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Norway Day Two

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On day two in Norway we were looked after by Kenneth's parents,  Torild and Tom. Kenneth had classes to attend in Oslo, so they showed us around on the itinerary that Kenneth had mapped out for us. We set off with cut lunches and bags for the next few days as we were off exploring Norway. F irst stop was the Vikersundbakken ski jump hill or ski flying hill, because that is what happens here. It is  one of the largest purpose-built ski flying hills in the world and is pretty impressive. It would be even more impressive with snow. According to Wikipedia nine world records have been set there. The complex consists of a large hill, a normal hill and several training hills.  Then we drove to the  Blaafarveværket waterfall and Cobalt  mines where we had our cut lunch. One thing we and Kenneth discovered is that touristy Norway shuts on October 1 because winter is coming and it is getting too cold. We arrived on October 3, so things like the Museum at the Cobalt m...
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Norway - Day One

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  After that long break I've decided to finish reflecting on my sabbatical in 2023. In part I have to do all the photos anyway, and in part it is a thing of joy to look at those photos and to try to remember what we did over those three or more weeks. We left St Georges with a number of other pilgrims in a sherut organized by the College. I was already feeling the effects of our food stall meal the night before, Bonnie started at the airport. It meant we were careful about what we ate and kept an eye for toilets.  We flew through Warsaw on Polish Airlines, a Star Alliance member. That meant we had access to lounges, and I would earn enough points to keep gold status for another year.  It was a long day travailing and we were pleased to arrive in Oslo to be met by our friend and host, Kenneth. Kenneth was an exchange student who came to stay with us after his first hosts proved to be  very inappropriate. It was so good to see him again and to see him in his house. He ...
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Celebrating a Constitution on Matariki!

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On Sunday I was asked to take the service and preach at St Peters Anglican Church at Mount Maunganui. For our church here in Aotearoa-New Zealand it was Te Pouhere Sunday, where we celebrate our church constitution. And it is Matariki - the  Māori  New Year. Here are the notes from my sermon where I try to hold them together to see how Matariki might help us celebrate who God calls us to be in this land at this time. Celebrating a Constitution on Matariki!   Mount Maunganui – Te Pouhere Sunday 2025 Readings : Hebrew Scripture:        Isa 42:10-20    Epistle:                        2 Corinthians 5:14-19 Gospel:                       Luke 6:46-49   What I want to say: Have a conversation about Te Pouhere and why we might celebrate it reflect on Matariki and what that might invite...
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