As a parish priest of the Church Of England I promise to look after everyone in the community, not just those who come to church, not just white people, not just the Christians.
Alan GreenHere's Brian Flynn. His official height is five feet five and he doesn't look much taller than that
Alan GreenIn the time of Mrs Thatcher the church, to give it its due, spoke out and was an enemy of the Conservative government.
Alan GreenAs a teenager I was very clear that I wasn't in the church just to toe the line, but I saw there was a capacity within Christianity and the bible not to fall into line but to question the status quo, that's what kept me in the church. I was listening to the sort of music that did that questioning.
Alan GreenThey care about their club, and that's why they always have something good to say, even when it is negative
Alan GreenI grew up in the church, with traditional hymns, but at the same time I was beginning to listen to pop music, the mid-60s, The Beatles, which had just as much influence on me as those hymns did. Then the hippy stuff like Pink Floyd started to raise questions about how I lived my life and the world in which I lived.
Alan GreenThe [book of the bible] Song Of Songs is an amazing erotic love poem that the church has tried very hard not to notice. It is really beautiful, and musical in its poetry.
Alan GreenI think what we're really bad at doing is recognising that it is possible to have lost of different views within the church.
Alan GreenBeing a Christian does not mean that there is one way of living a Christian life, people do it differently in different cultures because they have different interpretations, that's how it should be. The disciples had arguments with Jesus! It is about listening to one another, and respecting one another with those differences.
Alan GreenThat level of expectation that I'm going to be conservative is really disappointing, but it is how many people think about clergy and the church
Alan GreenI've bought QPP shares but unfortunately both times I bought it they immediately dropped by over 10p. Do you pay much attention to the dealing notes?
Alan GreenSpirituality is a natural part of ourselves, as natural as emotions, but we've got all the language wrong and made this divide between secularism and spirituality, whereas instead it's about being human.
Alan GreenThe bible is not a blueprint for every day of your life, it is an inspiration not a blueprint. That requires that we listen to one another and get challenged and grow by living with difference within the body of the church.
Alan GreenI'd signed up not just for Christianity but the established Church of England. That has a particular history and I think we rather lost it in the 19th Century, we became so much part of empire and colonialism, the language of the Church Of England still reflects that Victorian time. As the 20th Century developed, not surprisingly people left the church and I can see the church's role in losing people.
Alan Green