Swords into Ploughshares on World Aids Day

Today is World Aids Day.

Here on the Franco-Swiss border the world has turned not red but white as the heaviest snowfall in decades hits this part of the world. Many of the local campaigning plans for the day have had to be rescheduled, that's weather for you.

Colleagues at the Ecumencical Advocacy Alliance in Geneva launched their Advent Calendar today. It's a thoughtful and beautiful resource with contributions from around the world. It lasts for the whole of Advent - right up until January 6th which is Christmas Eve in many Orthodox countries and churches. So you get to wait and reflect for quite a bit longer.

Today's opening reflection comes from Canon Gideon Byamugisha, Christian Aid's HIV AIDS goodwill ambassador:
"Our faith insists we develop a prophetic imagination that works towards safer, healthier and more peaceful, equitable and fulfilling living that makes war history."

Week after week I talk to visitors groups about sowrds into ploughshares - the key text from Isaiah and Micah which begins this year's Advent readings. It was a surprise to see the text through this different lens of health and peace. Making war history also means working for just health for all.

Love is an orientation ...

My friend Nyambura Njoroge is currently reading Love is an Orientation by Andrew Marin after meeting Andrew in Vienna recently. Nyambura coordinates the WCC's Ecumenical HIV AIDS Initiative in Africa, alot of the work she does is in theological education. She's been telling me about how Andrew's book has given her much food for thought on the need for so called ecumenicals and so called evangelicals to build bridges and try to follow the call of Christ. I'm looking forward to getting hold of a copy myself, sounds like a good read. Does the Bible really encourage us to see any other human being as lesspeople
Meanwhile I've already been enjyoing reading Andrew's blog and will go back there in time to come. I'm quite intrigued by one his most recent posts which offers various takes on a one sentence Bible. But the one sentence Bible seems to be an ongoing project as Andrew reads the Bible this year.