becoming

若然有一主日，你打開教會會聞，看見如下的消息，你的反應會是甚麼？

• 水禮：逢每月最後一個主日舉行
• 聖靈的浸：逢每月第二個主日舉行

我的反應是：痴線！不知所謂！【以傳道人的指標說，這差不多等於講粗口了！】

但這絕不是笑話，看Ben的post一同悲涼一番吧！

教會啊，教會，妳攪乜？！ 

I have moved to my current office from my previous one for about 6 months now. The main reason is that our church is simply running out of space and so we decided to have 2 pastors sharing the bigger room instead.

As you can see, everything seems to be orderly still. The partitions work quite nicely as one gigantic bulletin board; books are filling up the shelves soon, and Grünewald’s John the Baptist still pointing to Christ by my window.

How about yours? What's your office/cubical/working area/study room looks like? Let's have some fun and do a show and tell together!!!

1. Take a picture of your office/cubical/working area/study room. Take it as-is. Don't tidy up the space. 
2. Post it on your blog, or online photo album. If you don't have one, email the photo to me
3. Write a few words about it, describing some neat things in the photo.
4. Put a link in the comment section of this post (or email me the whole thing so that I can post it here for you).

This is going to be fun!!!

Come on, what does yours look it?

View Photos | Slide Show

No matter you are (or when you are) coming back or not, it is wonderful nonetheless just to hang out — talking, laughing, sharing life happenings together — all in the love of God.

Take good care of yourself, Karen. Although we can't be there physically with you in Hong Kong, rest assure that our prayers and emails will!

And most importantly, God's loving care will guide you all the way, through and through.

…… Now, just where did I put my book-to-buy list? Um…… 

View Photos | Slide Show

Don’t ask. Just read this, this (also this and this) and don’t forget to take a look at this.

I don’t even know what to say.

對特定形式的文體（genre）作徹底顛覆的「最佳示範」。

Tellervo Kalleinen and Oliver Kochta-Kalleinen’s work Complaint Choir gives you a chance to complain about everything. Many commonplace things are a source of irritation: the computer is too slow, busses do not run on time, everything is too expensive and the salary is too small. Complaints are gathered from the opening of ARS 06 onwards in various ways. Anyone can register for the choir to perform a song compiled and composed on the basis of the complaints, a singing voice is not a prerequisite. Choir performances in Kiasma and elsewhere in town are taped and the video is added to the ARS exhibition. The premiere of the choral piece composed from the complaints is in Kiasma on 25 March.

Complaints Choir was performed earlier in Birmingham. There the complaints were mundane and varied, serious and amusing. Through song, we can perhaps understand how much we complain every day. It also becomes equally evident from the finished work that, at first, singing in Birmingham was guarded but towards the end it turned out to be rousing and manifestly great fun, even if the subject was complaining.

以四步和聲合唱形式來「歌頌」我們一朝到晚的投訴，how refreshing!

若基督信仰用上流行曲的形式再把這形式內容來顛覆一番，又會是怎樣？ 

江牧師今天晚上用陳奕迅的Shall We Talk作了一個illustration，說明他用流行曲去了解這世界和這一代的怕與愛，並以此作為溝通的橋樑，和未信主的人分享他的信仰體會。

這是肯定了我之前所說作為「佈道成份，用流行曲作破冰，再切入福音內容也是可以了解 」，甚至是重要的。

但對於那天晚上，我的問題仍然是：「作為某機構的「音樂籌款晚會」，亦明知在坐九成以上的人都是信徒，為甚麼只唱民歌和那些懷舊流行金曲？」 

而今天晚上，我想問的是；

我們可否再進一步，吸納流行曲背後的心態和價值，並對它們作一個徹底的顛覆和改造？為甚麼只有林夕、黃偉文可以用大量的基督教術語和概念，在他們的歌詞上問問題，或以「語帶相關」的手法，表達對某種形式的宗教的不滿？為甚麼我們不可以借用他們的手法、他們的方式、他們的術語和意念，作回答／反轉／質問／對抗／體會／平衡？

這有原則性的錯誤嗎？還是我們以為根本不屑作這事？

你知道嗎？流行曲之所以流行，是因為它們寫中了這一代人的實情。在這點，可以說流行曲是自戀文化的典範。作為信徒當然我們不叫人自戀或者自憐，但我們卻不可能抹殺流行曲作為真實反應現代人心態（或反應人所不能說出卻真正存在的心態）的功能。

在這點上，教會是忘塵莫及的。

或者，這可以解釋為甚麼流行曲的聽眾那麼多，教會的聽眾那麼少。 

剛收到消息一位在教會很耐的肢體決定在聖誕的時候轉會，雖然不知他／她受了甚麼「刺激」，但真的由衷有一份感謝神的感動。

感謝神弟兄姊妹願意視這所教會為他們屬靈的家。 這不是必然，卻是一份叫我們作牧者的要戰戰兢兢從主接下來的祝福。

Peggy, 到那天，你諗都唔好諗：