Waiting with pain

I am not good in the mornings - it takes me a while to come round even with the help of a strong coffee. But yesterday, I was woken up with a start by the voice on the radio announcing the morning service. Now usually at this point, I groan, switch off the radio and stagger through to the office to start writing the prayers for our own morning service. Not so yesterday as the voice to my amazement and delight clearly stated that the morning service was coming from Calgary Baptist Church in Cardiff and led by the Revd. Dr. Craig Gardiner himself!

What a refreshing change to listen to words that so clearly reflect the reality of our lives here in Openshaw. What a breath of fresh air to hear a Biblical reflection, woven throughout the service and spun in the thought-provoking sermon by Dr. Karen Smith, on the story of a woman as central, dynamic and deeply courageous. And what an affirmation to hear my own ministry, which I have often described as "walking with people in pain" validated and honoured in this way. For many years, as a church we have waited with, and walked with a community in pain, sharing its hopes and its disappointments.

We have often described our ministry as looking on as a community is crucified and over the last few weeks we have watched the interior of our old church building ripped open and exposed to the elements before finally being demolished. And now, we too are waiting, waiting with pain, waiting in pain. Like Mary Magdalene we are not sure how the story will end. But like Mary Magdalene, we wait by the tomb of our hopes and dreams and wait for the dawn of the resurrection.

Thank you Craig, Karen and the community of Calgary Baptist Church in Cardiff.

Where is the Sun?

About a month ago, some gentlemen in yellow vests and hard hats came and put up scaffolding around our house. They promptly covered the scaffolding with yellow protective sheeting, blocking all light from the front of our house. Then they left. Since then we have seen one workman, for one morning. He ground all the mortar out of the brickwork, leaving the house, garden and street covered in a thick layer of red brick dust. He had, at least, taped up the door and letter box.

Since then, we have seen no one. It is now three weeks since anyone actually did any work on our house and, quite frankly, we are getting rather fed up of living on a building site.

Ordinarily, we would escape to Clare and Andy's house - but, of course, that has been a building site since last June!

Even since I took the pictures linked to below in December, the area has been transformed. Where once there were houses, today there are empty spaces. In what seemed a rather desperate piece of synchronicity, the producers of East is East - which was filmed here 12 years ago - decided to come back and film the death throes of our community for their sequel, which I believe will be called West is West! We receive an almost endless stream of students on 'field trips' coming to 'study us.'



And today, when we were supposedly on holiday, I got a phone call to say that the demolition of the old Mersey Street church building had started. So, when we got back this afternoon, I dashed round to take some more pictures which you can see by clicking here. A suitable souvenir of what has been a horrible New Year for all of us so far.

Which is why we're not posting much at the moment. We don't want to depress you all. Roll on Easter, I say. We could do with a bit of resurrection!

RIP

Just a brief note to mark the passing of Edward Schillebeeckx and Mary Daly within the same week. The Guardian this morning is describing Schillebeeckx as the most influential theologian of his generation. I don't know about that, but as a young(ish) theology student in the 80s and 90s, his work largely passed me by, as being rather too conservative and church-focussed for my taste.
Daly, on the other hand, was a thought provoking source of constant challenge. If, ultimately, I rejected many of her conclusions (and I still struggle to see how any man could accept her radical separationist approach), her analysis of patriarchy has, hopefully had a profound influence on my praxis. So, even if I was not part of her world, I mourn her passing!

Out with the Old

So, we're into that strange lull between Christmas and New Year. It seems longer this year, so not only do I have time to make this post, but I spent all day yesterday beginning the mammoth task of clearing out our cellar so Deborah can set up her studio down there. We have a few mementos from Mersey Street stored down there, together with various bits and bobs of Clare and Andy's while their never-ending building work goes on. But by far the majority of the rubbish down there is stuff I have hung on to on the grounds that, "It may come in useful sometime."

You may not know this, but we have pretty much re-built our house over the last 15 years. But we are about to purchase a stair carpet - and that will be the moment we declare it finished! (Of course, it never will be finished, there will always be repairs and improvements... we need a new boiler and the shower room needs re-decorating, but you know what I mean).

So, if the bricks, slates & timber I've been hoarding, not to mention half-full tins of paint have not 'come in handy,' by now, then it is likely they never will.

So, it's out with the old.

Which is a good summary of 2009, really. We finally rid ourselves of Mersey Street, and the last vestiges of traditional church. Now we begin the task of constructing a new model of Christian presence which fits the new Openshaw.

And after a couple of days rest after a good Christmas with family and friends, that feels a pretty exciting prospect. So, a very Happy New Year to you all.

Demolition Keep Out

This afternoon I finally found time to go out with the church camera and take some photographs of the estate. You can view them by clicking the title of this post.

It was a strange and rather melancholic experience. We have been waiting for so long for this process to start, but somehow I can't find much to celebrate.

This advent we have been following the Roots material (well, sort of, anyway) which began by looking at the divided kingdoms of Israel and Judah. We spent time looking at walls and barriers which divide the world today and Clare put together a slideshow.

Ironic then, to go out into my own community, where I have lived for 16 years now, to take photographs of the homes of friends and neighbours, to capture images of the church in which I have ministered for 18 years and to be greeted by fences, barriers and signs telling me to KEEP OUT.

I wanted to scream at the yellow jacket hard hats, "But I live here. This is where I belong. You can't keep me out of my own home."

But, of course, they can. In many ways, they should. Health and safety isn't all daft! But it did worry me to walk onto the new build roads for the first time and to discover that they are all full of gates and barriers as well. Gated communities built to protect the inhabitants from the indigenous community. Built to protect them from me.

Why are you all frightened of me?

We are not alone

Driving into Laird Street in Birkenhead on Sunday, we felt an all too depressing feeling of familiarity. In many ways, we could have been in Openshaw.

We had written a reflection based upon the demolitions which have now started behind my home - and as we drove round the block to get back to the overshot car park, there we found demolitions which had started behind the church.

We began the service with our prayer "Grumpy Old Church" - a reflection on the fact that we do get cross sometimes - even cross with God when we believe that we have been faithful, but don't seem to receive any reward.

And the good folk of Birkenhead seemed to respond with a very loud "Amen!"

We moved into an all-age activity, based upon the idea that we - and God - have many, sometimes contradictory faces. As we were doing it, one older member of the congregation approached me, "We don't do this sort of thing in church," she said, apparently disapprovingly, before adding with a grin, "You've moved us on twenty years in five minutes!"

We came away with the feeling that the minister had invited us because he is frustrated at how worship does not reflect the reality of the context in which they are worshipping - and that the church welcomed us because they desperately wanted the opportunity to worship in a way which reflects the - very tough - reality of the context in which they are worshipping!

Perhaps there is a god after all?

Dancing Stories

The original idea for Dancing Scarecrow was as a home for our Godly Play resources. Then we realised that what we do isn't strictly speaking "Godly Play" - which has a very strict methodology. Then we got caught up with trying to get all the new prayers up onto the site - which we have still failed to do!

However, as we have started travelling around the country for worship, we do realise that there is a need for imaginative resources for storytelling for all ages.

So we have now got round to photographing - and putting online the first few of our story scripts strongly influenced by, but not limited to the Godly Play methodology! Not surprisingly, we are not calling them that. We've adopted the term "Dancing Stories" instead.

Enjoy