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Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah as Midrash
Midrash is a complex type of Jewish exegesis that blossomed as Judaism become Rabbinic. One, and it is only one, of the tools of midrash is using diverse texts from the Hebrew Bible (the Tanakh) to answer questions asked by hearers of the text. In this way a deep reverence for the text is combined… Continue reading
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More Isaiah Tweets: 19-36
Isaiah 19: Yahweh, we praise you that all nations can praise your name. Hallelujah. Isaiah 20: Yahweh provides a strong foundation to build upon. Humanity’s vanity makes a house of cards. Isaiah 21: Yahweh, help us to perceive the idols we worship and break them on the ground. Isaiah 22: When God opens a gate… Continue reading
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On Tweeting Isaiah
My church, New Life Baptist Church (Guildford), is looking at Isaiah 40-55 on Sunday mornings during January to March this year. Alongside this we are encouraging the whole church to work through the book of Isaiah as part of their daily devotions. The collective reading and reflection helps make our small groups function more effectively… Continue reading
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Psalmtweets (Summer 2015): Psalms 71-80
Here are some psalmtweets from a few weeks ago. I post these in the hope that others might have a go. I still find that tweeting one a day is a fruitful spiritual discipline. The act of capturing something of a psalm in 140 characters is both challenging and rewarding. Sometimes they succeed and echo… Continue reading
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The Journey Motif in Life, Art and Scripture
Introduction Human beings have, since prehistory, attempted to explain life as a journey. In a physical sense life is a journey from the helplessness we display at birth to the lifelessness of death. The physical nature of ‘the end’ is all too tangible. Science can probe it and concludes it is indeed journey’s end. Many… Continue reading
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Psalmtweets: Psalms 51-60
This is a continuation of my latest series of psalmtweets which is an attempt to see how each psalm contributes to the whole. This is part of a broader experiment in using psalmtweets as a daily spiritual discipline. Psalm 51: The Psalms speak of the need for a broken spirit and a willing spirit, all… Continue reading
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Psalmtweets: psalms 1-10
I have been composing a daily tweet on a psalm for over two years now. These tweets are in canonical order and I am now on journey number 6. I have made #psalmtweets a spiritual discipline as part of my daily devotions. In the current journey of tweets I am attempting to let the Psalms… Continue reading
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The Psalms of Ascents: Latest Psalmtweets
These Psalmtweets try and capture something of the essence of the 15 Psalms of Ascents (120-134). The purpose of these tweets is to draw attention to the actual psalms, not to circumvent them. Psalm 120: I sojourn in a strange land. Living, breathing, but not at home. I journey to a new place. Yahweh, you… Continue reading
About Me
This blog’s central aim is to explore all aspects of how the Psalter (the biblical psalms) functions as Scripture today.
To this end it will also include book reviews on the Book of Psalms and related topics.
Some posts will reflect more broadly on biblical interpretation or hermeneutics.
If you like what you see here and want to arrange for me to give a lecture, run a teaching event or a short retreat based around The Psalms then contact me so we can discuss how this might work.
PsalterMark 