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Closed Hands band playing at The Star in Shoreditch
London, England
27/03/25
Hands at your side
The mad scramble.
If you’ve ever been at a parade where they throw candy, then you’ve seen it. The mad scramble of kids rushing to grab candy.
The moment candy gets thrown in the air, that’s the cue for every kid to take off like a rocket. Grabbing candy however they can.
Some scoop it up off the ground. Others yell at the people throwing the candy, to throw it to them so they can catch it.
One thing I’ve never seen when the candy gets thrown? I’ve never seen a kid just stand there. Hands at their side, watching it happen.
Which makes sense. Because you’re never going to get any, if you’re not trying to get any. If you don’t at least have your hands out to catch it.
I know what you’re thinking, “thanks for stating the obvious.”
And yet, it’s something that we struggle with. For some reason (outside of obvious moments like candy thrown at a parade), we forget that this is a principle that applies to just about every area of life.
Like with the people in today’s Gospel who are being healed by Jesus.
It can be easy for us to dismiss today’s Gospel as just another Jesus healing story. Or something that happened back in Bible times, but not today. Because we don’t see God moving like that in our lives.
If that’s how we see it, then we’ve missed the point.
Because the moment the people in the Gospel know that Jesus is in the area? They grab their sick friends and family, and rush to Him.
They’re trying to get help. Because they understand this principle – that you’re never going to get any, if you’re not trying to get any.
The truth is that God has great things planned for you. That God loves you more than you know. And part of that love involves respecting your free will.
Which is why God never forces things on you. God isn’t going to force you to receive His best, all the good that He has planned for you, if you’re not open to receiving it.
The reason that many of us don’t see God at work more in our lives? Because even though we may be doing all kinds of goods things, going to church, helping people?
We’re not living like we think God will actually do anything. We may be going through the motions, but in our hearts, we’re just standing there. With our hands at our sides.
Like our faith is just a bunch of stuff we do. But we don’t really mean it.
May God give you the grace today to start living today in hope. Secure in the knowledge that God loves you more than you know. With hands out to receive all that God has planned for you.
Today’s Readings
Hands at your side
The mad scramble.
If you’ve ever been at a parade where they throw candy, then you’ve seen it. The mad scramble of kids rushing to grab candy.
The moment candy gets thrown in the air, that’s the cue for every kid will to take off like a rocket. Grabbing candy however they can.
Some scoop it up off the ground. Others yell at the people throwing the candy, to throw it to them so they can catch it.
One thing I’ve never seen when the candy gets thrown? I’ve never seen a kid just stand there, hands at their side, watching it happen.
Which makes sense. Because you’re never going to get any, if you’re not trying to get any. If you don’t at least have your hands out to catch it.
I know what you’re thinking, “thanks for stating the obvious.”
And yet, it’s something that we struggle with. For some reason (outside of obvious moments like candy thrown at a parade), we forget that this is a principle that applies to just about every area of life.
Like with the people in today’s Gospel who are being healed by Jesus.
It can be easy for us to dismiss today’s Gospel as just another Jesus healing story. Or something that happened back in Bible times, but not today. Because we don’t see God moving like that in our lives.
If that’s how we see it, then we’ve missed the point.
Because the moment the people in the Gospel know that Jesus is in the area? They grab their sick friends and family, and rush to Him.
They’re trying to get help. Because they understand this principle – that you’re never going to get any, if you’re not trying to get any.
The truth is that God has great things planned for you. That God loves you more than you know. And part of that love involves respecting your free will.
Which is why God never forces things on you. God isn’t going to force you to receive His best, all the good that He has planned for you, if you’re not open to receiving it.
The reason that many of us don’t see God at work more in our lives? Because even though we may be doing all kinds of goods things, going to church, helping people?
We’re not living like we think God will actually do anything. We may be going through the motions, but in our hearts, we’re just standing there, with our hands at our sides.
Like our faith is just a bunch of stuff we do. But we don’t really mean it.
May God give you the grace today to start living today in hope. Secure in the knowledge that God loves you more than you know. With hands out to receive all that God has planned for you.
Today’s Readings
Closed hands
A few years ago, I saw an interview with Cardinal Dolan. One of the things that he told the reporter stuck with me. That he always carries McDonald’s gift cards with him.
When somebody asks him for help, he sends them to Catholic Charities for the big stuff. Finding a place to stay. Finding a job. Things like that.
But he also gets them something to eat right now. With one of those gift cards.
I try to follow his lead.
A homeless guy hit me up the other day. So I ran the Cardinal Dolan playbook.
I noticed his hands as I gave him the McDonald’s gift card. They were open. Ready to receive whatever I gave him.
Too often, when you and I ask God for help, we’re not as wise as the homeless guy.
We’re more like the people in today’s Gospel.
Like them, we’ve got ideas. About what we want. How God should do things. About what we’ll accept.
We’re asking for help. But we don’t really mean it. Because we’ve got our hands closed.
We’re so stuck on how we think things should be, that we can’t receive anything that isn’t how we’ve decided it should be. Anything that isn’t exactly our way.
So we miss out on God’s best. On grace poured out for us in ways we never imagined.
Because we’re asking with our hands closed.
Today’s Readings
Live Review: Creature with Burner / Who Cares? / Closed Hands at the New Cross Inn, London (07/03/23)
Alternative metal/core band Creature are halfway through their UK Haunt tour and have brought Closed Hands, Who Cares? & Burner to get the masses moving.
It’s a Tuesday in London, the temperature is dropping, but you wouldn’t know it inside the New Cross Inn. Tonight, four bands are warming the heart and souls of everyone in attendance. Alternative metal/core band Creature are halfway through their UK Haunt tour and have brought Closed Hands, Who Cares? & Burner to get the masses moving. Closed Hands are up first, a new band on the scene…
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Closed Hands interactive fiction to be featured in PUSH festival
Closed Hands to launch as an online exhibition for Linux gaming, Mac and Windows PC. Thanks to developer PASSENGER. Due to make a debut on Steam and Itch.io. Experimental video game Closed Hands, is due to launch as an online exhibition. This will be hosted by the arts centre HOME via homemcr.org as a part of PUSH festival. Launching on the 5th March 2021. Closed Hands is an unflinching work of interactive fiction. While exploring the long ranging complex effects of extremism. Doing so on a range of cultures and communities. The sprawling a 130,000 word story. All presented through bold interactive story across five core characters. This includes dozens of additional viewpoints and perspectives. Closed Hands examines the lead-up and aftermath of a terror attack. Which all takes place in a fictional UK city. Taking the viewpoint of five core characters and dozens of other lives. All coming together by the same event. Since the attack itself is purposely never depicted. Also leaving the game to draw a complex picture of the reasons why it occurred. As well as the long last effects it had on people, communities, and the city itself.
Closed Hands - Launch Teaser
The gameplay of Closed Hands is a free form story that comes in pieces. This allows the player to weave their own paths through the story. Going both forward and backward in time. This story presents interactive textual fiction. And the player can also engage more deeply in the story by exploring the desktops of the characters. This includes reading emails, exploring files, replaying conversations, and finding secrets. Closed Hands will also challenge the wider bias users have about video game story telling. Also, if you are willing to brave interactive fiction. There is a Windows PC and Mac Demo available on Itch. Oddly enough, this works rather well using WINE. Just run the game with "wine Closed Hands.exe". “We’re really excited to present Closed Hands to new audiences. And we really hope that it helps push forward. With the idea that games should, and can, boldly hold up a mirror to our reality in new and interesting ways. The story is deep and complex. Presented in a way that we hope can be explored by both games audiences and those outside it, too.” - Dan Hett, Director of PASSENGER Closed Hands will allow players to understand the complex effect extremism has on people’s perceptions of cultures and communities. Prejudices and racism that exist in the moments after an attack in many communities. Which will also be explored in this game. As will the tabloid and media reaction to sensitivity and empathy to those affected. Since Closed Hands will be part of the PUSH festival. It's worth checking out a membership. Closed Hands is due to release in Linux gaming, Mac and Windows PC. Arriving on both Steam and Itch.io. Originally due to release in April 2020. The launch date is still TBD.
"closed hands on open arms hold nothing"
