Why oh Why?

Over the last couple of weeks, more since I returned from Jerusalem sans Mojo, I have been pondering my reasons for sitting here for thirty-minutes a day, writing what falls out of my head as it falls, and daring to presume that anyone would read the end result. 

I had a very helpful conversation with someone very close to me, and she asked the question which I believe all bloggers ought to ask of themselves, at some point:

Why do I write a/this blog?

Now, there are some arguments that suggest that this can be just  a way of diarising life, a personal journal - but I have never been fully convinced of that argument. You can do that pen-and-paper style, or on Word on the computer - but we do something specific and different that changes what we do: we publish our work. In other words, we want people to read what we have written, however fixed or otherwise that conviction is inside us.

Publishing our thoughts brings an agenda to what we do - the simple but significant question of who is it that we want to log in and read us? What we write has to bear that in its focus or else all hell could break loose. For example, I write as an Anglican priest and I attract a specific brand of reader by virtue of that - how wrong would it be if I waxed lyrical about the mammarian attributes of the former Mrs Andre, for example!

Anyway, my intention in writing this post was to explain my motivations nearly a full-year after starting this, they are now clearer to me!

I believe the Gospel message is a contageon and as a Christian and an ordained priest, regard it as part of my work as an individual, to infect as many people as possible. I am not here to theologise, but rather to be the conspicuous Christian God calls me to be, and the rather quirky human that God made me to be! The mixture of the two, some typing, and a little guidance from friends, yields a fruit among others: this blog. Over a year I have discovered what those of you who read this like to read, and what I seem to do better is be amusing, talk about blogging, and ranting! I can't do Magazine and News Blogs like my friends do - they do so much better than I can, so it is right that I don't try and emulate them. Furthermore, I hope and believe that those who know me personally will attest that who you read is largely who you would meet in the street. 

In short, I wear a collar - a symbol of something that is important to me. It is my device and I regard myself as its carrier while it does the work of gracious infection. Wherever I can be a 'human' priest and be at ease with that, I will be, and the social medias which I now use are my tools for that. This is still a work in progress and apt to mistakes (I know how many typos get through, but that is also just me, I am afraid). It was important for me to 'declare' my hand because it means I too have to acknowledge the 'why' and the 'for who' of this. 

...and yes, it is also a selfish thing - this is great fun and a positive response makes my day!