P.S.
PS is an email and web-based blog format issued regularly by Contemporary Christianity. The format provides an online space for writers toexplore issues relating to church, culture and life in Northern Ireland, seeking to understand the times through insights from Scripture, theology, reason and the observations that flow from lived experience.
PS will never claim to have all the answers, but we hope to prompt questions that leave our readers a little closer to the answer at the end of the piece than they were at the beginning.
Our writers range from well-known names in academia and full-time ministry, to professionals with particular subject matter expertise, to lay people with passion for a subject and a gift for writing.
You can get involved in conversations by posting comments in the threads below the blogs, and if you’re interested in writing for us, you can get in touch by emailing info@contemporarychristianity.net.
THE CALL TO CARE FOR OUR EARTHLY HOME
In a few weeks, global leaders will convene in Glasgow for the UN’s annual talks on climate change, also known as COP26.
The change that’s all around us
Change. It’s happening all the time, and sometimes very rapidly. Some of us thrive in that environment, but most of us struggle when there is too much of it too quickly. These last 18 months have seen massive change affecting every one of us as a result of Brexit...
Ah, look at all the lonely people
It turns out that peace and quiet is good for a while, but not if it goes on for too long. Too much peace and quiet can damage your health. During Covid many of us struggled to juggle multiple responsibilities- work from home, housework, home schooling etc. and we...
Harvest – God the Provider – God the environmentalist?
Harvest for me means picking crab apples. Last year was a bumper year; the tree was laden with fruit and as the tiny pink-red spheres were picked, the branches rose as the weight of apples was lifted off them. This year, the tree is lighter; it’s taking a breather!...
How do we debate and differ well on ideas for a New Ireland?
The old joke goes that an Irishman asked for directions by a stranger started his reply by saying “If I was you, I wouldn’t start from here!” But here and now is our starting place. Looking back over the recent PS reflections on ‘Northern Ireland at 100 years’, I am struck by how ‘Protestant and Unionist’ and ‘Nationalist and Roman Catholic’ still remain largely synonymous.
Reasons to be Hopeful
The news headlines over recent weeks have been as dispiriting as any recent period I can remember.
Reflecting on Northern Ireland at 100 years
Reflecting on Northern Ireland at 100years Of the 100 years since Northern Ireland was formed, I, as an Ulsterman born in the sound of Lambeg drums, have spent over one third of its existence, in the Republic of Ireland. The rationale of Northern Ireland was an...
Reflection on Northern Ireland at 100 years
Reflection on Northern Ireland at 100 years How did we get here? The creation of Northern Ireland looks, to me, as cynical and short-sighted as Brexit. But the ensuing problems served only to protect those who could protect themselves. By “offshoring” the question of...
Reflection on Northern Ireland at 100 years
'Reflection on Northern Ireland at 100 years' I was born into a Protestant and Unionist family in Ballymoney in 1953. Some family members were in the loyal orders and “B” Specials. Early in life I imbibed a unionist and orange mindset, but was brought up to treat...
Reflection on Northern Ireland at 100 years
Reflection on Northern Ireland at 100 years Identity Matters… “So, what are you, Danielle?” asked my 10-year-old friend, Grainne as we walked up the town to deliver a message for her mum to the nun at the local chapel. We were purposefully taking our time as we felt...
Reflecting on Northern Ireland at 100 years
Commemorating 100 years of Northern Ireland evokes conflicting emotions. For those who lived through the ‘Troubles’, the Good Friday Agreement seems much more recent than 1998.The pallor of suffering and enmity still casts its shadow. The diminution, if not complete...
Welcome To The New Look …PS…!
Welcome to …PS…, an email and web discussion forum from Contemporary Christianity. Virtual and voluntary, we normally issue …PS… once or twice each month. Next week, look out for a 5 day series of blogs …. From next Monday, 21 June for five days we will be issuing a...