’10 shekel tat’. Yes, this was the competition (revised since Highway Projects days, with independent judge and and official crowning) that captured the imagination of the Cliff College study tour on their last evening in Jerusalem The idea? To bring to the last night an item you have negotiated in the souk for 10 shekels, and speak about it, convincing the judge that this is the gaudiest, tattiest bit of tat in the market – and that you should win. Pleased to announce that Laura Goldsborough was the 2013 winner. Items submitted included baby Jesus without a head, a flashing Mary, ’10 lepers’ soap, a head-dress all ready for budding belly dancers, and the winner, a flashing Ramadan crescent and heart on a stick, with alternating flash patterns. Yes…..everything can be bought in an Old City souk!
Which led me to muse again…….this time on Matthew 13: 45-46
Where do I find what is true and real and solid and useful behind the oceans of tat in the marketplace, where religion has become a commodity and faith a souvenir? How do I discern and grasp true light when everything is flickering, dancing, flashing – designed to capture and entertain? What is of worth when I can haggle the price down to my manageable budget, and so win the game of ‘gift of least price’?
