about nic
Laboratory theologian, shepherd of some songs, watcher of vegetables, dad and honorary girl, multi-instrumentalist (shut that bloody bazouki off). Never short of ideas, always in search of silence. Music on 24/7, thats probably why.
Lately though broken into new territory – Imagemaking. So add to that VJing, DJing and Liturgy curation.
Jan said
Hi Nic,
Apropos my latest book about Stradivari violins, see:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/28/science/20061129_VIOLIN_GRAPHIC.html?th&emc=th
Thanks for your blog.
Jan
Uri Brito said
Hey Nic, I look forward visiting your page again.
Junaid Bedford said
Hi everybody, this is the first time that I shall be commenting on this blog. I am a Muslim and I want to learn more about other religions and philosophies because as one increases in knowledge it’s as though one rises higher up a mountain enabling one to see a wider and greater view of reality. Thank you for all your contributions and for taking the time to arrive at better understandings.
I believe in a God of Mercy, of Compassion. I would like to share an Islamic view as regards God Himself. I don’t know yet of other religious views on God as I have not yet put any serious effort in to learn about other faiths, but it is certainly my intention to do so in the not too distant future. I am just very busy at work and with studying at the moment for University.
The first verse of the Qur’an describes God as the Most Merciful of those Who show Mercy. (Qur’an – 1:1)
The Prophet Muhammad (s) then further explained this by saying that God has one hundred parts of Mercy and has kept its ninety nine parts with Him and sent down one part to Earth, and because of that, its one single part on Earth, His creations are merciful to one another, so that even the mare lifts up its hoofs away from its baby animal, lest it should trample upon it. (Sahih Bukhari, Volume 8, Book 73)
I believe that it’s within this context that we should hope to journey to that life which is beyond the grave.
jen newman said
he is able to abundantly more than we can imagine.
jen newman said
if i could speak properly i would say.
he is able to DO abundantly more than we can imagine.
nic paton said
Hi Jen
Welcome – you found my blog – how did that come about?
I agree, he is able to do more than we imagine… what prompted you to say that?
Nic
John W. Morehead said
Nic, I thought I’d pass along my response to your recent comment on one of my past blog posts on Burning Man, the Temple, and Memorial Day:
Nic, thanks for this comment, and the many others you have posted in response to my reflections on Burning Man. I’m hopeful that others connected with Afrika Burns found value in my thoughts.
This particular topic is near and dear to me. As to what a specific example might be, I would love to see a daring church community find a space where they can receive permission from a city to engage in a burn periodically through the year. Some kind of transitory temple-like structures could be created on the space where people could write poems and words of grief that would be interactive and ritualistic, as well as serve as a place for grief and meditation. This structure would then be burned, perhaps on a semi-annual basis, and serve the function that it does on Burning Man. I believe this would be very powerful and would serve to connect an ekklesia community to aspects of the broader culture.
Beyond this you will note at the bottom of my post on this topic that I have linked this post to another one I did more recently when I addressed the Dumb Supper and Mourning Tee at the Festival of the Dead in Salem. What about ekklesia communities recontextualizing their own Festival of the Dead and including such elements? Again, I think these would be very powerful. I hope to be able to experiment with such things with others who think outside the box in the near future.
Nic Shepherd said
my name is nic shepherd, i was looking up my name on google and found this lol
Nic Paton said
Hi Nic
Thanks for stopping by.
Besides having the same first name and both being shepherds, what else do you think we may have in common?
Randy Pierce said
Love your site! Let me know if you are ever in Boston!
Randy
Stephen Carpenter said
Nic
I came across your blog by chance.Do you remember Mary Ann and me-from Joweto /Vlakfontein days-we remember your wedding well. Glad you and Ann are still in SA-I heard you had gone to London.You seem to be doing fascinating things
We live in the Valley of a Thousand Hills -still doing much the same thing-just older and with 3 teenagers…
Mary Ann’s Mom lives in Cape Town -would like to meet up sometime
Love
Stephen & Mary Ann Carpenter
Mike Atkins said
Hi Nic,
Not sure if you remember me from Glenridge days (early morning home group at the Lawtons), but I am looking for lyrics and (if possible) MP3s of any of the Friends First material.
First prize: MP3 of “Lament” from “We see a New Africa”
Second prize: lyrics from “We see a new Africa”
I do have an LP of “We see a new Africa”, but not sure what the quality is.
I have sent email with this message to nicholaspaton@yahoo.co.uk (not sure if up-to-date).
Vanessa Harbin said
just wanted to thank you for writing so many thought-provoking entries on your blog. have immensely enjoyed your writings here (and elsewhere) on burning man, radical inclusiveness, the shamanic shadow, and more.
i think i first came across your writing through your burning man post on emergentvillage.com … i aspire to one day learn how to be as patient, understanding, and inclusive as you were in the comments section there.
keep asking such good questions and letting us peek in at your thoughts as you try to unravel the answers!!!
and just in case you’re curious (i always am when new people post on my blog), i’m writing from Asheville, North Carolina, U.S.A.
nic paton said
Vanessa – thank you for your words. It’s always reassuring to know that this journey resonates with others. I’ll catch up on your blog soon…
Randy said
Raised in the evangelical culture in the Southeastern US, and pretty sure that it has great stuff but awful theology sometimes, feeling innately universalist but having a christology a little too high to be a unitarian, imagine how I felt when I discovered Carlton Pearson. He’s my new preacher, though we’ve never met and I’ve never heard an entire sermon, and I’m a thousand miles from Tulsa, I’m just sure he’s the guy.
So when I googled his name to catch up on any publications, links etc (as I do about once a week) I found your site. Now I’m pretty sure you’re one of the guys too. What a great blog. Wonderful insights.
Funny, I’m close to Asheville, NC, too, like Vanessa. though I don’t know her.
Nic Paton said
Hello Randy
I am glad to be able to provide some food for your journey.
A few of us (in SA and the US) are discussing the very things your are talking about over at http://inclusivemergent.wordpress.com/
Jose Luis G. Soler said
Hi Nic,
nice blog,
I ‘m disseminating this interesting interview
http://www.futureprimitive.org/interviews/140
and I saw your post about Godfrey Reggio. I hope you like it. ; )
best wishes
JL
Jose Luis G. Soler said
By the way, as lab theologian…
do you know this web…?
I find it fascinatingly mind-opening:
http://www.organelle.org/
nic paton said
Thank you Jose – I really look forward to the Reggio interview.
pam said
Hi Nic
just browsing blog lightly – head full of interesting reflections fromGood Friday. Very social gospel emphasis in Marists (Catholic); Jeremy does interesting stuff – has a site called Yukon – more of a ’spirituality focus’, but inclusive and emergent on some levels…. miss Prashant enormously…. his space was a rare treasure …. say a good solid prayer for the sanctity of his awesome library… hope to have time to read more of your stuff these hols…. Easter blessings to you all
Nic Paton said
Hi P
Just to say, Prashant is a great loss. My prayer is that you would be able to be part of holding, keeping open, and filling, his space.
Faith Hooper McDonnell said
Hi Nic:
I stumbled onto your blog tonight when I was trying to find Friends First music and/or videos on You Tube. How are you? It’s been a long, long time.
(24 years or thereabouts?) Hope you are well.
My life has been more or less immersed in East Africa for the past thirteen years, mostly Sudan. Over the years I’ve gotten to know Sudanese bishops and priests, Lost Boys, refugees, SPLA commanders, Nubas and Nubians, Darfurians and Beja, Government of South Sudan leaders, even count the late, great Dr. John Garang among my friends.
Also Northern Uganda advocacy. Wrote a book in 2006 about the evidence of God’s faithfulness to Uganda in spite of Kony and his evil, Idi Amin, martyred archbishops and teenaged boys, etc.
Haven’t gotten to South Africa yet, but I finally made contact with Charlie Bester again a couple of years ago. Sporadic emailing.
My daughter Fiona (13) and I hope to go to Southern Sudan and northern Uganda in the summer of 2010.
Do you ever come to the States? I’ve been working in Washington, DC for 16 years now on religious freedom and other human rights, including trafficking.
Well, old friend, take care, and God bless.
Faith Hooper McDonnell
Nic Paton said
Hi Faith
Thank you so much for your story – it’s very interesting at first glance. There are many points I’d like to connect further on. Do you have a blog?
Jonathan said
Nic,
I don’t know if you thought I had stopped, but I posted a reply to what you said in the Circle of Inclusion post if you want to take a look.
Jürgen und Pia Erbach-Adams said
Hallo Nic and Ann – we are not sure if you remember us. In 1992 we spent aboout a year at the Kehila. It’s nice to see yuo again in that feature. So we hope you are fine and everything is ok.
With us everything is fine. We have got two daughters (Elisa Dineo, 16 year and Aenne-Charlotta, 13 year) and a boy, Noah (10 year). So you can imagine that our live is very busy.
Its a pitty that we haven’t got any connections to Joweto-people anymore. So maybe you can help us. Have you got addresses from Gloria Sithole, Kathy Laverty, Heloise Henning, John and Cynthia Muthiani or David and Ansie Venter?
It would be nice to here from you!
Lot of Love
Pia and Jürgen
Dom Hone said
Hi Nic,
Just popped bye to say howzit?
We missed you last night… I will endeavour to write a summary of last nights session if that’s okay and send to you for posting?
Are you up for a coffee or a walk sometime?
Blessings
Dom