John 11. 1-45
Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair; her brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent a message to Jesus, ‘Lord, he whom y
decline
Posted on by James Woodward
one day a day woke up and
was sky, air, light
and itself. Later, evening
tapped my shoulder:
a reminder, a privilege,
a job to do. Record, it said
the elegance of the day's decline,
and the perfect curves
of all that is left
of a tulip.
Tom Davis, after Denise Levertov
Welcome and Wonder
Posted on by James Woodward
Ultimately cathedrals are places of welcome and transformation. Nowhere is this more true than of their worship. Their very construction points to the existence of a God of mystery and awe, yet in their nooks and crannies are places of intimacy and comfort, where the hesi
Church Going
Posted on by James Woodward
Once I am sure there's nothing going on
I step inside, letting the door thud shut.
Another church: matting, seats, and stone,
And little books; sprawlings of flowers, cut
For Sunday, brownish now; some brass and stuff
Up at the holy end; the small neat organ;
And a tense, musty
Open your eyes?
Posted on by James Woodward
Observe the wonders as they occur around you. Don't claim them.
Feel the artistry moving through, and be silent. -Jalal ad-Din Rumi
wild flower
Posted on by James Woodward
To see a World in a Grain of Sand
And a Heaven in a Wild Flower,
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand
And Eternity in an hour.
From William Blake, Auguries of Innocence
radiant
Posted on by James Woodward
The middle region of the sky, where spirit lives, is radiant with the music of light;
There, where the pure white music blossoms, God lives, in delight.
Kabir (15c)
Religion may become extinct in nine nations?
Posted on by James Woodward
And what are we to make of this news item? Does it reflect our experience?
A study using census data from nine countries shows that religion there is set for extinction, say researchers.
The study found a steady rise in those claiming no religious affiliation.
The team's m
meditation
Posted on by James Woodward
To meditate does not mean to fight with a problem.
To meditate means to observe.
Your smile proves it.
It proves that you are being gentle with yourself,
that the sun of awareness is shining in you,
that you have control of your situation.
You are yourself,
and you have acqui
The women who make it possible
Posted on by James Woodward
As someone who has always admired and liked Sarah Brown – for the dignity she showed through the death of a child and her self-respect whilst her husband was under attack from just about everybody on an almost daily basis – I was looking forward to reading this book.
The t
Humility?
Posted on by James Woodward
From the Preface by the Archbishop of Canterbury
Humility indeed happens when we're not looking. And that means that we have to learn where to look if we want to grow into the truth. We must look into the purpose, the mission, of God and allow ourselves to be taken up into the
Be at Leisure
Posted on by James Woodward
This is why the ability to be "at leisure" is one of the basic powers of the human soul. Like the gift of contemplative self-immersion in Being, and the ability to uplift one's spirits in festivity, the power to be at leisure is the power to step beyond the working world and wi
crocuses
Posted on by James Woodward
Spring is the Period
Express from God.
Among the other seasons
Himself abide,
But during March and April
None stir abroad
Without a cordial interview
With God.
Emily Dickinson
Israel(8) Church of the Holy Sepulchre
Posted on by James Woodward
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, also called the Church of the Resurrection by Eastern Christians is a church within the walled Old City of Jerusalem.
The site is venerated as Golgotha (the Hill of Calvary), where Jesus was crucified and is said to also contain the place
The meaning of Leisure.
Posted on by James Woodward
Leisure, then, as a condition of the soul - (and we must firmly keep to this assumption, since leisure is not necessarily present in all the external things like "breaks” "time off," "weekend," "vacation," and so on - it is a condition of the soul) - leisure is precisely the
Israel (7) Bethlehem
Posted on by James Woodward
Bethlehem is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank, approximately 8 kilometers south of Jerusalem, with a population of about 30,000 people.It is the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate of the Palestinian National Authority and a hub of Palestinian culture and tourism.
Pray for the Peace of Jerusalem
Posted on by James Woodward
Psalm 122 >>
King James Version
I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD.
Our feet shall stand within thy gates, O Jerusalem.
Jerusalem is builded as a city that is compact together:
Whither the tribes go up,
Ash Wednesday
Posted on by James Woodward
“Lord teach us how to pray aright … for we perish if we cease to pray.”
Lent calls us to repentance and repentance involves a change of heart. Help me to realise Lord that to change my life without changing my heart is like cutting weeds and leaving roots in the soil.
fire
Posted on by James Woodward
An aged man is but a paltry thing,
A tattered coat upon a stick, unless
Soul clap its hands and sing, and louder sing
For every tatter in its mortal dress,
Nor is there singing school but studying
Monuments of its own magnificence;
And therefore I have sailed the seas and
Israel (5) Yad Vashem
Posted on by James Woodward
As I look back over my experience of Israel this visit remains fresh and powerfully disturbing.
The Holocaust History Museum
A decade in the making, the Holocaust History Museum combines the best of Yad Vashem’s expertise, resources and state-of-the-art exhibits to take Holo