THOUGHT FOR 2024

(From an old grouch)

Quote: "Man cannot live without joy; therefore when he is deprived of true spiritual joys, it is necessary he become addicted to carnal pleasures."

I too watched that Graham Norton show as I had nothing better to do. Wasn't it utter rubbish and especially that awful Winklewoman with her distasteful comments? Just about summed up everything bad about the BBC and world. 'Later' with Jules Holand was marginally better. They brought Rod Stewart and Paul Jones out of the woodwork to make some sounds - the former famous for his bejewelled shoes and shiny suits and the latter for Manfred Mann songs from the '60's and '70's - all of which I couldn't help thinking was slightly obscene, as not far away people were being blown to pieces with high explosives and the world on the brink of a nuclear exchange - not to mention untold thousands on the streets with no roof over their heads! As I get older, I think I get more and more like Andrew Porter, who lived in Pensford when I was a youth. On bonfire night when were were all jolly letting off fireworks, he would shuffle by in his threadbare clothes and tattered footwear, saying, "People shouldn't be celebrating, they should be praying" or words to that effect. Of course we discounted them and him as from a poor and eccentric individual, whose nose perpetually dripped in the cold and who relied on the charity of others for his meagre survival. However, now I think he may have had a point, and that what we need today is less fireworks and Graham Norton and more Thomas a Quinas who said (among other things) "The things that we love tell us who we are." That may be a hard lesson to learn and an even harder one to accept.

A new year’s message from MAP’s President, Baroness Morris of Bolton Dear Timothy, In 1984, a group of doctors and humanitarians, horrified by the massacre of Palestinian civilians they had witnessed in the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps in Lebanon, grouped together to form Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP). For them, medical relief wasn’t just about saving lives, but was a tangible act of solidarity with a people who had suffered so much for so long. Forty years later, amid the heartbreaking scenes we are witnessing in Gaza, the future for Palestinians appears bleaker and more uncertain than ever before. Families have been torn apart, homes destroyed, and countless lives shattered. The healthcare system is on its knees. Two million people are now hungry. It is impossible for us to imagine what MAP’s team in Gaza are going through right now. Somehow, despite living through bombardment, displacement and loss, they are still working to provide vital medial aid to the people around them. Inspired by the values of its founders and the incredible fortitude of the communities it serves, MAP continues to carry out its vital mission every day. I have never been more proud to be associated with MAP than I am right now. Our teams in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon – themselves Palestinians living the daily reality of occupation, exile and injustice – embody the values of dignity, integrity and solidarity that we all aspire to. They were the first to respond when the bombs started falling and will continue their work until all Palestinians can attain their rights to health and dignity. Our team in London have also shown their solidarity with their colleagues in Palestine and Lebanon, working tirelessly over the past few months to raise crucial funds, lobby policymakers for an urgent ceasefire, and ensure that we are equipped to respond to this ongoing emergency and future emergencies. I hope that you, too, are proud of the part you have played in enabling the work of these remarkable teams over the past few months, and for many years before this latest crisis. Time and again, MAP’s supporters have shown up for the Palestinian people, expressing your solidarity through donations, fundraising events, and campaigning. As we step into the new year, let us carry the lessons of the past year with us. Let us remember the power of compassion in the face of adversity. The challenges ahead may seem daunting, but I know that we will overcome them together. Thank you to everyone who has supported MAP this year. I wish you all a brighter, and peaceful, new year. Trish Morris MAP President Jew about Christianity oetprSondsP1u4D 40c3M902 a2t2c7:e711mbc0f460 63 1,r5823ha 02tmcgcl0ccee  ·  “Even before he was born, it was known that he would be someone special. A supernatural being informed his mother that the child she was to conceive would not be a mere mortal but would be divine. He was born miraculously, and he became an unusually precocious young man. As an adult he left home and went on an itinerant preaching ministry, urging his listeners to live, not for the material things of this world, but for what is spiritual. He gathered a number of disciples around him, who became convinced that his teachings were divinely inspired, in no small part because he himself was divine. He proved it to them by doing many miracles, healing the sick, casting out demons, and raising the dead. But at the end of his life he roused opposition, and his enemies delivered him over to the Roman authorities for judgment. Still, after he left this world, he returned to meet his followers in order to convince them that he was not really dead but lived on in the heavenly realm. Later some of his followers wrote books about him.” No, it's not what you think. This was written about the pagan philosopher Apollonius of Tyana. The quotation is from the message that has lasted until our time, The Life of Apollonius of Tyana, which was compiled by his follower named Philostratus. More details in my book. Link in the first comment