This is a blog post about my cartoon in today’s Church Times. Unfortunately it would be unfair of me to post it here given that the Church Times have paid me to draw it and so it is right that they have exclusive first use of it. The link is here, but it is subscriber only, and I’m aware that the extract above will be too small to see as it is long and thin. Apologies, therefore, to those for whom this post will be meaningless.

This isn’t an apology (which was what I originally entitled it), more of an explanation. I felt in hindsight, having submitted the cartoon, that some clergy might feel that I am getting at them and criticising of the organising of lots of Lenten things. This was not my intention. The cartoon is perhaps saying something about the vast range of Lent resources and activities that are available – are there too many? But in truth the cartoon is probably more about how someone like me, whose job it is to think about Christianity all day every day, keeps their belief alive. The danger is that one becomes overwhelmed by worthy activities and spiritual messages. The suggestion is that, for me, the best Lenten fast is possibly to fast from Lent itself.

I don’t know, what do you think?

My Church Times cartoon ‘The Secularists’ is now on the Guardian ‘Comment is Free’ site. Comments have been enabled, so I’m standing by with my reinforced flameproof overalls and a slight sense of apprehension.

This is of course just a tantalising extract – see the whole thing on the Church Times Blog.

If you’d like to follow my Church Times Blog posts on a regular kind of basis Twitter is one good way to do so – see @churchtimesblog.

This is a new cartoon that hasn’t appeared anywhere else. I know, unheard of.

You don’t need to tell me that the steps are a bit funny. I know that the steps are a bit funny. But you quite often find that underground bunker churches have funny steps.

Large and high resolution versions for subscribers and those wearing the incorrect spectacles here: CartoonChurch.com » Cartoon » We are safe here.

The Daily Mail under the editorship of Paul Dacre is the last popular stronghold of Christian Britain. … Dacre’s Mail is virtually the last friend Bible-believing Christians have got in Fleet Street.

An article on VirtueOnline that brought a smile to my face and a little bit of joy to my heart. I’m not linking to the site for religious reasons, so you’ll have to copy and paste:

http://www.virtueonline.org/portal/modules/news/article.php?storyid=8967

The book contains 90 cartoons, nearly all of which are from my Church Times ‘Guide to the Church’ series. There is also a cartoon introduction, which takes the total up to 91. It has taken over a year and a half to do these drawings (not full time – I have had breaks for meals and to do household chores etc). They represent many days of anxiety and pacing to and fro, but also hours of fun thinking up the ideas and talking them over with friends and passers-by. Not to mention many Cartoon Blog threads on which you, the readers, have given your ideas, for which I am genuinely grateful.

The book costs £5.99. Canterbury Press are once again the publishers. Their page about the book is here.

Church House Bookshop are doing a special deal: The book and calendar for £8.99. You can order online – there is a postage charge but the offer still saves you money even with that included. They will ship to other places in the world – I just had a look and the price of book plus calendar to the USA works out at around $26.48 including postage. You can also buy the book from Church House bookshop in the ordinary non-special-deal kind of way.

Alternatively why not support a local bookseller and buy the book from there. Some Christian bookshops will have it – if in doubt phone them and ask. You can find the number in the Christian bookshops directory. If they do not believe that there is such a book tell them that the ISBN number is 9781853118999. They should be able to order it for you. Other bookshops will stock it too, but once again you might have to order it.

[Click on the photo for a larger version on the Flickr website]

I’ve just been to the launch of ‘What am I doing here?’ at Church House and am sitting in the Methodists’ canteen. Aren’t the Methodists great.

The book has some of my cartoons in it. I gave a short speech and was videoed a bit. I will not come across well on the video. The picture above is of me signing some books with Hilary Brand, the author.

There is a press release about the book on the Church of England website which I have reproduced below:

Church launches a guidebook to churchgoing

26 June 2008

A cartoonist and an author have joined forces to create a fresh guide to churchgoing – published by the Church of England this week – which has already won praise for its no-nonsense approach to explaining the Anglican faith.

What Am I Doing Here?, produced by Church House Publishing, uses the main weekly communion service as a basis for explaining why people go to church, and what happens when they do.

Broadcaster and editor of Private Eye, Ian Hislop, is among early fans of the book’s ability to communicate simply what going to church is really about. He comments: “Most books nowadays explain why people don’t go to church anymore. It is good to find one that explains why people still do.”

Accompanied by illustrations from cartoonist Dave Walker, the pocket-sized book guides readers through each of the key parts of the Holy Communion service, demystifying what happens and why.

Written by Hilary Brand (Christ and the Chocolaterie; The Sceptic’s Guide to the Bible), the book serves as an ideal resource for churches to offer people who have recently started attending church, perhaps through contact with Fresh Expressions, Back to Church Sunday, or other mission initiatives.

It follows research (pdf document) that recently revealed three million people (six per cent of the adult population) would come back to church if they received a personal invitation.

The Rt Revd Nick Baines, Bishop of Croydon, is convinced that the book’s down-to-earth style will help explain what the 1.7 million people who attend a Church of England church each month get up to, without resorting to theological jargon: “Written from the perspective of an ordinary ‘person in the pew’, this book is a wonderfully direct, simple and informative guide to what goes on in church and takes us on the brief journey we make when we worship together.

“It debunks some of the myths about church – for example, that only ‘self-righteous’ people go to church. Church is for all people – the ragbag of saints and sinners that we are – and Hilary Brand’s simple clarity and Dave Walker’s cartoons should make it a more welcoming place particularly for those who don’t go to church, but might like to.”

Over its 72 pages, What Am I Doing Here? highlights key parts of the Holy Communion service, including:

• Wonder and wow factor – how worship begins with finding and expressing gratitude for all that God has done
• Admitting and acknowledging – recognizing and ‘owning’ the fact that we are responsible for messing up, and that we need God to forgive us
• Receiving and renewing – the need for gaining strength, comfort and delight in remembering and reenacting the Last Supper, the ultimate demonstration of God’s sacrifice for the sake of humankind.

What Am I Doing Here?, priced £4.99 (ISBN 978-07151-4161-8), is available from Christian bookshops, or by mail order via the web.

My own page about the book is here.

If you’re interested in my writings about Anglican goings-on you can tune in via the Church Times blog. There should be some new cartoon material posted there in the coming weeks too.

The Dave Walker Guide to the Church 2009 Calendar is published by Canterbury Press. This year’s theme is ‘Things to take to church’. All of the pages of cartoons are new apart from one. They took me ages. Subjects include:

• What to take and what to leave at home
• How to decide what to wear
• A pre-church planner
• Things to take if you have small children
• Why you should or should not take a mobile phone
• Liquid refreshment
• Things you will need to explain if you take a friend
• Things to take home from church
• Medicinal products you will need

Oddly enough I did a post on February 10 2008 asking for your ideas on the subject of ‘things to take to church’. Your answers in the comments were a great help to me and sustained me through the long nights of toil. So thank you – seriously.

The Canterbury Press page is here. Church House Bookshop have it in stock, priced £5.99. They do mail order. If you’re looking to order it elsewhere the ISBN number is 9781853118746.

I’ll post soon about my new cartoon book, which is due out in August or hopefully even July. In the meantime information about it is available on the internet, but I’m not telling you where.

[Secret link]

I’ve just heard that ‘What am I doing here’, the book I’ve contributed cartoons to is now available. It is published by Church House Publishing – the page on their website is here.

Church House Bookshop contacted me this morning to say they have it in stock – see this page. They do mail order. It should be available in lots of other places as well – the ISBN number is 9780715141618 if you want to order or search for it somewhere.

There are about 8 cartoons I think – one for each of most of the chapters. I’ve posted one below. I’ll admit that at first I was hesitant to do the cartoons for this book as I was stressed with other things at the time, but when I read the manuscript I said yes. It goes through a typical Anglican communion service and explains why we do what we do. I think it could be a really useful book to (for example) give to newcomers who are not used to church services and all the strange things that happen in them. I’ve posted the publisher’s description below.

Have you ever wondered what church is all about? Ever found yourself in a service wondering what on earth is going on? And what the point of it all is?

Whether you’re completely new to church or have been coming to church for a while, this little book is here to help you!

With a down-to-earth style and subtle humour, What am I Doing Here? takes you through an Anglican Holy Communion service, demystifying what happens – and why.

Subjects covered include:

* What are you doing here?: The need to meet your maker
* Worship: The need to celebrate and count our blessings
* Confession: The need for accounting procedures and a clean slate
* Sermons: The need for wise words and challenging questions
* The Creed: The need for a basic belief system
* Prayer: The need to engage with the wider world and ask for help
* The Peace: The need to live in right relationship with others
* Holy Communion: The need for strength, comfort and delight
* Being sent out and the after-church chat: The need to share the journey

Hilary Brand is the best-selling author of Christ and the Chocolaterie and The Sceptic’s Guide to the Bible. As an ordinary pew-dweller rather than a church leader, she’s in an ideal position to empathise with newcomers.

Dave Walker is one of the best-known Christian cartoonists in the UK. He runs www.cartoonchurch.com and contributes the weekly ‘Dave Walker Guide to the Church’ cartoon in the Church Times.