abbotsford.org.uk

Advent I

in the filtered light
of a low sun
bathing short winter hours
with a meagre paleness
the brilliance seems so fragile
as it lies across the morning frost
it's light thinner, longer
than at any other time
the last of the dried leaves
shimmer on barren twigs
and the promise of rebirth
seems another world away
and so it is
for time is still shrinking
towards the solstice
the winter cold growing
alongside the eclipsing of the light
but creation knows
this is the last great gasp
the deep in-drawing of breath
before reversal
a game of holding onto the promise
for just a few weeks longer
another day of retiring light
holding back
the renewal
toying with the excitement
the unexpected surprise
the turning
towards incarnation

 

Light Festival

Our light festival is almost organised. It's going to be great. We've having a wee ceremony under the tower then lighting the lanterns (all hand made) and after that we ave different areas of the church set aside: Creative, Chillout, Community and Cafe. Each has a different activity including acrylic square painting, origami, space images etc. Then there is also moments of story telling, quizes, light pools and light experiments. It's going to be great.

My question is about the we opening ceremony ad closing ceremony: what do you do at a light festival? What music? Please make as many sugestions as you like. What words? Anyone have suggestions for poems, readings?

Can you do that!?

We have an eco-communion tomorrow where we share bread and wine in the context of creation/environment and justice. Tomorrow the liturgy will talk of both bread and wine but we will only share bread and leave the wine on the table symbolic of a creation that is not fully shared with everyone, where so much is taken in the west there isn't enough left for the south let alone for future generations.

Are you allowed to deny people the wine? Of course God's grace is such that it is fully given to all unconditionally. That's why I'm still a follower, but to stop the sharing tomorrow at communion offers a message, a prophecy and a picture of what truly happens to the sacrament of creation (see post below somewhere).

Jesus took bread
grown from the earth
and broke it and said:
This is my body
when you eat of it
share of it all of you

And he took a cup of wine
pressed from the fruit of the land
and said:
This is a sign if my promise
when you drink
drink it with all

do not keep to yourself what is given for all
do not take more for yourself, that others have less
go share the gifts of God with the People of God

Come
let us share this gift of the earth with each other
that is filled with Jesus

But let us share only bread here
for still the world does not share fully what creation offers us
some take so much others have nothing
and a desert is being created for future generations
the wine remains here as a symbol
that the full promise of creation is not yet shared by all

Come let us share bread
and the longing of justice

10:10:10 Intercession

 

We have a simple prayer
on this day
food for the hungry
justice for the poor
peace for the war-torn
welcome for the displaced
a simple harvest prayer

and a simple prayer for ourselves
to love our neighbour more

Hear us
So be it

But then, God,
as simple as that?

Yes, God as simple as that
Millennium Goals
on this 10th day
of the 10^th month
of the 10^th year in this millennium

A harvest prayer
banquets for the hungry
freedom for the poor
new lives for the war-torn
a home for the displaced

and for us
to love our neighbour
more than we love ourselves

Hear us
10x10x10 times hear us

So be it
Amen

When 'Boney M' says it all

Harvest is turning into a a place of lament this year for some reason. Without forgetting to offer thankfulness, that thankfulness is conditional surely. Indeed it ought to be utter humility rather than thankfulness for the west. How can God's People, who have signed up to justice and the integrity of gospel values, ever give thanks for 'the harvest safely gathered in' when that is the last thing it is for the majority of God's People in Palestine and Vietnam and Niger and Pakistan.

We can't say thanks for the crops we eat grown in fields of the poor while our own lie fallow and pay lip-service to justice. Harvest ought to be a national moment of reflection. All those traditional hymns we have were written in an age of Empire where those who grew our food weren't worth much to those who owned them and ruled them and enslaved them. I don't want to sing hymns like as if they have anything to do with God's Realm. 

10:10:10

We'll be getting involved with this over the next week, month, year. Our worship will focus on it but in the mean time for the contemporary reading this week, top ten... Can you suggest various top tens: top ten singles, top ten tips for the commonwealth games, top ten hymns, top ten home bakes, top ten words you hear in church, top ten children's talks? Just for fun of course, but may help out a bit in putting together the worship. Over to you.

Today's Service

Don't often blog about the days service because usually it is in the eye of the beholder but today was a good service I think for everyone. A very happy dedication service where everyone shared a whole lot of community with each other. Cakes and buns too were the icing on the dedication service cake. It was fabulous to see lots of people there who came along to support youth organisations and friends along with the hall being full afterwards with an exhibition put on from all the different organisations and the hall all decorated as if we took our celebrating very seriously. And we do. It just worked. Can't really explain it. It just did. So thaks to everyone who helped launch the year. I wonder what we will be this time next year?

What are we

Needing major help here. Dedication service on Sunday. I'm trying to gather people's thoughts on the congregation. When I say Abbotsford, what do you think of? It can be serious and funny (even at the same time). I'm mainly looking for one word answers, but as many one word answers as possible. So there you go: homework for the next day: think up as many one word answers that describe Abbotsford from leaking roofs (okay, you're allowed two word answers too) to tea bar.

Be are cryptic, humourous, serious, challenging, honest, diplomatic as you like. Let's write the service together on Sunday again...

The Rainbow Litany

Looking for some help for the service on Sunday. I have the thought in my head to do a rainbow litany. A litany is really just the posh name for a big list so when you imagine or see a rainbow, what do you think of. It could be anything that stirs your soul, moves your feet, juggles your thoughts... If you would like to add to this list, please, please do so. It could be one word or 100. We'll put them into some kind of order and use them with some rainbow music in the background.

A starter for ten:

pattern
rain
community
colour
song
wizard of Oz
Toto
prism
refraction
photons
peace
GLBT
dove
Noah
arc

but that's not all, surely....

Palindrome message of Luke 4

This idea has been completely stolen from Jonathan Reed who is someone from Atlanta and won second place in an AARP contest called "u@50". His original is going the rounds of the internet and can be seen in various places. I've completely plagiarised it for Sunday. I was put onto it by a member of the congregation. Here's a version that may fit with Sunday.

The idea is to read it all the way through and then read it line by line from the bottom up.

Is this what we believe?

God has given everything for the sake of the world

Is a lie

And ‘only those who are rich will be saved’

God is not on the side of those who want to change the world

I would be lying to you if I said

The good news will set us free

And light is stronger than darkness and

justice is a better way than fear

I am convinced of this because

selfishness is ingrained in us all

love is a weakness and only the strong will survive and

I cannot bring myself to believe

God’s word is an agent of transformation in the world and

People of faith are people who know the power of change

This is not true for us

This is a secular and hopeless society

Experts will tell us

In the future

Living without believing will be the norm

It is foolish to presume that

These things will change

 

unless we let faith turn these things around