Andrew Chamberlain

Now this is funny actually. Atheists groups and individuals have clubbed together to run an ad campaign on London buses. Their slogan ‘There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.’ just left me laughing. In a time where the church is buffeted on all sides by aggressive secularism and a range of other faiths, its good to see some comedy.

I guess it’s worth a bit of deconstruction. For a start, did the agnostics chip in? What’s this about there’s ‘probably’ no God? And pin up atheist Richard Dawkins is paying for some of this? Surely they should have gone for ‘There is no God’, that at least would have reflected the atheist opinion. I think they would have got in to trouble with the Advertising Standards Authority though, so it’s the more tame ‘probably’.Next we come to the latter part of the statement ’stop worrying and enjoy your life’; so do religious people worry only and atheists enjoy life, only? Think about it for a moment, it’s patent nonsense.

I think what this ad will do is just comfort the believers (or non believers in this case) and they are not the first or last to do this, people of all faiths like to encourage each other by restating their beliefs, declaring who they are to others.

Meanwhile, cheer up deists! And remember if you want you’re beliefs to be respected follow Jesus’ advice - love your neighbour as yourself. Enjoy!!

Tags: Politics and culture by andrew chamberlain
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I was amused to see Cherie Blair saying this week that history might judge her husband, the former Prime Minister Tony Blair, as having made as much of a contribution as Winston Churchill, the wartime PM. Her comments have been ridiculed by the Tories and treated with some amused derision by the press. The Telegraph had some choice quotes from one unnamed MP. These sorts of comparisons, where they involve people who are still alive, do end up sounding fanciful. The Tory party might be quick to defend the (rightly) exalted reputation of the great Winston, but we should not forget that there are many people on the left who respect and admire Churchill’s legacy. The socialist writer and commentator George Orwell used the name Winston for the hero of his dystopian novel ‘1984′ and Churchill is often seen, for all his Tory credentials, as something of an anti- establishment hero. We might also see another reason for Cherie to share Orwell’s liking of the great PM, after all ‘Geroge Orwell’ was just a nom de plume ;his real name? Eric Blair.

Tags: Politics and culture by andrew chamberlain
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Browsing the channels last night I came across a program about children’s fantasy literature. Some of the contributors I recognised: Philip Pullman and China Mieville (whose work I actually enjoy). What was telling was that this  collection of very post modern writers and commentators talked about the Harry Potter series as extremely moral and “like something from the 50’s” - a thinly disguised association with C S Lewis’ Narna books. Some of them were struggling to see why kids loved old Harry P so much when its themes seemed (to them) to come from a previous era.

I’ve been reflecting on how times have changed. A few years ago there was, and to an extent still is, a backlash amongst some evangelicals against the Harry Potter books. This was fueled by some Christians believing and quoting various hoax and spoof articles claiming that either the books and/or J K Rowling promotes satanic activity.  Well - what a load of rubbish that turned out to be. A cursory glance at the evidence suggests that Ms Rowling is a Christian, and a member of a Church of Scotland congregation. That she keeps her beliefs relatively private is a matter entirely for her - and wiser folk in the church at large know that it’s a good idea not to be too quick to judge the faith of others, especially on the back of second hand material in the press.

But you can judge her work, although if you are going to do that you have to read it first. Having done so I have to say that - especially towards the end of the series-  the story has a very rich moral, even didactic, feel to it - even I thought I was being taught something. It turns out that this is not just a story about wizards and witches and magic, in fact its not even primarily a story about these things. They are the medium for the message, and that message is about loyalty, friendship, and above all - love. It’s classic good versus evil, and forgiveness triumphing over hatred, it’s about laying down one’s life for one’s friend. It may not look as Christian as Narnia but believe me it certainly ’smells’ Christian.

So much so, that some of the commentators on the TV program I watched were mystified by it’s popularity. Why? Because they have a subjective, relativistic mindset; they distrust the themes that Rowling so proudly advocates (pure love, friendship, loyalty, an objective something worth fighting for) because they see, quite rightly, in these things the seeds of a philosophy that points to an objective, external set of values; and that flies in the face of the post modern agenda. It was no wonder some of them were thrown by Rowlings work; it is in fact that most powerful piece of counter cultural writing that has emerged since the postmodern age started. It is a light in the darkness, and as the phrase goes, the darkness simply doesn’t understand it.

Tags: Politics and culture by andrew chamberlain
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There has been a lot said in condemnation of the murdering tyrant Mugabe, so I won’t add much more; suffice it to say that, when these things happen there is a temptation to assume that this is the norm, the usual. Some might be tempted to think, variously ‘This is what happens in Africa’ or ‘This is what happens in Government’ or ‘none of our business’.

Well morality is everyone’s business, complicated and awkward though it is. When we moralize about others the standards we set have a nasty habit of coming back to judge us. Some of the African leaders meeting in Egypt this week will find it a struggle to lecture Mugabe on democracy, and none of us are immune from the need for integrity when we start to point the finger.

But we must not be afraid to speak out on these issues; to guard the concept that something is objectively wrong, and deserving of condemnation. Mugabe’s actions are not simply regrettable, or disappointing, they are a moral outrage, and should be regarded as such, in any state, in any government.

Tags: Politics and culture by andrew chamberlain
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