Bonhoeffer at Hay Festival

Filling the gaps in my Bonhoeffer library

Just a quick blog post about my recent purchases at this years Hay Festival.

As I've mentioned in other posts, Bonhoeffer is a bit of a hero of mine. I have read most of his works and lots of books about him. Whilst browsing the theology sections in a number of second hand bookshops at Hay-on-Wye I came across three books that I don't have.

1. The Place of Bonhoeffer, edited by Martin E Marty, SCM Press, 1963

Eight American theologians assess the place of Bonhoeffer's theology in 20th century Christianity. Looks like a decent assessment of Bonhoeffer the theologian.

2. The Life and Death of Deitrich Bonhoeffer, Mary Bosanquet, Hodder and Stoughton, 1968

The title pretty much sums up the content... Bosanquet spent five years writing about the life of Bonhoeffer. From the back cover, it would appear she's a bit of a Bonhoeffer fan.

3. True Patriotism: Letters, lectures and notes from the Collected Works: volume III, edited by Edwin H. Robertson.

"These letters, lectures and notes show that the theologian, the conspirator, the prisoner were all the one man, one of the greatest figures of our age." Blimey, I'm hooked already!

I shall read and review each book over the coming months. Be sure to keep an eye on the blog.

In the meantime, have you read any of the books mentioned above? What's your favourite Bonhoeffer book? Do share!

With best wishes,

Matt the Elder

#MattTheElder

The journey of Matt the Elder

City United Reformed Church, Cardiff

Today, I was elected to be one of the Elders at City United Reformed Church, Cardiff. I have been coming to City URC for about ten years but only recently have I felt moved to stand for eldership.

This is the start of an exciting journey. Who would have thought that I would become an Elder?! I've been asked in the past to think about becoming a church elder but I didn't think it was for me. I love a night out and felt I couldn't commit to attending every Sunday morning in case I over indulged the night before! Very selfish, I know.

But the older you get the more you start rethinking your priorities. Saturday nights are far less boozy than they used to be - I cannot remember the last time I rolled out of a night club at 3am, staggering to the nearest chippy!

These days I'm more likely to spend Saturday evenings at the theatre or the cinema... or even staying in with a decent bottle of wine and good film! Those Sunday morning hangovers are few and far between, I'm glad to say.

Don't get me wrong, I still love a night out and going to church doesn't mean you have to stop enjoying a drink! But my priorities have changed and, dare I say, I'm a lot more mature than Matt the Younger!

So, after a lot of thought I decided to put myself forward for church elder. The deciding factor was my attending a church meeting at the end of last year. I've met some great people at City Church and many have become good friends. I've socialised and took part in numerous church events. But at that church meeting, hearing about future decions and the financial costs of running a church, it occurred to me how much I have taken for granted and how little I have given to City Church in return. As I left that meeting, I knew I would stand for church elder.

And here I am, an elder at City Church. How very mature of me! I'm excited about this role but also a little bit nervous. Can make a worthy contribution to its ongoing success? Am I qualified to make decisions that effect the running of the church? What gifts can I contribute to City Church? What will Elders meetings be like? Dry? Interesting? Creative?

Personally, I'm hoping they'll be more like The Barchester Chronicles or maybe The Vicar of Dibley - a mixture of intrigue and humour! Needless to say, I'll keep you updated!

Speaking of which, the reason for this blog is to chronicle my journey as church elder. The title of this blog is reference to Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German theologian whose life and theology continues to inspire me. I'll say more about Bonhoeffer in future blog posts.

Hopefully, you will find this insightful and perhaps a little bit inspiring. This is as much a journey about me as it is about the life of the very wonderful City URC Church. 

Here's to making a difference!

With best wishes,
Matt the Elder