In this winter edition, a variety of authors reflect on intersections between contemporary life and theology.

Stimulus welcomes the submission of material for Publication.

Southern Madonna [fig.1] is a representation of Mary and her child Jesus depicted as Māori people, or tāngata whenua of Aotearoa New Zealand. The image is located at Southern Star Abbey, a Cistercian monastery in Kopua, Central Hawke’s Bay.

Restorative justice is a contemporary movement seeking to reform present judicial systems away from a punitive approach to justice focused on the restoration of relationships where crimes have been committed. [1]

In a cartoon that appeared in the New Yorker, a clerk – tapping on his keyboard and peering at the screen – says to his customer, “The Bible?...that would be under self-help.” [1]

In my time as a parish minister, older members of the congregation would often bemoan the state of contemporary worship music to me.

In 1970, as a newly married couple, my wife and I visited New Guinea, as it was then known.

In her 2014 article in the Journal of Philosophy of Education, Claudia Ruitenberg reflects on her visit to the Critical Theory Archives of the University of California Irvine to study Jacques Derrida’s (largely) unpublished 1995 and 1996 lectures on hospitality.

This Stimulus we have the pleasure of an interview with Reuben Munn, the Senior Pastor of Shore Community Church in Albany, Auckland (http://www.shore.org.nz/).

Using statistics from YouTube as a guide, John Legend’s song All of Me at around 1.2 billion views has been a runaway success. [1]

Altered Carbon (2018) Created by: Laeta Kalogridis Original Network: Netflix Westworld (2016-current) Created by: Jonathan Nolan & Lisa Joy Original Network: HBO

It has been a literary few months at St Imulu’s.

For the Musical Director, italicised sections to the tune of “Jesus Prayer” by Lynn Bauman. ¾ time signature, beginning at the second beat of the bar, moderate tempo. To be sung reflectively.

Philip Church

Mark D. Smith

Rob Yule

TISHA M. RAJENDRA

Gerald A. Arbuckle

F. RUSSELL MITMAN

NIKKI GRIMES; ILLUSTRATED BY BRYAN COLLIER