Mike's musings

Bit more time, a little less tired

I'm feeling rather embarassed and shamed by Sally's blog. I'm sure she was just as tired as me, but has found time to write lots more about the weekend: and even to write a comment on yesterday's entry (hi, Sally!). Like me, she's rather worried about the amount of work that needs to happen in the next few weeks: looking at the dates on the ERMC website, I note that two assignments are due by the 19th July, but that the two reflective pieces have another month. This is an immense relief.

Briefly on today: left home late, after showing Cheryl around. She seems to have had a good day with the Jo, and will be with us until Thursday - and quite possibly some or all of next week, too. As I was late into work, I had to stay a little late, too, so missed Jo's bedtime, but that's life, sometimes. I'm off to Wembley for an audit tomorrow, but won't leave until at least 2100, I suspect, so at least I'll be able to put her to bed, which is a treat. In fact, I've only done it once before on my own, as Moo's always been around before.

A little more on the weekend, then. What things spring to mind?

• a number of people have asked me to arrange a choir for some music within the English choral tradition. I'll probably download a couple of pieces from the excellent Handlo Music, and choose something from there. I'm particularly pleased that my friend Sheila, who's just taken over the job of choir master/mistress, is very keen on this. I've wanted to arrange something like this as part of worship since I started, but didn't want to be seen as too keen, or as stepping on anyone's toes, but there seems to be a groundswell of support, and I'm happy to ride the wave.
• I've been trying to moderate the amount that I speak up, both in our small group, and also in the wider context, but at least two friends came up to me to tell me not to worry: in fact, not to hold back, as it didn't seem true to me. I'm very cheered by this, but feel that I'm getting closer to a level which seems both more natural and also doesn't impinge too much. I hope and pray that I can get to this level and stay there, but I'm going to keep asking people to keep an eye on me.
• I had a great chat with one of the other members of the course after one of the services. She had been rather upset by it, as it had, for her, felt too much like we were relating to God solely as an "up-there" entity, and had ignored the "among-us" side. I was really pleased to talk, and, much more important, to listen. I felt that I was doing a pastoral job for a peer, and was very happy that she felt that she could talk to me, particularly as she's someone for whom I have an immense amount of respect, and someone who comes from a very different tradition to me (she's a Methodist). Despite that, I think we managed to nail - or tease out - some of the issues that she was upset about, and think about how that would inform our worship practice in the longer term.
• as I pointed out in an earlier entry, I was very impressed by the work of banksy. I'm not at all surprised to see Sally referencing his work: for me, it felt like the piece of training that's been the closest - by far - to the world I live in. I don't mean to belittle any of the other work, but Ian's discussion, presentation and, well, just outlook, really resonated with what I think of as "me". It gave me a lot to think about. Added to that was the discussion with Sally about her work in a New Age context. We didn't talk much, but it's something about which I know so little, and is really alient to me. I'd love to understand - and maybe even to experience - some of her ministry. I've spent enough time in Glastonbury (it's fairly near to my parents) to have a taste of the culture, but I'm very much outside it, and it would be fascinating to explore further how she - and others - interact (wrong word) with it from a Christian point of view.
• on the above - I'd say that I've got a better sense of the possibility of mission, and what it might mean to me, than I've ever had before.
• one thing that upset me a bit - and which is part reflected in Sally's blog - is the "otherising" of youth culture that took place over the weekend. There was a lot of discussion about "hoodied" people as other than us, unchurched, and, implicitly, almost worth less than us (though I'm sure nobody there would express that or own it, _I_ felt at times that I was participating by conspiracy of silence). I think we should have stood up more for the loyalty, love, commitment, energy and radicalisation that "youth culture" (*yeuch*) can provide. I don't feel that far from this culture, particularly the more cyber-aware side, and I think there are real dangers to such a structuralist dualism as the one we participated in.

Well, that's a bit better, isn't it? I'm sure there are more things I should talk about, and I'll try to make more of an effort to be theological, but I'm so busy, to tired...