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Belle Tindall writes on "Seeking the answers to our deepest longings in a muddy field"

I’m about to head to Glastonbury Festival. Last year, I went expecting a party. This year, having been before, I’d liken it more to a pilgrimage.

I know, I know – that sounds a little silly. But hear me out: housed within the festival site are social justice campaigns, political activism, communal experiences, ritual, and ceremony. There’s a whole section of it called The Healing Fields, where every possible spiritual experience is open to you. Last year, I walked past seven hundred people singing ‘Shine Jesus Shine’ in the middle of a party field.

I’m not kidding.

This article is from the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity section on Connecting with Culture  (Photo credit: Anna Barclay on Glastonbury website)

Josh Hinton writes: War overseas is a spur to be peacemakers in our own nation.

‘You will hear of wars and rumours of wars’, Jesus told his disciples as he neared his crucifixion (Matthew 24:6). In the darkness before his return, humans would tear one another apart again and again. This week, our news feeds have brought us not just rumours but high-definition footage of war. Israel and Iran are bombing each other.
 
The speed with which media outlets now deploy the word ‘war’ is telling. Born in the mid-90s – the so-called ‘end of history’ – I grew up with softer terms: ‘conflict’, ‘crisis’, ‘targeted strikes’. War felt like a relic, distant and abstract. But it never truly left. It has always lived in the human heart. We were merely insulated – by borders, privilege, and language.

This article is from the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity section on Connecting with Culture