Sanctus1 Blog

Anglican mainstream and Greenbelt

2009-07-13T09:21:00.003+01:00

Anglican Mainstream the uber conservative pressure group is out to get Greenbelt! Have alook at their post and tell us what you think...http://www.anglican-mainstream.net/?p=12825

Rock star physicist

2009-07-06T17:54:00.000+01:00

Brian Cox... no, not that Brian Cox, the other Brian Cox... is doing a book launch at the Museum Of Science And Industry.

Insert generic God-as-scientist argument here. Anyhoo, the event is tomorrow (Tuesday) and full details are at http://www.coxforshaw.blogspot.com/.

For fact fiends:

- Brian Cox was in the band D:Ream: his last appearance with them was at the 1997 Labour party conference.

- QI host and professional genius Stephen Fry "can think of no one, Stephen Hawking included, who more perfectly combines authority, knowledge, passion, clarity and powers of elucidation than Brian Cox."

- Brian Cox has amazing hair.

The event also features Jeff Forshaw, who is one of the youngest professors in the UK. I had to mention Jeff, as it seems Brian is nabbing all the publicity, being a pop star physicist and all that!

Re-Use

2009-06-30T13:45:00.002+01:00

Over the next few months in Sanctus we thought that it'd be good to do a bit of recycling! Sanctus is a fairly transient community of people and so there are many services that the current community has never experienced. So we thought that we'd look through our back-cataloge and re-use some! The service will be looked at, tweeked and redelivered by today's community.

But we have so many to choose from! So look through the list and see if there is one that tickles your fancy and help make it happen again...

1. Dekhomi - The Welcoming Place - A service exploring God's welcome
2. A Time for Everything - A Service based on Ecclesiastes
3. 3 - The Trinity
4. 40 - Lent
5. Chance - Randomness of Faith
6. Covenant - God's promises to us
7. Credo � A service exploring belief
8. Detox � Detoxing our lives
9. Discipleship - What does it mean to follow Jesus?
10.Elemental � Fire
11.Elemental � Water
12.Going Higher � Ascension
13.High on Hope
14.Identity
15.Life Giver � Service on Mary
16.Magic Number
17.Mirror Mirror - Reflections on God
18.Pilgrimage
19.Prophetic Politics
20.Sanctum - First ever S1 service!
21.Soteriology - Understanding Salvation
22.Urban Faith
23.Urban Harvest
24.Welcome Home? The Prodigal Son
25.World Service
26.The Man in Black - Service based on Jonny Cash
27.No Place like Home - Service around alice in wonderland
28.Solstice � Midsummer service
29.Gift
30.Sancduko
31.Sanctus Speed dating

And add any more that I've not included...

"Best Of Manchester Notions"?

2009-06-18T09:55:00.002+01:00

I only wish that this was one of ours... Rather neat I thought.

Walking on...

2009-06-15T09:50:00.002+01:00

Neat web site that a mate directed me to last night - Walk It, the urban walking route planner.

For 14 cities/ towns in the UK, you can enter two postcodes or locations and it'll calculate the shortest/ quickest (or "less busy" if you select) route to walk from and to, as well as telling you the carbon saving.

Get walking!

Sacred Trinity in the ManCon spotlight

2009-06-11T13:07:00.003+01:00

Nice piece by Manchester Confidential about Sacred Trinity and the "Very Cool Rev" (TM) Andy Salmon...

Stunned silence | Not in my name

2009-06-09T15:21:00.006+01:00

It's been oh so quiet round here.

And now I'm not sure what there is to say, other than I know we have to take seriously the need to engage with those who did vote BNP. It's too easy to judge and demonise them. At least they bothered to use their vote; obviously I'd really rather they'd not used it to vote for the BNP, but that's where the serious and sustained engagement is needed.

In the meantime, those of having to live under Nick Griffin's "representation", can at least say (with Hope Not Hate) not in my name.

Manchester 10K

2009-05-17T19:09:00.003+01:00

A group from Sanctus1 took part in the Great Manchester 10k run today to raise money for Christian Aid. We had a range of times - and a range of dampness as some of us were only half-way through when we were subjected to 40 minutes of Manchester's finest hardcore rain - but I think everyone felt a real sense of achievement, both for completing it in one piece and for raising the money. Well done team! Same again next year?

M.E.P. and Total Denial

2009-05-14T13:38:00.001+01:00

The award winning film Total Denial (www.totaldenialfilm.com) is being shown on Tuesday 19 May, 7-9.30pm at AMC Cinema, 253 Deansgate. It is followed by the chance to question MEP candidates ahead of June�s European elections about corporate accountability and climate change

Total Denial is the story of a historic lawsuit - fifteen villagers from the jungles of Burma bringing their case against a giant oil corporation concerning the abuse of human-rights in a story of the struggle for justice.

Come and support their inspiring example, find out what you can do, and question your potential MEPs on how they will work for justice around the world.

Please book by emailing totaldenialfilm@gmail.com

The TED commandments

2009-05-14T11:41:00.004+01:00

If you've never seen a TED video, you've been missing out big time! Put down the remote control, and go to http://www.ted.com/ to watch some of the most inspiring and engaging presentations you will ever see.

Apparently, each TED speaker gets sent a tablet of stone with the following 10 presentation guidelines engraved on it. There has to be a Sanctus equivalent surely, or at the very least a carcking service idea in here?

1. Thou Shalt Not Simply Trot Out thy Usual Shtick.

2. Thou Shalt Dream a Great Dream, or Show Forth a Wondrous New Thing, Or Share Something Thou Hast Never Shared Before.

3. Thou Shalt Reveal thy Curiosity and Thy Passion.

4. Thou Shalt Tell a Story.

5. Thou Shalt Freely Comment on the Utterances of Other Speakers forthe Sake of Blessed Connection and Exquisite Controversy.

6. Thou Shalt Not Flaunt thine Ego. Be Thou Vulnerable. Speak of thyFailure as well as thy Success.

7. Thou Shalt Not Sell from the Stage: Neither thy Company, thy Goods, thy Writings, nor thy Desperate need for Funding; Lest Thou be Cast Aside into Outer Darkness.

8. Thou Shalt Remember all the while: Laughter is Good.

9. Thou Shalt Not Read thy Speech.

10. Thou Shalt Not Steal the Time of Them that Follow Thee.

Hooray!

2009-05-13T12:55:00.003+01:00

Looks like Manchester's going to get new and improved public transport despite saying no to the congestion charge. Everyone's a winner!

Hunger and thirst

2009-05-11T09:27:00.008+01:00

Service: "hunger and thirst"

Wed 13 May, 7.30pm
Nexus Art Cafe, Manchester

No ID?

2009-05-06T09:26:00.001+01:00

Has anyone worked out the local resistance to the ID card trial yet?

The Movie Mass

2009-04-29T09:24:00.004+01:00

Tonight in Sanctus1 the service is called 'The Movie Mass'.

The service will be almost entirely led by film clips with different films leading us through different stages of the service. There will be a a film led call to worship, confession and absolution, reflection on 'the word', time of sharing bread and wine, prayers and finally a blessing...

Join us tonight at 7:30 for Coffee and 7:45 to start in Nexus.

Transfigurations' with Peterson Toscano.

2009-04-28T18:23:00.002+01:00

I just got an email telling me about this event - sounds fascinating, any going to go?

Transfigurations', with Peterson Toscano.
Tuesday 19 May 2009 8pm.
Taurus Bar, 1 Canal Street, Manchester, M1 3HE
Tickets �5 (+�0.95 booking fee per order) or phone 0870 428 0785.

Trans Bible Characters??? You betcha!
In this one-person play, theatrical performance activist Peterson Toscano unearths transgender Bible characters, those people who do not fit in the gender binary, and who in transgressing and transcending gender, find themselves at the centre of some of the Bible's most important stories. After the interval, Peterson will share excerpts from other plays including The Re-Education of George W. Bush, Queer 101-Now I Know my gAy,B,Cs, and Doin' Time in the Homo No Mo Halfway House.With stories from the road, new material, and always a few surprises, Peterson shares his own story of trying to 'de-gay' himself and the process he took to integrate his sexuality with all parts of his life.

Peterson Toscano is a gay US-based theatrical performance activist and comic actor who travels internationally with original one-person shows that address transgender, bisexual, lesbian, gay and queer concerns as well as issues of race, gender, environment and faith. He spoke at the 2008 Lambeth Conference and has been featured in the Times, BBC World Service, the New Statesman, The New York Times, People Magazine, Logo Channel, PBS and the Tyra Banks Show.

"What've I missed?"

2009-04-28T08:52:00.002+01:00

Fame and fortune!

Erm, well, sort of maybe a bit of kudos and a smidge of the former...

The F word

2009-04-17T10:20:00.004+01:00

On the spot on Wednesday night, our group named a few female icons and inspiring women...

It's amazing what your brain mulling something over, and the input of a few mates, can do in 36 hours, isn't it?

Abigail Witchells
Amelia Earheart
Ang San Su Chi
Angela Merkell
Anita Roddick
Ann Begg
Annie Oakley
Billie Holiday
Boadicea
Camilla Batmanghelidjh
Charlotte Bronte
Debbi Harry
Delia Smith
Dorothy Day
Eleanor Rosevelt
Ellen McArthur
Emily Bronte
Emily Dickinson
Emmeline Pankhurst
Estelle Morris
Esther (Bible)
Eve (Bible)
Fiona Castle
Florence Nightingale
Gee Walker
Germaine Greer
Helen Keller
Ida Lupino
Jacqueline Wilson
Janet Street Porter
Jennifer Beals
Jo Brand
Jo Whiley
Joan of Arc
Jocelyn Bell-Burnell
Julian of Norwich
Julie Walters
Karen Brady
Kate Bush
Kate Winslett
Kylie
Madonna
Margaret Atwood
Margaret Thatcher
Marie Curie
Martha (Bible)
Mary (Bible)
Mary Seacole
Michelle Obama
Mother Teresa
My mum
My nan
�myself�
Nancy Rothwell
Naomi (Bible)
Patti Smith
PJ Harvey
Queen Elizabeth I
Queen Margaret
Queen Victoria
Rachel Whiteread
Rosa Parkes
Ruth (Bible)
Sam Taylor Wood
Sheila Hancock
Tamar (Genesis 38, Bible)
Tanni Grey Thompson
Virginia Woolf
Vivien Westwood
Winnie Mandela

The 40th Day

2009-04-12T19:48:00.001+01:00

Well 40 days done...Thank goodness for that - It was a bit of a marathon! Final day points to resurrection.

Refresh FM - contains absolutely no whales

2009-04-11T12:56:00.001+01:00

I have been swimming in the whale-infested waters of Christian radio for about a week now.

The thing about Christian radio is that, like a lot of Christian sub-culture, it's bland, insipid and aimed at a very narrow audience (I would guess women in their late 40s). Manchester's Refresh FM is a pretty mainstream affair in some ways, and their mission statement is a pretty typical 'bringing Jesus into the world' type affair.

But what they excel at is letting idiots like me run with ideas and, sometimes, fall over. On air. It's a fantastic training ground, and much of Christian subculture doesn't encourage that kind of experimentation or trust.

They've let me co-present 20 two-hour radio programmes this year. I've done five and I have 15 to go. The show I do is called Theatre Of Noise, and it's on every weeknight at the moment at 9pm (information here). Me and my plucky co-host play alternative music, mostly by Christians, and run features that often involve something getting destroyed (1), burst (2), pummelled (3), collapsed (4) or boiled in oil (5).

The strange thing is, Refresh FM is the one remaining area of my life where I 'hang out with evangelicals'. But I don't feel compromised. The church it's based in seems quite traditional, but they're cool with me and I'm cool with them.

It's a microcosm (I promise never to use that word on air) of an image I have of liberal heathens and holy evangelicals working together because of mutual love and respect for each other.

Right then... off to write some more programme scripts!

Wikipedia-style footnotes
(1) we destroy things in a feature called Chainsaw Challenge (Tuesdays and Thursdays).
(2) we burst things in a feature called Balloons And Darts (Fridays).
(3) we pummell things in features called The Adventure Game (Mondays) and Sackcloth And Bashes (Wednesdays).
(4) we collapse things (mainly quiches) in a feature called Flansubstantiation (Mondays).
(5) we boil things in oil in a feature called Friar Tuck Shop (Fridays).

Day 37

2009-04-09T10:00:00.000+01:00

Name: Kevin Leadbetter

Are you an artist?

Three Items:

1 - A large box of recycled paper
2 - A sharp pair of scissors
3 - A roll of Gaffer Tape

Why: Loneliness is something we all feel, even though we have the opportunity to be always online and always connected. By transforming the lonely, desolation of an empty space into something living, I'm intrigued to see whether it is possible to get a feeling of connection, or home, even whilst being watched like a caged animal.

Mark Kermode in Sunday School Exorcist shocker!!

2009-04-09T09:01:00.001+01:00

Great interview with the man of movies in the Grauniad today - displaying humour, thoughtfulness and irreverance about his job, faith and approach to Richard Curtis films...

Stan's Cafe/ GB09

2009-04-08T13:13:00.002+01:00

This will be stunning at GB - it comes highly recommended! (even though it sounds incredibly arty and abstract)

Day 36

2009-04-08T10:00:00.000+01:00

Name: Charlotte Turton

Are you an artist: Yes

Three Items:

1 - Typewriter
2 - Blue Tac
3 - paper

Why? solitude is pace for the imagination. I am interested in generating text which bridge imagination and memory.

Bishop in the box

2009-04-02T14:23:00.000+01:00

Although only for an hour...

Christianity21

2009-04-02T09:19:00.001+01:00

Don't suppose anyone wants to cover my costs to fly out to this...? Looks like an amazing line up, some great conversations...