Virtual Methodist

"Pentecost" by Jyoti Sahi For years I have been profoundly moved, and inspired by two poems which each deal with the liturgical anomaly of the Feast of the Annunciation and Good Friday coinciding: “The Annunciation and Passion” by John Donne, and “Good Friday falls on Lady Day” by G.A. Studdert Kennedy.  This year The Feast of the Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth coincides with The Feast of Pentecost. Since the beginning of the Covid-19 Lockdown I have written almost nothing new. My mind has been too absorbed by other tasks. But this seemed an appropriate conjunction to prompt me writing. I am not bold enough to claim it as a product of inspiration, although I actually believe all forms of creativity are.  Kennedy's poem begins with the line "And has our Lady lost Her place" and I suppose there is an element of pondering on that in this. And it is one of the reasons I love the piece of art I am attaching to this and will post as my #PentecostArt piece on social m...

Just back from a really stimulating day with other chaplains at the Clinical Pastoral Education Retreat to Dromantine. It fell to our group to lead worship at the beginning and for it I wrote the following responsive prayer based on the first part of Isaiah 61 (I came home to discover that Stocki had referred to the latter part of the same chapter in his Surmise today promoting the upcoming Four Corners Festival - it is a truly inspiring chapter of scripture... perhaps that is why Jesus chose to read it to his home Synagogue in Nazareth.) I may have written it for a group of chaplains, but, if the Pope is correct in defining the contemporary church as a "field hospital" for those wounded in the world (a concept which we explored today) then it is an appropriate prayer for all those who are part of the church... Sovereign  L ord  pour your Spirit upon us, Anoint us to bring good news to the poor and the powerless Wherever we may encounter them on our journeys: Sen...

It's that time again so here is a sketch I wrote for Pentecost a few years ago. It's based on Ephesians 4: 7 which says: "Christ has given each of us special abilities—whatever he wants us to have out of his rich storehouse of gifts." (The Living Bible) All: (Singing) Happy Birthday to you... Happy birthday to you... 1: Happy Birthday... (Offering gift to number 2) 2: O thanks... (taking gift and putting it straight down behind him) 1: Aren’t you going to open it? 2: Open what? 1: The gift! 2: What gift? 1: That gift! 2: Where? 1: There! 2: I don’t see any gift? 1: There... I just gave to you... 2: No you didn’t... 1: Yes I did... 2: Don’t believe you... 1: Oh I give up! All: (Singing) Happy Birthday to you... Happy birthday to you... 1: Happy Birthday... (Offering gift to number 3) 3: O thanks... (taking gift and ripping off paper... finding tambourine) Amazing just what I always wanted... (starts banging it without any sense of rhythm... ...

I said I would post more on what Duncan Morrow had to say at our recent meeting... And let me assure you that there will be much more. He generally says more insightful things in a talk scribbled on the back of 3 crumpled pieces of paper than I do in reams of closely reasoned and carefully prepared material. But anyway, our discussion was generally about the theology and practice of reconciliation (although after he left it majored on the theology and practice issue, without really focussing on reconciliation... dodging the issue again perhaps!) Duncan's thesis was largely that the western world in general, Northern Ireland in particular and the church par excellance were governed by 3 broad principles in dealing with current problems: Distraction Containment Denial I may come back to comment on the first 2 at some point, but what was most memorable for me was his assertion that while the church finds its origins in the confession of Simon Peter, its experience is reflected much mo...