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JVA

Crucial Connections - Sunday

Final Part - The programme for Sunday morning included going to worship at a local church. We decided to stay in Sunbury Court and share the Holy Communion service from Celtic Daily Prayer. This was the first time I had used this and we both found it very helpful in the context of our course/retreat. The Bible passages and readings we chose are found on page 315 (January 20) of the 2000 edition of the book.

In one single quiet hour of prayer the soul will often make more progress than in days of company with others. It is in the desert that the eye gets the clearest, simplest view of eternal certainties: it is in His presence alone, it is then that the soul gathers in wondrous refreshment and power and energy. Horatius Bonar.

The reading goes on to say how it is then that we are truly useful to others. His love has filled us and can be poured out to others. My reflection on this is to say that a retreat is not self-indulgent, rather it is a pre-requisite for service in Christ's name. We find the sanctuary for ourselves to share it with others.

After a coffee break I read the chapter about obedience in Finding Sanctuary by Abbot Christopher Jamison. Interestingly, he shows how freedom to be oneself involves obedience and how the derivation of the word also includes the verb 'to listen'. This is something we have been seeking to do over this weekend, and have found it very helpful - possibly more so than we might have done had we been with a group of people! A positive outcome for us of the organised course/retreat being cancelled!

After lunch we had to leave and make our way home. I didn't manage to finish the book, but am currently finishing it at home.
JVA

Crucial Connections - Saturday Evening

Part 6 - Saturday (14/06/08) was our 28th wedding anniversary (still crazy after all these years!), so Marta and I decided to go to an Indian restaurant in Sunbury. We enjoyed an excellent evening meal at Indian Zest. Check out the fantastic menu!
JVA

Crucial Connections - Saturday Afternoon

Part 5 - For lunch we took our individual salads and found a nice spot by the river. We discussed Sunday morning. The course material suggested going to a local church - we had originally decided to do this - but in the end we settled on our own worship together, using the Holy Communion service found in Celtic Daily Prayer.

After lunch I continued to read Finding Sanctuary by Abbot Christopher Jamison.

He starts the chapter on Contemplation by saying:
I have never found praying easy, but what gets easier is accepting that fact. So I worry less about technique and more about my fundamental, heartfelt attitude to God while I am praying.

Later he says:
Meditation on a sacred text or meditation using a repeated phrase - both offer us a new context: it is the carpet that we lie upon in order to find rest for our souls wounded by this busy world.....it is not a luxury carpet, however, and it can sometimes have a rough feel to it.
This is where obedience comes in (the subject of his next chapter).

At the end of the chapter he recommends the following website: Centering Prayer. I am also reminded of works by Thomas Merton - I read Contemplative Prayer a few years ago and found it helpful.

Following a break I returned to the Lectio Divina of Jude, this time Jude 13-25. It occurred to me that verse 12 was a strange place to break the reading, as verse 13 continues the thought in verse 12. Perhaps this was done on purpose, but it seems to me that verse 13 would have been a better place to break - verses 12 and 13 go together and contain some very powerful metaphors.

The Christian in name only wallows in his/her own shame and deserves only death and darkness. The true Christian walks in the life of the Spirit illuminated by the light of Jesus Christ. The way demand obedience to remain on the path, and a desire to strengthen fellow Christians - with sensitivity, humility and mercy. The final doxology brings us full circle to verse 1, kept by Jesus Christ.

The necessary response to this passage, and my response, is to show willingness to allow the Holy Spirit into any remaining dark areas in my life in order to be presented before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy. (Jude 24-25 NIV)

Having initially wondered why this passage had been chosen, I now have to say that it was very good and useful.
JVA

Crucial Connections - Saturday Morning

Part 4 - After a good night's sleep (much needed!) I woke refreshed, had a shower and enjoyed a relaxed breakfast of cereal and toast with Marta. I spent some time catching up with friends online (how difficult it is to escape from modern life with all the wonderful technology at our fingertips!) before prayer and reflection in the grounds.

I spent the first part of the morning continuing to read Finding Sanctuary by Abbot Christopher Jamison. This is a really excellent book that I wholeheartedly recommend to anyone - of whatever faith or none!

After a coffee break I found a quiet location to start a personal Lectio Divina study of Jude 1-12. My initial reaction on quickly reading it was, "Why had this passage been chosen?" - not a promising start! But, on the basis that Lectio Divina is slow reading, I carried on! I was using my NIV Study Bible, and I decided not to refer to the notes as these could be a distraction.

Lectio Divina is in four stages: Reading - Reflection - Response - Rest (the alliteration helps to remember them!)

After slow and careful reflective reading these are my reflections and responses:

• As a Christian I am called, loved and kept by God/Jesus.
• Mercy, peace and love is mine in abundance!
• The passage speaks of the inherent spiritual and practical discipline of the Christian life - a life of virtue as Abbot Christopher Jamison describes it.

The disciplined Christian, who lives a life of Christlikeness, is NOT...

• A blemish in the fellowship.
• A self-indulgent person.
• A cloud without rain, blown by the wind of every whim, fancy and trend.
• A fruitless tree.
• On the contrary, the true Christian is a joy to be with and who brings blessings (clouds with rain!) to others.

My response is to continue being/seeking to be that kind of Christian.
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Philippians 3:12 NIV

Before lunch I sat and read through Marta's notes so far - and vice versa!
JVA

Crucial Connections - First Day

Part 3 - Following a walk into Sunbury I went through my reading from this afternoon and picked out the following bits and pieces:

Lectio Divina is listening to the still, small voice of God. (1 Kings 19:12)
This gentile listening is an 'atunement' to the presence of God in the Scriptures.
We must learn to love silence.
If we are constantly speaking or if we are surrounded with noise, we cannot hear gentle sounds.
We ponder these things in our hearts. (Luke 2:19)
We allow God's word to become His word for us, a word that touches us and affects us at our deepest level.
We allow our real selves to be touched and changed by the word of God.
We rest in the presence of the One who has used His word as a means of inviting us to accept His transforming embrace.
The underlying rhythm.

I finished the first day (Friday) by starting to read Finding Sanctuary by Abbot Christopher Jamison, and sharing with Marta our thoughts so far.
JVA

Crucial Connections - Start

Part 2 - The programme was the same for both of us, but we worked through it individually (coming together at various points) - so the following is my account of the weekend.

The sun was shining so I found myself a seat underneath a huge tree. There I spent some time in quiet prayer and reflection, using some material from Celtic Daily Prayer - a devotional and prayer book that I find particularly helpful. This proved a good starting point before moving on to considering the notes on Lectio Divina. Before long the lunch was catching up with me, as were the wonderful surroundings, as well as the fact that I'd only had three hours sleep before leaving Gainsborough! But, on the basis that many things in life can be a form of prayer, I didn't worry about it - and embraced the tiredness for half an hour!

A cup of strong coffee soon revived me! I started to write these notes, and this helped me to focus on the purpose of our retreat/course and the wonderful opportunity we had been given. We had brought a number of books with us that we thought might be useful, and I spent some time going through these.

Following our tea we discussed the various books and decided on the one that we would each focus on, we also decided that Celtic Daily Prayer and two books of prayers by David Adam were good resources for us to share - either individually or together. My book was Finding Sanctuary by Abbot Christopher Jamison. To be continued...
JVA

Crucial Connections - Arrival

Part 1 - For a few months Marta and I had been booked into a course entitled Crucial Connections considering various aspects of spirituality and devotional life. Unfortunately we received an email about ten days before the course to say that it had been cancelled. Naturally we were disappointed, and so we tried to find somewhere else to go in order to work through the course material and have a personal retreat for ourselves. Unfortunately this was unsuccessful, at which point Marta had a great idea! Why not see if we could go to Sunbury Court anyway? We made the necessary telephone calls (as well as a few emails) and it was all arranged for us. We had the whole of an 18th century mansion and its beautiful grounds all to ourselves for a long weekend - from after lunch on Friday to Sunday afternoon.

On arrival we shared lunch with a group who were just finishing a course. As they all left we sat out in the grounds going through our course material. It then felt rather strange - just the two of us in Sunbury Court, famous throughout the Salvation Army world as the place where the General is elected in a High Council of Commissioners and Territorial Commanders - in the building shown below.

The place was ours, so we settled ourselves into the library - each with a desk and a computer. To be continued...
JVA

All in a Day's Work - Town Council

You're probably wondering why I've put a picture of roses here? Well, I'll come to that! Earlier this evening I attended the monthly meeting of Gainsborough Town Council to lead them in prayers before they got down to the business. This is a duty that come around twice a year for me, and one which I don't take for granted.

Tonight I shared a well-known verse from Micah in the Old Testament:
The LORD God has told us what is right and what he demands: "See that justice is done, let mercy be your first concern, and humbly obey your God." Micah 6:8 CEV

I followed this with a short reflection (they don't want the religious bit too long!) and two equally short readings, the second of which was a prayer about walking in the light rather than in darkness.

The meeting itself was interesting, many points of order (and the like!), quite a bit about dogs, and some lively discussion. But now to the rose! The last time I was there I had to leave because there was an adenda item that was sub rosa - in other words, confidential, and so members of the public had to leave. The item they discussed was appropriately on pink paper. Please excuse the wrong coloured rose photo (although part of it's name is 'rosa', but it was easy to ask myself for permission to publish it!)

The whole idea of sub rosa goes back a long way, you can read about in in detail by clicking here! Please note the photo is clickable!
JVA

The Memory of Place

During our recent visit to York we came across St. Mary's Church in Castlegate. It is one of 19 parish churches that have survived out of 40 that existed in medieval York. The church is now given over to site-specific art installations. The latest intervention is The Memory of Place by Keiko Mukaide, she was commissioned to respond creatively to the interior of this beautiful church.

Keiko has created a deeply spiritual place in which to reflect on the memory of loved ones. A pool of water fills the nave in which candles float from east to west, leading to a suspended column of glass rods suggesting a spiritual path to a higher place.

Visitors are invited to light a votive candle and float it on the pool - connecting our modern life with that of our ancestors. Like all art, one can reflect on it's meaning and draw from it for oneself - Marta and I found this helpful in considering our spiritual life and journey of faith.

More information can be found by visiting the website, and you can see more photos of our York trip here. The Memory of Place set on Flickr.
JVA