There is a shift in thinking from living bound by law to one where faith provides your rule.
Those who have been brought up Christian often feel frustration as Christmas approaches and the streets fill up with tinsel, and advertisers ramp up the pressure to consume – all with the branding of Christendom.
How should a follower of the way respond?
Everything is permissible. Laugh in the market place with those who love joy, weep with those who mourn. We are free from the need to moralise or preserve the worthless religious practices* of even our recent ancestors. But we must prayerfully consider what choices are most beneficial.
Our faith is not in a set of beliefs and practices. Faith in Jesus is belief that through genuine loving we will build up ourselves and those around us. Transform obstacles into opportunities, and show things in a new light which brings peace, change, growth.
Living a rule to give this constancy is much more demanding than conserving a moral code. The freedom requires each of us to judge ourselves rather than just conform to expectations.
In a place where bibles are banned you can be a hero lawbreaker smuggling holy contraband. Where sectarian or nationalist violence mars the daily life of ordinary people you can transgress religious boundaries to display love like the good Samaritan. In a high street that no longer feels like it is your own, is it time to turn over tables and protest the against the cultural appropriation of Christian symbolism by secular society?
Who would that benefit, who would it build up?
What are people celebrating at Christmas, and why are they choosing to do that online, in their homes, and on the high street but less and less in church buildings?
Is our own house in order, are we truly welcoming of people of all ages, sexuality, and cultures who choose to celebrate significant moment as Church?
What are the rules you set for yourself to make the journey toward Christmas, and the festival itself, spiritually significant? please use the comments!
While we were on holiday in Oban we discovered this mobile. Ogham runes from thousands of years ago stitched onto leaves that make the hidden colours in trees visible. There is a tradition which associates each ogham rune with the name of a tree which some people use today to think about ways in which language is embedded in environment.
Celtic Alphabet leaves in the Rockfield Centre, Oban – Deborah Grey
The work explores indigenous language through natural dyes and pigments. It was a community project which is embedded in a community dye garden. There is more to explore online! Including a digital archive of conversations I’ve not found yet. It is curated by Naoko Mabon though if you feel like doing some research!
“We meet in Jesus name. Whether you consider yourself a close friend or are just curious, we meet in Christs peace. Peace be with you”
share a sign of peace.
Psalm 85
Prayer for the Restoration of God’s Favour
To the leader. Of the Korahites. A Psalm.
1 Lord, you were favourable to your land;
you restored the fortunes of Jacob.
2 You forgave the iniquity of your people;
you pardoned all their sin. Selah
3 You withdrew all your wrath;
you turned from your hot anger.
4 Restore us again, O God of our salvation,
and put away your indignation toward us.
5 Will you be angry with us forever?
Will you prolong your anger to all generations?
6 Will you not revive us again,
so that your people may rejoice in you?
7 Show us your steadfast love, O Lord,
and grant us your salvation.
8 Let me hear what God the Lord will speak,
for he will speak peace to his people,
to his faithful, to those who turn to him in their hearts.[a]
9 Surely his salvation is at hand for those who fear him,
that his glory may dwell in our land.
10 Steadfast love and faithfulness will meet; righteousness and peace will kiss each other. 11 Faithfulness will spring up from the ground, and righteousness will look down from the sky. 12 The Lord will give what is good, and our land will yield its increase. 13 Righteousness will go before him and will make a path for his steps.
Psalm 85 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
OR if this song might be helpful if you are online and unable to join in with the psalm in person.
O God Will You Restore Us, Bifrost Arts
First Reading
13 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. Whoever has ears, let them hear.”… … “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. 23 But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”
A doorway to wonder made from scientific knowledge.
June has been a dry month this year, but with the school summer holidays rain has arrived!
Take some time out to smell the moisture in the air. Look for the river flowing into the sea. look around and become aware of the presence of water in the growing things.
We are part of this cycle, water flows though us and makes up a large amount of our body. Without it we become very thirsty, very quickly.
Practice #SensingMeaningfulness. (Don’t try to do all of these! pick one which appeals to you most, but then perhaps you’ll find time for another).
Creatively interact with the area around you. What things are wet? Are some leaves juicy and full of water while others are dry? Are there things you can make a picture from, or can you make sounds which represent all the forms which the water that surrounds us takes (pattering of rain, rippling river, beating heart…). Dance like no-one is watching!
Use the “doorway” card to learn about the water cycle, and follow the prompts to think about it.
Let your mind rest and become aware of your senses and experience the moment. As your mind wanders through the sensations of water, what truths do you become aware of? Are you inspired? Where do you feel the presence of the Holy Spirit. Drink deeply.
Look at the ways in which water brings life to the seeds and plant around you. Are you spiritually thirsty? What areas of your life need “watering” and how could that be helped?
Discussion
We will make time to listen to each other learn from the different ways in which everyone has experienced water.
Blessing
May the blessing of the rain be on you— the soft sweet rain. May it fall upon your spirit so that all the little flowers may spring up, and shed their sweetness on the air. May the blessing of the great rains be on you, may they beat upon your spirit and wash it fair and clean, and leave there many a shining pool where the blue of heaven shines, and sometimes a star.
Whilst researching making an early medieval bell (to use at Caerlaverock on Saturday) I stumbled on the Latin for ‘bell’ used in Irish/Scottish texts, which is Clocca. The similarity with “clock” struck me, and I went back to working metal.
I then started wondering about ways of telling the time, as in letting everyone know what hour it was rather than measuring the length of day. In monasteries bells tolled the hour. Some buildings with bell/clock towers still provide that service. We still ‘tell’ the time with ‘clocks’ even if they don’t ring or chime as much. On a ship bells ring to change watch.
Are the watches on our phones echoing the practice of an ordered day, inherited from monastic living?
and…
In what ways can we use the marking of hours to live our lives more intentionally?
Or even to become aware of sensing the presence of the divine in our daily lives.
References to the presence and use of bells can be found in Adamnan’s “Life of Columba” It is used to summon the community so that they can pray for a king fighting a battle far off and for the crew of a ship which is in trouble sailing into what is now called Belfast lough. It marks the hours in the monastery, and the account of Columba’s last moments on earth begin with the sounding of the bell at midnight.
Even earlier is is reported that they (campana) are used to summon monks to prayer by Ferrandus writing to Eugippius, and in the writings of Benedict of Nursia. Other words for bell like objects include: Signum, campana, and glogga
Quartz has been using Haiku this weekend as part of the Wordsmith Crafts CiC setup at Kirkcudbright Art and Crafts trail.
The following is taken from notes written by Kate, who has been leading this activity.
A selection of Haiku
We have been giving people a space to stop. The whole of Kirkcudbright becomes a walking trail and on Friday we had a couple of chairs to rest in which were appreciated.
I have experienced people being surprised by what they have achieved, that they have come up with such a profound haiku. One lady took ages, told me lots about her life and the struggles she faced. She was in tears when she finished her poem, and it was a lovely poem for her sons.
Another experience I have enjoyed was asking children if they know what haiku were and wathcing their parents being really impressed that their child knows all about them.
We have a bowl full of words on cardboard strips. Having words provided means that people encountered words they weren’t expecting. One lady was ambushed by the word forgiveness- we had a brief conversation about it but I suspect more thinking and heart-searching happened after she left.
In addition, giving people the opportunity to write their own words allowed one girl to ignore all the rules and simply state “My name is Bee”. One man wrote a lovely poem about someone special in his life. Young twins who hadn’t learned to read yet enjoyed picking up words they liked the look of, and then the adults watching re-ordered them, #SensingMeaningfulness.
Saturday was wet and windy to start so there were no haiku for the first few hours, but some lovely ones arrived with the sunshine later on. It was great to see parents and children working together – parents were happy to help without taking over or changing things that they thought weren’t quite right.
During the morning haiku hiatus, the finger labyrinth we also have on the table, being made of glazed pottery and therefore much more waterproof, came into it’s own. Some had seen one before, but many learned to use one for the first time. I had a great half-conversation with a lady who was trying to get her son to do it as he had had a difficult day and she thought it would help him.
Not everyone felt able to stop for long, but we had many brief conversations about laying burdens down safely and picking them up in a different mindset. I felt able to say that I speak to Jesus in the middle.
The labyrinth of chairs we set up in St Johns, linking activity inside the building with activities like this in the wider community.
More to follow! Sunday and Monday still to go.
As well as the Quartz area Wordsmith Crafts has a workshop where people can become 5 or 10 minute apprentices and learn to make copper armbands. This is a hands on encounter with millennia old skills. Conversations about value, time, and our relationships with the people who have contributed to making the Scotland we know today.
There is also a shop area where artists associated with WSC can exhibit and sell their work. This helps support the artists, and fund the installation at the trail – any surplus will be directed to helping people access the full resources of their Heritage through other projects.
Just some Iron Age folk discussing heritage, in between customers.
A Quartz Outerweave at Kirkcudbright Art and Crafts Trail
Thought becomes a woven banner.
We will be #SensingSpirituality in Kirkcudbright during the last weekend of July 2022. The trail is open from 11am to 5pm on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. You can find more info here
We were last there in 2017, and are looking forward to returning. This year we will have three main activities to help people use art and crafts to become aware of, explore and express the invisible things which make humans more than just their physical elements.
The theme for the trail this year is “Cats” in memory of one of the trails founders. We have taken this and then approached it through a poem called “Pangur Ban” The poem compares a monks search for meanings in texts to the quest of his pet cat trying to catch mice.
Either writing freestyle, or by arranging from a selection of words people will be encouraged to reflect on their environment and make an observation. Traditionally this type of poetry is 17 syllables in a 5,7,5 pattern. The poems will be fleeting glimpses of meaningfulness, but they can be photographed and then tagged #SensingSpirituality to be found online as long as the internet lasts…
Weaving
Continuing our practice of collaborative artwork, individuals can record their reflections on ribbons of cloth or paper. These are then woven into a tapestry using a warp weighted loom. Fragments of thoughts will be visible in the final banner, but each is anonymous as part of the whole.
The Cats mirror
Interested?
Come along and see for yourself what we are up to! Quartz takes the challenge of leaving our spiritual comfort zone to find “The face of God in friend and stranger” seriously. We will be setting up in Kirkcudbright to learn as well as help. We contribute from our own traditions and the experience of walking the paths we have made, and we hope to receive from the discussions this inspires. If you would like to get involved in helping do this, then talk with us and we can work out how to help each other.
Studio and Cluaran
Hair clasp by Kirsten Milliken
As well as the Quartz project being on display, we are inviting people to glimpse a travelling version of the Wordsmith Crafts Studio . We will have a workshop set up where we will be experimenting with Iron Age crafts. Making rings and broaches. Some of these will be replicas, some “in the style of” and some will be contemporary creations.
Iron age fibula broaches
We run 10 and 20 minute craft workshops. In these people can drop in and make something, and then take it away with them. We provide the skills and learning for free, but anything made in the workshop has a value and a trade needs to be made in order to take things away!
We will also have a shop front where the artists involved with Wordsmith Crafts can exhibit and sell their work.
There was a wind blowing through the Crichton today. The fallen leaves were rustling, dried by a sunny day and drifting around the contours of the grass.
Our attention was drawn to a dandelion, a last bloom of yellow on the green looking up at the yellow on the blue. There was a rhododendron in bloom as well. We explored the sounds, sights, smells, and textures of the area. With the taste of winter in the wind.
The whole area was buzzing with life, with several events taking place over the weekend. Dog walkers, concert goers and children playing in the leaves. I wondered what patterns are there waiting to be discovered, and what ones do we make ourselves. Or is the process of making a visible pattern an act of recognising, becoming aware of, an unseen reality which reveals and forms itself in and through the process of becoming? Like leaves settling on a landscape in the wind, held by the contours of earth and air pressure.
Sometimes instinct draws us to run through the pile of leaves and enjoy the sensation as they scatter. Sometimes we catch a glimpse of something which leads us to wonder about a deeper meaning. It could be patterns in leaves, or texture in bark, or the particular light cast by a winter sun illuminating that particular moment.
Today we made it to the central cafe before it closed. It too was bustling and as we sat and folded paper angels we continued to chat on the veranda watching the sun set behind a one tonne willow bull. This is Kelton the belted galloway, a woven sculpture wandering around Dumfries and Galloway.
Another work of art has found its resting place at the Crichton. This is a life Totem which has travelled over the sea for COP26. It has become a focus for meaning, discussions and hopefully inspired insight on how to respond to climate change. It is now returning to the earth. This is a planned letting go of the artwork. The material will decompose and return to the soil it came from. This contrasts with the ways in which cultures that obsess with preserving works of art can loose the spiritual significance of it.
Those for whom power is found in this world, fight to retain it. Jesus however has confidence that all who belong to the truth will listen to his voice. Can you hear it in the wind?
The next Quartz Forest Church will be on Sunday December the 19th.
In science fiction the reader is often given a glimpse of present reality from an imagined future perspective.
The first panel in this story reminded my both of the optimism of the atomic era, and the growing recognition that something was wrong with the way we were using oil.
It was an era of Mutually Assured Destruction (M.A.D.) presented as a cost effective way to secure peace. The young generation enjoyed the benefits of a reasonable economy, and boomed beyond their borders in supersonic aircraft. The bust of AIDS, famine, and the global cost of this frenzied activity by a small minority of it’s population was yet to hit.
If you could go back in time and change one thing in order to save the world of today, what would it be?
