What were the millions of Anglicans praying for during the Primates’ meeting? Were they neutrally praying supportively for the well-being of those present? Were they praying for unity above all things? Were they praying for the Primates to be infused with the love of Jesus the Christ? Were they praying for an in-breaking of the Holy Spirit? Were they praying for a radical comment to love, truth and justice? Were they praying for an end to the caricature and prejudice that can lead to violent persecution and genocide and the cessation of simplistic criticism and ridicule by the Primates that leads inexorably to the dehumanising and degrading treatment of others?
My spiritual self observes the Primates' meeting and mourns David Bowie
Each one of us can touch the inspirational core of our being, given time and space and loving care. Today, I look to those Primates able to bring that Christ-like presence to their meeting in Canterbury to inspire their brothers to stay in the room and hold fast to their calling to bring the same presence to the Church and to the world.
The Primates' meeting - a busted flush?
Whatever disruption in the structure of the Communion occurs next week, there will be LGBTI people praying and longing, and in some cases working quietly and effectively, for our full, public, joyful inclusion in the life of the Church. The evolutionary trajectory of God in history makes this outcome inevitable. The Gafcon Primates are trying to reverse a movement which is irreversible.
Peaceful co-existence in the Anglican Communion is a state most deeply to be desired
In a week’s time the Primates of the Anglican Communion will gather in Canterbury for an emergency meeting designed to resolve the ruptured relationships in the Communion. Jonathan Petre has filed a very predictable report for the MailOnline. According to Jonathan’s report, the Archbishop of Canterbury wants to broker a deal to allow both sides to co-exist peacefully. I hope and pray with all my heart that he achieves his goal. To co-exist peacefully with my brothers and sisters across the globe, whatever their gender, sexuality, faith or spirituality is most profoundly and prayerfully to be desired.
A Sufi spiritual manifesto for the twenty-first century
Human societies across the world are likely to experience increasingly significant disruptions in this century due to the effects of climate change and the continued degradation of Earth’s living systems. The religious and contemplative groups that will have a relevant and constructive voice in the flow of events are those that are able to frame these profound changes within a coherent cosmological story and provide useful contemplative tools for navigating shifting structures.
Some of the essentials for contemplative living
I’ve compiled a list of the key essentials for the contemplative life which keep coming to me when I meditate. Elements that are important to me are usually missing from other people’s writings. These include the importance of the body (implicit in the incarnation) and of emotional and physical experience, and the importance of actively teaching people how to become aware of their intuitive contemplative self and nurture that self in ways that are so simple that people find it difficult to believe they really work – until they try.
The next crisis - the Primates meeting
The most immediate event confronting the C of E is the special meeting of the primates of the Anglican Communion in Canterbury from 11-16 January to discuss key issues face to face. According to the Lambeth Palace media statement, issues to be discussed include a review of the structures of the Anglican Communion and their approach to the next Lambeth Conference, and are likely to include the issues of religiously-motivated violence, the protection of children and vulnerable adults, the environment and human sexuality.
The Environmental crisis and the Spiritual crisis for the Church of England
Here in England, we are enduring storm after Atlantic storm bringing unprecedented rainfall causing extensive, destructive flooding of communities in the north. I live in the south, in Wiltshire, and we have escaped the torrent this time, but not far from me are the Somerset levels which spent much of the winter of 2013/14 under water.
The Existential Jesus
The guest editor on BBC radio 4’s Today programme this morning, 28th December, was the actor Michael Sheen. In a segment at 07.20 (1.20.30 into the programme) Sue Lawley asked the question which he wanted to put: ‘What power does the Bible have in our secular world?’. I’ve spent the rest of today researching the two people who were interviewed by Sue Lawley and Michael Sheen.
Contemplation and Truth
I’ve been reading Simon Small’s brief but rich book, From the Bottom of the Pond: The forgotten art of experiencing God in the depths of the present moment.
I was tempted, reading the Prologue, to post it in its entirety here, but that would contravene the publisher’s rights. Simon’s first sentence in the Prologue is:
“I rest at the centre of space. Unimaginably vast space everywhere I look, disappearing into the distance, seemingly without end.”