SOF Archive

Welcome to the Ship of Fools archive. This area contains material which has appeared in the magazine – including feature articles, news reports, serializations, abandoned projects and back material from some of our regular columns. The index below has the most recent material at the top.

Feature articles 2001

You must be joking – British comedians have voiced concern that a new law against inciting religious hatred will curb their freedom of derision. Steve Tomkins looks on the bright side of a life without religious mockery. November 2001.
Salvation by science – Cosmologist Stephen Hawking has said that we need to colonize space fast to survive the advent of doomsday viruses. Jonathan Roberts reports on the contradictions of salvation by science. October 2001.
Beware the new crusade – Osama Bin Laden wants jihad, holy war, while Bush and Blair are careful to say their enemy is terrorism, not Islam. Andrew Walker warns of the danger of a new crusade. September 2001.
Ned Flanders Night – 1,500 fans were turned away. 500 lucky ones got in to celebrate Ned Flanders, born-again star of the Simpsons, at this year's Greenbelt. Here's the official Ship of Fools report, with the pics, hymns and the dance track. September 2001.
Jamming the ad culture – Consumers are starting to fight back against the lies and pretensions of advertising. Susan Roberts reports on the cultural jammers who subvert advertising messages. August 2001.
R father – announcing the winner and runners-up in our text messaging competition, for the best text version of the Lord's Prayer. July 2001.
The New Adventures of Aslan – Fresh Narnia stories are planned for a new generation, without all that old-fashioned religion getting in thw way. Steve Tomkins gives us a sneak preview. July 2001.
Sympathy for the Deity – Steve Goddard investigates cartoon series God, the Devil and Bob, a show that makes God loser-friendly. June 2001.
How great thou aren't – the book of Psalms is full of praise, thanks... and complaining. So why does Christian worship have to be so relentlessly positive? Steve Tomkins has a bad day in church and wants to share it with us. May 2001.
A Palestinian Diary – Simon Jenkins kept an online diary while travelling in Israel/Palestine, recording the current intifada in its 10th month. June 2001.
How to Start an Uprising – Jeff Halper, who monitors house demolitions and settlement-building by the Israeli authorities, on Israel's provocation in the current troubles. June 2001.
The Righteous Ones – a new chart called The God List, claims to identify the 50 most significant religious movers and shakers in Britain. Martin Wroe is sceptical. April 2001.
A Saint in the Simspons – Steve Goddard investigates an unlikely saint on the small screen... Ned Flanders on the Simpsons. March 2001.
This is Your Captain Speaking – Interview conducted by the US satire magazine, The Door, with Simon Jenkins, editor of Ship of Fools. February 2001.

Feature articles 2000

The 12 Days of Kitschmas 2000 – Our annual round-up of the Top 12 Gadgets for God for Christmas 2000. December 00.
The next Archbishop of Canterbury – As George Carey's time on the throne (of Canterbury, that is) draws to a close, Andrew Brown asks: who will be the next Archbishop? November 2000.
Stolen Time with R.S. Thomas – Tom Davies recalls an unexpected encounter with the Welsh poet R.S. Thomas, who died this month. October 00.
Happier Christmas – Britain's newly-unveiled Christmas advertising campaign features a laughing Jesus. September 00.
The Ratzinger Doctrine – Mike Riddell comments on Dominus Iesus, a contentious declaration issued by the Vatican on the validity of other faiths and other Christian traditions. September 00.
At the Corner of East and Now – What happens when one of the most venerable branches of the Church meets a heavy metal festival run by Christians? Frederica Mathewes-Green writes. August 00.
"I hope you sink!" – Ex-BBC producer curses Ship of Fools during a BBC Radio 4 interview about Internet communities with Steve Goddard, our co-editor. May 00.
Holy Smoke – John Wesley wouldn't like it... but his face once adorned the collectable cards sold with cigarette packets. Dave Stuckey reports on how the clergy were once seen in the cloudy world of cigarette cards. April 00.
Labyrinth – St Paul's Cathedral in London hosted an experiment in Christian worship during Lent called Labyrinth. Steve Collins, one of the project organizers, reports. March 00.
Queen Esther's homepage – Simon Jenkins reports on the roaring trade in "biblical" Internet domain names. January 00.
Road to the Stars – Writer and journalist Tom Davies follows the old pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela in northern Spain, in this three-part extract from his book. January 00.
Letters at the end of the millennium – We intercept three letters, written to Augustine, Bach and Bunyan, by three contemporary Christians. January 00.

Feature articles 1999

The Crisis of Christmas – Christmas comes in many different wrappings: pagan Yuletide, shopping window Xmas, and sentimental, carollong Christmas. Andrew Walker throws off the wrappings to get at Christmas as the crisis event it is meant to be. December 99.
The 12 Days of Kitschmas 99 – The Top 12 Gadgets for God for Christmas 99. Our stocking-full of religious kitsch goodies comes from Germany, Britain and the USA – all made by people with good taste deficit disorder.
Are you flesh of our flesh, bone of our bones? – Were the cattle lowing... or being a right nuisance? Was the baby good as gold... or did he behave like all babies do? Martin Wroe asks the Christmas questions. December 99.
The sacred interview with Adrian Plass, age 51 and a third. Adrian has been writing books which make people laugh and think about faith ever since he turned 37 and three-quarters. Steve Tomkins talked with him about church, the lottery, comedy and passion. December 99.
Ship of Fools US Tour 99 – In November, our editor travelled in the eastern and southern American states on the first-ever Ship of Fools tour. If you missed his online diary, covering Manhattan, Kentucky, Graceland, and points between, read on... November 99.
Cybernauts agog! – Deep in that vacuum we call the Church of England, something is stirring. Lo! A report has emerged, with glad tidings that the Church has discovered something new. Something it calls... the "Inter-net". November 99.
The Life of Brian – Twenty years after its release, Steve Tomkins takes a second look at the controversial humour of Monty Python's "Life of Brian". October 99.
St Paul meets Ethel the Frog – Is there any possible connection between St Paul and Ethel the Frog? Dyfrig Lewis looks at the troubled relationship between faith and humour. September 99.
For Fools Only – On the feast day of St Simeon, our patron saint, Alexandra Coe gives a sermon on the foolishness of the cross. July 99.
The Chainsaw Fellowship – Adrian Plass invites us to join his home group for coffee and chainsaws. June 99.
Putting the Fun Back into Fundamentalism – David Di Sabatino on why religion can be one of the richest sources of comedy. May 99.
Eric & Dylan Spoke in Class Today – Iwan Russell-Jones reflects on America's love affair with the gun, after the Denver school massacre. April 99.
Forte et Gratum – Alexandra Coe reflects on the cruelty of school culture, seen in the Denver school massacre. April 99.
From Base Metal to Gold – Theological reflections by Andrew Walker on the gold teeth filling phenomenon from Toronto. April 99.
After the Toronto Blessing: Gold Fillings – God is turning the ordinary fillings of believers into gold, according to the latest wave of 'miracles'. April 99.
The Ship of Fools Awards 1999 – Awarded on 1st April every year (the Ship's birthday), these glittering prizes are given in recognition of those areas of church life least likely to be greeted by a burst of the Hallelujah Chorus. The awards ceremony is introduced by Steve Tomkins, contributing editor of Ship of Fools. April 99.
Getting into the rhythm of Lent – The Bishop of London preaches a sermon for the beginning of Lent 1999. February 99.
Canonizing Casanova – Gethin Russell-Jones searches for St Valentine. February 99.
Who's Afraid of Y2K? – Jan Nunley on why the Millennium Bug is catching. January 99.

Feature articles 1998

A brief history of the Bulletin Board – Stephen Tomkins on the highs and lows of 1998. December 98.
Apostle to the sceptics – Andrew Walker wishes C.S. Lewis a happy 100th birthday. November 98.
The accidental pilgrim – Tom Davies visits the Celtic Christian centres of the British Isles. October 98.
Praying with the Prez – Tony Campolo joins the three wise men advising President Clinton. September 98.
Bishops behaving badly – Sister Mary Diocletian kicks off a three-parter on Lambeth and the gay issue. September 98.
Saint in waiting – The Elvis-style canonization of Diana, by Simon Jenkins. August 98.
The St Simeon Prize 1998 – Our annual prize for the story of the strangest event at a religious gathering, together with a report of our London event on St Simeon's Day (21st July 1998), plus the greetings sent in by SOF shipmates.
Walking in Memphis – Iwan Russell-Jones hears about southern slavery at first-hand. July 98.
Circle of the gods – The 'pagan godliness' of sport, by Iwan Russell-Jones. July 98.
Leap of faith – Michael Roberts' journey to the Roman Catholic Church. July 98.
'All that Glitters' vote – Our first-ever readers' poll concerned a letter we received in June 1998, refusing us a link on a major Christian website, because the writer found SOF to have no 'social, moral, or redeeming value'. The poll plus our readers' messages can be found here.
The abominable no-men – Tough choices in Northern Ireland, by Mark Grey. June 98.
A drug called revival – Paul Roberts on the Church's addiction to revivalism. June 98.
American holocaust – Iwan Russell-Jones visits Waco in Texas. June 98.
Ministry of fear – Steve Goddard on vigilante vicars. May 98.
On the second day – Simon Jenkins looks at an icon from the Easter story. April 98.
Jesus and jellied eels – The launch of HTB's Beta course. 1st April 98.
Kingdom of red noses – Gethin Russell-Jones explores divine folly. April 98.
Lesslie Newbigin – One of the key Christian leaders of the 20th century, Bishop Lesslie Newbigin, died in January 1998. Our tribute pages to him include an interview, booklist and other resources. February 98.

Regulars & other stuff

Captain's Log – Our rolling news and comment column, dating back to April 1999.
Rant of the Month – Every month, a regular shipmate from our Bulletin Board addresses the Ship's company on a subject that makes them start frothing at the mouth. Catch up with past rants here.
Bulletin Boards Archive – Archived discussion threads from the Ship of Fools discussion boards.
Caption Competition – Inventive captions from our readers for unlikely religious illustrations and photographs.
Unauthorized Versions – We've temporarily discountinued this series of readings from some of the world's quirkiest Bible translations... but here is the story so far.


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