Vaughan Roberts
@vaughanroberts
Writer and speaker; priest and canon emeritus, spouse, father and grandfather. Interested in sport, culture, religion and how organisations function.
Just finished Lamorna Ash's fascinating exploration of contemporary faith: "I believe I come closest to knowing something of God in my interactions with other people, the people I love, the strangers I meet. It's my church, in my city and I want to stay here, where heaven is right in reach."
I enjoyed Lucy Steeds' novel "The Artist" – a Fathers' Day present from my daughter and set near Avignon, a part of France that I know quite well.
The new programme for Worthing Theological Society has been published and I'm excited to be speaking on Hildegard of Bingen and leadership on 26th October. Full details here: www.worthingtheologicalsoc.org.uk/programme-20...
I read Ian McEwan’s “Atonement” in 2002/3 so it was interesting to revisit the story with the stage premier of Christopher Hampton’s play @CFT this week. A great production, well-acted but I did come away feeling Briony Tallis hadn’t really atoned for her actions & their consequences.
Great conference in Oxford yesterday: “Major Parish Churches - Place, People, Building”. Speakers included: Diane Evans (Historic England) Sir Robert Buckland (Third Estates Commissioner) Hilary Barber (MCN) Emily Gee & Anthony Ashley (CBC).
Great to visit All Hallows by the Tower yesterday for a meeting of the London & SE Group of the Major Churches Network. It was a privilege to hear Adrian Daffern share creative ideas on liturgy & to share some of my thoughts about organisational storytelling in churches. Thanks to everyone present.
Recently returned from southern France where there was a city car park, with several of these legally true statements publically displayed.
My recent review of "The Church Must Grow or Perish: Robert H Schuller and the Business of American Christianity" by Mark T Mulder & Gerardo Marti (Eerdmans, 2025) for the Journal of Contemporary Religion is now available here as an eprint: www.tandfonline.com/eprint/SIDKN...
My recent encounters with Van Gogh: (1) alongside Anselm Kieffer at the Kieffer – Van Gogh exhibition @royalacademyarts.bsky.social (2) and alongside John Lennon in the play "When Vincent Met John" at the Minerva Theatre. Both most enjoyable!
Excellent MODEM conference yesterday on "The Common Good in Organisations" with two fascinating keynote speakers Stephen Cherry (Dean of Chapel, King's College Cambridge) and Jo Berry CBE (founder of Building Bridges for Peace).
Great to have been at Sunderland Minister and Hexham Abbey this week for an excellent Major Churches Network conference. (📷 Sunderland's Bede Chapel windows by Thomas Denny and St Wilfred's Throne/Frith Stool at Hexham.)
It was fun on Monday afternoon exploring theological themes in the @nationalgalleryuk.bsky.social "Van Gogh: Poets & Lovers" exhibition with the @chicathedral.bsky.social Fellowship.
I'm looking forward to speaking at the Chichester Cathedral Fellowship on 22 Sept about the 'Van Gogh: Poets & Lovers' exhibition at the National Gallery earlier this year and some of the Christian themes in his work. More information here: www.chichestercathedral.org.uk/events/cathe...
Mark T Mulder and Gerardo Marti's exploration of Robert H Schuller's life and ministry has arrived for me to review. My recent review of Richard N Pitt's "Church Planters: Inside the World of Religion Entrepreneurs" is available here: www.tandfonline.com/eprint/F4NGP...
Wednesday evening and it was off to “Marie and Rosetta” at the #MinervaTheatre with Beverley Knight as Rosetta Tharpe and Ntombizodwa Ndlovu as Marie Knight. A tour de force on the stage plus lots of fascinating reflections on God, church and music.
Enormous fun to see #Oasis in #Cardiff on the second date of their #oasislive25 tour at the weekend. Lots of singing and lots of bucket hats!
Another highlight from #glastonbury was seeing Patchwork (aka #Pulp) on the Pyramid Stage with other ‘common people’!
John Fogerty’s Bad Moon Rising over @glastonbury.bsky.social on Saturday evening 🌒
Enormous fun today seeing the bands Wet Leg & @franzferdinandhq.bsky.social on the Other Stage @glastonbury.bsky.social
An encouraging regional meeting of the London & South East Major Churches Network at St Mary’s, Battle yesterday; followed by a fascinating, guided tour of Battle Abbey (built by William the Conqueror where King Harold was killed.)
An evening out at a local cinema to see “The Salt Path”. Fascinating story at so many levels …
With the forthcoming election of the next Pope, I'm pleased to have recently seen a documentary about the process😉
My review of Robert Beckford's "Decolonizing Contemporary Gospel Music Through Praxis" (Bloomsbury) for the Journal of Contemporary Religion available for download here: www.tandfonline.com/eprint/2PWVV...
My recent review of Richard N Pitt's book "Church Planters: Inside the World of Religion Entrepreneurs" (Oxford University Press) for the Journal of Contemporary Religion is now available to download here⬇️ www.tandfonline.com/eprint/F4NGP...
Great to give a short paper this week about embodied, theological themes in the National Gallery's recent Van Gogh exhibition at the Society for the Study of Theology conference.
My review of Kate Coleman's recent book on Church leadership entitled "Metamorph" is now available on the website for the MDOEM Hub for Management, Leadership and Ministry, here: www.modemuk.org/2025/04/08/b...
Interesting to hear my former training incumbent, Bishop Christopher Herbert, talking at the Worthing Theological Society yesterday evening about his experience discussing assisted dying in the House of Lords and where the debate has moved to now.
Moving production of Paula Hawkins’ novel “The Girl on the Train” at the Chichester Festival Theatre yesterday🎭
Great fun this week @chichesterft.bsky.social watching “Pride and Prejudice* (*sort of)” 🎭