War Cry 23 April 2022 by The Salvation Army UK and Ireland

Exercise app strengthens body and spirit

WAR CRY

23 April 2022 50p

Grace expectations Detective must work fast to solve murders in TV drama

‘My parents bought me as a baby’

What is The Salvation Army?

From the editor’s desk

The Salvation Army is a Christian church and registered charity seeking to share the good news of Jesus and nurture committed followers of him. We also serve people without discrimination, care for creation and seek justice and reconciliation. We offer practical support and services in more than 700 centres throughout the UK. Go to salvationarmy.org.uk/find-a-church to find your nearest centre.

CELEBRITIES are delving into the past to uncover their family histories on ITV. In DNA Journey the celebrities’ journeys of discovery are taking them around the UK and around the world. ‘I want to know where my roots come from,’ said Shaun Wallace of quiz show The Chase in the first episode of the series. It’s a sentiment that many people can identify with. But some who try to track down their family background discover that doing so is not straightforward. Jane Blasio was six years old when she learnt that she was adopted, but it was not until she was in her teens that she really began to ask questions about her own history. It took many more years before Jane found out that she had been bought on the ‘black market’ as a baby. In an interview in this week’s War Cry, Jane explains how this discovery initially devastated her and impacted her feelings towards the people who had brought her up. ‘They were willing to haphazardly buy me as a baby without knowing my medical background or family history,’ she tells us. ‘The reality of my childhood and the hatred I felt towards my parents hit me, like a tsunami.’ Jane describes how she went through wilderness years as she tried to piece together the facts relating to the clinic that sold her and her own biological family background. It was a painful and draining experience. However, Jane found a way to cope. ‘Piece by piece, God began to heal me,’ she says. ‘Today I believe that my identity is found in Jesus Christ.’ Jane is not alone in her experience. Sadly, many people encounter hurt and feel a loss of identity or value. There is nothing anyone can do about the circumstances in which they were born or any mistreatment they received when young and vulnerable. However, God is able to help and heal. ad the War C Whatever our personal history may be, with e re ry u’v God, nothing needs to hold us back from a better future.

What is the War Cry? The Salvation Army first published a newspaper called the War Cry in London in December 1879, and we have continued to appear every week since then. Our name refers to our battle for people’s hearts and souls as we promote the positive impact of the Christian faith and The Salvation Army’s fight for greater social justice.

WAR CRY Issue No 7573

When yo

Email: warcry@salvationarmy.org.uk The Salvation Army United Kingdom and Ireland Territory 101 Newington Causeway London SE1 6BN

CONTENTS

Tel: 0845 634 0101 Subscriptions: 01933 445445 (option 1, option 1) or email: subscriptions@satcol.org Founder: William Booth General: Brian Peddle Territorial Commander: Commissioner Anthony Cotterill Editor-in-Chief: Major Mal Davies

FEATURES

Good experience

Immersive events are gaining popularity 6

A stretch of faith

App combines fitness and spirituality

INFO

Bought as a baby

The story of a woman sold at birth

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Amazing Grace? TV detective aims to solve murders

Published weekly by The Salvation Army © The Salvation Army United Kingdom and Ireland Territory ISSN 0043-0226 The Salvation Army Trust is a registered charity. The charity number in England, Wales and Northern Ireland is 214779, in Scotland SC009359 and in the Republic of Ireland CHY6399. Printed by CKN Print, Northampton, on sustainably sourced paper

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Editor: Andrew Stone, Major Deputy Editor: Philip Halcrow Production Editor: Ivan Radford Assistant Editor: Sarah Olowofoyeku Staff Writer: Emily Bright Staff Writer: Claire Brine Editorial Assistant: Linda McTurk Graphic Designer: Rodney Kingston Graphic Designer: Mark Knight

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12 Team Talk 13 Keys of the Kingdom 14 Puzzles 15 War Cry Kitchen Front-page picture: ITV

Detectives Roy and Glenn must find out who is behind a spate of killings in Brighton

ITV

State of grace Viewers of crime series look for justice to be satisfied TV preview by Sarah Olowofoyeku

HE discovery of a pen drive on a commuter train gets a murder investigation on track in the first film in a new series of Grace, which is scheduled to be aired on ITV tomorrow (Sunday 24 April). Brighton-based Detective Superintendent Roy Grace (John Simm) and his partner Detective Sergeant Glenn Branson (Richie Campbell) are already investigating the death of a former schoolteacher when human remains are found in a crop field. Later, they are called to look into the case of a paralegal who did not show up for work. Then the station receives an anonymous call about what was found on the pen drive. Grace’s instinct tells him that all these incidents may be linked. The team must work fast to put the pieces of the puzzle together because, if the events are connected, it’s only a matter of time before another victim is murdered. The question of whether Grace and his

colleagues can solve the case will have viewers on the edge of their seats – just as the readers of Peter James’s books have enjoyed the plot twists and turns of the original stories on which the TV programme is based. The success of crime dramas seems to highlight people’s desire for justice. When they see that something bad has been done, they want to find out who has done it and for amends to be made. Peter James tells the War Cry that satisfying the need for justice when writing his novels is ‘very important, particularly in a world where people feel if they get burgled or something bad happens, they’re not going to get justice. I try hard to show how strongly Roy feels about justice.’ He adds: ‘I think also one of the things that fascinates us about crime is: what is the difference between us and someone that can perpetrate a big crime? Is there some difference or is there hardly anything at all?’

We are all capable of doing wrong

It can be said that it’s human nature to want justice when others have done wrong. But it can be harder to want it for ourselves. The truth is, we are all capable of doing the wrong thing. It may not be a criminal offence, but everyone has hurt others in one way or another. The good news, though, is that whatever we have done, we can find grace – the chance to be made right with God. While we may have to face earthly consequences and deal with the natural outcomes of our actions, we can still be forgiven and have hope for the future. God cares about justice too, but his love for humanity was so great, that he sent Jesus, ‘his one and only Son’, into the world, to take the punishment for all our wrongs, so that now ‘by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life’ (John 3:16 The Message). If we ask for his forgiveness, receive his grace and commit ourselves to turning away from doing wrong, we can find our lives changed. It’s a truth worth investigating.

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Priestly ‘inspiration’ for actor

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Former ‘Big Brother’ contestant Glyn Wise 4 • WAR CRY • 23 April 2022

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A FORMER Big Brother contestant announced on Instagram that he LA planned to become a priest, after he was M Y accepted to train for ordained ministry with the Church in Wales. Glyn Wise, who was a runner-up in the sixth series of the Channel 4 reality TV show, posted on the social media site that, while he had ‘enjoyed giving sermons and bringing the good word to people’ as a pastoral assistant at St Michael’s Church in Camden, he was looking forward to becoming ‘Father Glyn’ in two years’ time. ‘My life will be like a sketch show out of The Vicar of Dibley and Father Ted but I’m looking forward to it!’ he said, alongside a picture of him standing by a pulpit. According to a BBC article, Glyn attended Sunday school as a child and attended the Christian Union when he went to university. Commenting on his decision to become a priest, he said: ‘I’ve always helped out in church, done readings and done volunteer works, but I thought now is the time. Jesus Christ was 33 when he got crucified, and we’re the same age so let’s go for it.’

SONY PICTURES

MARK WAHLBERG has been speaking about his new film role as an agnostic boxer who converted to Christianity and became a priest. The film, Father Stu, is based on the true story of Stuart Long, whose life, says Mark, was ‘such an inspiration to so many people’. In an interview on American news programme Today, the actor said that he saw parallels between his life and Stuart’s. ‘God put lots of very specific people in his life for a very specific purpose and he did that for me as well… I want to share, especially with young people, that when I focused myself on faith, good things started to happen for me.’ The film portrays Stuart Long as having run-ins with the police before his conversion. But Mark said that such experiences later enabled Stuart to talk to prisoners in a way they understood, because ‘he was one of those guys’ and had turned his life around. He added: ‘God is always looking for flawed people that he can turn into polished gems that will go out and do his work and serve his greater good.’ Father Stu will be released in UK cinemas next month. Mark Wahlberg takes the role of an agnostic turned priest in ‘Father Stu’

SOME of CBBC’S content creators have designed a new multimedia, Bible-based resource platform for children. Raiseupfaith.com is designed to digitalise Sunday school sessions and has been produced in partnership with children’s ministry leaders, teachers and technology experts. It offers downloadable lessons, along with media clips, songs, prayers, crafts and games. Users can search activities by Bible passage, character or theme. Raiseupfaith.com hopes the resources will ‘equip and empower’ youth and children’s ministry leaders.

Grants support community projects A WOODWORKING charity, a 17th-century church clock and a charity supporting vulnerable families are among 51 beneficiaries in the UK and the Republic of Ireland of a share of £170,000 given by Christian grant charity Benefacts Trust. Handcrafted Projects in Durham, a Christian charity which offers training opportunities in woodwork, catering and crafts to vulnerable people, will receive £3,000. It will use the money to transform an old pub into a community hub offering housing support, debt advice services, a training kitchen and a workshop. St Andrew’s Church in Yetminster, Dorset, which supports a community of 1,200, will receive £1,800 to make urgent repairs to its clock. Dating back to the 17th century, it is one of the earliest pendulum clocks in the country. An organisation called Family Space, which works in partnership with the Cheltenham YMCA and four churches to support vulnerable and isolated families, will receive £750. The money will go towards IT equipment for use in administration, parent education and early years learning.

tWwxcxz Do you have a story to share? a warcry@salvationarmy.org.uk @TheWarCryUK

A Van Gogh immersive art experience which has been staged at venues across the UK

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Pandemic film wins award THE Salvation Army’s video production team has won a national award for one of its films. Adapting to Change – Vanessa’s Story looks at how The Salvation Army in east London adapted to the pandemic. It profiles Vanessa Nsilu, who has worked for the church and charity at its centre in Barking for more than 10 years. Video team manager Bridget O’Leary and creative director Neil MacInnes attended the Charity Film awards ceremony in London’s Leicester Square, where they picked up a bronze award for the film. Vanessa also joined them. Neil said: ‘The main thing is we are enabling other people to see these great stories. We are giving a voice to the people that we meet, and Vanessa is one of the heroes. ‘The Salvation Army is full of extraordinary individuals quietly getting on and changing people’s lives, day in, day out, and it is our job to gather some of these stories and share them.’ To view the film, visit salvationarmy.org.uk/news.

Neil, Vanessa and Bridget in Leicester Square

People are embracing immersive experiences Feature by Claire Brine

PECTATORS, don’t be shy – get stuck in! That’s the message being sent out by the venues and event organisers who are encouraging people to say goodbye to the humdrum of daily life and throw themselves into immersive experiences. According to London’s Time Out magazine, the capital city is playing host to more such events than ever. There are immersive art exhibitions and plays as well as afternoon teas, and even a multisensory attraction allowing visitors to experience the inside of a popcorn machine. One show proving particularly popular among film fans is Mamma Mia! The Party, in which visitors to the O2 are invited to dance like they’re in a taverna on Skopelos, the Greek island where the film was shot. Other parts of the UK are also getting stuck into immersive events. Last month, the Trafford Centre in Manchester opened the Chocolate Factory, encouraging families to indulge themselves in the Cupcake Room and Enchanted Forest. And, at the Glasgow Science Centre, the Newton Flight Academy is offering a full-motion flight simulator to would-be pilots who want to discover the thrill of flying. Emma Wood, a professor in experience and events marketing at Leeds Beckett University, suggested in Time Out why immersive experiences are so appealing. She said that audiences are ‘hungry’ for new experiences that are ‘active rather than passive’, adding: ‘We want to do more than watch; we want to be part of the story.’ Choosing to get in on the action rather than observe it from the sidelines can be exciting. And in some matters, such an approach can even be lifechanging. In the Bible, countless writers talk about a God who loves people and forgives their mistakes. We could just take their word for it. But one Bible writer invites us to experience God’s love for ourselves when he says: ‘Taste and see that the Lord is good’ (Psalm 34:8 New International Version). If we spend time talking to God and put our trust in him, we will find ourselves immersed in a love that permeates every aspect of our lives.

We want to be part of the story

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APPY DAYS BEN BLUEMEL, a pastor who has created new content for a worship-based app, explains how exercising can help people to connect with God Interview by Emily Bright

HE purpose of an app that has attracted £30 million of investment – including donations from celebrity backers such as Michael Bublé – may come as a surprise. Glorify is a Christian app that seeks to help people who are living fast-paced lives to slow down and connect with God through worship and scriptural meditation. Established in 2020, it offers free video-based content, such as daily worship, alongside more specialised content for subscribers, covering topics such as insomnia and grief. Its latest venture is a new body category, helping people to explore how they can use their physiology to worship God. Spearheading the category’s content are Natalie Braithwaite, a wellbeing expert, and Ben Bluemel, a pastor and writer based in Jersey. While Natalie focuses on choreographing the stretches and movement, Ben explores the biblical basis for the physical body being part of worship. Ben explains: ‘The key part of the body concept is nine video-based tools, and that’s guided through by Natalie. There are breathing exercises, stretch work and mindfulness. There’s also a video where Natalie and I have a conversation about the theology behind it and why we’re doing it. While there’s a lot of mindfulness and meditation in society based on eastern spirituality, it’s important to remember that Christians have practised mindfulness rooted in Scripture for centuries.’ As he has taken time to meditate on the Bible Ben Bluemel

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Wellbeing expert Natalie Braithwaite demonstrates stretches on the Glorify app

while creating content for the Glorify app, Ben has seen the Bible in a new light. ‘I love to wrestle with ideas and new concepts, and to learn what it means to go deeper in faith,’ he says. ‘Studying what the Bible says about the physical body has opened my eyes to areas in my own relationship with God. One of the beautiful things about the Christian faith is that the body is honoured throughout Scripture.’ He cites a Bible verse featured on one app entry, Romans 12:1, where the apostle Paul encourages followers of Jesus to ‘offer their bodies as living sacrifices’, a way of saying that they should devote themselves fully to serving God. ‘In that Scripture, the Greek word that Paul uses for body is purposefully a word that means the physical body. So he’s saying: “Offer all of yourself, including your physicality to God, as a living sacrifice, in a spiritual act of worship.”’ He adds: ‘Christians often relate to the spiritual and emotional side of things

and sometimes our physical body gets left out. Yet we often use our bodies subconsciously in worship, whether that’s holding our hands together or kneeling when we pray or lifting our hands up during worship.’ Ben understands that the thought of adding an app-guided devotional time to an already-busy day may seem to promise extra stress rather than less. But he believes one of the reasons for the app’s popularity is that it can be easily integrated into hectic lives. ‘This app is meant to be another tool that people will find easy, accessible but also productive in leading them into a deeper relationship with God,’ he says. ‘They might use our videos first thing in the morning ahead of a stressful day, or perhaps last thing at night if they want to wind down and find space to be with God.’ He emphasises that the app is designed to appeal to all: old and young, experienced Christians and those exploring faith for the first time. ‘These are things that anybody can do,

People are living busy and stressful lives

wherever they are in their faith journey and whatever age they are – whether it’s learning to regulate your breath, understanding the power of stretching or trying to find peace and slow down your mind when it’s running at a thousand miles an hour.’ Despite the relentless pace of modern life, people are becoming more receptive to the idea of exploring Christianity, says Ben. ‘People are living busy and stressful lives. Yet in the midst of all that, there seems to be a growing acknowledgment that faith has more of a part to play in our society than it has been given credit for in recent years. ‘Finding faith requires opening up your heart and asking the tough questions. If the Christian message is true, it will stand up to tough questioning. If you seek God, you will find him. ‘People have got so many questions. They’re searching for purpose and hope. Jesus is the answer to every longing of the human condition, and the human soul. I hope that the app will share that good news.’

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SOLD JANE BLASIO tells the story of how her parents bought her as a baby, the wilderness years that followed and why she turned to God to find her true identity Interview by Claire Brine

‘B Jane in the 1960s

, Jane, with her older sister Michelle, who was also adopted illegally and their adoptive parents 8 • WAR CRY • 23 April 2022

EAR with me – it’s complicated,’ says Jane Blasio, from Ohio, whenever she is asked to share the story of her family life. As she begins to fill me in on her background, she explains: ‘From the 1940s through to the 1960s, there was a doctor in Georgia who sold babies – and I was one of those babies. My parents bought me from the Hicks Clinic, which was in a small town called McCaysville. When they drove up to the back door of the clinic, I was passed through the window. The car’s engine was still running.’ In her book Taken at Birth, published last year, Jane tells the story of her illegal adoption in 1965 and her quest to learn more about her birth parents. She also reflects on the life of Dr Hicks – a family man and beloved town physician who, behind closed doors, sold about 200 babies and aborted countless others. ‘I was six years old when I found out I was adopted,’ Jane tells me. ‘Kids at school would say to me: “You’re a black-market baby.” But at six years old, what did I know about that? My parents weren’t very forthcoming with information. My mother didn’t want to talk about it. ‘When I was 14, I got my hands on my birth certificate, and I saw that it said Hicks Clinic. I began to ask my family a few

AT BIRTH questions about it, and my father said: “We got you and your sister there.” He didn’t say much else. And when I went to the library to find out some more information about the place, there was nothing.’ Despite her parents’ silence on the subject, Jane persisted with her research into the Hicks Clinic. In 1988, when her mother died, her father finally agreed to answer some of her questions. ‘My mother and father really wanted a baby, but my mother couldn’t have one,’ she says. ‘So they thought about adoption. From what I understand, the authorities said they could adopt a three-year-old child, but my mother wanted a newborn baby. That’s when my great-aunt Alice stepped in, saying that she bought her baby from a clinic in McCaysville in Georgia, so perhaps my parents could too. ‘Dr Hicks had a list of potential adoptive parents, and when a baby became available, he would consult his list and call them up. If the parents couldn’t get there to collect their baby within a certain amount of time, he’d contact someone else. That’s what happened with me.’ Jane’s parents paid to adopt two babies from the Hicks Clinic – Michelle first, in 1960, then Jane, in 1965. The experiences of meeting their new

daughters for the very first time couldn’t have been more different. ‘With Michelle, a nurse took my mother off to a separate room, dressed her in a hospital gown, put her in bed and placed the baby in her arms, pretending she’d given birth. Then she brought my father in to see them both. ‘With me, I was handed out the back door. My father said that Dr Hicks passed me through the car window, took the cash, then went back inside. By this time, his clinic had been shut down and, legally, Dr Hicks was

no longer allowed to practise medicine. As far as I know, I’m the last baby that Dr Hicks sold. He died in 1972.’ Though Jane was glad to be told the truth about her adoption at last, the circumstances surrounding her birth felt devastating. She began making multiple trips to McCaysville, asking locals if they knew anything about the Hicks Clinic and

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I was passed through the car window

Jane Blasio

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From page 9 the adoptions that took place there. ‘But I’d always get this odd look,’ Jane recalls. ‘People would say to me: “Adoptions? Don’t you mean abortions?” No one seemed to know that the Hicks Clinic did adoptions. I began to wonder what was going on.’ For the next decade, Jane threw herself into investigating Dr Hicks and his clinic. She chatted with people who had known him, and they began to open up and share their stories. ‘Dr Hicks, it seemed, had two very different personas,’ says Jane. ‘The townsfolk either loved him or hated him. To some, he was the doctor who delivered their grandmother’s babies, helped their nephew through the flu and carried out home visits. But others said he was an absolute devil. He had his clinic, which he’d use for standard medical care. But then he’d also do late-term abortions and, if the baby remained alive, he’d sell it.’ There were several other ways in which Dr Hicks secured babies for selling, says Jane. ‘Some pregnant women went to him because they knew he would help them find a home for their baby after it was born. Others gave birth at the clinic, then Dr Hicks told them that their baby had died and sold it without them knowing.’ Through her investigations, Jane discovered that Dr Hicks had sold about 200 babies. However, she was still no closer to tracking down her birth family. She wondered if connecting with other Hicks babies would help her in her search. ‘I had come up with a ton of information about the Hicks Clinic, but nothing specific to me,’ she explains. ‘So in 1997 I went to a newspaper with the story. At first, the columnist on the phone thought I was crazy and hung up on me. But then she did some fact-checking, phoned me back and went ahead with the story. It went out on the AP wire on Mother’s Day – and that’s when the circus began. ‘I started to receive about 300 phone calls a day. It was crazy. Some women said that they were birth mothers who’d gone to Dr Hicks. Others claimed to be my birth mother. I’d also have people who had been friends of Dr Hicks, ringing me with information about him. ‘The media attention lasted for months, and I had to install a second landline to field all the calls. Hicks babies were coming forward, wanting to find out their birth information. There were also people coming forward with Hicks Clinic birth certificates, having no clue that they’d been adopted. I tried to support them, but it all became too much for me.’ Jane decided to take some time away from her investigations and cut herself off from friends and family. The Hicks

Sisters Jane and Michelle

revelations had proved exhausting. The anger she had felt for years towards her adoptive parents was pushing her to breaking point. ‘My mother had died when I was 23 and my father died a few years later,’ Jane says. ‘For a long time I had been angry with them, because I felt that they hadn’t loved me enough to secure my information. They were willing to haphazardly buy me as a baby without knowing my medical background or family history. They had told me that I was adopted, but then did nothing to ease my abandonment issues. As a result, I grew up struggling to trust people. But I never

I grew up struggling to trust people

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talked to anybody about how I felt. ‘When I was in my 30s and the Hicks babies story went public, it was as though the reality of my childhood and the hatred I felt towards my parents hit me, like a tsunami. Finally, I’d had enough. I walked away from everything – including my faith in God.’

s well as turning away from the Christianity that she had embraced when she was 21 years old, for the next 15 years, Jane avoided members of her adoptive family and threw her energy into her career. She landed her dream job in federal law enforcement, but it left her feeling empty.

‘I was in the wilderness,’ she says. ‘My life looked amazing on the outside, but on the inside, I was broken. I wasn’t facing up to my hatred or anger. I did whatever I wanted without any accountability. When my marriage came to an end, I had a succession of bad relationships. In the end, I got down on my knees and said: “OK God, I can’t take this any more. I’m making really bad decisions and it’s because I’m not giving any attention to you. Please will you bring me back home?” ‘It took a long time, but piece by piece, God began to heal me.’ In 2014, Jane rededicated her life to God and began attending church regularly. As her faith developed, she

found herself addressing some lifelong questions about identity. ‘I’d grown up not fitting in with the way my family looked,’ Jane says. ‘I thought: “Am I not good enough? Am I second best?” There was always the thought at the back of my mind that my own birth mother didn’t want me. ‘But today I believe that my identity is found in Jesus Christ. He is my Lord and my saviour. He provides everything I need. It took me years to understand that it doesn’t matter who I look like, in human terms, because I look like him.’ Safe in the knowledge that she was loved by a heavenly Father, Jane felt that the time was right to resume her search

Piece by piece, God began to heal me

for her birth family. This time, though, she had a different perspective. She says: ‘I remember praying to God, saying: “If finding my birth mother will cause me to stumble – or cause her to stumble – then I don’t need to meet her. I wanted to put the situation in God’s hands, and I didn’t want to push it. ‘In the end, I found out that my birth mother is still alive, but so far we haven’t had any contact. And that’s OK. I’ve always said that if the birth mothers want to remain private, I support that. ‘I also found some uncles – who have welcomed me with open arms – along with a bunch of cousins and several half-siblings. I became close to my halfbrother, but he died just a year and a half after we met. I’m very close with his daughter, though. As for my birth father, he passed away 10 years ago, so I never got to meet him.’ Although Jane will always have a number of unanswered questions about her past, she explains that her overriding feeling is one of gratitude. Because of God’s transforming love, she has been able to forgive her parents. And she has been able to forgive Dr Hicks. ‘I have no hatred towards him,’ she says. ‘I think the man was a mess, and many times I’ve felt angry and heartbroken by what he did. But God has shown me that Dr Hicks is no different from anyone else – salvation is for everyone. In that sense, he’s no different from me. ‘The most important thing about my story is that Jesus brings us all home if we accept him as our saviour. He is faithful even when we are not. No matter how good or bad our situation, Jesus gives us hope.’

l Taken at Birth is published by Revell

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Prayerlink THE War Cry invites readers to send in requests for prayer, including the first names of individuals and details of their circumstances, for publication. Send your Prayerlink requests to warcry@salvationarmy.org.uk or to War Cry, 101 Newington Causeway, London SE1 6BN. Mark your correspondence ‘Confidential’.

Becoming a Christian

There is no set formula to becoming a Christian, but many people have found saying this prayer to be a helpful first step to a relationship with God

Lord Jesus Christ, I am truly sorry for the things I have done wrong in my life. Please forgive me. I now turn from everything that I know is wrong. Thank you that you died on the cross for me so that I could be forgiven and set free. Thank you that you offer me forgiveness and the gift of your Holy Spirit.

talk ‘ ’ Team talk TEAM TALK Don’t judge a book by its cover Claire Brine gives her take on a story catching the attention of War Cry reporters

‘UNJUDGE someone.’ Those words on a poster caught my eye as I checked out some of the events that are being held across the UK by Human Library. On Facebook, one such event was advertising that human ‘books’ would be available and willing to answer visitors’ questions, in an attempt to create space for ‘curious and courageous dialogue’. The concept of a library of people intrigued me, so I turned to the Human Library website to learn more. ‘We host events where readers can borrow human beings serving as open books and have conversations they would not normally have access to,’ it explains. ‘Every human book from our bookshelf represents a group in our society that is often subjected to prejudice, stigmatisation or discrimination because of their lifestyle, diagnosis, belief, disability, social status, origin etc. Allowing room ethnic ‘The Human Library is a place where difficult questions are expected, appreciated and answered.’ for curiosity The more I read, the more I thought this was a brilliant is vital idea. I’m not the only one. Warwick University, which runs regular Human Library events, has previously invited people to chat with a number of human books that have appeared under the titles of police officer, Chinese, anxiety, gay and Christian. It describes the experience on its website as ‘a unique opportunity to put yourself in someone else’s shoes’. It points out that a great deal of learning can happen through personal conversation as opposed to just presentation or study. Whatever subject we want to know more about, I believe that allowing room for curiosity is vital. It’s good to keep an open mind and to ask questions when we don’t know or understand something. Without honest and respectful enquiry, we run the risk of jumping to conclusions, being misinformed and, consequently, behaving in ways that (unbeknown to us) are hurtful or unhelpful to others. In short, we set ourselves up for judging people – something the Bible urges Christians, like me, not to do. But when we engage in conversation with people whose experience of the world is different from our own, we learn that it’s possible to break down the barriers that separate us. We come to recognise that, whatever questions are asked, a show of compassion and understanding is always the answer.

Please come into my life by your Holy Spirit to be with me for ever. Thank you, Lord Jesus. Amen

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Looking for help?

Contact details of a Salvation Army minister Name Address Extract from Why Jesus? by Nicky Gumbel published by Alpha International, 2011. Used by kind permission of Alpha International

Or email your details and request to warcry@salvationarmy.org.uk 12 • WAR CRY • 23 April 2022

QUICK QUIZ 1

Which Latin American country, known for its shipping canal, links Colombia with Costa Rica? In which city was tennis player Andy Murray born?

Which pop group’s line-up consisted of Cheryl, Nadine, Sarah, Nicola and Kimberley?

Who wrote the epic poem Paradise Lost?

What does the Latin saying ‘carpe diem’ mean?

Anne Hathaway won an Oscar in 2013 for playing Fantine in which musical film?

ANSWERS

In this occasional series, Nigel Bovey unlocks the mystery of the Kingdom of Heaven, which Jesus speaks to his disciples about in Matthew’s Gospel

The undivided Kingdom T

WO kingdoms come to the fore in one chapter of Matthew’s Gospel as Jesus describes himself as ‘Lord of the Sabbath’ (Matthew 12:8 New International Version) and then refers to ‘the prince of demons’ (12:24). Together, the terms represent the heavenly and the demonic kingdoms, and Jesus addresses the spiritual superiority of the Kingdom of Heaven over the demonic world. In first-century Israel, it was commonly believed that illness and disability were caused by sin or demon possession. When Jesus heals a man who was blind, mute and demonpossessed, his actions divide opinion. The people at large think of the ‘Son of David’ – another term for the Messiah; some members of a religious group known as the Pharisees think of the ‘prince of demons’. The name that the Pharisees use for the prince of demons is Beelzebub, which in Hebrew literally means ‘lord of the fly’. Not only do flies transmit disease, but they also detect death, laying eggs in – and feasting on – corpses. ‘Beelzebub’ is a reminder that the Devil deals in death. According to the Pharisees, the only reason Jesus has power over demons is because he is in league with them. Jesus points out their lack of logic. In a possible reminder of Israel’s tragic history – when, in about 928BC, it had been divided in two – he says: ‘Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined’ (12:25). If he were in league with the prince of demons, he argues, how could Beelzebub’s kingdom be stronger by wiping out his own forces? Jesus then points out another loophole: ‘By whom do your people drive them [demons] out?’ (12:27). In other words, the Pharisees already recognise a power that is stronger than the Devil’s and see the effects of calling upon that power. However, Jesus concludes, if he is empowered by the Holy Spirit ‘then the Kingdom of God has come upon you’ (12:28). Such divine power has the capacity to set every captive free.

Jesus points out their lack of logic

23 April 2022 • WAR CRY • 13

1. Panama. 2. Glasgow. 3. Girls Aloud. 4. John Milton. 5. ‘Seize the day’. 6. Les Misérables.

PUZZLES Quick CROSSWORD ACROSS 1. Null and void (7) 5. Lawful (5) 7. Concerned (7) 8. Ecstasy (5) 10. Metal spike (4) 11. Resent (8) 13. Sufficient (6) 14. Declared (6) 17. Military stronghold (8) 19. Region (4) 21. Tenure (5) 22. Obvious (7) 23. Unknot (5) 24. Table support (7) DOWN 2. Dizziness (7) 3. Put down (4) 4. Evaded (6) 5. Free (8) 6. Association (5) 7. Marvellous (9) 9. Unwavering (9) 12. Treat unfairly (8) 15. Rush of water (7)

SUDOKU Fill the grid so that every column, every row and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 to 9

8 3 5 7 3 8

16. View (6) 18. Respond (5) 20. Spouse (4)

7 9 2 4 1 6 5 5 4 6 4 5 1 8 8 6 2 4 3 9 2 5 7

WORDSEARCH

6 2 1 9 8 3 5 4 4 7 9 6 2 5 8 3 Look up, down, forwards, 3 5 backwards 8 1 4and7diagonally 9 2 on the grid to find these orchestral instruments 8 9 4 7 1 6 3 5 1 F 5I V8 P 3 4 Z6 P D F J R J C7V S W X2N S F F V Z U I W2G G I L G E W V J D 6 3 4 5 9 1 E7 BM I Y P E P G N V V B H E A UWZ 8 I 6C W2 T 9C Y4H Y 7 E1 B M A R I M B5A O N M A M S K P1Z O O D U N G O Z B 4 7 3 6 8 2 Z9 E H H Z MM I L S L B X L R K T N C 3 A2X O5 P 7H O1N E 6 O8 J Q R H I X I9Q S

M O HONEYC B Each solution starts on the coloured cell and reads clockwise round the number 1. Type of walking frame 2. Long narrow strip of fabric 3. A human being 4. Picture puzzle 5. Heart condition 6. Brief period of time

XWC T E N I T X ZK J GN QOY S F Z F XH L L P X L ZG F HOUS L HQNV PN RSR T I QH GWH EWO E Z Z L KSRB I DWP CMQ YMU S S A B

ANSWERS 6 4 3 8 7 2 5 1 9

2 7 5 9 1 6 8 4 3

1 9 8 4 5 3 6 7 2

9 6 1 7 8 4 2 3 5

8 2 4 1 3 5 9 6 7

3 5 7 6 2 9 4 8 1

5 8 9 3 4 1 7 2 6

4 3 2 5 6 7 1 9 8

7 1 6 2 9 8 3 5 4

2 5 7 9 8 6 2

HONEYCOMB 1. Zimmer. 2. Ribbon. 3. Person. 4. Jigsaw. 5. Angina. 6. Moment. QUICK CROSSWORD ACROSS: 1. Invalid. 5. Legal. 7. Worried. 8. Bliss. 10. Nail. 11. Begrudge. 13. Enough. 14. Stated. 17. Fortress. 19. Area. 21. Lease. 22. Evident. 23. Untie. 24. Trestle. DOWN: 2. Vertigo. 3. Laid. 4. Dodged. 5. Liberate. 6. Guild. 7. Wonderful. 9. Steadfast.12. Aggrieve. 15. Torrent. 16. Aspect. 18. React. 20. Wife.

14 • WAR CRY • 23 April 2022

BASSOON CELLO CLARINET DOUBLE BASS FLUTE FRENCH HORN

R K R N P U Q O N P E

A B E R Z Q R Z N N L

L C L E LWL NV KMQ Z Z L E O Y NCHHORN BM N ZWY F X UMT TQQS X L POK H E T E PMU R T SML R TQA T P NB SQR FQGE J T GW F Z R V A EOKGT COUB BUOD J C F F U

GLOCKENSPIEL HARP MARIMBA OBOE SAXOPHONE TIMPANI

TROMBONE TRUMPET TUBA VIOLA VIOLIN XYLOPHONE

7 1 6 2 9 8 3 5 4

Vegetable and chickpea tagine Ingredients 1 large courgette 2 medium carrots 1 medium aubergine 1tbsp oil 2 garlic cloves, crushed ¼ tsp ground cumin ¼ tsp ground ginger ½ tsp chilli powder 100ml vegetable stock 400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

Method Cut the courgette, carrots and aubergine into bite-sized pieces. Heat the oil in a large non-stick pan and fry the garlic, cumin, ginger and chilli powder for 2 minutes, until the spices are fragrant. Add the mixed vegetables to the pan and fry for 2-3 minutes. Pour over the stock and stir in the chickpeas, apricots and tomatoes. Bring to the boil and simmer for 10-12 minutes, until the vegetables are just tender. Stir in the harissa paste and season with plenty of pepper. Serve, garnished with the coriander, on a bed of couscous.

100g dried apricots 400g can chopped tomatoes 1tsp harissa paste Freshly ground black pepper

SERVES

2tbsp fresh coriander, chopped, to garnish Couscous, to serve

Roasted chicory Ingredients

Method

6 chicory heads, halved

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/ Gas Mark 6.

2 garlic cloves, chopped

Place the chicory in a non-metallic roasting dish. Sprinkle over the garlic cloves and drizzle with the olive oil. Add the lemon zest and juice.

1tbsp olive oil 1 lemon, zest and juice 25g toasted pine nuts, to serve

Roast in the oven for 25-30 minutes, until tender and beginning to char. Scatter over the pine nuts and parsley and serve as a side dish.

Fresh parsley, chopped, to serve

SERVES

Recipes reprinted, with permission, from the Diabetes UK website diabetes.org.uk Recipes reprinted, with permission, from the Vegetarian Society website vegsoc.org

23 April 2022 • WAR CRY • 15

Blessed are those who have regard for the weak; the Lord delivers them in times of trouble Psalm 41:1 (New International Version)

WAR CRY