I posted a few more personal reflections on last week’s The Idolatry of God retreat in Belfast (here and here), which turned out to be more professional (i.e. academic) than I thought because, on reflection, I failed in trying to move from the intellectual to the existential and from information to transformation. But, as Jen summarised in a great comment on one of those earlier posts, ‘We are all in a different place between intellectually protecting ourselves from what triggers the hurts of the past and letting go of past hurts enough to fully experience the present’.

I then posted two pieces about the academic paper that Pete Rollins asked me to present at the retreat, ‘Positioning Pyrotheology’, in which I looked at the wider theological and philosophical frame and political the significance of Pete’s work (here and here). My forthcoming book, Radical Theology and Emerging Christianity: Deconstruction, Materialism and Religious Practices (Ashgate, 2014), will go into much more detail about the relationship between Pete’s work and contemporary deconstructive and materialist theologies, and the research I hope to do next will focus more on the political potential of practices like ‘suspended space’.

But today I wanted to write another personal reflection – although it’s also somewhat professional, because it’s about my style of presentation, and whether or not I can speak to the churches.

Pete Rollins has posted a preliminary timetable for the Idolatry of God event that he’s curating in Belfast next month (Apr 23-26). It features, among others, me, Jay Bakker, Duke Special, William Crawley, and (remotely) Kester Brewin. I’m really looking forward to meeting everyone who’s going.

Video of Pete Rollins, Kester Brewin and Barry Taylor, “Pirates and Prodigals”, Fuller Theological Seminary, Oct 24 2012.

I’ve had an idea for a piece of writing on the go for a while now, focusing on the ways in which both Jacques Derrida and Slavoj Zizek can be read as calling the church to arms. I’m now thinking of including in this piece reflections on the work of Peter Rollins and Kester Brewin, who I think can also be read in this way. Kester is working on a book about pirates and has blogged before on Christian piracy (see here and here), so I probably now need to call this article, “Derrida and Zizek Call the Church to Aaaarrrrms.”

I’ve been invited by Kester Brewin to speak at this year’s Greenbelt festival, which is exciting. The theme is “Saving Paradise” so I’ve got to have a think over the next little while of suitable topics and titles.

A round-up of posts on church resources for a “Forsaken by God” Good Friday or Holy Saturday service to mark the end of Atheism for Lent. I’d love to hear about any other ideas for resources (readings, prayers, music, liturgy, rituals, etc.):

Atheism for Lent: Forsaken by God (Resources 1)

Atheism for Lent: Forsaken by God (Resources 2)

Atheism for Lent: Forsaken by God (Resources 3)

Interrupting God: Take Jesus Down from the Cross

Atheism for Lent: Forsaken by God (Resources 4)

Ed Harcourt’s “Church of No Religion”

Atheism for Lent: Forsaken by God (Resources 5)

Depeche Mode’s “Blasphemous Rumours”

Kester Brewin’s “God is Dead. Good.”

Sydney Carter’s “Friday Morning”

Ann Kim’s “Eloi eloi lama sabachthani”

Pádraig ô Tuama’s “Maranatha”

REM’s Losing my Religion (in a major rather than minor key)

Here’s the link to all Atheism for Lent related posts:

katharinesarahmoody.tumblr.com/tagged/atheism-for-lent 

This poem, “God is Dead. Good,” from Kester Brewin makes a great reading for a Good Friday service to mark the end of an Atheism for Lent Course:

Today, there is no hope.

There is no resurrection,

no looking forward to a Sunday

which does not yet exist in even

the wildest imaginations.

There is no prayer

no solace

no point.

God has died.

It’s over.

Finished.

Give up.

Go home.

Return to work.

The best you can do

is carry on the memory;

the only remainder of belief,

now all has been strung up

and screwed up,

is to consider that may be

his life was well lived,

and that helping the poor

and standing up for the oppressed

was worth living

and dying for.

God has died.

We live still

this Friday

to do Good.

Kester Brewin has written a couple of great posts reflecting on the occupy movement in relation to his ongoing work on Christian piracy:

“Mutiny! Why St Paul’s is the perfect place for ‘Occupy’ Protests” and

“Don’t Blame Bankers: What Alternatives are ‘Occupy’ Proposing“