A quiet Saturday has gven me the opportunity to do some thinking and planning for an invitation to preach that has given me a great deal of pride and pleasure. On July 10th I shall travel north to preach in Durham Cathedral for the One hundreth and first Miners Festival Service in Durham Cathedral. A […]
Making a Difference?
Posted on by James Woodward
I found myself putting odd bits of unwanted ‘stuff’ into a box the other day in preparation for the annual Heritage Weekend Fair – only to realize that this event belonged to my former parish which I left over a year ago. Old habits die hard! I cam across thsi reflection that puts some of […]
Conflict?
Posted on by James Woodward
All of us live with conflict. We experience conflict in relationships; we can be the cause of conflict at work. This article will explore the inevitability of conflict and encourage us to reflect its shape and how best we might use conflict to deepen understanding and enlarge our sympathies. The following two examples reflect conflict […]
Garter Day
Posted on by James Woodward
Garter Day in 2010 takes place on Monday 14 June. King George VI reintroduced an annual service for the Order of the Garter in 1948. Up to that year services had been held irregularly. At first glance the processions, uniforms, robes and music seen and heard on Garter Day might appear to add up to […]
Columba
Posted on by James Woodward
Of all the Dark Age Scottish saints, Columba is the most spectacular star. In 563 AD Columba left Ireland and settled with the Gaels of Dál Riata, where he was granted the Island of Iona to found his monastery. For the Gaelic warrior kings, Columba was a useful asset. His monastery provided education for their […]
Consideration for others?
Posted on by James Woodward
If it lies anywhere, salvation is in releasing our sweaty grip, and saying ‘after you’. This is what George Steiner calls the courtesy of true art, which doesn’t seek to grab, smother and possess, but stands back to make space, regardless of personal cost.
Windsor
Posted on by James Woodward
I am now into my first year here at St George’s Windsor and people often ask me how it is going! Here is a short extract from my diary which picks up a key part of the life and work: At first it seemed strange to be sharing in worship without having sole responsibility for […]
reflection
Posted on by James Woodward
We are the time. We are the famous metaphor from Heraclitus the Obscure. We are the water, not the hard diamond, the one that is lost, not the one that stands still. We are the river and we are that Greek that looks himself into the river. His reflection changes into the waters of the […]
Wither the Anglican Communion?
Posted on by James Woodward
I thought it worth drawing your attention to these helpful comments by the Bishop of Gloucester? I think there are some things here we need to explore sensitively together. In doing so I want to acknowledge the honesty and courage of my friend, James Jones, the Bishop of Liverpool, who has publicly told his own […]
Georges Rouault Christ on the Cross
Posted on by James Woodward
In one of Rouault’s crucifixion scenes, painted around 1920, the dark is one again a fundamental feature. The Crucifixion could almost be taking place at night. The sky is dark, the land is dark and the outline of the Cross is black. This serves to focus the eye of the viewer on the unearthly light […]
Laughter
Posted on by James Woodward
Alternatively, what about something which is deeply and uproariously funny? Our uncontrollable laughter exceeds any rational reaction the occasion of the joke I have produced. We feel liberated by what is funny. Why? Because the funny event and our laughter at it means that we have caught a whiff of something that isn’t part of the […]
Older People have their part to play too
Posted on by James Woodward
(article published in the Church Times 7 May2010) THE latest statistics from the Archbishops’ Council suggest that half of those in our pews are pensioners. Some rural congregations were, on average, older than 65, while the youngest Anglicans were found in London, where the age of the “standard” churchgoer is 54. It compares with the […]
A Second Flowering?
Posted on by James Woodward
Why is older age so important? Inner exploration, undertaken with some cognizance of what may be discovered, leads to a possession of oneself, to risking change and allowing transformation. The second half of life can be a work of growth, a ‘’second flowering’’, in which exploration of the depths of self in relationship to God, […]
Henry Moore
Posted on by James Woodward
Radical, experimental and avant-garde, Henry Moore (1898–1986) was one of Britain’s greatest artists. This exhibition at Tate Britain takes a fresh look at his work and legacy, presenting over 150 stone sculptures, wood carvings, bronzes and drawings. Moore rebelled against his teachers’ traditional views of sculpture, instead taking inspiration from non-Western works he saw in museums. He […]
Going Deeper
Posted on by James Woodward
Reading the Saturday papers I am constantly surprised at the superficiality of much of our human commentary…. and this can often be reflected in human relationships. Here is a challenging reflection from Harry Williams….. If we are shallow people, our estimates of others and their behaviour will be superficial, and this is perhaps the most […]
Money worries in the C of E
Posted on by James Woodward
Clergy in the Church of England are being asked to cut their cloth to suit the economic times and to prepare for mergers and staff cuts that could drastically reduce pastoral care and worship. A report on finances has found that a quarter of all 44 dioceses are running deficits and plundering reserves to pay […]
Spring Quiet
Posted on by James Woodward
Gone were but the Winter, Come were but the Spring, I would go to a covert Where the birds sing. Where in the whitethom Singeth a thrush, And a robin sings In the holly-bush. Full of fresh scents Are the budding boughs Arching high over A cool green house: Full of sweet scents, And […]
Bothered and Bewildered
Posted on by James Woodward
When we are bothered and bewildered it is doubly important that our thinking and reflecting are courageous and honest. And in particular it is necessary to avoid two ‘quasi’ intellectual habits: The assumption that it is possible to impose solutions on people as a method of rekindling hope. Virtuous behaviour cannot be enforced. Whilst people […]
The Eucharist
Posted on by James Woodward
The sign-giving does not aim to take us back to the first century; the eucharist is not a time machine. Rather, it catches us into the stream of God’s continuing and liberating activity. It goes without saying that only the signs, rather than the symbols, can do this. The signs speak of a God who […]
ROGATION -TIDE
Posted on by James Woodward
This Sunday was originally so called because of the words in the Prayer Book gospel for the day: “Whatever you ask the Father in my name, he will give to you”. (The Latin is ‘Rogare’ – to ask.) In the strictly biblical context, the chief thing to ask for is the spirit of God to […]