So what to do with the long Christmas vacation in Cambridge? Start writing essays? Catch up with reading? Put your feet up? All superb ideas, and maybe options I should have opted for... however, I didn't and now I seem to be continually wearing odd socks!
I decided that it would be good to experience ministry during the big Christian festivals this year. So with agreement from the Minister who supervised me over the summer and my College Tutor, I am now back on placement. It was a fantastic idea at the beginning of term, but maybe not anymore!
You would think that Christmas was easy, the story's the same every year and so are the carols. The Sunday School will have to do a Nativity and people won't feel they have had Christmas without Nine Lessons and Carols. Then you have the Luncheon Club's Christmas Lunch, the Women's Fellowship Christmas Tea and all the others. It is the season of no sermon writing and mince pie eating!
If only...
You may have three carol services on one day, but they all have to be slightly different, because you can't use that carol in one church and someone is singing a solo in another and in the other you can only find eight readers! There is the Christmas Eve and the Christmas Day addresses, which have to be short but pack a punch as this may be the only chance you get to share the message with some people till next Christmas. Then after all the lunches and teas, there are all the folk you need to visit before Christmas. Your days start early and finish very late. You loose the ability to find matching socks.
It sounds like Christmas really is a chore for a Minister of Word and Sacrament, but from what I have experienced in the past ten days, that is far from the truth. It's hard work, but it is also a huge privilege. To be able to take Communion to someone who is house-bound with Christmas greetings from the Church. To be able to share the good news of Christmas with people who may have just come to hear the carols. To do what God has called me to do is no chore but a blessing, even if it means I end up wearing odd socks.
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Friday, November 30, 2012
A third of the way there
I have survived another term! Term number 4 of 12 is complete, which I guess means that I'm a third of the way to ordination! Gulp!
It does seem a bit strange to say that "I've survived", but some days that is what it feels like. If I'm not battling with Scripture, I seem to be battling with theology or trying to work out exactly who the guy with the beard was who said some when back in the depths of time something that shifted the sand on which the Church stands. I get to the end of the day worrying about whether it was Zwingli or Calvin who liked to eat cream cakes on a Sunday after preaching four three-hour sermons. Once upon a time, well 15 months ago to be a little more accurate, I had a job, a house, heating and a shower. Now I have a vocation, a rented flat, heating which needs supplementing with woolly jumpers and a bath! However, I do still seems to spend the majority of the day doing one of my least favourite activities: reading. (Another battle in my life - words!)
All this paints a rather negative picture, but where I am now is far from negative. The last 15 months has been a hard slog and that wont change. If it starts to get easy I think I might worry more. But not once can I say I have looked back to where I have come from and wished I was back there. Yes, some mornings it would be nice to walk into a warm bathroom and jump into the shower, or it would be nice to be spending the day collecting temperature readings from a potato rather than tying myself in knots over what Paul actually meant when he used the word 'righteousness' in his letter to the Romans. But hopefully one day soon I will again have a bathroom with a radiator and a shower, and really spending the day measuring the temperature of a potato is not nearly as satisfying as even making the tiniest bit of sense out of what Paul was saying about righteousness.
I know I still lack confidence in my own knowledge, that I would still rather sit and say nothing than say something that may be wrong. Every sermon I write, I doubt myself and worry that I may have strayed into some area of heresy which I am completely oblivious to. But I can now stand up in front of a group of people and share some of what I have discovered during the week with some element of confidence (though deep down I am a gibbering wreck). I can even have unscripted moments!
Theological college has changed me and will continue to change me, as will my ministry in the years to come. I can no longer (and at some level no longer want to) hide away in an office in the background. There of course will always be those moments when I wish the ground would open up and swallow me, but I'm learning that is ok. And maybe, just maybe, I am beginning to really make a start on understanding who God wants me to be.
It does seem a bit strange to say that "I've survived", but some days that is what it feels like. If I'm not battling with Scripture, I seem to be battling with theology or trying to work out exactly who the guy with the beard was who said some when back in the depths of time something that shifted the sand on which the Church stands. I get to the end of the day worrying about whether it was Zwingli or Calvin who liked to eat cream cakes on a Sunday after preaching four three-hour sermons. Once upon a time, well 15 months ago to be a little more accurate, I had a job, a house, heating and a shower. Now I have a vocation, a rented flat, heating which needs supplementing with woolly jumpers and a bath! However, I do still seems to spend the majority of the day doing one of my least favourite activities: reading. (Another battle in my life - words!)
All this paints a rather negative picture, but where I am now is far from negative. The last 15 months has been a hard slog and that wont change. If it starts to get easy I think I might worry more. But not once can I say I have looked back to where I have come from and wished I was back there. Yes, some mornings it would be nice to walk into a warm bathroom and jump into the shower, or it would be nice to be spending the day collecting temperature readings from a potato rather than tying myself in knots over what Paul actually meant when he used the word 'righteousness' in his letter to the Romans. But hopefully one day soon I will again have a bathroom with a radiator and a shower, and really spending the day measuring the temperature of a potato is not nearly as satisfying as even making the tiniest bit of sense out of what Paul was saying about righteousness.
I know I still lack confidence in my own knowledge, that I would still rather sit and say nothing than say something that may be wrong. Every sermon I write, I doubt myself and worry that I may have strayed into some area of heresy which I am completely oblivious to. But I can now stand up in front of a group of people and share some of what I have discovered during the week with some element of confidence (though deep down I am a gibbering wreck). I can even have unscripted moments!
Theological college has changed me and will continue to change me, as will my ministry in the years to come. I can no longer (and at some level no longer want to) hide away in an office in the background. There of course will always be those moments when I wish the ground would open up and swallow me, but I'm learning that is ok. And maybe, just maybe, I am beginning to really make a start on understanding who God wants me to be.
Thursday, November 15, 2012
The waiting time is almost upon us...
So week 7 started today... WEEK 7... just two weeks and term is finished and Advent is here!
Ooooh... Advent... Christmas...
Now I know Christmas seems to get earlier and earlier every year in the shops, but it also arrives very quickly when you study at a University that has very short terms. I have this term joined a choir (yipee, at last I am no longer just singing in the bath), and what do you have to do at the end of Michaelmas term? Well sing carols at a concert or in the streets of Cambridge (or both). And because I have starting singing Christmas carols, I thought that gave me a good enough reason for starting to practice Christmas carols on the trumpet as well. Ok, most probably won't be playing in public this year, but you never know, so it is worth being prepared!
This of course means if I start looking at Christmas carols, I also have to look at Advent carols (usually same chapter in the hymnbook anyway). After all Advent does come before Christmas: a point that sometimes gets forgotten. And as I have to lead worship over Advent, no bad thing getting the tunes into my head now. I do, however, have a favourite Advent carol: 'O come, o come Emmanuel'. Someone in my preaching class the other day did suggest a set of themes to cover the season of Advent which would allow the use of 'O come, o come Emmanuel' on every Advent Sunday! My first pastorate, beware, we will be doing this and I will be playing the trumpet! (Why not, I'll be the minister... I can do what I want... can't I?)
So Advent, that waiting place, that time to prepare and to look forward. A time we sometimes miss because we're too busy with Christmas. Well, this year, things are going to be different. I may be singing Christmas carols in November and going to Christmas dinners in early December, but this year I'm not going to forget Advent and the place of limbo it puts us in and the longing for Christ's coming (again).
Therefore, theme tune for 1st to 24th December: "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel"
Ooooh... Advent... Christmas...
Now I know Christmas seems to get earlier and earlier every year in the shops, but it also arrives very quickly when you study at a University that has very short terms. I have this term joined a choir (yipee, at last I am no longer just singing in the bath), and what do you have to do at the end of Michaelmas term? Well sing carols at a concert or in the streets of Cambridge (or both). And because I have starting singing Christmas carols, I thought that gave me a good enough reason for starting to practice Christmas carols on the trumpet as well. Ok, most probably won't be playing in public this year, but you never know, so it is worth being prepared!
This of course means if I start looking at Christmas carols, I also have to look at Advent carols (usually same chapter in the hymnbook anyway). After all Advent does come before Christmas: a point that sometimes gets forgotten. And as I have to lead worship over Advent, no bad thing getting the tunes into my head now. I do, however, have a favourite Advent carol: 'O come, o come Emmanuel'. Someone in my preaching class the other day did suggest a set of themes to cover the season of Advent which would allow the use of 'O come, o come Emmanuel' on every Advent Sunday! My first pastorate, beware, we will be doing this and I will be playing the trumpet! (Why not, I'll be the minister... I can do what I want... can't I?)
So Advent, that waiting place, that time to prepare and to look forward. A time we sometimes miss because we're too busy with Christmas. Well, this year, things are going to be different. I may be singing Christmas carols in November and going to Christmas dinners in early December, but this year I'm not going to forget Advent and the place of limbo it puts us in and the longing for Christ's coming (again).
Therefore, theme tune for 1st to 24th December: "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel"
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
What is the priority?
As this term progresses, weeks seems to be getting shorter and shorter whilst the 'to-do-list' gets longer and longer. So when I sat down to plan my morning prayers, that I had lead this morning, at the end of last week, picking up a bit of liturgy I had sat on my computer would have been the sensibly and less complicated thing to do. However, why make life easy for myself, starting with a blank piece of paper is so much more fun!
Not that I was actually starting with a blank piece of paper per se, because as I have found the busyness of term taking over life and seen others beginning to become swamped by work, the words 'cast your burdens upon Jesus, for he cares for you' have entered my head. They are of course Biblical (I am an ordinand after all), but not a direct scriptural quote. I think I possibly learnt them from a song (as that is where I seem to learn most of my almost scriptural quotes I ever remember). But what to do with that - well link it to an image of course!
Now this sounds all very simple, and actually it was, apart from the fact that I needed the image to be the size of 2A0. Surprisingly, I don't own a printer that prints that big, neither does the college - so 36 sheets of A4 and a role of sellotape later, my image appeared on the floor. This was excellent work (well almost), but it also consumed quite a lot of time. Time that I could have been using to read or write an essay, I spent on my knees in chapel sticking pieces of paper together. Do I have my priorities wrong?
As I have sat and reflected today I realise that I didn't have my priorities wrong. Yes, my essay of Righteousness is not going to write itself, but leading the Community of Westminster College in an act of worship, however short, is just as important. For this not just an academic community, it is also a worshipping community; something that is easily forgetting in the stresses and strains of academic life.
Besides which it part-fueled this evening's theological discussion in the pub! Result!!
Not that I was actually starting with a blank piece of paper per se, because as I have found the busyness of term taking over life and seen others beginning to become swamped by work, the words 'cast your burdens upon Jesus, for he cares for you' have entered my head. They are of course Biblical (I am an ordinand after all), but not a direct scriptural quote. I think I possibly learnt them from a song (as that is where I seem to learn most of my almost scriptural quotes I ever remember). But what to do with that - well link it to an image of course!
Now this sounds all very simple, and actually it was, apart from the fact that I needed the image to be the size of 2A0. Surprisingly, I don't own a printer that prints that big, neither does the college - so 36 sheets of A4 and a role of sellotape later, my image appeared on the floor. This was excellent work (well almost), but it also consumed quite a lot of time. Time that I could have been using to read or write an essay, I spent on my knees in chapel sticking pieces of paper together. Do I have my priorities wrong?
As I have sat and reflected today I realise that I didn't have my priorities wrong. Yes, my essay of Righteousness is not going to write itself, but leading the Community of Westminster College in an act of worship, however short, is just as important. For this not just an academic community, it is also a worshipping community; something that is easily forgetting in the stresses and strains of academic life.
Besides which it part-fueled this evening's theological discussion in the pub! Result!!
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
It's like being in a scene from "Mona Lisa Smile"...
I thought I'd take a break from reading and put my mind to more reflective use. Now, if I felt like being a real swot, I could of course get on with next week's homework for Pastoral Theology and start a narrative theological reflection on something or other. But since I have absolutely no idea what I'm meant to do and currently can't be doing with reading another slightly obscure text to try and work out what I'm suppose to be doing - I'll blog instead!
Now, as some of you out there know, I'm dyslexic. Which means, though I'm apparently a visual learner, reading is really not one of my strengths, and when I see page after page of words I get slightly disheartened and start wondering what's on telly. And of course in lectures, when we do get handouts or even the odd powerpoint, they are general pages and pages of words. This is why my first degree was in engineering - very few words and lots of pictures!
But this year, things have changed slightly - I've found a paper which involves pictures! To be precise it is all pictures (well there is talking from the lecturer too, but all the same there are no words on the screen). Being that the course is entitled 'Icons and Images', I suppose I shouldn't have been so surprised, all the same I did find it very amusing when in the first lecture the lecturer walked in to the class with a box of slides tucked under his arm.
I don't know how many of you have seen the Julia Roberts' film 'Mona Lisa Smile', but at that point this lecture started I was transport to a scene in the film where the Julia Roberts who is teaching art history to a group of girls is going through picture after picture, exploring what these pictures represent, what the artist is trying to get across to observer. I never thought I would every find myself in such a class, but every Tuesday afternoon this is now what I do - look at picture after picture, being taken on a journey through religious art and iconography, learning to see what the artist is trying to show me. I may not agree with some of the theological aspects of the art, and I definitely can't get my head around veneration of images and icons. But I'm being to appreciate how artists have tried to depict pictorially things that even the most esteemed theologians struggle to put into words.
So here's to images and icons - my picture-based theology paper, when I get two hours off from looking at words (bliss).
Now, as some of you out there know, I'm dyslexic. Which means, though I'm apparently a visual learner, reading is really not one of my strengths, and when I see page after page of words I get slightly disheartened and start wondering what's on telly. And of course in lectures, when we do get handouts or even the odd powerpoint, they are general pages and pages of words. This is why my first degree was in engineering - very few words and lots of pictures!
But this year, things have changed slightly - I've found a paper which involves pictures! To be precise it is all pictures (well there is talking from the lecturer too, but all the same there are no words on the screen). Being that the course is entitled 'Icons and Images', I suppose I shouldn't have been so surprised, all the same I did find it very amusing when in the first lecture the lecturer walked in to the class with a box of slides tucked under his arm.
I don't know how many of you have seen the Julia Roberts' film 'Mona Lisa Smile', but at that point this lecture started I was transport to a scene in the film where the Julia Roberts who is teaching art history to a group of girls is going through picture after picture, exploring what these pictures represent, what the artist is trying to get across to observer. I never thought I would every find myself in such a class, but every Tuesday afternoon this is now what I do - look at picture after picture, being taken on a journey through religious art and iconography, learning to see what the artist is trying to show me. I may not agree with some of the theological aspects of the art, and I definitely can't get my head around veneration of images and icons. But I'm being to appreciate how artists have tried to depict pictorially things that even the most esteemed theologians struggle to put into words.
So here's to images and icons - my picture-based theology paper, when I get two hours off from looking at words (bliss).
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Time to make a list...
Ok, now I really know term has started again. The grand idea of long mornings drinking coffee and slowly reading my way through Calvin, Barth, Winnie the Pooh (opps the secret is out) has gone, and now there is an ever growing list of class reading to do, seminars to prepare for and don't even mention the word 'supervision' - it makes me come out in a cold sweat! How did I ever manage to complete a degree in Engineering, when now with only 10 hours of lectures on my timetable I don't seem to know how I'm going to get everything done and in on time!
Ah yes, its the first week panic! And after a day like today, which seems to encapsulate approximately half of my teaching hours for the week, I really shouldn't try rational thinking. Rational thinking when tired becomes very irrational very quickly!
So it's time to make a list...
Ah yes, its the first week panic! And after a day like today, which seems to encapsulate approximately half of my teaching hours for the week, I really shouldn't try rational thinking. Rational thinking when tired becomes very irrational very quickly!
So it's time to make a list...
Now will someone please take the list away, it scares me!
Sunday, September 23, 2012
And life changes again...
Tomorrow I officially start my second year at Westminster... the summer is over and its time to get back to the books!
Where have the last three months gone?
It is quite strange to think that it has been three months since the college was full of students and I was living in a routine of chapel, lectures and supervisions; but then over the summer, apart from a couple of short breaks, I haven't left the college. And the college hasn't been quiet and deserted over that time, there has been a constant flow of people through the doors. We even managed to have a fire alarm at two in the morning! My daily routine may not have revolved around college-based activities, but I have still lived as part of the college community and I think most days I have found myself walking the college corridors.
So being 'back at college' is a misnomer for me or is it? Yesterday, I met someone in the college corridors and they said to me 'how does it feel to now be a second year?" and that was when it hit me... life is about to change again! I am going to be seen as someone who has some idea of how things work, know where things are and what it means to live as part of the college community.
Well, I don't I know how everything works and I definitely don't know where everything is (I'm still trying to learn where all the light switches are). As for living in the community, well maybe the best advice I have on that one is that nothing can ever be described as normal and things are forever changing.
So life is about to change again, but if I learnt anything last year, life is always changing. It's not always a walk in the park, but it's what makes us who we are. So bring it on, I'm ready (I think)!
Where have the last three months gone?
It is quite strange to think that it has been three months since the college was full of students and I was living in a routine of chapel, lectures and supervisions; but then over the summer, apart from a couple of short breaks, I haven't left the college. And the college hasn't been quiet and deserted over that time, there has been a constant flow of people through the doors. We even managed to have a fire alarm at two in the morning! My daily routine may not have revolved around college-based activities, but I have still lived as part of the college community and I think most days I have found myself walking the college corridors.
So being 'back at college' is a misnomer for me or is it? Yesterday, I met someone in the college corridors and they said to me 'how does it feel to now be a second year?" and that was when it hit me... life is about to change again! I am going to be seen as someone who has some idea of how things work, know where things are and what it means to live as part of the college community.
Well, I don't I know how everything works and I definitely don't know where everything is (I'm still trying to learn where all the light switches are). As for living in the community, well maybe the best advice I have on that one is that nothing can ever be described as normal and things are forever changing.
So life is about to change again, but if I learnt anything last year, life is always changing. It's not always a walk in the park, but it's what makes us who we are. So bring it on, I'm ready (I think)!
Sunday, September 9, 2012
In Flanders fields...
As I mentioned in my last post, I have just had the opportunity to spend a week in Belgium seeing the battlefields of Flanders - once wasted lands full of death, now green fields full of life.
Our base for the week was Talbot House in Poperinge; a house that was a place of relaxation, refreshment for both body and soul away from the front line during the first world war. It was run by Rev Philip 'Tubby' Clayton, a British Army Padre who was determined to provide a haven from the hell of the trenches. A house where everyone was welcome, rank and class did not matter. And almost 100 years on that is what the house still offers - a warm welcome, a place of refuge, a place to rest - though it is a museum with the public walking through it daily.
I have been left with many memories and reflections from my week - how conflict can scar a landscape and a people; how so many gave there lives for a vision of a future that the world has not yet realised; how even in the time of deepest despair there can be a glimmer of hope.
In the landscape of Flanders today it is sometimes difficult to see the devastation there was, but then all of sudden in the corner of a farmer's field would be a small cemetary of a dozen or so graves, or on the horizon a cemetary with hundreds of graves and wall after wall of names. Buildings may have been rebuilt, the land may again be farmland, but there are constant reminders of the devastation caused.
One of the images that will stay with me is the number of graves for unknown soldiers, soldiers who had no way of being identifed. On every grave of a soldier from one of the allied forces is the inscription 'known unto God', however on the German graves there is nothing, and in many German graves there is more than one soldier. I don't think I will ever forget reading the words 'Zwanzig Unbekannte Deutsche Soldaten' on numerous graves. But though there is no recognition on these graves that though they were not known to the people who buried them, they were known by God, they were. For though it is hard to see how God could have allowed so much death and destruction, God was on each battlefield with every soldier whether living or dying.
God was there and God is still there.
Our base for the week was Talbot House in Poperinge; a house that was a place of relaxation, refreshment for both body and soul away from the front line during the first world war. It was run by Rev Philip 'Tubby' Clayton, a British Army Padre who was determined to provide a haven from the hell of the trenches. A house where everyone was welcome, rank and class did not matter. And almost 100 years on that is what the house still offers - a warm welcome, a place of refuge, a place to rest - though it is a museum with the public walking through it daily.
I have been left with many memories and reflections from my week - how conflict can scar a landscape and a people; how so many gave there lives for a vision of a future that the world has not yet realised; how even in the time of deepest despair there can be a glimmer of hope.
In the landscape of Flanders today it is sometimes difficult to see the devastation there was, but then all of sudden in the corner of a farmer's field would be a small cemetary of a dozen or so graves, or on the horizon a cemetary with hundreds of graves and wall after wall of names. Buildings may have been rebuilt, the land may again be farmland, but there are constant reminders of the devastation caused.
One of the images that will stay with me is the number of graves for unknown soldiers, soldiers who had no way of being identifed. On every grave of a soldier from one of the allied forces is the inscription 'known unto God', however on the German graves there is nothing, and in many German graves there is more than one soldier. I don't think I will ever forget reading the words 'Zwanzig Unbekannte Deutsche Soldaten' on numerous graves. But though there is no recognition on these graves that though they were not known to the people who buried them, they were known by God, they were. For though it is hard to see how God could have allowed so much death and destruction, God was on each battlefield with every soldier whether living or dying.
God was there and God is still there.
Sunday, September 2, 2012
Church History... to study or not to study it?
As the weeks of the summer vacation quickly disappear, I seem to have embarked on a whistle stop historic tour. Last week I spent most of the week talking, or rather listening to numerous papers, about the church in England during the 17th century and tomorrow I head to Belgium and the Western Front to find out about what the Church was doing during the First World War.
But I'm training to minister in the world today, so why bother with what happened in the past?
Well, as was pointed out to us last week, Christianity is a religion rooted in history. The Bible is full of historic stories. The Church, its faith and mission, have been shaped by history. The Church today is the result of what happened in history.
And as I train for ministry in the United Reformed Church, I am training alongside others who are training to minister in the Anglican Church, the Methodist Church, the Catholic Church and the Greek Orthodox Church. There are of course theological differences between the denominations, but the only way to truly understand where these difference emerged is to look back in history. It is also a good place to start when trying to work out how we can work together.
1662, the year of the Book of Common Prayer or the year of the Great Ejectment - depends which denomination you are - but an important date for the church in England. However, what happened has, for most, been lost in time and as the church in England we have just been living with the consequences. But maybe its time to stop living with the consequences and start trying to understand what happened and how what seems on the surface to be a negative event can be something positive. So as denominations together we come to understand more about our differences and use this knowledge to allow us to work together for the glory of God in our neighbourhoods.
See Church History does that a point!
But I'm training to minister in the world today, so why bother with what happened in the past?
Well, as was pointed out to us last week, Christianity is a religion rooted in history. The Bible is full of historic stories. The Church, its faith and mission, have been shaped by history. The Church today is the result of what happened in history.
And as I train for ministry in the United Reformed Church, I am training alongside others who are training to minister in the Anglican Church, the Methodist Church, the Catholic Church and the Greek Orthodox Church. There are of course theological differences between the denominations, but the only way to truly understand where these difference emerged is to look back in history. It is also a good place to start when trying to work out how we can work together.
1662, the year of the Book of Common Prayer or the year of the Great Ejectment - depends which denomination you are - but an important date for the church in England. However, what happened has, for most, been lost in time and as the church in England we have just been living with the consequences. But maybe its time to stop living with the consequences and start trying to understand what happened and how what seems on the surface to be a negative event can be something positive. So as denominations together we come to understand more about our differences and use this knowledge to allow us to work together for the glory of God in our neighbourhoods.
See Church History does that a point!
Monday, August 27, 2012
And they danced...
Wow, it has been nearly a month since I last posted anything... really doesn't seem that long! But then it does seem like only yesterday that it was the end of term and these coming two weeks were months away! "Time flys when you're having fun" the saying goes!
Over the past two Sundays I have been doing a good impression of a travelling preacher... I've managed to travel from the very north (Newcastle upon Tyne) to almost the very south (Maidstone, well Bearsted to be more accurate). And I discovered that it was the church in the south that laughed at my jokes... not sure whether that proves southerners have a better sense of humour or that because I'm a southerner I only know how to tell jokes other southerners find funny!
Anyway... moving on...
Doing this bit of travelling around has meant that I have spent a little bit of time out and about in the places I have been visiting. Maidstone sits just at the bottom of the North Downs, a chalky band of hills that spans the county of Kent and is an important habitat for a wide variety of wildlife. Though I have spent many a holiday in and around these hills my knowledge is very limited, but luckierly for me I have an Aunt and Uncle who know the hills like the backs of their hands and know where all the good spots are for seeing rare insects, flowers etc. So after a hard morning in the pulpit on Sunday, we headed for the hills on not a bear hunt, but a butterfly hunt.
And what butterflies we found: Meadow Browns, Gatekeepers, Common Blues, Chalkhill Blues, a Small Tortiseshell, a Silver-spotted Skipper and Andonis Blues.
However, the thing that will stay with me from our walk is how when the sun came out from behind the clouds the hillside became alive. Everything would be still, butterflies hidden from sight, very little movement amongst the flowers, then the sun would come out and the butterflies would fly, then as the sun went once again behind a cloud, all would again become calm. It was like a musical swell being repeated over and over again... Amazing!
Over the past two Sundays I have been doing a good impression of a travelling preacher... I've managed to travel from the very north (Newcastle upon Tyne) to almost the very south (Maidstone, well Bearsted to be more accurate). And I discovered that it was the church in the south that laughed at my jokes... not sure whether that proves southerners have a better sense of humour or that because I'm a southerner I only know how to tell jokes other southerners find funny!
Anyway... moving on...
Doing this bit of travelling around has meant that I have spent a little bit of time out and about in the places I have been visiting. Maidstone sits just at the bottom of the North Downs, a chalky band of hills that spans the county of Kent and is an important habitat for a wide variety of wildlife. Though I have spent many a holiday in and around these hills my knowledge is very limited, but luckierly for me I have an Aunt and Uncle who know the hills like the backs of their hands and know where all the good spots are for seeing rare insects, flowers etc. So after a hard morning in the pulpit on Sunday, we headed for the hills on not a bear hunt, but a butterfly hunt.
And what butterflies we found: Meadow Browns, Gatekeepers, Common Blues, Chalkhill Blues, a Small Tortiseshell, a Silver-spotted Skipper and Andonis Blues.
However, the thing that will stay with me from our walk is how when the sun came out from behind the clouds the hillside became alive. Everything would be still, butterflies hidden from sight, very little movement amongst the flowers, then the sun would come out and the butterflies would fly, then as the sun went once again behind a cloud, all would again become calm. It was like a musical swell being repeated over and over again... Amazing!
Monday, July 30, 2012
This week's lesson...
Well, I have survived my month as a Student Minister and what a month it has been. A funeral, two weddings, meetings about new church signs, meetings about meetings, visiting the old, visiting the young, and a few acts of worship to top it off. I have been pushed to the edge of my comfort zone and beyond, but not without being told first!
After a year of academic study, it was really good to get out and get experience of what it really means to be in pastoral ministry. Standing in the pulpit occasionally is not the same as working a six day week where preparing Sunday's morning service, though an important part of the week, sometimes takes a backseat to everything else. This I think has been one of the most important things I will take away from this month, and today it dawn on me why. My supervisor was talking about how he has always considered pastoral work as being the things that needs to be got right if you want a church to come together. The one thing that most people need is to feel valued and that is one of the key purposes of pastoral work. And how true this is, if people feel like valued members of a community then they are more likely to work at being part of that community.
So as I put my feet up for a couple of weeks, here are a couple of other important things I have learnt over my month as the apprentice:
After a year of academic study, it was really good to get out and get experience of what it really means to be in pastoral ministry. Standing in the pulpit occasionally is not the same as working a six day week where preparing Sunday's morning service, though an important part of the week, sometimes takes a backseat to everything else. This I think has been one of the most important things I will take away from this month, and today it dawn on me why. My supervisor was talking about how he has always considered pastoral work as being the things that needs to be got right if you want a church to come together. The one thing that most people need is to feel valued and that is one of the key purposes of pastoral work. And how true this is, if people feel like valued members of a community then they are more likely to work at being part of that community.
So as I put my feet up for a couple of weeks, here are a couple of other important things I have learnt over my month as the apprentice:
- Always write in pencil in your diary
- A fountain pen is an essential piece of stationary
- Black coffee is drinkable
Monday, July 23, 2012
A shacking and a quivering...
This Sunday I had my first experience of preaching in a Cambridge church. Now, this isn't the first time I've preached and I'm always a little nervous; but this week...
But why? What made this congregation any different from all the other congregations I've stood in front of? Well, my College Principal was there, then there was a former College Principal, several other retired ministers, quite a few people with PhDs and the list goes on. The CVs of the congregation are impressive to say the least. But should people's qualifications really matter on a Sunday morning in the pews?
If I was presenting an academic paper I could understand why it matters. Not that I'm saying a sermon should not be well researched or be without academic rigor. But, a Sunday morning (or any other time in the week when God' people gather) is about worshipping God together; offering the events of the past week and the events of the coming week to God and exploring together God's message to us in the Bible. It is the place where everyone is equal, because we are all equal before God. And we are all human--though some may seem super-human at time.
All I have to do now is remember this the next time...
But why? What made this congregation any different from all the other congregations I've stood in front of? Well, my College Principal was there, then there was a former College Principal, several other retired ministers, quite a few people with PhDs and the list goes on. The CVs of the congregation are impressive to say the least. But should people's qualifications really matter on a Sunday morning in the pews?
If I was presenting an academic paper I could understand why it matters. Not that I'm saying a sermon should not be well researched or be without academic rigor. But, a Sunday morning (or any other time in the week when God' people gather) is about worshipping God together; offering the events of the past week and the events of the coming week to God and exploring together God's message to us in the Bible. It is the place where everyone is equal, because we are all equal before God. And we are all human--though some may seem super-human at time.
All I have to do now is remember this the next time...
Monday, July 16, 2012
What's the difference between a URC minister and an engineer?
Well if I was under any illusions of what life would be like as a minister in the United Reformed Church, I'm not any more! Two weeks into my month-long church placement and I've realised the value of that one day of the week I get off! Though days can be long and it can be hard to see when you will get time to actually prepare Sunday's morning worship, it does have its perks... for one thing you get to sit and drink coffee with people and call it work :o)
So now that I've seen what lies on the other side of my four years of training, do I want to put the theology books back on the shelves, wave 'goodbye' to my library desk and return to the piles of medical journal articles and further ponderings on how to cool the kidney?
This weekend I was very much reminded of my old day job and what use to get me excited (and if I'm honest, still does a little). And yes to design something again, see it built and then being used to make a difference would be amazing, but that isn't the only thing engineering is about and was only a very, very, very small part of what I did. Learning about new technology, understanding how, if at all, it could make a difference to patient care, was a lot of what I did. But is being a Minister of Word and Sacrament very different to that? Ok, maybe I'm not reading articles on the latest methods for measuring levels of B-type natriuretic peptides, but I do have to read about and interpret what God was saying to Amos in the vision of the plumb-line and then communicate what I've found out to others. Requires the same skills, there are just fewer pretty tables involved!
So apart from the reading material, life really hasn't changed much. I still sit through endless meetings, try to read my way through piles of books and even consider the pros and cons of purchasing a defibrillator!
So now that I've seen what lies on the other side of my four years of training, do I want to put the theology books back on the shelves, wave 'goodbye' to my library desk and return to the piles of medical journal articles and further ponderings on how to cool the kidney?
This weekend I was very much reminded of my old day job and what use to get me excited (and if I'm honest, still does a little). And yes to design something again, see it built and then being used to make a difference would be amazing, but that isn't the only thing engineering is about and was only a very, very, very small part of what I did. Learning about new technology, understanding how, if at all, it could make a difference to patient care, was a lot of what I did. But is being a Minister of Word and Sacrament very different to that? Ok, maybe I'm not reading articles on the latest methods for measuring levels of B-type natriuretic peptides, but I do have to read about and interpret what God was saying to Amos in the vision of the plumb-line and then communicate what I've found out to others. Requires the same skills, there are just fewer pretty tables involved!
So apart from the reading material, life really hasn't changed much. I still sit through endless meetings, try to read my way through piles of books and even consider the pros and cons of purchasing a defibrillator!
Saturday, July 7, 2012
A long road trip for a very good reason...
So I've completed an academic year of study, but of course this is not the only education an ordinand needs if they are actually going to minister effectively in the Church. And though I am training to be a Minister of Word and Sacrament, leading worship on a Sunday morning is not the only thing I will have to do, as I have discovered this week. In fact, finding time to prepare worship for a Sunday morning will be a challenged!
Though as a first year, it is not a requirement for me to undertake a placement this summer, I thought that this might be a good use of some of my summer vacation. Yes, I know some of you are now saying "what a swot" and maybe I am, but would you have me any other way! However, there is a specific aim to my placement - pastoral encounters - which has led me not just to be a shadow to my supervising minister over the past week and for the coming weeks, but to also spending time reflecting on what relation things have to being a pastor, as well as going a long road trip.
As I sit blogging, in another window I have the live stream from the United Reformed Church General Assembly running. Ok, maybe I should find something else to do with my Saturday afternoon, but there is a point to this. As part of my consideration of pastoral encounters, my Supervisor and I felt that though we were not to be members of General Assembly this year, it was actually very important to be there, if only for a short time. Therefore, I found myself in Scarborough for a day, and now find myself listening to the live stream.
As a denomination, the URC is trying to look towards a future that 40 years ago it didn't think it would be facing. It is a church of diversity, which we celebrate, but also one which seeks to be uniting, if not united. However, there are some issues that are difficult to discuss and discern the right way forward. But as a gathering a Christians we have a common mission (as we were reminded by the new moderator Michael Jagessar in his address to General Assembly) - sharing the good news of God's of full life (salvation) for all. And in what we do and say we are not alone, because God is there in the midsts.
Though as a first year, it is not a requirement for me to undertake a placement this summer, I thought that this might be a good use of some of my summer vacation. Yes, I know some of you are now saying "what a swot" and maybe I am, but would you have me any other way! However, there is a specific aim to my placement - pastoral encounters - which has led me not just to be a shadow to my supervising minister over the past week and for the coming weeks, but to also spending time reflecting on what relation things have to being a pastor, as well as going a long road trip.
As I sit blogging, in another window I have the live stream from the United Reformed Church General Assembly running. Ok, maybe I should find something else to do with my Saturday afternoon, but there is a point to this. As part of my consideration of pastoral encounters, my Supervisor and I felt that though we were not to be members of General Assembly this year, it was actually very important to be there, if only for a short time. Therefore, I found myself in Scarborough for a day, and now find myself listening to the live stream.
As a denomination, the URC is trying to look towards a future that 40 years ago it didn't think it would be facing. It is a church of diversity, which we celebrate, but also one which seeks to be uniting, if not united. However, there are some issues that are difficult to discuss and discern the right way forward. But as a gathering a Christians we have a common mission (as we were reminded by the new moderator Michael Jagessar in his address to General Assembly) - sharing the good news of God's of full life (salvation) for all. And in what we do and say we are not alone, because God is there in the midsts.
Friday, June 22, 2012
Looking for answers from the great beyond...
Well having spent the week exploring Spirituality in the Reform tradition, I conclude that I am no more reformed or spiritual than when I started! But then was that the object of the week?
As I sit writing I have REM playing on my stereo and the words "looking for answers from the great beyond" have just been sung and I wonder whether this was some of what I expected from the week. I have heard the words 'spirituality' and 'reformed' on a weekly if not daily basis over the past few months, which has been left thinking "ok, but what do we actually mean?" And now after spending a week dedicated to the discussion of these terms I'm still thinking "ok, but what do we actually mean?"
(Productive use of time!)
That is possibly a harsh analysis of the week. Maybe I didn't get someone giving me simple set of definitions, but then spirituality has many different levels as does being reformed. But I have come to understand a bit more about what it means for me in the context I find myself.
I live in communion and this has many different levels and connections. There is the community of Westminster College where I phyiscally live, a constantly changing community dependent on the hour of the day, the day of week and the day of the year. There is the community of the church: where I worship on Sunday; the denomination for which I am training to be a Minister within; the body of Christ. There is my family and my friends. And there is my communion with God. All these inform how I live a life in the Spirit, i.e. my spirituality, and they also require a 'we' rather than an 'I' outlook, which is partly what it means to be reformed!
So this week I didn't need to become more reformed or spiritual, I just needed to learn what it means to live spiritually in the reformed tradition. Now my job is to apply what I've learnt, remembering I'm a 'We' not just an 'I', because wherever I am, so is God.
As I sit writing I have REM playing on my stereo and the words "looking for answers from the great beyond" have just been sung and I wonder whether this was some of what I expected from the week. I have heard the words 'spirituality' and 'reformed' on a weekly if not daily basis over the past few months, which has been left thinking "ok, but what do we actually mean?" And now after spending a week dedicated to the discussion of these terms I'm still thinking "ok, but what do we actually mean?"
(Productive use of time!)
That is possibly a harsh analysis of the week. Maybe I didn't get someone giving me simple set of definitions, but then spirituality has many different levels as does being reformed. But I have come to understand a bit more about what it means for me in the context I find myself.
I live in communion and this has many different levels and connections. There is the community of Westminster College where I phyiscally live, a constantly changing community dependent on the hour of the day, the day of week and the day of the year. There is the community of the church: where I worship on Sunday; the denomination for which I am training to be a Minister within; the body of Christ. There is my family and my friends. And there is my communion with God. All these inform how I live a life in the Spirit, i.e. my spirituality, and they also require a 'we' rather than an 'I' outlook, which is partly what it means to be reformed!
So this week I didn't need to become more reformed or spiritual, I just needed to learn what it means to live spiritually in the reformed tradition. Now my job is to apply what I've learnt, remembering I'm a 'We' not just an 'I', because wherever I am, so is God.
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Seeing a bigger picture
Well it has taken most of the week to think of something to blog about, but today I have been inspired!
I have done a couple of things this week, which have lead me to reflect again on how the world perceives Christians. First, I read a book! Now I know I'm meant to read books, but this is a book I sat and read from cover to cover in the space of about a day, which really is an achievement for me. The book was entitled 'The Auschwitz Violin', which was a novel, not a textbook, and it's subject as you can most probably guess was the Holocaust. I don't want to give too much away, just incase people want to read it (I do recommend it), but in one of the opening chapters, the main character emphases that the religion of the SS officers was Christianity.
Secondly, I visited the Imperial War Museum. This is a museum that I have wanted to go to for a long time, but never actually got to till this week, when I dragged a friend along under the pretense that we need to do some research in preparation for our trip to Flanders in early September. But as well as visiting the trenches, we also took a look around the Holocaust exhibition. And here the roots of antisemitism were clearly stated to be within the Church. But interestingly, though it stated this fact, it then said that this wasn't the root of the racial hatred under Hitler.
Now, I'm not denying that Christians over the centuries have mis-treated Jews. But how easy it is to make throw away statements, because of knowing a little history?
About five years ago now I visited Israel and Palestine and one of things I went to see was the Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem. This is a huge exhibition dedicated to the Holocaust. It was amazing in the fact that it really expressed the pain that was felt by Israel and the Jewish people, but it also spelt out who they blamed. Yes, they blamed Hilter and the Nazis, but they also blamed the Church.
Did the Church speak out against Hilter's ghettos and concentration camps? Well if you were a German Christian and you did, you ended up there yourself. Were there SS officers who saw themselves as Christian? Possibly. Did history repeat itself in the Holocaust? Not really, the Church has got it wrong in the past over its relationship with the Jewish nation, but my impression is that Hilter perspective was very different.
The Holocaust was an event in history that caused the end of millions of lives, both Jew and Gentile. It needs to remembered, but also considered with respect the point it history it happened as well as the history that happened before. The whole picture needs to be considered not just bits.
And there is a defining point that both sides of the Christian-Jewish debate must remember:
Jesus was a Jew, and he died a Jew.
I have done a couple of things this week, which have lead me to reflect again on how the world perceives Christians. First, I read a book! Now I know I'm meant to read books, but this is a book I sat and read from cover to cover in the space of about a day, which really is an achievement for me. The book was entitled 'The Auschwitz Violin', which was a novel, not a textbook, and it's subject as you can most probably guess was the Holocaust. I don't want to give too much away, just incase people want to read it (I do recommend it), but in one of the opening chapters, the main character emphases that the religion of the SS officers was Christianity.
Secondly, I visited the Imperial War Museum. This is a museum that I have wanted to go to for a long time, but never actually got to till this week, when I dragged a friend along under the pretense that we need to do some research in preparation for our trip to Flanders in early September. But as well as visiting the trenches, we also took a look around the Holocaust exhibition. And here the roots of antisemitism were clearly stated to be within the Church. But interestingly, though it stated this fact, it then said that this wasn't the root of the racial hatred under Hitler.
Now, I'm not denying that Christians over the centuries have mis-treated Jews. But how easy it is to make throw away statements, because of knowing a little history?
About five years ago now I visited Israel and Palestine and one of things I went to see was the Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem. This is a huge exhibition dedicated to the Holocaust. It was amazing in the fact that it really expressed the pain that was felt by Israel and the Jewish people, but it also spelt out who they blamed. Yes, they blamed Hilter and the Nazis, but they also blamed the Church.
Did the Church speak out against Hilter's ghettos and concentration camps? Well if you were a German Christian and you did, you ended up there yourself. Were there SS officers who saw themselves as Christian? Possibly. Did history repeat itself in the Holocaust? Not really, the Church has got it wrong in the past over its relationship with the Jewish nation, but my impression is that Hilter perspective was very different.
The Holocaust was an event in history that caused the end of millions of lives, both Jew and Gentile. It needs to remembered, but also considered with respect the point it history it happened as well as the history that happened before. The whole picture needs to be considered not just bits.
And there is a defining point that both sides of the Christian-Jewish debate must remember:
Jesus was a Jew, and he died a Jew.
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Phew...
Well, though I hate exams, I have now completed them! Five in four days, which has left me a little brain dead and with a Repitive Strain Injury! LOL! But they are done and I even impressed myself with some of my answers. Whether they impressed my markers I will find out in two weeks.
So here ends my first academic year at Theological College... gulp! Where have the last eight months gone? It may have gone quickly, but I can now translate New Testament Greek (well at least what is in John 1-5) into some form of English, very often with a Yoda-accent. I've discovered an interest in Church History and that Christian Doctrine is as hard to get your head round as Physics - though there are fewer equations and some of the theorems are even more of a stab in the dark! And then there is the Bible, the centre point of all that is Reformed, and where I have discovered many new, exciting and important things.
It has been a tough eight months on a number of levels, and yes some days I wish I could be back trawling through papers on advancments in some aspect of medical technology or seeing if I can improve the cooling efficiency of my kidney cooling device, but it never last long. It has been tough, it will continue to be tough, but I am home.
So here ends my first academic year at Theological College... gulp! Where have the last eight months gone? It may have gone quickly, but I can now translate New Testament Greek (well at least what is in John 1-5) into some form of English, very often with a Yoda-accent. I've discovered an interest in Church History and that Christian Doctrine is as hard to get your head round as Physics - though there are fewer equations and some of the theorems are even more of a stab in the dark! And then there is the Bible, the centre point of all that is Reformed, and where I have discovered many new, exciting and important things.
It has been a tough eight months on a number of levels, and yes some days I wish I could be back trawling through papers on advancments in some aspect of medical technology or seeing if I can improve the cooling efficiency of my kidney cooling device, but it never last long. It has been tough, it will continue to be tough, but I am home.
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Don't Panic...
Exam preparation time has arrived... in 10 days time I sit my first theology exams!
Now I am no stranger to exams. Since starting my A-levels nearly 14 years ago, very few of those years have not involved me sitting an exam of some sort or other. This might make you think that I am an expert at exams, have a honed set exam preparation skills and that I even like exams. Well I can safely say, 'I don't' on all counts, and why at two in the morning, when I should be getting a good night's sleep, I'm blogging!
I hate exams! Why academic institutions or even professional institutions think they are a good way of assessment, I am at a loss. Maybe they want to see if we can handle the pressure, that we can think on our feet or even that they are character building. Maybe they are, but it doesn't stop the feeling of impending doom! And however much I am told 'that you'll be fine', 'you've done the work', 'you've nothing to worry about', I still find myself sitting and starring at pages of notes going 'what?'! And there is the recurring nightmare that I walk in to the exam room, sit down at the desk, turn the paper over and 'I know nothing'!
But all I need to do is remember the words the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy so helpfully has on its front cover 'DON'T PANIC'. I must keep calm, have plenty of rest, drink plenty of water, eat fish - for tomorrow all will be well!
Still hate exams though!
Now I am no stranger to exams. Since starting my A-levels nearly 14 years ago, very few of those years have not involved me sitting an exam of some sort or other. This might make you think that I am an expert at exams, have a honed set exam preparation skills and that I even like exams. Well I can safely say, 'I don't' on all counts, and why at two in the morning, when I should be getting a good night's sleep, I'm blogging!
I hate exams! Why academic institutions or even professional institutions think they are a good way of assessment, I am at a loss. Maybe they want to see if we can handle the pressure, that we can think on our feet or even that they are character building. Maybe they are, but it doesn't stop the feeling of impending doom! And however much I am told 'that you'll be fine', 'you've done the work', 'you've nothing to worry about', I still find myself sitting and starring at pages of notes going 'what?'! And there is the recurring nightmare that I walk in to the exam room, sit down at the desk, turn the paper over and 'I know nothing'!
But all I need to do is remember the words the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy so helpfully has on its front cover 'DON'T PANIC'. I must keep calm, have plenty of rest, drink plenty of water, eat fish - for tomorrow all will be well!
Still hate exams though!
Friday, May 4, 2012
What was that you said?
I'm not renowned for my memory skills and this week I have had to result to writing notes to myself to remind myself to turn the hot water on if I don't want a cold bath! And if I'm honest, I can easily sit in Church on a Sunday morning, listen intently to the sermon and then two minutes later have no idea what was said, just that I quite liked it!
So this morning as I sat in chapel, enjoying prays, thinking to myself 'I really need to remember these', I didn't recollect that actually these were the prayers we said last Friday morning! D'oh!
This, however, links quite nicely with a conversation that was had in the pub last night, when one of my fellow students was recounting how in a ten-week placement he preached the same sermon at the beginning and end of the placement and none of the congregation had a clue. At this he thought he could conclude that actually nobody was listening and so why bother. But then when he pointed this out to the congregation, one of its members stood up and said "maybe we don't need to remember, the words were just meant for that point in time and they touched that moment".
Words might not always get remembered, but they can touch deeper parts of our souls. Sometimes we just need to hear words once, sometimes we need them repeated.
Obviously, sometimes we need to remember words, e.g. for exams. But it's nice to know that we don't have to always.
So this morning as I sat in chapel, enjoying prays, thinking to myself 'I really need to remember these', I didn't recollect that actually these were the prayers we said last Friday morning! D'oh!
This, however, links quite nicely with a conversation that was had in the pub last night, when one of my fellow students was recounting how in a ten-week placement he preached the same sermon at the beginning and end of the placement and none of the congregation had a clue. At this he thought he could conclude that actually nobody was listening and so why bother. But then when he pointed this out to the congregation, one of its members stood up and said "maybe we don't need to remember, the words were just meant for that point in time and they touched that moment".
Words might not always get remembered, but they can touch deeper parts of our souls. Sometimes we just need to hear words once, sometimes we need them repeated.
Obviously, sometimes we need to remember words, e.g. for exams. But it's nice to know that we don't have to always.
Thursday, April 26, 2012
A bizarre birthday...
As the sun comes up in Cambridge, I can do no more than sit and reflect on my experiences of yesterday which went in to making up one of the most bizarre birthdays ever. It may not have been so unreal if I had had only my first assessed service and Greek, things you may expect for it being a college day, but then there was everything else!
Starting with my assessed service--it was nice to have my tutor say that it is one of the most nerve-racking preaching engagements, bar Federation Worship (luckily I will never have to lead one of those). Spending the whole week quaking has really not been healthy! But it was a really humbling experience and I think I am still in shock over the comments I recieved. Standing up at the front of chapel was a definite 'in God's strength, not mine' moment, but that is what is should be, otherwise I really am doing the wrong thing! Though sometimes I still wonder 'how did I get here' as I stand at the front leading worship, it is an honour to be able to lead people in something that lets them draw close to God and worship His amazing goodness.
To the rest of the day, I'm just lost for words. It was one with as many ups and downs in it as I think I've experienced in the first two terms! Maybe it all has to do with the joys of community living, or the fact that some of us have essays due in 11 days. To be trying to participate and even chair meetings, when you've been spending every waking moment in front of a computer writing and every other moment worrying about how many words you still have to go, is possibly a little foolish - but then we are part of the Church and we do sometimes have some very silly ideas! Unfortunately, things do go wrong at times and get messy, that's life. There are some days, though, I wish it didn't have to happen to me on such a regular basis!
Starting with my assessed service--it was nice to have my tutor say that it is one of the most nerve-racking preaching engagements, bar Federation Worship (luckily I will never have to lead one of those). Spending the whole week quaking has really not been healthy! But it was a really humbling experience and I think I am still in shock over the comments I recieved. Standing up at the front of chapel was a definite 'in God's strength, not mine' moment, but that is what is should be, otherwise I really am doing the wrong thing! Though sometimes I still wonder 'how did I get here' as I stand at the front leading worship, it is an honour to be able to lead people in something that lets them draw close to God and worship His amazing goodness.
To the rest of the day, I'm just lost for words. It was one with as many ups and downs in it as I think I've experienced in the first two terms! Maybe it all has to do with the joys of community living, or the fact that some of us have essays due in 11 days. To be trying to participate and even chair meetings, when you've been spending every waking moment in front of a computer writing and every other moment worrying about how many words you still have to go, is possibly a little foolish - but then we are part of the Church and we do sometimes have some very silly ideas! Unfortunately, things do go wrong at times and get messy, that's life. There are some days, though, I wish it didn't have to happen to me on such a regular basis!
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Where is home?
So after a week in the garden of England, I'm back in the academic world... oh how I've missed the library!
It has been a bit of a strange week, for it has been very possible my last week as Maidstone being 'home'! Ok, I know that I haven't ever lived in Maidstone for more than a few months, but it has been home, even when I had my own house in Newcastle. Not to say that the other places I have lived since I was 18 haven't also been home, but there has been something about Maidstone. Maybe it has been because that has been where my parents lived, or maybe, even though my parents have only lived there since I was 18, it has always been a place that has been a big part of my life, as it was where my grandparents lived, as well as other members of my extended family. So this raises the question... what makes a place some where we can call 'home'?
Is home where our family is? Is it the place where we live? Is there a combination of things that makes a place a home? So as I sit in my flat in Cambridge, with my parents moving to the other side of the country, I wonder where home is now? Watch this space...
It has been a bit of a strange week, for it has been very possible my last week as Maidstone being 'home'! Ok, I know that I haven't ever lived in Maidstone for more than a few months, but it has been home, even when I had my own house in Newcastle. Not to say that the other places I have lived since I was 18 haven't also been home, but there has been something about Maidstone. Maybe it has been because that has been where my parents lived, or maybe, even though my parents have only lived there since I was 18, it has always been a place that has been a big part of my life, as it was where my grandparents lived, as well as other members of my extended family. So this raises the question... what makes a place some where we can call 'home'?
Is home where our family is? Is it the place where we live? Is there a combination of things that makes a place a home? So as I sit in my flat in Cambridge, with my parents moving to the other side of the country, I wonder where home is now? Watch this space...
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Another fine mess I've got myself into!
Another week gone, the vacation quickly slipping away and back to the village chapel to preach! Now I know I'm not a Methodist (well, not any longer anyway), but I do like going to the village chapel. I have been going there since about the age of three, so now standing up at the front leading worship is almost as bad as having to stand up and lead worship at college! But as a place to lead worship it is fantastic! It is your traditional Methodist chapel, they'll sing anything and with great gusto! I wish some of our URCs were a bit more like that.
The gospel reading in the lectionary for today was doubting Thomas and how we have to believe without seeing or touching the tangible. Some thing that is easy to say, but to actually do is so much more difficult. It more easy to go into a doubting Thomas mode, than catching hold of faith and taking the next step forward. But this is the challenge for those of us that stand up at the front on a Sunday, we have to take the Word of God and turn it into something tangible - something that our congregations can reach out and take hold of, so that they can believe! A very scary challenge, and one that comes with great responsibility. Oh my... what have I got myself into?!
The gospel reading in the lectionary for today was doubting Thomas and how we have to believe without seeing or touching the tangible. Some thing that is easy to say, but to actually do is so much more difficult. It more easy to go into a doubting Thomas mode, than catching hold of faith and taking the next step forward. But this is the challenge for those of us that stand up at the front on a Sunday, we have to take the Word of God and turn it into something tangible - something that our congregations can reach out and take hold of, so that they can believe! A very scary challenge, and one that comes with great responsibility. Oh my... what have I got myself into?!
Friday, April 6, 2012
Waiting in disorientation...
So here we are at Easter...we've sat in the upper room and shared a meal, we've heard Jesus' despair in the garden, seen him betrayed and arrested and now we stand looking at him hanging on the cross. But what next? Will anything happen next?
Ok, Easter Sunday happened and there is the empty tomb, but when it all happened the disciples didn't know about Sunday, they didn't know about Ascension or Pentecost. All they knew was that Jesus was dead!
Lucky me has two services to lead (one being my first assessed service at College) shortly after Easter and both my scriptural texts are about the disciples waiting and feeling disorientated, not really sure what the last few years have been about and what to do next. So I have been thinking about this 'waiting in disorientation'. On the Saturday, the disciples sat and waited, on the days following Easter Sunday, the disciples sat and waited. Waiting for something to happen, their world had been blown to pieces and they needed some idea on how to put it back together, to move forward from the events that they had just witnessed. And so Brueggemann's 'orientation-disorientation-reorientation' principle is as applicable to Eastertide, as it is to the Psalms, as it is to events that many of us face in life. How many times do we go through this process, I know I have: candidating for ministry and arriving here, good recent example!
And so I sit and wait for what will happen next, hoping that its reorientation rather than further disorientation!
Ok, Easter Sunday happened and there is the empty tomb, but when it all happened the disciples didn't know about Sunday, they didn't know about Ascension or Pentecost. All they knew was that Jesus was dead!
Lucky me has two services to lead (one being my first assessed service at College) shortly after Easter and both my scriptural texts are about the disciples waiting and feeling disorientated, not really sure what the last few years have been about and what to do next. So I have been thinking about this 'waiting in disorientation'. On the Saturday, the disciples sat and waited, on the days following Easter Sunday, the disciples sat and waited. Waiting for something to happen, their world had been blown to pieces and they needed some idea on how to put it back together, to move forward from the events that they had just witnessed. And so Brueggemann's 'orientation-disorientation-reorientation' principle is as applicable to Eastertide, as it is to the Psalms, as it is to events that many of us face in life. How many times do we go through this process, I know I have: candidating for ministry and arriving here, good recent example!
And so I sit and wait for what will happen next, hoping that its reorientation rather than further disorientation!
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Not quite an audience with Bach...
So here finishes the second week of the vacation; another week of reading and essay writing. But I haven't been chained to a desk all week... and I haven't just been to Starbucks for a change of scene!
Cambridge being a very cultured city, with most of the railings covered with adverts for concert after concert, it was about time I actually experienced some of this culture. So to the Cambridge Corn Exchange I went with my oldest brother, to see The Waterboys. Ok, maybe they don't fit with most of concerts advertised on the railings, it definitely wasn't St Matthew's Passion by Bach, but it was definitely cultural; I now know some Yeats for starters!
However, whilst rocking in the 'mosh pit' I did realised how obscure some of the music is I listen too. As there standing around me were people who were not just old like my brother (who is 11 years older than me), but much old than him. Though Mike Scott (lead singer of the Waterboys) did tell us that the first time he played the Corn Exchange was in 1980, a whole year before I was born!
Does it really matter that my CD collection is heavily weighted towards bands and singers who were maybe not even main stream in the 80's - most probably not because it doesn't mean that I can't appreciate a bit of Bach.
Cambridge being a very cultured city, with most of the railings covered with adverts for concert after concert, it was about time I actually experienced some of this culture. So to the Cambridge Corn Exchange I went with my oldest brother, to see The Waterboys. Ok, maybe they don't fit with most of concerts advertised on the railings, it definitely wasn't St Matthew's Passion by Bach, but it was definitely cultural; I now know some Yeats for starters!
However, whilst rocking in the 'mosh pit' I did realised how obscure some of the music is I listen too. As there standing around me were people who were not just old like my brother (who is 11 years older than me), but much old than him. Though Mike Scott (lead singer of the Waterboys) did tell us that the first time he played the Corn Exchange was in 1980, a whole year before I was born!
Does it really matter that my CD collection is heavily weighted towards bands and singers who were maybe not even main stream in the 80's - most probably not because it doesn't mean that I can't appreciate a bit of Bach.
Friday, March 23, 2012
The Church... really?
I may have been on 'holiday' for a week, but apart from Starbucks, I've not been anywhere but the library, which has been a mightily busy place. Anyone would think that some of us had essays due when the vacation is over!
My focus this week has been ecclesiology and christology: in what sense can the Church be said to be the body of Christ. Now, if I was writing a New Testament essay I may not still be sat here wondering what I'm trying to say, but this a doctrine essay... a very different beast! But here is a scriptual description of Church, one I've heard numerous times and know Paul is talking about unity in his letters. But then you look at the Church and see the schisms, the numerous denominations and stand-alone churches, the arguements within the different groups and I have to wonder how we can still describe ourselves as the 'body of Christ' or whether we actually ever listen to what we preach!
However, there is more to being the 'body of Christ' than just unity and why it is still a valid description of the Church and we are only human, so we're not going to get it right all the time. All we can do is keep praying and you never know we might eventually work out that we can be diverse and united!
So all I need to do now is turn this short theological reflection in to a 3000 word Christian Doctrine essay! Greek translation is looking like an easier option...
My focus this week has been ecclesiology and christology: in what sense can the Church be said to be the body of Christ. Now, if I was writing a New Testament essay I may not still be sat here wondering what I'm trying to say, but this a doctrine essay... a very different beast! But here is a scriptual description of Church, one I've heard numerous times and know Paul is talking about unity in his letters. But then you look at the Church and see the schisms, the numerous denominations and stand-alone churches, the arguements within the different groups and I have to wonder how we can still describe ourselves as the 'body of Christ' or whether we actually ever listen to what we preach!
However, there is more to being the 'body of Christ' than just unity and why it is still a valid description of the Church and we are only human, so we're not going to get it right all the time. All we can do is keep praying and you never know we might eventually work out that we can be diverse and united!
So all I need to do now is turn this short theological reflection in to a 3000 word Christian Doctrine essay! Greek translation is looking like an easier option...
Friday, March 16, 2012
New routine starts tomorrow...
The end of term is here. We've had the end of term formal dinner, final communion, those that are leaving the college for the vacation are packing up their belongs and filling they're cars. Life the next five weeks will be very different from the last eight!
However, though I may not have lectures, it is not time to sit back and put my feet up (unfortunately). There are two 3,000 word essays to get written, five chapters of John to attempt to translate and two acts of worship to prepare! Plenty to keep me out of trouble and encamped in the library.
BUT life will be different, there is another new routine to get my head round. The faces that I see everyday won't mostly be here, but other new faces will appear. No chapel every morning. I have to remember not just to go and eat, but that I have to cook what I'm going to eat! By week 5 of the vacation I will have just about got my head round the change, when it will all change again! If I have learnt anything over the past two terms, there is not a normal rhythm to life at Westminster! Sometimes this can be a real challenge, but other times a real blessing.
Ministry is a vocation and it's not just about being sat at my desk from 8-12 writing sermons and then visiting my congregations from 1-4, it is about my whole life, about who I am. Every day will potentially be different, filled with challenge and blessing. This both excites me and scares me, but that is why I am here, living in this community and being prepared for what is outside the safety of these four walls.
However, though I may not have lectures, it is not time to sit back and put my feet up (unfortunately). There are two 3,000 word essays to get written, five chapters of John to attempt to translate and two acts of worship to prepare! Plenty to keep me out of trouble and encamped in the library.
BUT life will be different, there is another new routine to get my head round. The faces that I see everyday won't mostly be here, but other new faces will appear. No chapel every morning. I have to remember not just to go and eat, but that I have to cook what I'm going to eat! By week 5 of the vacation I will have just about got my head round the change, when it will all change again! If I have learnt anything over the past two terms, there is not a normal rhythm to life at Westminster! Sometimes this can be a real challenge, but other times a real blessing.
Ministry is a vocation and it's not just about being sat at my desk from 8-12 writing sermons and then visiting my congregations from 1-4, it is about my whole life, about who I am. Every day will potentially be different, filled with challenge and blessing. This both excites me and scares me, but that is why I am here, living in this community and being prepared for what is outside the safety of these four walls.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
And so the end is near...
Week 8 of the Lent term... in six days time I will have finished my second term in Cambridge! Gulp! And I'm able to sit down and write my blog on a Thursday evening! I'm a little worried that I've forgotten to do something or missed something vitally important, but a part from the Greek (which I'm avoiding), most of my work is done for the end of term! How did that happen?
The second term was no less mad than the first term, possibly even madder! We may have had fewer hours in lectures, but my days have seemed to have been even fuller. The rollercoaster ride has just happened all over again. What am I do? Who every thought this was a good idea? Why did I ever agree to this?!
But though it has been another rollercoaster ride (and I hate rollercoasters), it has been great. I may sit any wonder what people are going on about at times and sometimes things just go in one ear and out of the other. But the challenges I have faced, the things I have learnt, have not only taught me more about theology, but also about who I am and most importantly about my relationship with God.
So bring on the Easter term... my assessed service... my five exams... and my two essays!
The second term was no less mad than the first term, possibly even madder! We may have had fewer hours in lectures, but my days have seemed to have been even fuller. The rollercoaster ride has just happened all over again. What am I do? Who every thought this was a good idea? Why did I ever agree to this?!
But though it has been another rollercoaster ride (and I hate rollercoasters), it has been great. I may sit any wonder what people are going on about at times and sometimes things just go in one ear and out of the other. But the challenges I have faced, the things I have learnt, have not only taught me more about theology, but also about who I am and most importantly about my relationship with God.
So bring on the Easter term... my assessed service... my five exams... and my two essays!
Saturday, March 3, 2012
A moment in history...
Now there are old books and then there are old books. I spend many hours in my college library surrounded by books that have been written by great theologians and philosophical thinkers from across the centuries. For one essay last term I even managed to read (well part read) a book that was over 200 years old. But in Life and Service on Friday we were looking at two books that were over 350 years old - the Westminster Confession (the original manuscript) and the copy of the Confession which was given to Francis Bacon for his consideration prior to its discussion in Parliament in 1646. The Confession was to suppose to further reform the Church of England, unfortunately it didn't as Parliament vote against it. However, if they had the Church of England would now be Presbytarian... interesting!
I love Church history!
I love Church history!
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Hello, my name's Elaine...
this week has been a little busier than normal... I've actually been 'working' and not just studying! In this first year I undertake a social context placement, which for me was to spend a week at the local hospice with the chapliancy team.
Well as some of you know, I'm not good at walking into a room and introducing myself, so having to do this all week has been a huge challenge. Then I've had to hold a conversation with that person - ahhh! Why does ministry have to include pastoral visiting? Can't I just write them a letter?
Aside from this hugh challenge set me, it has a been a fantastic week and given me a real insight into people. Though you might expect the hospice to be a place of sadness and distress, it is not. It is a place of love, joy and even hope. Though there is a realisation that life may be near its end, and there is much grief surrounding that, people know that what ever happens it will be ok. Now I'm not saying that everyone I have met has it sorted, there are those who are in denial both patients and families. But they wouldn't be human if denial didn't feature at some point whilst coming to terms with what is happening and what's to come. I think all of us are to some extent in denial that eventually are life will come to an end. Personally, things that surround death scare me even with knowing God's amazing love for me.
So after this week, I may still be rubbish at walking into a room and holding a pastoral conversation (really need more practice at this), but I have learnt that whether you are seriously ill or even dying, you are no less human and you still want to know what the weather is like.
Well as some of you know, I'm not good at walking into a room and introducing myself, so having to do this all week has been a huge challenge. Then I've had to hold a conversation with that person - ahhh! Why does ministry have to include pastoral visiting? Can't I just write them a letter?
Aside from this hugh challenge set me, it has a been a fantastic week and given me a real insight into people. Though you might expect the hospice to be a place of sadness and distress, it is not. It is a place of love, joy and even hope. Though there is a realisation that life may be near its end, and there is much grief surrounding that, people know that what ever happens it will be ok. Now I'm not saying that everyone I have met has it sorted, there are those who are in denial both patients and families. But they wouldn't be human if denial didn't feature at some point whilst coming to terms with what is happening and what's to come. I think all of us are to some extent in denial that eventually are life will come to an end. Personally, things that surround death scare me even with knowing God's amazing love for me.
So after this week, I may still be rubbish at walking into a room and holding a pastoral conversation (really need more practice at this), but I have learnt that whether you are seriously ill or even dying, you are no less human and you still want to know what the weather is like.
Friday, February 17, 2012
Seven!
Compared to last week, this week has been fairly uneventful apart from the College Revue last night. Each year at Westminster, the students and the staff turn their hands to something that is a little less theologically-minded to something that displays other talents which may or may not help with ministry within the URC (or another denomination as we do have students who are not URC).
Now Senatus as the Strictly Come Liturgical Dancing Judges was a triumph - I don't think I will every be able to look at the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Archbishop of York or the General Secretary of the URC again without picturing them liturgically dancing! And as for the rest of the acts, well there is nothing more that can be said than what a talented bunch we are!
(Please note we didn't have footage of esteemed members of clergy performing liturgical dance, so there is no point searching YouTube. Senatus were just very good at describe what it maybe like if any of them took it up as a past time!)
We spend so much of our time reading, reflecting and attempting to be theologians, that it can be easy to forget who we are. Last night I think we all showed another side of ourselves to the community and we that we haven't forgotten who we are. (Well not yet anyway!)
Now Senatus as the Strictly Come Liturgical Dancing Judges was a triumph - I don't think I will every be able to look at the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Archbishop of York or the General Secretary of the URC again without picturing them liturgically dancing! And as for the rest of the acts, well there is nothing more that can be said than what a talented bunch we are!
(Please note we didn't have footage of esteemed members of clergy performing liturgical dance, so there is no point searching YouTube. Senatus were just very good at describe what it maybe like if any of them took it up as a past time!)
We spend so much of our time reading, reflecting and attempting to be theologians, that it can be easy to forget who we are. Last night I think we all showed another side of ourselves to the community and we that we haven't forgotten who we are. (Well not yet anyway!)
Friday, February 10, 2012
shaking hands with the Archbishop of Canterbury
It has been a busy week and Friday seems to have arrived without me realising it! There has not been much time to sit back and watch the world go by or in my case this week, build a snowman! (Yes... have re-embraced student-dom and did used one of my short reading breaks to play in the snow and build a small, but very happy snowman!)
Anyway, down to some more serious stuff. This week I got out of Cambridge for a few hours and headed to London and to Westminster Abbey. This was not for a sight-seeing visit (though we did pop our heads into the National Gallery), but to attend a service which I think should have been of great significance for the church within England.
For those of you who may not know much about church history - in 1662 Parliament revised the Act of Uniformity, which led to a great ejectment of clergy (2000 ministers) from the church of England. These became the non-conformists from whom my denomination has its roots.
Therefore, to commemorate this 350 years on, members of the URC and Church of England gathered together for an act of worship. But this was a commemoration service that was about woe and how badly are founding fathers were treated; it was about looking forward and starting to build a relationship between the two denominations. We may have different outlooks on theology, doctrine and churchmenship, but we do all believe in one God and our purpose should be to honour Him.
This is also the 40th year since the URC came into existance from the coming together of the Congregational churches of England and Wales and Presbyterian churches of England. The vision in 1972 was that this would be start of the end of division within the church. It might have not quite worked out like that, but for 800 of us to turn up at the Abbey must show that as a denomination we believe in the denominations coming together in some way, even if it is just to recognise that we are different.
And whether you are a URC ordinand who still has much to learn about her own denomination's traditions or the Archbishop of Canterbury who is leading a denomination steeped in tradition... we can shake hands and say that was good!
Anyway, down to some more serious stuff. This week I got out of Cambridge for a few hours and headed to London and to Westminster Abbey. This was not for a sight-seeing visit (though we did pop our heads into the National Gallery), but to attend a service which I think should have been of great significance for the church within England.
For those of you who may not know much about church history - in 1662 Parliament revised the Act of Uniformity, which led to a great ejectment of clergy (2000 ministers) from the church of England. These became the non-conformists from whom my denomination has its roots.
Therefore, to commemorate this 350 years on, members of the URC and Church of England gathered together for an act of worship. But this was a commemoration service that was about woe and how badly are founding fathers were treated; it was about looking forward and starting to build a relationship between the two denominations. We may have different outlooks on theology, doctrine and churchmenship, but we do all believe in one God and our purpose should be to honour Him.
This is also the 40th year since the URC came into existance from the coming together of the Congregational churches of England and Wales and Presbyterian churches of England. The vision in 1972 was that this would be start of the end of division within the church. It might have not quite worked out like that, but for 800 of us to turn up at the Abbey must show that as a denomination we believe in the denominations coming together in some way, even if it is just to recognise that we are different.
And whether you are a URC ordinand who still has much to learn about her own denomination's traditions or the Archbishop of Canterbury who is leading a denomination steeped in tradition... we can shake hands and say that was good!
Thursday, February 2, 2012
the gift...
Well I should be working on an essay on Eschatology, but work avoidance is far more fun and actually I can count blogging as work this!
Last week in our Life and Service session we were looking at the confession we make at our ordination. Now, you may think that this is a bit premature, since I still have three years, 1 term and 6 weeks to go, but if you're going to look at what it means to be a minister in the URC I guess it a good a place to start as any. This week we were asked to consider a particular phrase within the statement and how we might explain it to someone who has absolutely no concept of what this is all about. So I thought I might attempt this as my blog this week!
The phrase is "the gift of God's very self to the world".
Over Christmas did you see the John Lewis advert? This little boy is really impatient for Christmas to arrive, but not because of presents he'll receive, but because of the one he has to give. It is big and not very well wrapped, and the smile on his face as he bursts into his Mum and Dad's room is magical. It is a present that he has put himself into and is his way of showing how much he loves his Mum and Dad. And this is how I see this phrase in our confession of faith, God has this massive gift for the world and it's himself! And he's really impatient about giving us this gift. He doesn't really care about the things he get's back, the presents the little boy runs past at the end of his bed, what is important is his present to us. Maybe its not as neatly wrapped as we'd expect, but it is big, bigger than we can really image and it is for everyone! And its not easy giving yourself to people!
Fairly awesome! Even mind blowing when you really think about it. Well I think so any!
(P.S. You can watch the John Lewis advert at http://www.johnlewis.com/Magazine/Feature.aspx?Id=993&intcmp=HP_minipromo_featuresvideo_993_111111)
Last week in our Life and Service session we were looking at the confession we make at our ordination. Now, you may think that this is a bit premature, since I still have three years, 1 term and 6 weeks to go, but if you're going to look at what it means to be a minister in the URC I guess it a good a place to start as any. This week we were asked to consider a particular phrase within the statement and how we might explain it to someone who has absolutely no concept of what this is all about. So I thought I might attempt this as my blog this week!
The phrase is "the gift of God's very self to the world".
Over Christmas did you see the John Lewis advert? This little boy is really impatient for Christmas to arrive, but not because of presents he'll receive, but because of the one he has to give. It is big and not very well wrapped, and the smile on his face as he bursts into his Mum and Dad's room is magical. It is a present that he has put himself into and is his way of showing how much he loves his Mum and Dad. And this is how I see this phrase in our confession of faith, God has this massive gift for the world and it's himself! And he's really impatient about giving us this gift. He doesn't really care about the things he get's back, the presents the little boy runs past at the end of his bed, what is important is his present to us. Maybe its not as neatly wrapped as we'd expect, but it is big, bigger than we can really image and it is for everyone! And its not easy giving yourself to people!
Fairly awesome! Even mind blowing when you really think about it. Well I think so any!
(P.S. You can watch the John Lewis advert at http://www.johnlewis.com/Magazine/Feature.aspx?Id=993&intcmp=HP_minipromo_featuresvideo_993_111111)
Friday, January 27, 2012
A trip to the cinema
Now, just to prove that I don't spend my entire life in the library under a pile of Theology books or on my knees in Chapel praying for deliverance from said pile of books - me and a couple of friends went to see War Horse this week.
I am a huge Michael Morpurgo fan, have been since school when one of my teachers read "Why the Whales Came" to my class. And these days, sometimes it is nice to pick up a book I can read! (The frustrations of someone with dyslexia who would like nothing more than to just be able to sit down with a novel and not move till it was finished - but 8 months is a long time to be sat in one place!) Anyway, along with a number of other Morpurgo books, War Horse features in my top 20 books, so I was a little unsure about going to see the film. But it is a fantastic film. There may have been a couple of creative additions and a couple of admissions, but it was a really good adaptation and some of the cinematography was amazing. Not to mention the soundtrack! But apart from being a breath-taking film, my lasting memory of the night was how me and my friends walked out of the cinema in complete silence.
Was it the subject material of the film? Was it the imagery? Was it the determination of Joey? Or that even in the midst of war there is also love?
Maybe it wasn't any of those, but I now have some ideas for using the film and the book in future sermons :-)
I am a huge Michael Morpurgo fan, have been since school when one of my teachers read "Why the Whales Came" to my class. And these days, sometimes it is nice to pick up a book I can read! (The frustrations of someone with dyslexia who would like nothing more than to just be able to sit down with a novel and not move till it was finished - but 8 months is a long time to be sat in one place!) Anyway, along with a number of other Morpurgo books, War Horse features in my top 20 books, so I was a little unsure about going to see the film. But it is a fantastic film. There may have been a couple of creative additions and a couple of admissions, but it was a really good adaptation and some of the cinematography was amazing. Not to mention the soundtrack! But apart from being a breath-taking film, my lasting memory of the night was how me and my friends walked out of the cinema in complete silence.
Was it the subject material of the film? Was it the imagery? Was it the determination of Joey? Or that even in the midst of war there is also love?
Maybe it wasn't any of those, but I now have some ideas for using the film and the book in future sermons :-)
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Thank you for being you!
Well after last week, I knew that this week wouldn't be a walk in the park... but I wasn't quite expecting what I was faced with in the first three days of this week! Like every profession, we have to have an awareness of 'Equality and Diversity' and so I thought that I'd get it over and done with in my first year - get that box ticked. But it was far from a box ticking exercise!
One of the first statements from the course leader was "every church is multicultural" - well for starters that took me two days to get my head round! You try and work that out when you've come from a congregation of European-dissent? It all comes down to the use of language and what we actually mean by terms we so freely use, sometimes without giving them a second thought.
And human nature is scary! Have you ever heard of the 'blue eye, brown eye' study? Look it up, because it is very interesting, though some may find it unethical and possibly disturbing. However, it is a great illustration of how easily we can be convinced of something and how having a sense of power over another person can lead to some of the things we see in the news daily. We really don't learn from history!
Now being Christian doesn't mean that I'm immune from this, I can easily fall into the trap of saying something that might seem reasonable in my head, but which is really unhelpful for someone else. That doesn't mean I should keep quiet, but does mean that I need to be mindful of those that are around me. This isn't 'political correctness gone mad', it is just treating others as you would want to be treated - Jesus' second commandment!
We need to be celebrating the differences between us, because if were not all different then the world would be a really boring place!
One of the first statements from the course leader was "every church is multicultural" - well for starters that took me two days to get my head round! You try and work that out when you've come from a congregation of European-dissent? It all comes down to the use of language and what we actually mean by terms we so freely use, sometimes without giving them a second thought.
And human nature is scary! Have you ever heard of the 'blue eye, brown eye' study? Look it up, because it is very interesting, though some may find it unethical and possibly disturbing. However, it is a great illustration of how easily we can be convinced of something and how having a sense of power over another person can lead to some of the things we see in the news daily. We really don't learn from history!
Now being Christian doesn't mean that I'm immune from this, I can easily fall into the trap of saying something that might seem reasonable in my head, but which is really unhelpful for someone else. That doesn't mean I should keep quiet, but does mean that I need to be mindful of those that are around me. This isn't 'political correctness gone mad', it is just treating others as you would want to be treated - Jesus' second commandment!
We need to be celebrating the differences between us, because if were not all different then the world would be a really boring place!
Friday, January 13, 2012
Once upon a time...
Well as this is my first blog of 2012, let me start by wishing you a Happy New Year - though it seems a long time since the 1st January now!
After spending a couple of weeks away, it has been nice to be back in Cambridge and getting back into college life - though I may be feeling differently this time next week when lectures start again! Now, before those of you reading this who don't know about Westminster life think I've been sat around with my feet, I haven't, we have two short courses to do. However I've had a really nice one to start with, Storytelling. But it has not just been two and a half days of Jackanory, we have actually had to get involved and tell our own stories! And the thing about storytelling is that it is based on the oral tradition, which means no books allowed!
Now, for those of you who have ever seen me preach or give a presentation, you know I have to have a script. Too scared that I'll forget something, not say the right words or tell people something that really isn't true. So being told that I had to prepare and tell a story to the whole group filled me with dreed - no notes, this is going to go horribly wrong and be disasterous!! However, it wasn't, and if I have learnt anything over the past two and a half days is that I can do it!
I don't think that I'll be throwing my scripts away just yet, but I might be able to tell a story or to without one!
After spending a couple of weeks away, it has been nice to be back in Cambridge and getting back into college life - though I may be feeling differently this time next week when lectures start again! Now, before those of you reading this who don't know about Westminster life think I've been sat around with my feet, I haven't, we have two short courses to do. However I've had a really nice one to start with, Storytelling. But it has not just been two and a half days of Jackanory, we have actually had to get involved and tell our own stories! And the thing about storytelling is that it is based on the oral tradition, which means no books allowed!
Now, for those of you who have ever seen me preach or give a presentation, you know I have to have a script. Too scared that I'll forget something, not say the right words or tell people something that really isn't true. So being told that I had to prepare and tell a story to the whole group filled me with dreed - no notes, this is going to go horribly wrong and be disasterous!! However, it wasn't, and if I have learnt anything over the past two and a half days is that I can do it!
I don't think that I'll be throwing my scripts away just yet, but I might be able to tell a story or to without one!
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