and angels playing harps? Will it be 10-mile runs on beautiful trails where no one gets tired and calorie-free pizza and beer are in endless supply at the end? I have no idea. I just trust that it will be more wonderful than we can ever imagine. And hell? I guess that

would be the opposite. An existence totally devoid of the presence of God and all that such an existence would imply. So, how do you get to heaven? The Gospel of John says that Jesus is the Way.The first 4 books of the New Testament are known as the gospels. They are the eye-witness accounts of the life and teachings of Jesus written by some of his best friends. I have read these four books several times and paid particular attention to what Jesus says. You and I and the lady on the next barstool can all read the same passage and come up with different interpretations. But to me there are 3 main points that Jesus makes in his teachings.

Point one is love. When Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was, he said it is to love God with all your heart and soul, but he went on to point out that the second-greatest commandment is love others as yourself. Then he said that nothing else in the whole Bible is more important.Point 2 is forgiveness. Jesus was asked if we should forgive those who sin against us 7 times. Jesus said to forgive 7 times 70. Jesus was making the point that you forgive an endless number of times. It should also be pointed out that in the Lord’s prayer that Jesus taught us, there is the line where we ask God to forgive our mistakes as we forgive the mistakes others make. In other words, we are asking God to forgive us only to the same extent as we are willing to forgive others. Wow! Think about the implications…Point 3 is judgment. Jesus was not too keen on hypocrites and those who were quick to judge. Consider the passage where Jesus cautions us to remove the log from our own eye before we help our brother remove the speck from his. Or the story of the woman about to be stoned to death and Jesus responding to her accusers by saying the one without sin should cast the first stone. No stones were cast and Jesus declined to judge the woman. Instead, he forgave her sins and told her to sin no more. What does this tell me? That our actions should be guided with love and forgiveness.Those are my quick and short impressions from reading the entire Bible. I will continue to read it and try to gain additional insight and understanding. But the Bible does, without a doubt, say some very basic things that we should never forget.We should love others as ourselves. There are no exceptions to that, by the way. We should forgive others who have done us wrong, no matter how hard it is to do so. And, finally, we should go easy on how we judge people. We never know what is going on in someone’s life. So, give them the benefit of the doubt.

BioMicah Ward is a retiree who writes, runs, prays and enjoys craft beer in the rolling hills of central Tennessee.

Photo: Rustam Mussabekov,unsplash.com

TICK TOCK BODY CLOCK

Photo: Gatsi, istockphoto.com

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Working with rather than against our internal timepieces can bring all sorts of benefits.

BY ALAN KINGinfo@because.uk.com

The binge eating is over, the alcohol detox has begun, and you’re wondering how you can make it up to your body after all the end-of-year ritualistic late-night excesses. You’re even playing around with the idea of a New Year’s resolution or two. So here are some ideas for a healthier 2021.Apparently, we humans have a complex system of clocks controlling our body. Not just one, but thousands (even millions) of individual clocks that direct and synchronise the functioning of our tissues and organs, from the heart to the lungs to the liver.Keep regular eating timesRecent research has discovered that different parts of our body are ‘tuned’ to work at their best at certain times of the day. So what?, you may ask. Well, one practical take-home conclusion for our bodies in 2021 is that there are real benefits to eating regularly.In one experiment, mice that had their eating patterns disturbed were more likely to gain weight and develop fatty liver disease.1 In the same way that mice are affected, other supporting research suggests that, if we eat at an unusual time, this confuses our internal clocks and means our relevant organs aren’t in the optimum state of readiness to process our food. Adults who eat their meals at irregular times have an increased risk of heart problems and diabetes. So, it’s not just about what we eat and how much we eat – it is also about the times of day when we eat our food.One way to avoid this risk to our system may involve sticking to the same weekday and weekend mealtimes (at least as far as possible).

Eat earlierAnother study of 400 obese people who were placed on a diet showed that eating times could influence weight loss: “We found that people who habitually ate their main meal earlier (before 3 pm) lost around 25 per cent more of their body mass than those who ate later”.When healthy women who were not overweight were made to eat later in the day than usual, their bodies were less able to control blood sugar levels – a potential precursor to diabetes. “It was amazing because in only one week these young women of normal weight had metabolic alterations similar to those previously found in obese women”, says Professor Marta Garaulet, a researcher at the University of Murcia in Spain, and head of several weight-loss clinics. This isn’t good news for those of us who eat our main meal late!

Reference:1. All studies and quotes referred to in this article can be found in the New Scientist, April 2016, 3069 issue. Author Catherine de Lange

Photo: Khadeeja Yasser, unsplash.com

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“Standing on the shoulders of giants”.These words are inscribed on the edge of each two-pound coin. It’s a quote taken from a letter written by Sir Isaac Newton to Robert Hooke-Newton expressing that his work was built on the knowledge of those who had gone before him. I believe Rabbi Jonathan Sacks was one of the giants of his generation.When I reflect on the life and faith of Sacks, I can only conclude his work left us culturally and intellectually better off. I have found standing on his shoulders a privileged position and vantage point in beginning to understand the world a little better. Equally, however, he was a great thinker because he too stood on the shoulders of other giants; his pursuit of understanding was not confined to just his faith tradition. He was willing to listen to and learn from others, even other religions. His website expressed his desire to help future Jewish leaders to “deepen the conversation between Torah [Hebrew Bible] & the wisdom of the world”. And Sacks, being an example, drew much

WHAT I LEARNT FROM RABBI JONATHAN SACKS

BY RICHARD FOWLERinfo@because.uk.com

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learning from the collective wisdom of the world.Each week, usually on Friday, my phone would ping. It was a short podcast from Sacks. His voice always had a soothing timbre to it. As I listened, I would imagine him in his almost iconic navy-blue suit, white shirt and gold tie tied with an impeccable Windsor knot. His greyish-white beard would meet this knot and draw your eyes up to a pensive, yet considerate face; his narrowing eyes, focused – almost lion-like. These podcasts were a dose of insight and wisdom. These bitesize pearls so often discerned and diagnosed some aspect of life and culture. Sacks had an ability to synthesise wisdom from different perspectives, diffracting it through the lens of his sacred text, the Hebrew Bible, and

“I THINK COLLECTIVELY WE'VE GOT TO GET BACK TO TELLING OUR STORY, WHO WE ARE, WHERE WE CAME

FROM, WHAT IDEALS WE LIVE BY”

often bring it to bear on current trends. Last year, just before Yom Kippur – the holiest day of the year for Jews that focuses on repentance and forgiveness – I remember one thought-provoking message. It conveyed the necessity in our often hostile society to heed the message of forgiveness embodied in this religious day; but how this kind of tolerance was being forgotten in the current climate of cancel culture where militant ideology was edging out the opportunity of personal redemption.This is what Rabbi Sacks did time and time again; he took ancient wisdom – sometimes forgotten wisdom – and showed its relevance in a fast-changing and forgetful world. He often asked questions about how we survive the challenges of such a world, especially in our times of political turbulence. For this Sacks had a powerful antidote: know your identity.It sounds simple but one of his more brilliantly expressed monologues on this idea is beautifully illustrated in an animation entitled, ‘Why I am a Jew’. “The deepest question anyone can ask is, who am I?”, Sacks begins. He realised identity is something derived from the big stories we buy into. For Sacks, his identity was derived from the story of the Judaic tradition; a story that he explained has “shaped the moral civilisation of the West, teaching

Photo: clu, istockphoto.com

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that human life is sacred, that the individual may never be sacrificed for the mass, and that rich and poor, great and small, are all equal before God…This is my people, my heritage, my faith. In our uniqueness lies our universality. Through being what we alone are, we give to humanity what only we can give. This then is our story”. Identity was crucial in giving Sacks meaning, purpose and a place in the world. And yet, he knew different peoples have their different stories. Here Sacks was notably different as a religious thinker; he saw he could benefit from the patchwork of other stories: “I admire other religions and civilisations and believe each has

brought something special into the world…”. He was not exclusive. He knew where he was going but he made room for others. And he saw others – other perspectives and traditions – as valuable and necessary. This gave him an appeal few other orthodox Jews could achieve.He took this approach to politics also, expressing it well when he took the stage for a TED Talk in 2017. In his insightful speech, the spiritual leader gave three ways to move from the politics of “me” to the politics of “all of us, together”. Sacks believed this shift in lifting our eyes beyond the horizons of our own tribes was important because, as he put it, “it’s the people not like us that help us to grow”. However, his solution to get to this position was counterintuitive: “I think collectively we’ve got to get back to telling our story, who we are, where we came from, what ideals we live by”. You, like me, may ask, how so? Surely, telling our own story just makes us more tribal and less likely to learn from

others? Sacks disagreed, adding, “When you tell the story and your identity is strong, you can welcome the stranger. But when you stop telling the story, your identity gets weak and you feel threatened by the stranger”. I hadn’t thought of it that way before. But Sacks wasn’t finished; he had a criticism for us: “In the West, we’ve stopped telling the story of who we are”. Maybe we have.If Sacks is right – that knowing our identity is essential in an ever-changing world, and that this knowledge makes us more able, not less, to learn from others – then the inevitable question is, what’s our story?As we embark on a new year, still reeling from the contortions Covid has placed on our lives, we would do well to consider rediscovering our story – our identity – the big truths about life and spirituality. Who are we? Where did we come from? What ideals do we live by? And maybe, in rediscovering the answers to these questions, we can gird ourselves for the uncertainties that inevitably lie ahead in 2021 and, more so, learn from others along the way.

Photo: marekuliasz, istockphoto.com

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FOLK STONES

Photo: Maggie Mitchell

Standing on the seafront cliffs in Folkestone, Kent, on a clear day, you can easily see the northern coastline of France across the English Channel. Calais is the closest French town to England, and the distance between the two towns is just over 30 miles. London is further away from Folkestone – more than twice as far. Travelling by the Eurotunnel from Folkestone takes 35 minutes to be in Calais – 90 minutes if you take a ferry from Dover.On those seafront cliffs, in front of once-grand Victorian houses and hotels reflecting the time when Folkestone was a thriving coastal resort, there are 19,240 pebbles. They are set in a large square in the grass and each one has a number painted on it – from 1 to 19,240. The artwork by Mark Wallinger is called ‘Folk Stones’ and it lays out – in every way – the sheer number of human lives thrown at the conflict on the battlefields of France in the First World War. The number of pebbles graphically represents the number of British soldiers killed on just one day – 1st July 1916 – the first day of the Battle of the Somme.And somewhere on the other side of the English Channel there will be other memorials; other records of French soldiers who died, and German soldiers who died. Overall more than 1.2 million men lost their lives or were wounded in this battle.Folkestone was the embarkation point for millions of troops in the First World War – the beginning of their journey to fight on the battlefields of France. They marched down a steep hill called Slope Road (Renamed the Road of Remembrance in the early 1920s). The road leads to the harbour where they boarded crowded troop ships to France – for many this would have been their first time outside of England.

Each of those men hoped they would return. The families who said goodbye to them hoped they would return. The generals who had made the decision to send them knew that many would not return – such is the formula of war. They may have been hailed as heroes, but that is probably not how they saw themselves. Many would have been frightened – barely 18 – but also frightened to run away. The penalty for desertion was no better than what lay ahead.It’s a little known fact that every one of those 19,240 men who gave their lives on that day had been issued with a Bible (a copy of the New Testament) as part of their essential kit. In fact, every one of the 5.7 million British soldiers, sailors and airmen who joined up during the First World War were given a copy of the Bible.Doubtless, many used those Bibles to search for comfort, understanding, or simply a link with home as they lay dying in a foreign field. And, since they were reading the New Testament, there’s a very good chance they encountered Jesus Christ in those pages.Jesus Christ drew a line in the sand regarding solving the problems of the world with armed conflict. Just prior to Christ’s arrest and crucifixion, one of the disciples he was with was ready to start

BY MAGGIE MITCHELLinfo@because.uk.com

The 19,240 individually numbered stones stand for the exact number of British soldiers who left Folkstone and were killed on 1 July 1916,

the first day of the Battle of the Somme.

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BY BARRY ROBINSONinfo@because.uk.com

Most people have someone who is an inspiration in their lives – maybe it is a parent, or a teacher, or some charismatic character from the pages of history. One person who has inspired me is Corrie Ten Boom. Corrie was born into a Christian family in Amsterdam in 1892. When the Netherlands was invaded by the Nazis in 1940, the Christian beliefs of Corrie’s family led them to protect Jews and members of the Dutch resistance and, after hiding them within their house, they passed them on to the underground network. It has been estimated that Corrie was involved in saving the lives of 800 people. Sadly, in February 1944, her family was betrayed, arrested, and taken to prison. From there she and her sister Betsie were sent to the Ravensbrück concentration camp, where women prisoners were either used as forced labour or executed. Here the health of Betsie deteriorated, and she died on 16 December 1944. Just fifteen days later, due to a clerical error, Corrie was released. The following

a battle. Peter had armed himself with a sword and didn’t hesitate to use it – slicing off the ear of one of the crowd hunting down Christ. Christ’s healing of this painful and dramatic injury signalled a new approach. It was a defining moment. Weapons were to be discarded. Healing would replace the inflicting of pain and injury. The world is not there yet. The prophet Isaiah, speaking to the nation of Judah, 700 years before Christ, did not hold back when he declared, “The way of peace they do not know; there is no justice in their paths. They have turned them into crooked roads; no one who walks along them will know

peace.” This could have been written for today. It is sometimes hard to find peace and justice – between nations, in communities, even within families. Isaiah referred to Christ, among other names, as the “Prince of Peace”. We are encouraged to take on this quality when this Prince of Peace tells us, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God”.

INSPIRED TO FORGIVEHow one of the most spontaneous acts of forgiveness gives all victims

of injustice a way out.

week all the women in her age group were sent to the gas chambers. After a painful journey back to the Netherlands, she was reunited with the surviving members of her family and opened her home to those in need. In 1947, Corrie had an incredible experience. She went back to Germany and spoke about God’s forgiveness at a church in Munich. She said, “When we confess our sins, God casts them into the deepest ocean, gone forever.” After her talk, a man approached her and said, “A fine message, Fräulein! How good it is to know that all our sins are at the

Photo: Gus Morreta, unsplash.com

Reading that account, I had to ask myself, “Would I have forgiven this man if I was in Corrie’s position?” In a world where there is so much pain, hurt and misery, I’ve learned that unforgiveness consigns me to that destructive cycle, but forgiveness enables me to be released from that downward spiral. Corrie’s life-story has inspired me to realise, that with God’s help, I can break free and forgive others. If there is someone in your life that has hurt you, why not take some time to investigate the same God who helped Corrie forgive? – it might just be the most liberating thing you could do.

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bottom of the sea!” Corrie immediately recognised him as one of her captors and her blood ran cold. He said, “You mentioned Ravensbrück in your talk, I was a guard there, but since that time I have become a Christian. I know that God has forgiven me for the cruel things I did there, but I would like to hear it from your lips as well. Fräulein will you forgive me?”Corrie recounted that this was one of the most challenging things she had ever been asked to do. Her sister had died in that place, and now an SS officer complicit in her death was standing before her asking for her forgiveness. She who had just been preaching about forgiveness now had the most difficult task of all – to forgive. This is how Corrie

describes what happened next: ‘I had to do it – I knew that. The message that God forgives…[is]…that we [also]forgive those who have injured us…And still I stood there with the coldness clutching my heart. But forgiveness is not an emotion – I knew that too. Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart. "Jesus, help me!" I prayed silently. "I can lift my hand. I can do that much. You supply the feeling." And so woodenly, mechanically, I thrust out my hand into the one stretched out to me. And as I did, an incredible thing took place. The current started in my shoulder, raced down my arm, sprang into our joined hands. And then this healing warmth seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes. "I forgive you, brother!" I cried. "With all my heart!" For a long moment, we grasped each other’s hands, the former guard, and the former prisoner. I had never known God’s love so intensely, as I did then. But even then, I realized it was not my love. I had tried and did not have the power. It was the power of [God]’1

“WHEN WE CONFESS OUR SINS, GOD CASTS THEM INTO THE DEEPEST OCEAN, GONE

FOREVER”

This article was inspired by Tramp for the Lord by Corrie ten Boom with Jamie Buckingham, a bestseller since its original publication in 1972.

WOODLAND WORSHIP

Photo: Dzmitrock87, istockphoto.com

Why the cathedral is bigger than we've ever thought.

READ THE BECAUSE BLOG AT

BECAUSE.UK.COM 3 New posts every week.

BY IAN WOODLEYinfo@because.uk.com

The conversation had taken an unusual twist. There I was, after a church meeting, listening to a lady who was speaking with passion about holding worship services in nearby woodland. She felt that there was no better place for honouring God than in the heart of his creation. Based on her genuine enthusiasm, it appeared that this spiritual activity had brought good things into her life. I must admit that, despite her energetic testimony, I did remain skeptical about the idea. The UK climate isn’t always reliable for a worship event in woodland – I most certainly would be a fair weather attendee.Yet, I do enjoy a day out on the countryside. I always feel invigorated afterwards, with the worries and stresses of life seemingly put into proper perspective. I wonder if that is why this particular lady preferred her worship to be outdoors; perhaps being close up with nature brought this same balance of mind. I’m a follower of Jesus; however, I’ve noticed that I spend a lot of my ‘spiritual time’ indoors. Bit odd really, when it looks like Jesus spent a lot of time outdoors, teaching both on mountains and on lake sides. He clearly noticed the world around him, often using the flora and fauna as illustrations. At the prompting of a book I was reading, I did once set off on a hike with the express ambition of thanking God for the beauty of all created things. It left a big impact on me. It really did feel that I had connected with God within his very own cathedral of nature.

Then I discovered there was more to learn. One day I was inspired by a couple who I watched picking up plastic washed in at a nearby beach. Having a spare carrier bag with me, I also started to pick up the rubbish on my walk. That day, this couple prompted me to stop just passing through the cathedral of nature. Instead, I was taught to actually appreciate what’s going on around me. Picking up the odd bit of plastic is only a small thing, but it has to be said that the countryside always looks better afterwards. Which was the greater act of worship? My thanks giving hike, or my rubbish collecting ramble? I suspect that it isn’t about just choosing one of these activities. True worship involves an active life of doing both types of walk. I can’t ever see myself ever joining a church that runs services in woodland, but that hasn’t stopped me worshiping in the cathedral of nature. Every piece of rubbish picked up is worship in action; what better way is there to say thank you for creation?