Joseph Nolan

Last Child Dancing, John’s Gospel and the Rugby

josephnolan13 — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 22:28:33 +0000

It seems like an age since I last sat down to write a post from scratch. I have several ideas for a series on the Gospels, more specifically the Gospel of John, that I will put together in the summer term (April-June) when I have no lectures, and will need the odd break from revision (let’s pray the optimistic attitude continues!).

Last night I had the joy of hosting two friends, Jonny and Tim Vaine, during their visit to the lovely Exeter. Their band—Last Child Dancing—were down to play a two-hour set at the Bike-shed Theatre in town. They didn’t disappoint!

I always wonder whether I am biased when it comes to my friends talent’s, after all you want to be supportive of the ones you love. However, in this case I must admit that there is no bias involved. LCD are a band that all can appreciate. They create a unique sound, combining hip-hop, folk and rock, unlike any I have ever heard. (Go to http://lastchilddancing.co.uk/music/ and check out previews of their tunes, then buy on purchase on itunes). Anyway, enough advertising (of the unpaid variety). The two hours seemed to fly by. The “shed” was definitely rocked out!

After recovering from a late night, the boys headed back to Winchester and left me to get on with some work. I am currently in the process of writing an essay on the portrait that John gives us of Jesus in his Gospel, writing an exegesis of Mark 1:1-8 (on the Greek text), whilst also preparing for an up and coming Greek translation exercise. Panic mode should have set in by now, unfortunately it hasn’t!

John’s Gospel is fascinating. It’s interesting to see, in contrast to the synoptic Gospels (Mark, Matthew and Luke), how John portrayed Jesus. He is the only author to put emphasis on Jesus being the divine logos (word), he puts massive emphasis (more so than any other Gospel writer) on Jesus being the son of God and there is even more importance stressed on Jesus being the fulfilment of Israel’s faith and history. Hopefully, if all goes to plan, I will be able to share my findings in a couple of months time.

And finally. What would a post from me be without some criticism of England’s performance on the rugby field? To be fair to them, I wasn’t appalled (like usual) with their showing against Wales this afternoon. They are a relatively young and inexperienced side who, in my opinion, put up a great fight against a Wales side who could and probably should win the campaign, if not the grand-slam.

Owen Farrell put in a good performance, he is definitely one to watch for the future, as well as Wales’ skipper Sam Warburton. I hate to admit it, but for a man who shares his name with a bread making company, he certainly is turning out to be one of the world’s best back rowers.

So, thus (did I really just say thus?!) concludes a somewhat interesting (well, for me at least) 24 hours! Until next time…

Israel’s Origins in the Land of Canaan

josephnolan13 — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:27:16 +0000

The book of Joshua sets out to describe to the reader how Israel entered and took possession of Canaan.¹ After the initial crossing of the Jordan and destruction of Jericho, the narrative presents us with the image of three quick campaigns (Chapter 7-9, 10 and 11), with a complete conquering of Canaan by 11:16-23.² This, however, has caused some significant difficulties because the biblical account itself (Judges 1), alongside archaeological evidence, seems to provide us with a different picture of events. This has resulted in several different models being proposed to explain the origin of Israel in Canaan.³ Three such models are the nomadic infiltration (Immigration model), the conquest model and the peasants revolt model.⁴

The Nomadic Infiltration Model

Having its roots in German scholarship, with Albrecht Alt and Martin Noth leading the field, this model of the conquest is very different from that of a simplistic reading of Joshua. Alt noticed that the geography of the area was very significant in the region. He noticed that the main cities were in the plains, with the highlands being thinly populated.⁵ He believed that the Israelites were “land-hungry nomads”⁶ who first inhabited the highlands before gradually extending into the plains.⁷ This view is backed up by Judges 1, which says that the Canaanites were not driven out from many of the lowland cities. Alt and Noth both agreed that the Israelites came from outside the land.⁸

2. The Conquest Model

The conquest model seeks to harmonise archaeological evidence to the biblical account. This particular model was led by William Foxwell Albright. He believed the biblical account to be mostly accurate but there was no means of testing it,⁹ and that archaeological evidence should confirm it. The way it is done is by finding tells—flat topped mounds that were once ancient cities that were destroyed—and digging down through the various layers to see what lay among the debris. ¹⁰A good reflection of Albright’s thought is found in John Bright’s History of Israel. ¹¹

3. The Peasants Revolt Model

First proposed by George E. Mendenhall (a student of Albright) in 1962, this model was prompted by a dissatisfaction with the biblical account. It draws a lot of its methodology and conclusions from the Amarna letters. The letters were found in Egypt in 1888 and consist of clay tablets, written in Akkadian, addressed to several Egyptian Pharaohs during the 14^th century B.C.E.¹² This model disconnects from the idea that Israel took the land by violent conquest. This does not mean that violence was not used at all, as the Nomadic model would suggest, but instead it is worked out in the form of a revolt against the leading powers of the time.¹³

When exploring these different models we soon encounter problems concerning dating of the events and what actually took place. In History of Israel, John Bright presents a case for a 13^th century date for the exodus. This is a later date than that which 1 Kings 6:1 presents. The text reads, “In the four hundred and eightieth year after the people of Israel came out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, which is the second month, he began to build the house of the LORD.”¹⁴ This would place the date of the exodus in the 15^th century, which would indicate that the Exodus took place in the Amarna period.¹⁵ Bright, however, suggests that 40 years is a “well known round number, often for a generation” in the bible. If this was the case, the 480 years to the 4^th year of Solomon’s reign would indicate 12 generations. Presuming an average of 25 years from the birth of a father to the birth of a son, this would give us 300 years rather than the 480 proposed in 1 Kings.¹⁶ This method works intimately with archaeological findings and draws its conclusions from there. This was initially done in an attempt to harmonise the two. This backfired somewhat though. Collins says “there was indeed extensive upheaval in Canaan in the late bronze age (13^th and 12^th centuries)…But the archaeological evidence does not match the biblical account…”¹⁷ Joshua claims that after crossing the Jordan, Israel attacked Jericho and then Ai.¹⁸ These two major cities present us with some difficulty. Destruction in the area has been looked for and Jericho has been found to be unoccupied in the Late Bronze Period (1550-1200 B.C.E). Bright says that very little is known of Late-Bronze Jericho. There was a town there but not much evidence survives. No evidence of an Israelite invasion was found.¹⁹ Recent attempts to solve this problem have sparked a big debate. B.G Wood claims to find the ruins of toppled walls, which he dates to around 1400 B.C.E. If this is true, it correlates wonderfully with the biblical account.²⁰ Ai also poses problems as it would seem that it was destroyed in the middle of the 3^rd millennium and was not occupied again until after the Israelite conquest. This has led scholars to question the location of this particular attack, some equating it with the evidence found at Bethel.²¹ In spite of these problems, there have been positive findings at the site of Hazor, which is another city Joshua is said to have attacked.²²

The revolt model goes on the basis that the biblical events and the Amarna materials are speaking of the same political process.²³ The Amarna letters were “addressed to the the Pharaohs Amenophis III, Amenophis IV and Akhenhaten”. This was in the 14^th century B.C.E. Akhenhaten had taken the nation of Egypt on a wild ride where he embraced a monotheistic religion, worshipping the sun-god Aten, and stopped paying attention to Egyptian dealings in Canaan. ²⁴ Mendenhall suggests that in these circumstances, what really took place was not a mass violent conquest but a revolt against the network of interlocking Canaanite city-states. This involved, not mass frontier movement, but internal revolt against political leaders. He believes that the Hebrew conquest happened because “a religious movement and motivation created a solidarity among a large group of pre-existant social units…”²⁵ Therefore, what held Israel together was not ethnic unity but instead religious commonality.²⁶ The Amarna letters repeatedly speak of rebel groups ‘Apiru’ causing trouble and challenging Egyptian rule. This name is also used in other writing.²⁷ John J. Collins says, “It is not an ethnic term, but refers to people who were, in one way or other, on the margins of society, sometimes as mercenaries, sometimes as slaves, and sometimes just as troublemakers.”²⁸ Many scholars have jumped on the fact that the Apiru could in fact be Hebrews. However, the linguistics do not leave us with any definitive answers. In the bible, cuneiform and Egyptian sources, they do have similar social roles.²⁹ We know they were slaves, abused peasants and ill paid mercenaries.³⁰ Bright provides us with a good argument that the Israelites were in fact slaves in Egypt, who through miraculous circumstances, escaped.³¹ This is the model that the archaeological evidence backs the most, although it completely ignores the biblical narrative.³² Whether it is right to do this or not shall be discussed later.

The Nomadic infiltration model works on the principle that Israel were “nomadic breeders of small cattle” who came from the deserts and settled into the highlands of Canaan. They took more and more land as the opportunities arose. This was always by peaceful action rather than violent means.³³ For this reason, Noth did not want to assign destruction of cities at the time to Israel. This was because the Archaeological evidence “cannot be ascertained accurately”. Any possible hostility between Israelites and Canaanites is understood, as that between farmers and nomads³⁴

Conclusions

Initially, I set out to see if we could draw any conclusions from these models. One immediate conclusion that I have come to, is that Israel was a real people group (as attested to by the Merneptah Stele) and that they were once in Egypt. Bright says, “Although there is no direct records to Israel’s presence in Egypt, the Biblical tradition a priori demands belief: it is not the sort of tradition any people would invent…A number of factors lend objective support. Egyptian names are prevalent in early Israel, especially in the tribe of Levi, certainly argue for a connection with Egypt. Among these are those of Moses himself, Hophni, Phinehas, Merari, and possibly Aaron and others.” There was certainly Apiru in Egypt, as attested to by various texts from the 15^th century. They were state slaves.³⁵ Despite this, it is very difficult to conclusively say that the Apiru and Israelites are the same people. I must add that this conclusion relies heavily on the assumption that the biblical narrative is indeed important to this entire discussion, something biblical minimalists would not agree with. They would say that “the way forward in the study of early Israel must lie mainly with archaeology and not with the biblical text…”³⁶ On this matter, Provan and Longman III believe that the commonly cited reasons for discounting the bible (late datings, theological slant and archaeological disproof) are not convincing. They believe that theological slant needs to be understood and allowance should be made for it. After all, all historical writings need to be freed from our bias.³⁷ Archaeological evidence also falls victim to bias. Like ancient texts, a careful reading of the material finds need to be read and interpreted carefully also.³⁸

Each model seems to have areas of strength juxtaposed with areas of weakness. The Conquest model is ironically strengthened and at the same time weakened by destruction found at cities. Cities found without pig bones also add merit to this discussion as they fit in significantly with biblical dietary laws.³⁹

The peaceful infiltration model is strengthened by the fact that it believes Israel came from outside the land of Canaan. This is where it shares its main connection with the biblical account; it would seem to be accurate by Judges 1.⁴⁰ However, I do not think we should be so hasty in denying any link between the destruction of cities and Israel.

I think the revolt model is the one that most satisfies the Archaeological evidence. However, this would only be because it discounts the biblical account. One area in which I believe it falls down, is where it claims that the Israelites took the land through internal measure. J. Alberto Soggin says, “Israel was always aware of not having originally been native to Palestine, but of having come from abroad. Of course this awareness is expressed in theological rather than historical and ethnic terms, but it is difficult to deny that it has a real basis.”⁴¹

John J. Collins believes that modern ideologies can have a big effect on the preferences of modern scholars.⁴² As we have seen, all three models make claims that would say that the other models are fallacious. Scholars debate endlessly that the model they follow is in fact correct, but as I have shown, all the models have areas of weakness.

As Dillard and Longman III conclude, “Today’s archaeology too often becomes tomorrow’s footnote about earlier mistaken efforts. One can only hope that further excavation will eventually put the question of date beyond reasonable doubt.”⁴³ Archaeology is not a science free from error⁴⁴ and no pure facts can be drawn; only interpreted facts.⁴⁵ For this reason, we need to free this field of studies of bias and continue our search for evidence that may shed increasing light on Israel’s origins in the land of Canaan.

Footnotes

1 Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. (Minneapolis 2004) p.185

2 Bright, John., A History of Israel. (London 1981) p.126-7

3 Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. p.186

4 Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. p.186-90

5 Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. p.186

6 Chaney, L. Marvin., ‘Ancient Palestinian Peasant Movements and the Formation of Premonarchic Israel’ in David Noel Freedman and David Frank Graf Ed. Palestine In Transition: The Emergence of Ancient Israel. (Sheffield 1983) pp.39-90 p.41

7 Soggin, J. Alberto., A History of Ancient Israel, (Philadelphia 1985). p.149-50

8 Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. p.186

9 Bright, John., A History of Israel. p.118

10 Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. p.187

11 Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. p.187, Bright, John., A History of Israel. (London 1981).

12 Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. p.189

13 Mendenhall, E. George., ‘The Hebrew Conquest of Palestine.’ The Biblical Archaeologist, September 1962 VOL XXV, pp.66-87. p.67

14 All Scripture quotations are taken from The Holy Bible., English Standard Version. (Crossway 2001)

15 Bright, John., A History of Israel. p.121

16 Bright, John., A History of Israel. p.121

17 Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. (Minneapolis 2004) p.187

18 Joshua Chapters 3-8.

19 Bright, John., A History of Israel. p.127-8

20 Dillard, B. Raymond., Longman III, Tremper., An Introduction to the Old Testament. (Apollos 1995) p.111 and Wood, B.G., “Did the Israelites conquer Jericho? A New look at the Archaeological Evidence,” Biblical Archaeology Review 16 (1990) pp.44-58 and Provan, Iain., Long., Philips. V., Longman III, Tremper., A Biblical History of Israel. (Louisville 2003) p.174

21 Bright, John., A History of Israel. p.128

22 Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. (Minneapolis 2004) p.186

23 Chaney., L. Marvin, ‘Ancient Palestinian Peasant Movements and the Formation of Premonarchic Israel’ p.48. Quoting Mendenhall 1970: p.170.

24 Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. (Minneapolis 2004) p.189

25 Mendenhall, E. George., ‘The Hebrew Conquest of Palestine.’ The Biblical Archaeologist, September 1962 VOL XXV, pp.66-87. p.73

26 Provan, Iain., Long., Philips. V., Longman III, Tremper., A Biblical History of Israel. (Louisville 2003) p.142

27 Mendenhall, E. George., ‘The Hebrew Conquest of Palestine.’ The Biblical Archaeologist, September 1962 VOL XXV, pp.66-87. p.71

28 Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. (Minneapolis 2004) p.189

29 Chaney, L. Marvin., ‘Ancient Palestinian Peasant Movements and the Formation of Premonarchic Israel’ in David Noel Freedman and David Frank Graf Ed. Palestine In Transition: The Emergence of Ancient Israel. (Sheffield 1983) pp.39-90 p.57

30 Bright, John., A History of Israel. p.135

31Bright, John., A History of Israel. p.120-21

32 Provan, Iain., Long., Philips. V., Longman III, Tremper., A Biblical History of Israel. (Louisville 2003) p.142-3

33 Noth, Martin., The History of Israel. Second edition. Translated by P.R Ackroyd from German. (New York 1960) p.69

34 Chaney, L. Marvin., ‘Ancient Palestinian Peasant Movements and the Formation of Premonarchic Israel’ in David Noel Freedman and David Frank Graf Ed. Palestine In Transition: The Emergence of Ancient Israel. (Sheffield 1983) pp.39-90 p.42

35 Bright, John., A History of Israel. p.119

36 Provan, Iain., Long., Philips. V., Longman III, Tremper., A Biblical History of Israel. (Louisville 2003) p.144-5

37 Provan, Iain., Long., Philips. V., Longman III, Tremper., A Biblical History of Israel. (Louisville 2003) p.146-7

38 Provan, Iain., Long., Philips. V., Longman III, Tremper., A Biblical History of Israel. (Louisville 2003) p.173

39 Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. (Minneapolis 2004) p.189

40 Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. (Minneapolis 2004) p.186

41 Soggin, J. Alberto., A History of Ancient Israel, (Philadelphia 1985). p.156 4.2.4.1

42 Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. (Minneapolis 2004) p.190

43 Dillard, B. Raymond., Longman III, Tremper., An Introduction to the Old Testament. (Apollos 1995) p.111

44 Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. (Minneapolis 2004) p.187

45 Soggin, J. Alberto., A History of Ancient Israel, (Philadelphia 1985). p.161 5.1.3

Bibliography

Bright, John., A History of Israel. (London 1981)
Chaney, L. Marvin., ‘Ancient Palestinian Peasant Movements and the Formation of Premonarchic Israel’ in David Noel Freedman and David Frank Graf Ed. Palestine In Transition: The Emergence of Ancient Israel. (Sheffield 1983) p.39-90

Collins, J. John., Introduction to the Hebrew Bible. (Minneapolis 2004)
Dillard, B. Raymond., Longman III, Tremper., An Introduction to the Old Testament. (Apollos 1995)

Mendenhall, E. George., ‘The Hebrew Conquest of Palestine.’ The Biblical Archaeologist, September 1962 VOL XXV, p.66-87
Noth, Martin., The History of Israel. Second edition. Translated by P.R Ackroyd from German. (New York 1960)
Provan, Iain., Long., Philips. V., Longman III, Tremper., A Biblical History of Israel. (Louisville 2003)

Soggin, J. Alberto., A History of Ancient Israel, (Philadelphia 1985).
The Holy Bible., English Standard Version. (Crossway 2001)
Wood, B.G., “Did the Israelites conquer Jericho? A New look at the Archaeological Evidence,” Biblical Archaeology Review 16 (1990) pp.44-58

Ignatius of Antioch

josephnolan13 — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 16:04:10 +0000

One of the joys of doing a theology degree is that the course content brings me into contact with texts that otherwise I would rarely, if ever encounter. One such text is Ignatius’ epistle to the Romans[1].

Ignatius of Antioch was one of the early church fathers . History tells us that he sat under the teaching of the apostle John. We can see how heavily John’s teachings impacted him by reading his epistle to the Romans.

At the time of writing Ignatius was in Smyrna, where he had been taken in by Polycarp. As well as the letter to Rome, he wrote letters to the churches in Ephesus, Magnesia and Tralles encouraging them to keep steadfast in the unity of faith and in unity with their bishop [2].

However, the letter to the believers in Rome served a different purpose. His purpose for writing to the Romans was to ask them not to interfere in his trial [2]. Ignatius was adamant that it was God’s will that he become a martyr. He saw this as a rejection of all things perishable in order to take hold of the true prize. He saw it as him gaining true life.

“This is the gain which is laid up for me. Pardon me, brethren:do not hinder me from living, do not wish to keep me in a state of death” [3]

Part of the reason he could have confidence like this was because he had a good understanding of who Jesus Christ was and what Christ had done for him. A reading of the text will quickly show you that his beliefs are the same as biblical truths we hold dear and in fact he even quotes what we know as NT scripture on several occasions.

He knew Jesus Christ as God (Introduction & Chapter III), the only-begotten son of God (Introduction), his saviour (Introduction), his goal (Chapter V & VI), the bringer of life (Chapter VI & VII), the bread of life (Chapter VII) and the shepherd of the church (Chapter IX).

This truth allowed him to stand firm until the end knowing that even though his earthly body would be ripped to shreds—and probably devoured—he would gain a much greater prize. He was confident that Christ, his prize, would bring him salvation.

I have found these writings somewhat inspiring. Ignatius obviously lived for a higher purpose in life. He was not occupied with the things of this world as I so often am. And although it is very unlikely that I am going to be thrown to wild beasts any time soon, I to want to live with this same zeal, love and passion for Jesus Christ.

I leave you with one more quote…

Let fire and the cross; let the crowds of wild beasts; let tearings, breakings, and dislocations of bones; let cutting off of members; let shatterings of the whole body; and let all the dreadfultorments of the devil come upon me: only let me attain to Jesus Christ. [4]

Sources:

[1] Ignatius, Epistle to the Romans (Longer & Shorter Versions). http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/anf01.v.v.html

[2] John Behr, Formation of Christian Theology vol 1. The way to Nicaea (Chapter 3- Ignatius of Antioch P.81).

[3] Ignatius, Epistle to the Romans (Chapter VI) http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/anf01.v.v.vi.html

[4] Ignatius, Epistle to the Romans (Chapter V) http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/anf01.v.v.v.html

Jesus and Peter by Pastor Mark Driscoll

josephnolan13 — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 14:28:50 +0000

http://marshill.com/v/eeohwys9x9g2

If you have a bit of spare time, why not check out this fantastic sermon. Mark looks at Peters denial and how even though Peter was faithless, Jesus was and is faithful.

Day 5 in Exeter

josephnolan13 — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 13:44:41 +0000

I woke feeling very refreshed this morning managing to rack up 9 1/2 hours sleep—I wouldn’t be surprised if I have slept more than any other student this week. The plan for today was to go print off some CV’s and then head into town and find myself some work. The reason I say “was” is because plans soon changed.

After waiting in the print shop queue for nearly half and hour, the power decided it no longer wanted to work! So I have no CV’s printed and no job. I shall try again tomorrow. On the plus side two of my text books arrived. This I am very excited about because I can finally get some reading done. Lectures kick off on Monday. I start with The faith of the fathers: God, Christ and salvation in the Early church and then in the afternoon/evening I have Elements of New Testament Greek.

One thing that has really caught my attention is how many societies there are. Societies are groups of people who take particular interest in a certain activity or sport. For example there is a theology society for people who either study theology or take a general interest in the subject. I have decided that I will join the theology society, Rugby league team and also Xmedia online (Writing for the University’s news site). You can check it out at http://xmedia.ex.ac.uk/. I will be having my first article published later on today. I am currently thinking of ways that I will be able to speak the truth of Christ in my writing for them—without getting kicked out the society!

This weekend is shaping up be a pretty busy one. The sign up for societies is on Sunday. I also look forward to being at Frontiers Church as well. I went to the morning service last week but didn’t make the evening one. This week I think I shall go in the evening.

Until next time.

Observations

josephnolan13 — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 20:20:24 +0000

The past few days have been mixture of fun, challenge, exhaustion and excitement for all that is to come. Student life is certainly like no other. Where else (apart from the church) would you be thrown together with such a diverse group of people. The beauty of it is that though diversity is high, everyone is in exactly the same position.

Here are some of my observations from my first few days of university.

It’s a good job that there are no lectures in freshers week.
The human liver is a remarkable thing!
Dorm rooms make brilliant night clubs (Club Omar wins hands down!)
Cooking on a low budget makes you eat some crazy things. One of my house mates had a cheese, ketchup and peanut butter toastie…apparently it was nice.
Losing your keys is not ideal.
You shouldn’t walk down dark alleys alone especially when afterwards you find out it’s nicknamed rape alley!
Traffic cones do not make good hats.
Apparently tactical chundering is the new favourite method for hangover prevention.
Societies that give away free food generally do better than those that don’t
There is a lot of hard work to come!

As you can probably tell I am having a great time. I am thankful for the experiences I am getting and the people I am meeting. Ultimately though I am thankful to God for his faithfulness to me. He has been leading me and guiding me in this time. I’m so thankful that he has brought me to Exeter and that I get to be a representative of him in this place. Please keep praying that we would see much fruit throughout these three years.

Until next time.

“I don’t want to, so I won’t!”

josephnolan13 — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 01:27:06 +0000

If footballers reputations were not already bad enough, Carlos Tevez has certainly raised the bar. Manchester City faced Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions league. They ended up going down 2-0 with Mario Gomez scoring twice.

However the talking point of the evening will be the behaviour of Carlos Tevez (He refused to come on when a substitution was scheduled). We all know that he hasn’t been happy for some time now but behaviour like this just isn’t acceptable. In any other job when you sign a contract it means you are bound to that contact. Footballers don’t seem to get this. They seem to sign these lavish contracts of upwards of £100,000 a week only to kick up a fuss when they decide they should be paid more money.

There is a lack of commitment. It goes deeper than football. Our culture just wreaks of it. We say we are going to commit to something then change our minds when it doesn’t suit us. We totally disregard how it will affect others. It seems we are becoming more and more selfish as the years go by.

Roberto Mancini the Manchester City manager commented after the game on Tevez’s behaviour. He said,

If I have my way he will be out of the club. He just refused to go on. I don’t know why. I cannot be happy with this situation. Would something like this happen at Bayern Munich, AC Milan or Manchester United? I am the manager. I decide everything. I have helped him every time for two years, he has wanted to leave but I still picked him. The thing is there were still 30 minutes until the end of the game. We could still change it. Carlos didn’t play at the start of the season because he has not had a pre-season for three years. He was not ready to play. If it was another player maybe this could happen but for a player to refuse to go on in an important game like this is not right.”

What’s the point in getting rid of him? That just gives him what he wants. If city just let him get away with behaviour like this, what’s to stop him and other players throwing a paddy when they don’t get their own way?

For a player to refuse to go on at all is an outrage, especially with the wages they get. It’s not exactly a hardship getting paid ridiculous amounts of money to run around kicking a ball. In any other job he would be under discipline. But what power do City have?

Mr Tevez, if you don’t enjoy the game then stop playing. I know hundreds of young men who would give their right leg to play professional football, if indeed you can call it professional.

It’s sad that the beautiful game is being ruined by children in the bodies of men. What lies ahead for the future of football? I guess we shall see.

Until next time.

It’s a small world

josephnolan13 — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 15:26:40 +0000

So get this. I turn up to my theology induction today and lo and behold there is a girl on my course who did FP Impact last year at the Bedford base! I love it! It’s such a small world when you are in Newfrontiers.

Today has been the longest day by far. We got introduced to all our lecturers, met our personal tutors and went on several campus tours. I am going to be a very busy man over the next few years. I have ten hours of lectures a week but on top of that we are expected to do four hours of personal study for every hour of lecture. CRAZY!

Tonight is the Christian union meeting so I think I am going to go and check that out. Exeter has a reputation for having an abnormally large CU. It will be nice to meet with some other Christians and seeing how they have found the transition to student life.

Until next time.

Last Child Dancing

josephnolan13 — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 12:42:27 +0000

Every now and then a great new band appear on the scene. These new bands bring fresh style, sweet lyrics and energy. Well, I think I may have found another one of these bands.

Last Child Dancing are a Plymouth/Winchester based band that combine folk and hip hop (folk/hop). They have managed to create a unique sound which should appeal to the majority of young music fans. Chris Moore (Lead vocalist & Rhythm guitar) busts out lyrics with ease, Jonny Vaine (Drummer) brings life and energy to the music, Gary Cuthbert (Bass & Backing vocals) brings bite with his bass lines and last but not least Tim Vaine (Electric guitar) knits it all together with his genius lead lines.

I have had the privilege of seeing them live on two occasions. They can really perform! But now as well as seeing them live you can also buy their debut five track album from itunes for £3.95 BARGAIN! Check it out and let me know what you think.

Until next time.

First things first

josephnolan13 — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 14:33:11 +0000

Whilst writing this I am sat in my (currently) very tidy room. My books are on my shelves, all bags and boxes are unpacked and neatly stored under my desk. I wonder how long it is going to stay like this?

Last night we all headed to the flat downstairs and hung out with the rest of the people in our block. There are so many different people from different backgrounds, that it is very difficult to remember everyone’s name. Those of you who are students or have been students will know all about the standard freshers questions. What’s your name? Where are you from? What are you studying? After the thirtieth time of repeating yourself it does get a bit irritating but I suppose it is the best way of getting to know people quickly.

After having a couple of drinks in the halls we went down to the student union bar/nightclub and danced to some classic club tunes. It was quite amusing that everyone was back to our block by midnight. After a day of travelling and unpacking energy levels were very low. We had a nice evening though except that one of the girls downstairs lost her keys. There’s always one!

This morning I was at Frontiers Church Exeter. We had a great time of worship and then Andy the lead pastor got up and spoke from Acts 1. God was really challenging me about being a risk taker, someone who steps outside the box. I look forward to joining with them again this evening.

Until next time.