ENTRY

During a clergy quiet day at St Columba's in Woking, the chaplain  Rev Gillain Holland invited us to meditate on among other things, two of her fathers paintings.  Paul Robertson is a  Surrey born artist who has produced a series of religious festival themed paintings.  we were left simply with space to mediate with the painting and some accompanying notes. I found them stunning..

this is the description of ENTRY from his website 

 A series of paintings in which the use of colour, symbolism and evocative shapes and feelings express my thoughts about the Easter story. 'Entry' is a portrayal of the possible feelings of Jesus as He moved purposefully from the open countryside (e.g. Luke 7 v. 16-17), with its known areas of support (e.g. Luke 5 v. 11, 15), to set His face towards Jerusalem (Luke 9 v. 51). Hosannas echo in the air, 'white harvest' lines converge on the path descending into the confines of oppressive religion. The coruscating sun-shapes repeat downwards representing the Son who, willingly, went down for us. The branches and leaves spelling out 'Hosanna' (Mark 11 v. 9) change to 'Crucify' (Mark 15 v. 13) as they fall into the pit. The dark night of the soul approaches. The crown of glory is exchanged for the crown of thorns. The paths, rocky ground and brambles are reminders of the dangers in the parable of the sower (Mark 4 v. 3 ff).

Gillain informs me that more of her father, Paul Robertson's paintings will be available at St Columba's House during Lent and Easter.  I found the geometrical shapes, colours and images gripping and layered with meaning.

Holy Ground (and sacred:space) are running a multi-sensory, participatory vigil on Easter Saturday from 8pm to midnight. I'll be there and look forward to seeing the paintings among many other things.  Why not come along..... 

Leaving Lindisfarne: St Aidan as guide

At the end of our retreat we were invited to 'throw an image out into the future to guide us' (Carl Jung) 

I had been working on a pastel sketch, so this became my image -  St Aidan to guide me (based on the Statue in the grounds of St. Mary the Virgin, next to the Priory)  
I've taken the 4 headings from Ray Simpson's booklet: Give yourself a (Re)treat on Lindisfarne   St Aidan Press 1998) section 2 'figure out St Aidan'

 

1 the face - gentle, humble, winsome, of stature and vision

his personality and character - described by Bede as a man of 'peace and love, purity and humility'
He was called by Bishop Lightfoot of Durham ' The Apostle of England' 

2 the torch - a passion to pass on faith to everyone one meets

He set up schools for court members and freed slaves, trtaininig indigenous priests; mission stations which were local focused and led, scriptorium producing books and churches ....... 

3 the staff - a shepherd's faithfulness
  
he preferred to walk so he was at the same level as ordinary folk and could easily talk to them.  He also used his priestly authority (symbolised by the staff) to check the proud and powerful, he tenderly comforted the sick, he relieved and protected the poor....  
 
4  the cross - a protecting and encircling shield at one's back

The Celtic Cross 'The circle is the world made one in the cross of Christ. The cross is not just for the church but for the whole world'
  
Aidan left behind churches in Essex (St Peters Beadwell-on-sea); Lashingham in N Yorks  and his disciples traveled far and wide : Wilfred to the South Saxons of Sussex, Holland and Belgium; Hilda of Whitby; Chad - bishop of Mercia, Lindsay of Litchfield, Wilfred & the Abbey of Hexham and Rippon 

Leaving Lindisfarne: 
  

'God of our Pilgrimage you have fed us with the bread of heaven. 
Refresh and sustain us as we go forth on our journey'

Leave me alone with God 

as much as may be. 

As the tide draws the waters

 close in upon the shore 

make me an island, set apart, 

alone with you, God , holy to you.

Then with the turning of the tide

prepare me to carry our presence

to the busy world beyond, 

the world that rushes in on me

til the waters come again

and fold me back to you

Prayer of St Aidan of Lindisfarne

Lindisfarne: where heaven & earth are one

 I've just been on retreat with Rachel on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne, staying with the Community of St Aidan and St Hilda at the Open Gate Retreat House.  The weekend was all about the Enneagram which is another story. But the place offered the opportunity to step back and reflect.  

The following are bits and pieces, quotes and prayer I copied into my journal (I can't remember where they came from), which spoke to me......

Do all journeys begin with a question? Out here on the sandy flats, deserts of water and sky, everything seemed open to question   

  

I came across this poem/ prayer called Holy Island by David Adams: 

God calls you out from where you are

God calls you from your safety and security

Come!  

Come to the Borderlands where the sea meets sky

Come to the edge where earth meets sea

Come!  

Come where two worlds meet

Come and discover that heaven and earth are one

Come!  

You are children of the way

You have a road to travel

Come!  

You need a Holy Island

A holy place that makes all places holy

Come!  

You have a rendezvous to make

A meeting place to find

Come!  

Listen to the waves and the murmurs of God

Be moved by the wind, ad the calling of God

Come!  

Let walking become your prayer

Let journeying be part of your song

Come!  

You may discover yourself

You may meet your own mysterious being

Come!  

Discover for yourself sacred space

Enter into the time, which is beyond time

Come!  

Then everything will be transformed

Come!  

It is God who calls you to step out

It is God who travels the road with you

Come!  

 "emptiness and an apparent uselessness are necessary conditions for an encounter with truth"

a 'holy wander': a meander past the harbour area and upturned boats, which look like a cross between a Hobbit hole & a garden shed -  to the National Trust Castle, an ancient exterior with an Edwardian interior. Along the coast to the Hide at Lough and the view of a peaceful 'swan' lake and then the obelisk besides the sea at Emmanuel Head - 'where sky meet sea and heaven meets earth';  along the pebbly beach of Sandham bay to the sand dunes; and back along Straight Lannes to the Village.   

'a swan floating by / a reed shaken by the wind / a moment of rest'

Pass on the flame:  

"May Christ be a bright star above us, 

a clear way before us, 

a warm fire within us"

St Aidan of Lindisfarne

Christian Muslim Solidarty

When I saw this, I immediately tweeted it on to my 'followers' but then felt I needed to add it to the blog which seems to make it a little more permanent. You can find it on YouTube: 

#MyJihad: This Video Will Renew Your Faith in Humanity 

It is about an Imam Mazhar Shaheen from Omar Makram Mosque in Cairo and his visit to Qasr-el-Dubara Church in Cairo to bring Christmas Greetings. He did his doctorate at the famous Azhar University in Cairo, in Q'ranic Rhetoric. it shows........ 

I found it an astonishing statement of solidarity, discovered though working closely together. It gave me a real sense of hope..........     I hope you find it inspirational as well. 

O Little Town of Bethlehem

I came across this video made by a church in New Zealand of the Christmas Story told by Palestinians in the 'Land of the Holy One'. It has a real sense of authenticity about it and we will be using it in the International Carol Service at Christchurch, Woking on Sat 22nd Dec 2012

Published on 16 Dec 2012

The story of the birth of Jesus told by the people of Bethlehem. Made by St Paul's Church, Auckland, New Zealand. Anyone is welcome to show this film publicly, but not change it in any way, nor publish it, nor make money out of it.

St Paul's Auckland  by St Paul's Arts & Media (SPAM)

 

 

Creative Spirit: The Methodist Art Collection

One of the Highlights of last year's Greenbelt 2011 was the Exhibition of some of the Methodist Art Collection. I wrote about it in a previous blog: Dreams of Home. The Collection had some stunning images under the theme 'Jesus in the everyday' and I spent a couple of happy hours staring at them. I also bought the CD Rom Collection and Study Notes 'Creative Spirit".   

There was a lot to inspire, but my favourite image was Dalit Madonna by Jyoti Sahi

Dalit Madonna  Oil on canvas 148cm x 119 cm  (c.2002) Jyoti Sahi,  b. India 1944 

Unlike in Europe , where midwinter is a time of darkness and cold, lifeless earth, in Asia the winter season is a time for rejoicing, and bringing into the home, the fruits of the earth.
That is why in this image of the Mother and Child, the relation of Mary to Jesus is symbolic of the transformed earth, which becomes like a full vessel of life. The Birth of our Lord is in this way celebrated every time we come together for the Eucharist.

 From the Creative Spirit notes on the Methodist WebSite

Jyoti Sahi

There are links to the images on the Methodist Website and the CD Rom is worth getting.

You can also watch a brief YouTube video on the Methodist Art Collection which gives you an idea of the variety of images available.



If you want to find out where they are being displayed next have a look at the calendar 

Dual Belonging ?

The picture is a oil pastel painting I did based on a picture I saw in Bangkok, Thailand of a common religious image – a Buddha figure sitting under a Banyan tree in the traditional Lotus position. It made me think whether Christ would be portrayed in that culture in such a way - Jesus the Enlightened One.   

I have been attending a consultation at  Pilgrim House  in Korea on Global Network of  Centers of World Mission (GNCWM 2011)   

A colleague of mine presented a paper. He is currently working on a doctorate on the concept of dual belonging -  the idea of following Jesus from within another religious system. 

This has been well established among the Peoples of the Book  -  Messianic Believers who are Jewish and follow the Messiah,  and Muslim followers of Jesus – Muslim Background Believers (MBBs ) and the idea of Insider Movements.  

But my colleague is from Malaysia and from a Buddhist background.  His brother is a Buddhist ‘priest’. It is part of who he is.  And religion and culture are difficult to seperate, socially politically, legally.  How does he as a Christ follower continue contact with his family and their culture?

Taking it further - Is it possible to be a Disciple from within another religious system?  He writes:  

The last frontier for Christian mission in the 21^st century is the meeting between religions, and the most important task for Christian mission, I would like to propose is not the challenge of contextualisation but the challenge of in-religionisation.  Evangelicals must, “ask not only for ‘inculturation’ but ‘inreligionization’, i.e. not only Chinese Buddhism or Indian Christianity, but also Hindu Christianity”[1] (David Bosch, Transforming Mission)

Beyond the debates of insider movements, “inreligionisation” will be attempts by Christians coming from Asian religious traditions to "believe that it is possible and even necessary not only to accept in theory certain doctrines or practices of other religions and to incorporate them, perhaps in modified form, into Christianity, but also to adopt and live in their personal lives the beliefs, moral rules, rituals, and monastic practices of religious traditions other than Christianity [1]  

How can a person remain true to their own culture and discover afresh the Global Christ -  Jesus ‘the man for all men’  without necessarily converting to Western forms of Christianity. 

It’s a fascinating concept and has raised eyebrows in some parts of the world. How is it possible to belong to two religious systems at the same time?  Some would differentiate between faith and religion, and suggest that  a true faith relationship with Jesus is possible within a religious system other than Christianity. They would say it is possible to believe and be a disciple and follower of Jesus without having to convert to the whole package.  And retain some of the key cultural-religious identity. 

It is I know contentious.  

A strong missional principle is contextualisation - the gospel needs to be interpreted from within the lens of another culture, but the line between contextualisation and syncretism is a thin one and depends on what position you are arguing from. 

There is a sense where most of us carry more than one label:

No one today is purely one thing. Labels like Indian, or woman, or Muslim, or American are not more than starting-points, which if followed into actual experience for only a moment are quickly left behind. Imperialism consolidated the mixture of cultures and identities on a global scale. But its worst and most paradoxical gift was to allow people to believe that they were only, mainly, exclusively, white, or Black, or Western, or Oriental. . . . No one can deny the persisting continuities of long traditions, sustained habitations, national languages, and cultural geographies, but there seems no reason except fear and prejudice to keep insisting on their separation and distinctiveness, as if that was all human life was about. Survival in fact is about the connections between things; in Eliot’s phrase, reality cannot be deprived of the ‘other echoes [that] inhabit the garden .[3] (Edward Said, in Culture and Imperialism)

 This suggests that it is not simply an 'either-or' issue, and that it may be possible to carry more than one label at once; 'both-and' 

As a Hindu, Ram Gidoomal discovered Christ,  as the "Sanatana Satguru" - the eternal and true guru.  Now as a Christ follower, he describes what Jesus achieved in Hindu terms:  “Jesus is the bodhisattva who fulfilled his dharma to pay for my karma to negate samsara and achieve nirvana!” 

---

[1] David Bosch, Transforming Mission, Maryknoll: Orbis Books, 1991:477-478.

[2] Peter Phan, Being Religious Interreligiously: Asian Perspectives on Interfaith Dialogue (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2004, 61

[3] Edward Said, in Culture and Imperialism (New York: Alfred Knopf, 1994), p. 336

How different Christian denominations see each other

How different denominations view each other. A fantastic infographic. Posted by ThomastheDoubter 

Special FX church

The image is a bit of a doodle that became a version of Rublev’s Icon of the Trinity crossed with a hint of Eric von Daniken ‘Chariots of the Gods: I remember asking 'was God an Astronaut’ as a youth)

The mysterious visit of the 3 men/angels in Genesis 18, who somehow represent the Trinity in Orthodox thinking, lends itself to a bit of speculation, full of mystery.

My picture came about as a result of drawing the halos which somehow looked like space helmets, and it sort of took off from there...... !

I can vividly remember watching the Apollo moon landings, so maybe in our age its appropriate to portray the church in these cosmic terms...

A MISSION-SHAPED GATHERING

CMS was hosting a visit by 4 Korean clergy, who wanted to look at Mission Shaped Church. We attended the Fresh Expressions and Pioneering conference run by centre for Pioneer Learning It was too good an opportunity to miss.

Over 50 participants gathered from mainly from Europe - Scandinavia, Germany, France,

Scotland. US and Canada: Australia and New Zealand. Plus the 4 Koreans.

The centre is run by Dave Male with input from Andrew Roberts on the Mission Shaped Ministry (MSM) course, Adrian Chatfield on mission-shaped spirituality. Bishop Graham Cray on the mission shaped movement; and Mike Moynaugh on mission-shaped theology. Everything was mission shaped. Even the sandwiches were mission shaped (they were nice triangles!)

SPECIAL EFFECTS

Fresh Expressions is often abbreviated as FX. For me that is Special Effects (I remember the movie of that name and FX2 the deadly art of illusion. Maybe that is what the Church is seeking to do - add some special effects making it more trendy, more audio-visual, more sexy, more appealing in the 21st century. enabling church to take somehow off.

Special effects can be gimmicky, all about lights and tricks and illusions. there can be expectations on pioneers to be similarly gimmicky.

Yet I was struck by how 'ordinary' many FX churches are : Messy church; Cafe church; Network church; rural church; Cell-church run by people who are trying to be essentially Mission-Shaped.

We visited Thirst a Friday morning Cafe Church meeting in a school and Cambourne, an ecumenical (Anglican Baptist Methodist URC) Church which started in a garage and a Doctors surgery and now has an expandable A-frame church building in the middle of a new Estate. And there was nothing gimmicky about them. They were ordinary people trying to make the church relevant to their context.

PIONEERING - TO BOLDLY GO

Like the star ship enterprise, there is a sense of pioneering being about 'going boldly where no man has gone before' A lot is experimental and exploratory, tentative and partial informal and flexible.

Pioneers are people who don't quite fit in with the centre, and like to push out into unexplored territory, they are happy on the edge.

IT'S NOT ROCKET SCIENCE!

Graham Cray reminded us its not rocket science. a Fresh Expression is defined simply as 'a form of church for our changing culture, established primarily for the benefit of people who are not yet members of any church'

The Archbishop of Canterbury coined the phrase Mixed Economy to describe the range of church, traditional and modern , fresh expressions Not either or but BOTH/ AND. "celebrating and building on what is mission -shaped in traditional forms of church and finding new, flexible appropriate ways to proclaim the Gospel afresh to those who do not relate to traditional ways" Permission has been given to allow Church to take off.

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS

Back to the Trinity and Rublev's ICON. Mike Moynaugh reminded us that the Missio Dei originated in the Tri-unity of God, drawing us into Communion. Mission is the eternal decision of God the Trinity 'communion in mission;

which the church takes and becomes 'community in mission' The church is misisonary and 'becomes missionary by attending to each and every context in which it finds itself' - 'The word became flesh and moved into the neighbourhood'

There is a sense that in Church, (FX or not), we are creating something 'other worldly', because in church we encounter the Divine....  sort of 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind'

What is a fresh expression ?

What is a Fresh Expression of Church?  a nice video trip to the Middle Ages to find out (from the Fresh Expressions website)

A fresh expression is a form of church for our changing culture, established primarily for the benefit of people who are not yet members of any church.

Sadhu Sundur Singh - Iconic Indian

This time a picture inspired by Sadhu Sundar Singh (1889-1929). Except he looks a bit like Captain Haddock in Tin Tin ('Blistering Barnacles'....) I copied it from a B&W picture , Maybe I should have painted him in a Saffron robe....

I just have one book on him: 'The Gospel of Sadu Sindar Singh" by Frederich Heiler ISPK 1989 (First published in 1924 under the title 'Sadhu Sundar Singh Ein Apostel des Ostens und Westens' abridged translation by Olive Wyon) And it only cost me 50Rs in India. It is available as a FREE googledocs download

There are some other good online resources - an introduction to his life plus of course a Wiki version and the new world encyclopedia entry and if you speak German try this. He was obviously very popular in Germany, having visited in 1920s (he also visited Britain, Australia and the States on a preaching tour)

He was converted from a Sikh background in Dec 1904. He was disillusioned and suicidal at the time. He describes his conversion in his own words:

“Suddenly — towards half-past four — a great light in his little room. He thought the house was on fire, opened the door and looked out ; there was no fire there. He closed the door and went on praying. Then there dawned upon him a wonderful vision : in the centre of a luminous cloud he saw the face of a Man, radiant with love. At first he thought it was Buddha or Krishna, or some other divinity, and he was about to prostrate himself in worship. Just then, to his great astonishment, he heard these words in Hindu- stani : Tu mujhe kyun satata hat ? Dekh main ne tere liye apui jan salib -par di (" Why do you persecute Me ? Remember that I gave My life for you upon the Cross"). Utterly at a loss, he was speechless with astonishment. Then he noticed the scars of Jesus of Nazareth, whom until that moment he had regarded merely as a great man who had lived and died long ago in Palestine, the same Jesus whom he had so passionately hated a few days before. And this Jesus showed no traces of anger in His face, although Sundar had burnt His holy Book, but He was all gentleness and love. Then the thought came to him : "Jesus Christ is not dead ; He is alive, and this is He Himself " ; and he fell at His feet and worshipped Him. In an instant he felt that his whole being was completely changed ; Christ flooded his nature with Divine life ; peace and joy filled his soul, and ** brought heaven into his heart." When Sundar Singh rose from his knees Christ had disappeared, but the wonderful peace remained from that moment, and it has never left him since. He said afterwards : " Neither in Hindustani, my mother- tongue, nor in English, can I describe the bliss of that hour."

He believed that a message that was for all mankind, and had universal significance:

If the Divine spark in the soul cannot be destroyed, then we need despair of no sinner… Since God created men to have fellowship with Himself, they cannot for ever be separated from Him… After long wandering, and by devious paths, sinful man will at last return to Him in whose Image he was created; for this is his final destiny.

He dedicated his life to a Sadhu-style mission particularly within North India, and the Himalayan region of Tibet and Nepal. He went wider afield to South India, Ceylon, Burma, Malaya, Singapore, Japan and China .

He disappeared in the Himalayas in 1929 (possibly in Tibet) and his body was never found. He remains a fine example of indigenous Christian leadership, modelling a non-Western form of mission, the Sadhu wandering the dusty footpaths, which had a far reaching impact.

He once said (on a mission trip to the West):

'We Indians do not want a doctrine, mot even a religious doctrine, we have enough and more than enough of that kind of thing; we are tired of doctrines. We need the Living Christ. India wants people who will not only preach and teach, but workers whose whole life and temper is a revelation of Jesus Christ'

Imams and Clergy

Archbishop Rowan is so good at interfaith dialogue:

"You can only understand each other when you see the other's face turned towards God. Then and only then, can you turn to each other with expectation, patience and charity."

Portrait of Archbishop Rowan Williams by Victoria Russell

I was attending an 'Imams and Clergy' meeting where you come as a matching pair. It was run by the Chritstian-Muslim Forum - "creating spaces for Christians and Muslims to meet, learn about and understand each other"

It was hosted by the Archbishop at Lambeth Palace. With key addresses from ++ Rowan Williams, Imam Sheik Raza of Mosques and Imams National Advisory Board (MINAB), Mark Fisher of Churches Together England CTE and a flying visit from the Government Minister Andrew Stunnel, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (responsible for race equality, community cohesion (including the future of PREVENT), building regulations, housing and regeneration, and the implementation of the Big Society)

He emphasised the continued emphasis on social cohesion, an interfaith week in November and a Faiths in Action scheme (with grants available for £6000) currently there are 113 projects running around the country.

The over 50 participants all contrinuted in smaller groups to a discussion about how to use a statement being issued by the C-M Forum in support of local encounter covering areas like : live up to the best ; speaking generously of the other faith ; developing friendships meet each other ; work together locally (the full text will be available later and I will publish it on this blog)

The Christian Muslim Forum have also written a helpful booklet 'Local Christian-Muslim Friendship: building relationships between mosques and churches' - available as a pdf download here

Pope2You - 'Priests get blogging'

a little mouse sent me a tweet about a telegraph that the Pope is now connected. And just how connected is amazing.... The Vatoican's new website has Facebook YouTube, Pope2you multiplayer (video) iphone app (video, audio & text) , YouTube, flikkr gallery and an amazing participatory photoworld montage of messages of peace (sent in via email) in all the 5 langauages above.

It is a very impressive site: brilliant branding, a model of modern communcations in a world of social networking. It must also have cost a fortune!

Pope tells priests to get blogging

Pope Benedict XVI urged priests to use the internet "astutely" and make the most of opportunities offered by modern technology.

'Priests are thus challenged to proclaim the Gospel by employing the latest generation of audio-visual resources – images, videos, animated features, blogs, websites – which, alongside traditional means, can open up broad new vistas for dialogue, evangelisation and catechesis," he said.

Priests, he said, had to respond to the challenge of "today's cultural shifts" if they wanted to reach young people.

Italiano | English | Español | Français | Deutsch

YOU can also follow a blog about the pope's here A blog on our Pope, the new evangelization of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the mission of the Church, and the tyranny of relativism...

But I for one need to get back to my i-phone. Now where is that APP ?

Dostoyevsky: faith and unbelief

The following is all from the handout that Alexis produced for sacred:space on Sat night. A mixture of talk, film clip (BBC Crime and Punishment) reading (The Idiot), dialogue (Brothers Karamazov) and guided meditation using quotes from his books with candles, icons and orthodox music. An excellent, thought-provoking evening. And even the snow and cold made it feel more like St Petersburg.

Dostoevsky is widely recognised as the father of existentialism. His insights into the human condition have had a huge impact in both literature, philosophy and psychology: as far-reaching as Nietzsche, Freud and Kafka. His novels mark the dawn of the modern era with his intense exploration of human pscyhology in the troubles political, social and spiritual context of 19th century Russia.

“Beauty is mysterious as well as terrible. God and devil are fighting there, and the battlefield is the heart of man.”

“If you were to destroy the belief in immortality in mankind, not only love but every living force on which the continuation of all life in the world depended, would dry up at once.”

“Man is fond of counting his troubles, but he does not count his joys. If he counted them up as he ought to, he would see that every lot has enough happiness provided for it.”

“To live without Hope is to cease to live.”

“To love someone means to see him as God intended him.”

“It is not the brains that matter most, but that which guides them -- the character, the heart, generous qualities, progressive ideas.”

“A just cause is not ruined by a few mistakes.”

“The soul is healed by being with children.”

Major Works

1846 – Poor Folk

1864 - Notes from the Underground

1866 – Crime and Punishment

1867 – The Gambler

1869 – The Idiot

1872 – Demons

1875 – The Adolescent

1881 – The Brothers Karamazov