Welcome to my blog...whatever image springs to mind, be it a hippopotamus, Tigger, red-haired Highland cattle, or a simple kitchen table, 'Unless a Seed' is a four-legged creature. My hope is that having read a Book Review, a Poem, or a What is a Christian? or some random post in Everything Else, you will be kind enough to leave a comment or a short reply. And I hope you enjoy reading its contents

**Book, Podcast, Film, and Blog Reviews**

**For Writers, Writing and Everything Else**

John Stevens 23/11/2023 John Stevens 23/11/2023

Paris ’24 – 23rd November 2023

Prep for Paris ‘24…permanently postponed, probably…

John Stevens 20/11/2023 John Stevens 20/11/2023

Charlie Peach's Pumpkins and other stories

Jenny Saunder’s blog tour…includes my review of her new children’s book: Charlie Peach’s Pumpkins

John Stevens 17/11/2023 John Stevens 17/11/2023

The journey home – a lament

Is there anyone alive who is not carrying an Israel/Gaza lament?

John Stevens 14/11/2023 John Stevens 14/11/2023

Midnight Train from Paris

A Journey themed poem challenge…written under pressure…25 minutes. This is what emerged.

John Stevens 07/11/2023 John Stevens 07/11/2023

The Power of Words

Originally written for the MoreThanWriters blog: https://morethanwriters.blogspot.com/2023/11/the-power-of-words.html

John Stevens 02/11/2023 John Stevens 02/11/2023

Deus ex Machina

Deus ex machina maybe thought of as a literary device, but in fact…

John Stevens 27/10/2023 John Stevens 27/10/2023

Take the shot

One of those poems whose title makes sense…eventually

John Stevens 26/10/2023 John Stevens 26/10/2023

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐞 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐝: '...𝐨𝐧𝐞, 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐲, 𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜 𝐜𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡....'

What does the Nicene Creed point to when it says ‘…apostolic…’ church? Here’s an attempt to get at the dynamic

John Stevens 17/10/2023 John Stevens 17/10/2023

Book Review: Gilead

Gilead is, as the Sunday Times critic summarised ‘A Masterpiece’. I can’t add to that. Set in the fictional town of Gilead in 1956 Iowa, it is a beautifully crafted novel

John Stevens 16/10/2023 John Stevens 16/10/2023

Pain woke up one morning

Israel - Gaza, the weeping

John Stevens 16/10/2023 John Stevens 16/10/2023

Is there a purpose in forgetting?

A reminiscence with a question - can there be a purpose in our lapses of memory?

John Stevens 13/10/2023 John Stevens 13/10/2023

Israel, Hamas, and the BBC

Saturday 7th October 2023: Hamas massacres young Israelis at the Supernova music festival and grandparents, adults, children and babies at Kfar Azar Kibbutz

John Stevens 08/10/2023 John Stevens 08/10/2023

Ain’t gonna to study war no more

A poem whose origins lie elsewhere

John Stevens 04/10/2023 John Stevens 04/10/2023

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐞 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐝: '...𝐨𝐧𝐞, 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐲, 𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜 𝐜𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡....'

If you’re familiar with saying the Nicene Creed you will have intoned ‘one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church’ those rising syllables 1,2,3, then 4 fall off the tongue with an almost hypnotic rhythm - but what does ‘catholic’ mean?

John Stevens 04/10/2023 John Stevens 04/10/2023

Protection Racket

Protection Racket with a twist of reality

John Stevens 29/09/2023 John Stevens 29/09/2023

Book Review: Forty Farms, Amy Bateman

This beautifully photographed hardback book about 40 Lake District Farms undergoing a return to traditional sustainable farming less dependent on agrochemicals hasn’t left my lounge coffee table for about a year now. Proud to let others browse.

John Stevens 26/09/2023 John Stevens 26/09/2023

So scared

Not quite sure where this came from. Just the title somehow. And a small dose of real-time fear to face.

John Stevens 25/09/2023 John Stevens 25/09/2023

What is a Christian?

Finally! Finally I have got round to writing an answer to the question that heads this section on the blog! What is a Christian?

John Stevens 19/09/2023 John Stevens 19/09/2023

Fingernails

Where do images come from? Out of the blue I was confronted with an image of a hand flipped over, fingernails showing, as if waiting to be cleaned…

John Stevens 18/09/2023 John Stevens 18/09/2023

The mystery of the gospel?

What is a Christian?

Book, Podcast, Film, and Blog Reviews

Poetry

For Writers, Writing and Everything Else

Paris ’24 – 23rd November 2023

Charlie Peach's Pumpkins and other stories

Jenny Saunder’s blog tour…includes my review of her new children’s book: Charlie Peach’s Pumpkins

The journey home – a lament

Is there anyone alive who is not carrying an Israel/Gaza lament?

Midnight Train from Paris

A Journey themed poem challenge…written under pressure…25 minutes. This is what emerged.

The Power of Words

Originally written for the MoreThanWriters blog: https://morethanwriters.blogspot.com/2023/11/the-power-of-words.html

Deus ex Machina

Deus ex machina maybe thought of as a literary device, but in fact…

Take the shot

One of those poems whose title makes sense…eventually

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐞 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐝: '...𝐨𝐧𝐞, 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐲, 𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜 𝐜𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡....'

What does the Nicene Creed point to when it says ‘…apostolic…’ church? Here’s an attempt to get at the dynamic

Book Review: Gilead

Pain woke up one morning

Is there a purpose in forgetting?

Israel, Hamas, and the BBC

Saturday 7th October 2023: Hamas massacres young Israelis at the Supernova music festival and grandparents, adults, children and babies at Kfar Azar Kibbutz

Ain’t gonna to study war no more

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐞 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐝: '...𝐨𝐧𝐞, 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐲, 𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜 𝐜𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡....'

If you’re familiar with saying the Nicene Creed you will have intoned ‘one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church’ those rising syllables 1,2,3, then 4 fall off the tongue with an almost hypnotic rhythm - but what does ‘catholic’ mean?

Protection Racket

Protection Racket with a twist of reality

Book Review: Forty Farms, Amy Bateman

This beautifully photographed hardback book about 40 Lake District Farms undergoing a return to traditional sustainable farming less dependent on agrochemicals hasn’t left my lounge coffee table for about a year now. Proud to let others browse.

So scared

Not quite sure where this came from. Just the title somehow. And a small dose of real-time fear to face.

What is a Christian?

Fingernails

Where do images come from? Out of the blue I was confronted with an image of a hand flipped over, fingernails showing, as if waiting to be cleaned…

The mystery of the gospel?

The mystery of the gospel…a mystery? Really?

Unless a Seed

Subscribe for latest blogs

What is a Christian?

Book, Podcast, Film, and Blog Reviews

Poetry

For Writers, Writing and Everything Else

Jenny Saunder’s blog tour…includes my review of her new children’s book: Charlie Peach’s Pumpkins

Is there anyone alive who is not carrying an Israel/Gaza lament?

A Journey themed poem challenge…written under pressure…25 minutes. This is what emerged.

Originally written for the MoreThanWriters blog: https://morethanwriters.blogspot.com/2023/11/the-power-of-words.html

Deus ex machina maybe thought of as a literary device, but in fact…

One of those poems whose title makes sense…eventually

What does the Nicene Creed point to when it says ‘…apostolic…’ church? Here’s an attempt to get at the dynamic

Saturday 7th October 2023: Hamas massacres young Israelis at the Supernova music festival and grandparents, adults, children and babies at Kfar Azar Kibbutz

If you’re familiar with saying the Nicene Creed you will have intoned ‘one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church’ those rising syllables 1,2,3, then 4 fall off the tongue with an almost hypnotic rhythm - but what does ‘catholic’ mean?

Protection Racket with a twist of reality

This beautifully photographed hardback book about 40 Lake District Farms undergoing a return to traditional sustainable farming less dependent on agrochemicals hasn’t left my lounge coffee table for about a year now. Proud to let others browse.

Not quite sure where this came from. Just the title somehow. And a small dose of real-time fear to face.

Where do images come from? Out of the blue I was confronted with an image of a hand flipped over, fingernails showing, as if waiting to be cleaned…

The mystery of the gospel…a mystery? Really?

Unless a Seed