Caleb Woodbridge's Blog, page 6

Can we trust the Bible? The danger of pick'n'mixianity, expanded

It's a debate that's been going on for a long time: can we really trust the Bible - every word? And if it contains any mistakes, can we believe any of it at all?

I've written a brief article discussing this over on Threads titled The Danger of Pick'n'mixianity but there's a lot more that could be said. It's not discussing the evidence for the Bible one way or another, but rather the implications of whether Christians believe it to be completely true, or believe it...

Can we be certain what the Bible means?

Sipech has written an interesting and thoughtful piece on Uncertainty over on his blog, The Alethiophile. Go and read it, then come back for my thoughts.
I largely agree with what he says. It's important to acknowledge what we can and can't be certain about, and to be humble about our own interpretations.
But I disagree that the limitations of our own understanding mean that we can't know or be certain about much of what the Bible says. As G K Chesterton said:

What we suffer from to-day is humil...

My movie review of 2013 - part 1

Aided and abetted by the use of my Cineworld Unlimited Card, I saw a lot of films at the cinema in 2013. Here's the first part of my round-up of what I thought of them.
Life of Pi
Based on Yann Martel's touching, clever philosophical parable, this film was visually stunning and the first of two this year that really justified their use of 3D.

The story of a boy who is shipwrecked and ends up in a lifeboat with a tiger for company, it presents two version of events, one unlikely and uplifting, on...

Merry Christmas 2013!

Nadolig Llawen pawb, as we say in Wales! Not that I'm in Wales right now... this is my first London Christmas, but the sentiment still stands. It's been quite a year for me and my wife moving from Cardiff to London, but God has really looked after us, and I'm thankful. London is a very exciting place to be, and I'm really enjoying my new job in publishing.

It's been sad to say goodbye to old friends in Cardiff (though it's not really goodbye, not with social media and semi-regular trips back,...

5 reasons why I find Nanowrimo helpful...

...plus one book recommendation on how to write.



It's that time of year again, and I've embarked on the 50,000 words in a month novel writing challenge, Nanowrimo. I'm returning to The Sword in the Spaceship, an idea I've had for a while of doing a King Arthur and time travel story (props to Mark Twain's fascinating A Conneticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court as partial inspiration, plus T H White's The Sword in the Stone, of course).



I've done Nanowrimo before twice - no three times -...

Avoiding debt slavery

There's a good article on Debt over at threads, and how our culture encourages us to be far too casual about something that makes us slaves:

The banks and credit card companies tell us that this kind of debt is good. It’s a way of bringing forward tomorrow’s spending to today. It gives you choices you wouldn’t otherwise have. There’s even a credit card called the ‘Freedom’ card (and no, this isn’t product endorsement).



Debt is normal. More than that, it’s unavoidable. And except in the worst...

Fantasy and Escapism Revisited

Damien Walter has written a really interesting article on Does Fantasy Offer Escapism or Escape? It's a perennial question, but one that's worth revisiting and he's got some interesting stuff to say. Here's an extract, but be sure to read the whole thing...

The only people who hate escapism are jailers, said the essayist and Narnia author C S Lewis. A generation later, the fantasy writer Michael Moorcock revised the quip: jailers love escapism — it’s escape they can’t stand. Today, in...

Neil Gaiman and the myth of getting what we deserve

Neil Gaiman is one of my favourite authors, so I was really excited to get chance to see the man himself talking with Mariella Frostrup about his new book, The Ocean at the End of the Lane, at the Apple Store on Regent's Street on Thursday night.







Tweet of the evening has to be this:

Arrived at Apple event for @neilhimself. Asked someone at the door which way for Neil Gaiman. He replied "Neil? Is he a Genius?"

— Isobel Akenhead (@isobelakenhead) June 13, 2013

If you're not already...

Lessons from Publishing 1: Cake

It's now been a month since I started my new publishing job! I'm really enjoying getting stuck into digital publishing, working on the digital audiobooks and backlist ebooks. There's lots to learn - people, systems, procedures and so on, but it's gradually beginning to fit together and make sense.



I've decided to share some of the things I learn about publishing, for your possible interest and amusement. First up, is the essential knowledge that cake makes the publishing world go round.






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All change, part 2: Moving to London

I've now been living in London for exactly a month! I'm starting writing this blog post on the London Underground, just coming in to Edgware Road on the Hammersmith and City line. I'm on my way back from work, so it's pretty busy right now but I've managed to grab a seat and start tapping out a blog post on my iPad mini.
So how am I taking to life as a Londoner?




Well, for one thing, I don't really consider myself a Londoner yet, just someone living in London. Maybe after a couple of years, but...