WEEKLY PRAYERS AND MEDITATIONS
ZOOM LOG ON DETAILS FOR THE TUESDAY MEDITATION GROUP @ 1pm
We are currently continuing to hold the regular Tuesday 1pm Meditation session by Zoom.
To join, copy and paste this link into your browser
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/671712331?pwd=cU5LRXR2NGNkOWFUSDR1aWZUMVVFQT09
Or join meeting with ID 671 712 331 and password 000309
Using a phone, you will be able to hear the meditation. Ring 020 3051 2874, and when asked for a meeting ID, enter these numbers on your keypad: 671 712 331 and password 000309 each followed by #
All are Welcome
We will begin to gather from 1pm. At around 1.15pm the meditation will begin and I will share the words below. We will then have 25 minutes of silence to meditate on the words, or wherever your thoughts might take you. Everyone will be muted so that we do not disturb one another during the silence. At the end of the silence we will all be unmuted and we will have time to share our thoughts, comments, reflections. We will finish no later than 2pm.
We are currently continuing to hold the regular Tuesday 1pm Meditation session by Zoom.
To join, copy and paste this link into your browser
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/671712331?pwd=cU5LRXR2NGNkOWFUSDR1aWZUMVVFQT09
Or join meeting with ID 671 712 331 and password 000309
Using a phone, you will be able to hear the meditation. Ring 020 3051 2874, and when asked for a meeting ID, enter these numbers on your keypad: 671 712 331 and password 000309 each followed by #
All are Welcome
We will begin to gather from 1pm. At around 1.15pm the meditation will begin and I will share the words below. We will then have 25 minutes of silence to meditate on the words, or wherever your thoughts might take you. Everyone will be muted so that we do not disturb one another during the silence. At the end of the silence we will all be unmuted and we will have time to share our thoughts, comments, reflections. We will finish no later than 2pm.
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Tuesday Meditation Group - 18 May 2021
As Pentecost Sunday approaches we meditated today on the vast array of metaphors and images for the Holy Spirit. A reflection by the late Rachel Held Evans, an American author, was shared and we spent 25 minutes in silent meditation on her words. Here is a link to the reflection: https://rachelheldevans.com/blog/spirit-pentecost-searching-for-sunday You may want to reflect on what the Holy Spirit means to you. Or find new meaning in these words of Rachel's. Just allow the Spirit to take you wherever she feels you need to go. Enjoy your time of meditation. Tuesday Meditation Group - 26 January 2021 Its interesting where our thoughts and wonderings can take us when we begin to reflect on something in particular. For me its one of the rewarding aspects of spending time in meditation – to enjoy the moments of wonderings and be open to hearing God’s voice in those wonderings, being led and guided. Here’s where my wonderings took me when I was thinking about today’s meditation and what I could offer to you. Yesterday, was Robert Burns Day – the anniversary of his birth in 1759. Burns was a Scottish poet, or bard – the national bard in fact and much loved and celebrated. Like his father, he was a tenant farmer, later on in life becoming a tax collector, and in his life had quite a reputation with the ladies. He spent much of his time writing poems and lyrics. Some more well known than others: Ae fond kiss, My love is like a red red rose, the Selkirk grace and The address to the haggis, to name but a few. The one that came to my mind mostly was A man’s a man and a’ that. And that’s where my thoughts started – the meaning of the words of this poem are as relevant today as they were in the 18th century. (Forgive the focus on the males.) This poem reflects on what is important in life. An honest poor man has more integrity and is worthy of respect than any prince, or duke or other wealthy man. A man’s value is not contained in how much he owns or his status. It comes from somewhere deeper. Burns concludes the poem by expressing his hope that one day the world will change and all men will “Brothers be.” One day, society will rid itself of its hierarchical class structure. I found a number of sung versions of this poem but the most poignant one for me was by the popular Scottish singer Paolo Nutini – maybe not the obvious choice of singer for a classic song by the Bard – Paolo’s genres include Pop Rock, blue-eyed soul, folk and soul Rock. Maybe not an obvious choice to share that message, but very meaningful to me because here is a young Scottish singer in our times singing the lyrics written by a young Scotsman 250 years ago – same words, same message, made accessible to many who would maybe not know who Robert Burns was, who maybe would have never read his poems, the unlikely voice of a rock star being used to bring a relevant message. My thoughts then took a turn down the path towards the readings for Sunday – the Deuteronomy reading speaking of God raising up a prophet from within the people, and the reading from Mark’s Gospel about Jesus teaching in the synagogue and healing a man there demonstrating his authority over all. Jesus, the greatest prophet, was perfect, human yet divine with no sin. But what about all the prophets and leaders of nations who God raised up over the centuries – they were maybe not obvious choices to bring God’s message to people: many were poor, uneducated, of lowly status, some badly behaved, reluctant to take on the role. But God used them to bring his message to the people. Unlikely as prophets as we may think they were, God spoke through them. And then my wonderings brought me to another poet, maybe some would think an unlikely candidate for a prophet, a young woman, a descendant of slaves, brought up by her single mum, yet speaks words that you could believe were given to her by God, to deliver a message of love, and peace, and hope – Amanda Gorman. So. this is where my wonderings ended, for now at least. We will watch the clip of her delivering this poem at the inauguration and then we will have our 25 minutes of silent meditation – and see where our wonderings take us. Here is the link to the clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jp9pyMqnBzk And to the transcript: https://www.townandcountrymag.com/society/politics/a35279603/amanda-gorman-inauguration-poem-the-hill-we-climb-transcript/ Robert Burns's 'A man's a man for a' that' including a translation into English: https://www.scotsconnection.com/t-forathat.aspx Paolo Nutini singing the words of "A man's a man for a' that': https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WHIfSjQaUA We are taking a break from Tuesday Meditation Group for just one week. We will gather again on 5th January 2021. Happy Christmas to you all and a peace-filled, safe and healthy New Year. Tuesday Meditation Group - 22 December 2020 Here's the link to the video we watched today in the Meditation Group: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vka6jocdQnc Tuesday Meditation Group - 8 December 2020 Advent Reflection by Rev Michaela Youngson We meet here, at the edge, on the cusp of a new possibility. This is a liminal space, poised between then and now; still and until; before and, yet, after. We long to be safe, yet we have been saved for risky living. We long for the answers, yet we have forgotten how to ask questions. We wait and watch and, we begin again, travelling a well-trodden road, as though for the very first time. What will we learn that is new this time? What will we notice that we have disregarded before? Will God find a way through the, at times, contemptuous familiarity of all this, to reach us again in a new and unexpected way? We carry the privilege of hindsight, we are clear that we know where we are heading, and in this is the danger – we no longer see the detail, the small things, we no longer notice the incidentals. Yet the one who had been longed for across generations was small, apparently incidental, hardly to be noticed in the hubbub and danger of an occupied land. There in the smallness of it all, a long way from the glamour is the merest glimmer of possibility, the tiniest spark of hope. In this in-between place lies the possibility of transformation, encounter, fulfilment. Come, o come, Emmanuel and find us open to the possibility that we might be changed. Welcome to Tuesday Meditation Group - 15 September 2020 All are welcome to join. This picture relates to the reading for today's meditation. 
Welcome to Tuesday Meditation Group - 25 August 2020
Today's reading is taken from 12 steps to a Compassionate Life by Karen Armstrong, Here is a quotation from it: "We will find that we are happier when we are peaceful than when we are angry or restless….We can make the effort to cultivate these positive emotions, noticing, for example, that when we perform an act of kindness we ourselves feel better….Instead of being afraid of what will happen tomorrow, or wishing it was this time last week, we can learn to live more fully in the present. Instead of allowing a past memory to cloud our present mood, we can learn to savor simple pleasures – a sunset, an apple, or a joke.” Welcome to Tuesday Meditation Group - 14 July 2020
For this week, meditation will be led by a regular attendee to this meditation group. One day an expert in time management was speaking to a group of business students and, to emphasise a point, used an example they will never forget. Standing in front of this group of high achievers he said, 'Let's carry out a little experiment.' Then he pulled out a one-gallon, wide-mouthed preserving jar and sat it on the table in front of him. Next he produced about a dozen hand-sized rocks and carefully placed them, one at a time, in the jar. When the jar was filled to the top and no more rocks would fit inside he asked, 'Is this jar full?' Everyone in the class said, 'Yes.' 'Really?' He reached under the table and pulled out a bucket of gravel. Then he dumped some gravel in and shook the jar so that the gravel worked its way down into the spaces between the rocks. Then he asked the group once more, 'Is this jar full?' By this time the class was on to him and agreed that it probably wasn't. So he reached under the table again and this time brought out a bucket of sand. He dumped the sand in the jar and it went into all the spaces between the rocks and the gravel. Once more the question, 'Is the jar full?' 'No!' the class shouted. And they were right. Then he grabbed a jug of water and began to pour it in until the jar was fill to \he brim. He looked at the class and asked, 'What's the point of this experiment?' One eager student interpreted it his way. 'The point is, no matter how full your schedule is, if you try really hard you can always fit some more things into it.' 'No; the speaker replied. 'That's not the point. The truth this illustration teaches is this. If you don't put the big rocks in first you'll never get them in at all.' So the question you have to ask yourself today is this: 'What are the "big rocks" in your life?' Your children? Your loved ones? Your education? Your dreams? Your charitable work? Doing the things you love? Time for yourself? Your health? Your spouse or your partner? Whatever it is, remember to put these big rocks in first or you will never get them in at all. In American jargon, if you sweat the little stuff then you will fill your life with little things to worry about but which really don't matter, and you will never have the real quality time you need to spend on the important issues. So as you start the day take a little time out to reflect on this parable. Decide what is really important in your life, then decide how much of it you can get done today. And finally start off. doing it right now. All the other incidentals can be fitted in later, and if they are never fitted in you will never be any worse off. Fr Brian D'Arcy From "Pause for Thought" compiled by Lavinia Byrne (Hodder & Stoughton 2002, ISBN 0 340 86107 X). Welcome to Tuesday Meditation Group - 7 July 2020
For this week and next week, meditations will be led by regular attendees to this meditation group. Love one another but make not a bond of love: Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls. Fill each other's cups but drink not from one cup. Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf. Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each of you be alone, Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music The reading is from Khalil Gibran. I added these last few lines. I am not separate of you. I am part of you. We all part of something and made from the same fabric by the same pair of hands. We are one but not the same and have similarities. Welcome to Tuesday Meditation Group - 30 June 2020
For this week and the following 2 weeks, meditations will be led by regular attendees to this meditation group. If you would like to join us via Zoom please follow the instructions above to access the ‘meeting room’. We will begin to gather from 1pm. At around 1.15pm the meditation will begin and I will share the words below. We will then have 25 minutes of silence to meditate on the words, or wherever your thoughts might take you. Everyone will be muted so that we do not disturb one another during the silence. At the end of the silence we will all be unmuted and we will have time to share our thoughts, comments, reflections. We will finish no later than 2pm. THE BREATH When we bring our focus to our breath, straight away we begin to calm and enter the present moment. The Hebrew word רוּחַ rú'aħ, used many times in the Bible, means 'spirit', 'wind', 'air', and it means 'breath'. רוּחַ is the primeval, creative spirit/breath which broods over the waters in the Genesis, it is the life force which God breathes into the nostrils of אָדָם ʼAdam, human. So it makes sense for us to work with the breath, with the Spirit of God. Simply breathing deeply has wonderful physical benefits, taking in more oxygen on the in-breath, releasing toxins with the exhale. Working intentionally with the breath brings great spiritual benefit, taking us to deeper levels of consciousness, reconnecting us with the divine energy of Holy Spirit. Our breath arises from the root of our being, from the source of all that is, from God, God-self. Hectic lifestyles cause us to neglect the breath. Many of us breathe shallow when we are functioning in our everyday lives, gasp and pant and yawn to try to make up the deficit when the pace changes suddenly, and hold our breath unnecessarily, breaking natural rhythm. Much of this is symptomatic of unconscious living. Jesus of Nazareth taught his disciples to be conscious, to 'enter the kingdom of heaven' by becoming present. When we work with the breath we learn how to be conscious. In fact consciousness is a symptom of the realignment of our breath with the natural rhythm. Breath prayers and practices bring us not only to awareness of our own natural rhythm but to the breath/spirit of God which permeates the entire cosmos. When we pray with the breath, "...the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit herself prays in us with sighs too deep for words" (St Paul in Romans). https://www.schoolofchristianmysticism.co.uk/practices-prayers-poems-teachings . Welcome to Tuesday Meditation Group - 16 June 2020
If you would like to join us via Zoom please follow the instructions above to access the ‘meeting room’. We will begin to gather from 1pm. At around 1.15pm the meditation will begin and I will share the words below. We will then have 25 minutes of silence to meditate on the words, or wherever your thoughts might take you. Everyone will be muted so that we do not disturb one another during the silence. At the end of the silence we will all be unmuted and we will have time to share our thoughts, comments, reflections. We will finish no later than 2pm. If you are not able to join us on Zoom, you are invited to read the words below, and then set your timer for 25 minutes of silent meditation. If you would like to share your thoughts, please feel free to send them to me by email or text. May this time of meditation be a blessing to you. Rev Peter Cornick superintendent@wlm.org.uk Please make yourself comfortable, find a favourite chair or sofa in a quiet space and relax. Welcome to Tuesday Meditation Group - 2 June 2020
If you would like to join us via Zoom please follow the instructions above to access the ‘meeting room’. We will begin to gather from 1pm. At around 1.15pm the meditation will begin and I will share the words below. We will then have 25 minutes of silence to meditate on the words, or wherever your thoughts might take you. Everyone will be muted so that we do not disturb one another during the silence. At the end of the silence we will all be unmuted and we will have time to share our thoughts, comments, reflections. We will finish no later than 2pm. If you are not able to join us on Zoom, you are invited to read the poem, and then set your timer for 25 minutes of silent meditation. If you would like to share your thoughts, please feel free to send them to me by email or text. May this time of meditation be a blessing to you. Deacon Belinda Letby belinda.letby@wlm.org.uk 075 2818 7006 Please make yourself comfortable, find a favourite chair or sofa in a quiet space and relax. Living Well Inspired by a short poem that one of our Meditation group members found: “There was a very cautious man Who never laughed or played He never risked, he never tried, He never sang or prayed. And when he one day passed away, His insurance was denied, For since he never really lived, They claimed he never really died. (Anonymous poem)” The questions it prompted her to ask were:
John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, wrote in a letter to Dorothy Furly, the sister of a young Divinty student, on 1 June 1760: “It matters not how long we live but how well.” Back in 2017 a group of social scientists in the UK set out to determine which behaviours and activities are most commonly indicative of a live well-lived. From the results they produced a list of four key factors:
The scientists found this list interesting “because it deviates from the usual ‘shelter, food, employment’ list that you might expect to read. It goes beyond survival, digging deeper into the things that actually make us humans feel content with our lives.” If you want to know more about this research: https://www.treehugger.com/culture/what-does-it-mean-live-well.html Alternatively this is the ‘Living Fully’ list from those who are leaders in thinking round this subject, doctors, psychotherapists, psychologists, stress consultants, etc: 1. Presence - Being in the moment, awake and alive ad able to enjoy things now. Not worrying about the past or postponing happiness to a distant future. 2. Gratitude - Finding gratitude for even the smallest things in our lives can have an enormous impact. 3. Holistic Well-Being - Maintaining well-being means paying balanced attention to three areas: mind, body, spirit. 4. Generosity - Give to everyone in need until you are empty, and then you have room to be fulfilled so you can give again, and again, and again. 5. Positivity - Positivity is a thought. And this thought should be constant. A simple 'thank you,' a 'sorry,' a smile to a stranger [or] helping people we know (or don't know) are things that contribute to daily happiness. https://www.lifetothefullest.abbott/en/articles/fully-living.html In the Bible, from John’s Gospel, chapter 10, Jesus says, “I have come in order that you might have life—life in all its fullness.” We may think a ‘full life’ means a busy life. Is that what Jesus meant? I bought my husband a mug many years ago that says, “Look busy, Jesus is coming”. But does fullness of life really equate to busyness? What about time to stop and be, time to reflect, time to dream dreams, time to plan, time for joy and celebration, time for relaxation? Even God had a rest! What does the gift from Jesus, of life in all its fullness, look like for you? What does ‘living well’ mean to you? Welcome to Tuesday Meditation Group - 26 May 2020
If you would like to join us via Zoom please follow the instructions above to access the ‘meeting room’. We will begin to gather from 1pm. At around 1.15pm the meditation will begin and I will share the poem below. We will then have 25 minutes of silence to meditate on the words, or wherever your thoughts might take you. Everyone will be muted so that we do not disturb one another during the silence. At the end of the silence we will all be unmuted and we will have time to share our thoughts, comments, reflections. We will finish no later than 2pm. If you are not able to join us on Zoom, you are invited to read the poem, and then set your timer for 25 minutes of silent meditation. If you would like to share your thoughts, please feel free to send them to me by email or text. May this time of meditation be a blessing to you. Deacon Belinda Letby belinda.letby@wlm.org.uk 075 2818 7006 Please make yourself comfortable, find a favourite chair or sofa in a quiet space and relax. This poem is well-known, even if its just in part – some of the words at least may well be familiar. It has in some form or other appeared in many contemporary films, and it was voted Britain’s favourite poem in a 1995 BBC opinion poll. Rudyard Kipling wrote in his autobiography that the poem was inspired by Leander Starr Jameson who in 1895 led a raid by British forces against the Boer in South Africa and were defeated. The British press, however, portrayed Jameson as a hero in the middle of the disaster and the actual defeat as a British victory. It is evocative of Victorian stoicism and what has become the popular British culture of a “stiff upper lip”. Is it relevant or helpful to us today? Does it have anything to say to us in this strange season in which we are living right now? The poem appears in a book I recently bought, Poems for Life. Its a collection of poetry – traditional and contemporary - for different stages of human life. The poem could be seen as a father-son conversation, the imparting of wisdom from parent to teenager, preparing them for adulthood. Is it a good wisdom? We may each have had wisdom shared by parents or other adults in our younger days, or maybe wish we had, or hadn’t! Wisdom isn’t always in the hands of adults though. We can learn much from young people. Maybe you might have some wisdom from your younger days that you would want to share with yourself in these days. What would that be? Or, if you have children what do they teach you, or have taught you in the past? And right now, when it may seem that those in leadership in our country are not portraying a great deal of wisdom when it is needed most, does this poem have anything to say to them? Or to us? If, Rudyard Kipling, 1895 If you can keep your head when all about you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you, If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, But make allowance for their doubting too; If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies, Or being hated, don’t give way to hating, And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise: If you can dream—and not make dreams your master; If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim; If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster And treat those two impostors just the same; If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools, Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken, And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools: If you can make one heap of all your winnings And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss, And lose, and start again at your beginnings And never breathe a word about your loss; If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew To serve your turn long after they are gone, And so hold on when there is nothing in you Except the Will which says to them: ‘Hold on!’ If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue, Or walk with Kings—nor lose the common touch, If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you, If all men count with you, but none too much; If you can fill the unforgiving minute With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run, Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it, And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son! 
Welcome to Tuesday Meditation Group – 19th May 2020 You may like to join us live on Zoom at 1pm today – you will be very welcome. Please see the top of this page for details of how to access the Zoom meeting room. We will begin to gather at 1pm and then at about 1.15pm we will begin the meditation. Our focus this week is on the prose poem ‘Pulmonary Tuberculosis’ by Katherine Mansfield. I will share a short reflection and read the poem, then we will then have 25 minutes of silent meditation. You may want to have the painting of the poet by Anne Rice at hand and cast your eyes over it during the silence. Everyone will be muted so that we do not disturb one another during the silence. At the end of the silence we will all be unmuted and we will have time to share our thoughts, comments, reflections. We will finish no later than 2pm. If you are not able to join us on Zoom, you are invited to read the words below, focus on the prose poem, and set your timer for 25 minutes of silent meditation. If you would then like to share your thoughts, please feel free to send them to me by email on miriam.kennedy@wlm.org.uk May this time of meditation be a blessing to you. Meditation on Katherine Mansfield prose poem- ‘Pulmonary Tuberculosis,’ This weekend I received a gift from a friend and her husband. A collection of out-of-copy right poems which they had printed to create a pamphlet of 10 poems to ‘Divert and Delight’. They had sent them to their family and friends as a way for us to take a few moments to pause outside of zoom meetings and de-cluttering our houses. The collection for me has been a cascade of literary pick me ups. Reading the poems have lifted by spirit and offered me space to relax and bring myself to a different mind space. One of the poems which moved my heart was by Katherine Mansfield- a prose poem ‘Pulmonary Tuberculosis’. In just 9 sentences Mansfield shares a story about human connection, illness, our need for humour, imagination and a sense of not being alone yet being far from others. It struck me how relevant this 9 line storytelling piece is for our current world as we navigate our way through Covid-19. Katherine Mansfield died at 34 years old from the disease yet achieved much in her short life by travelling, completing her education and leading a somewhat bohemian lifestyle. I think if she was alive today she would be favorable towards meditation. Perhaps she would have been a member of this weekly meditation group. You are invited to read the poem twice and then encounter 25 minutes of silence. Feel free to get in touch with me via email with any ponderings we have regarding the poem or portrait. miriam.kennedy@wlm.org.uk So let us rest our bodies and minds as we surrender to the silence. Pulmonary Tuberculosis The man in the room next to me has the same complaint as I. When I wake in the night I hear him turning. And then he coughs. And I cough. And after a silence I cough. And he coughs again. This goes on for a long time. Until I feel we are two roosters calling to each other at false dawn. From far-away hidden farms. Katherine Mansfield (1888-1923) Portrait of Katherine Mansfield by Anne Rice, painter, 1918, Cornwall. The predominant colour was suggested by Mansfield who, like Rice, loved red. The colour is used expressively, its vibrant intensity enhanced by the contrasting green shadows on neck and hands. To find out more about my friend’s new initiative of producing poetry pamphlets you can follow Catherine Oliver @pamphleteerspoetry on instagram. Thank you Catherine for bringing me the inspiration for this weeks meditation. Welcome to Tuesday Meditation Group - 12 May 2020 If you would like to join us via Zoom please follow the instructions above to access the ‘meeting room’. We will begin to gather from 1pm. At around 1.15pm the meditation will begin and I will share the words below. We will then have 25 minutes of silence to meditate on the words, or wherever your thoughts might take you. Everyone will be muted so that we do not disturb one another during the silence. At the end of the silence we will all be unmuted and we will have time to share our thoughts, comments, reflections. We will finish no later than 2pm. If you are not able to join us on Zoom, you are invited to read the words below, and then set your timer for 25 minutes of silent meditation. If you would like to share your thoughts, please feel free to send them to me by email or text. May this time of meditation be a blessing to you. Deacon Belinda Letby belinda.letby@wlm.org.uk 075 2818 7006 Please make yourself comfortable, find a favourite chair or sofa in a quiet space and relax. This piece was written by Robert Harrap, General Director of SGI-UK, a socially engaged Buddhist movement and was broadcast on Pause for Thought, on 8 January 2015 There’s a short poem by John Keats that I really love. Its called ‘On First Looking into Chapman’s Homer’, and in it the poet describes his feelings of excitement upon reading a new translation of an old, classic text. He compares this feeling to the surprise an astronomer might have on discovering a new planet, or to the reaction of an explorer when he finally sees the thing he has been searching for after battling over unknown mountains and through strange jungles. Keats suggests that even things we know quite well can suddenly reveal new wonder when we look at them in a different way, perhaps through someone else’s eyes. When I was growing up, I thought that a successful and happy life would be one that didn’t have any problems or difficulties. Perhaps, I thought, I could create a barrier around me through which problems wouldn’t be able to penetrate. I quickly realised, though, that this wasn’t possible and that it was actually a pretty deluded approach to life, which is always going to have its ups and downs. When I started to explore Buddhist writings, I came across a phrase that stuck with me, and which has become a sort of motto for my life: True happiness is not the absence of all problems, but rather the absolute confidence that any problem can be resolved. The first time I read it, I thought it must have been a typing error – surely I can’t be happy if I have problems? However, I started to experiment to see if this could be true. As problems emerged I decided to see them as opportunities to draw out my inner potential. I saw that every problem is in fact a challenge, with the opportunity for me to grow and to develop a bigger view, a bigger heart and a bigger perspective. I remember a time a few years ago when, at the place where I was then working, someone more senior that me was throwing their weight around unnecessarily. When I realised that it wasn’t actually my fault and that this person must be suffering to behave in that way, I was able to draw on my compassion rather than on my anger, and interact with them in a very different way – and the situation resolved. This change in attitude was a wonderful discovery. Now I no longer avoid challenges – I use them to grow instead. If you would like to read the poem and a little more about it, follow this link: https://www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/poem/first-looking-chapmans-homer/ Welcome to Tuesday Meditation Group - 5 May 2020
If you would like to join us via Zoom please follow the instructions above to access the ‘meeting room’. We will begin to gather from 1pm. At around 1.15pm the meditation will begin and Cathy will share the words below, and show the image below. We will then have 25 minutes of silence to meditate on the words, the image, or wherever your thoughts might take you. Please mute yourself at this point so that we do not disturb one another during the silence. At the end of the silence we can unmute ourselves and we will have time to share our thoughts, comments, reflections. We will finish no later than 2pm. If you are not able to join us on Zoom, you are invited to read the words below, focus on the image, and then set your timer for 25 minutes of silent meditation. Thank you to Cathy for leading the meditation today. Meditation May 5th adapted from the book God Just Is (approaches to Silent Worship)by Curt Gardner Awareness of the present moment is a valuable part of spiritual life. it can help to still the mind, during meditation but we know some of planning for the future is desirable. If we spend all our time thinking and worrying about the future, not only will it make us restless - and perhaps anxious and unhappy - but we would miss the opportunities of the present, of the now. We cannot ignore the past: we have to live with the consequences and recognise that they cannot be changed , so all we can do is accept what has been. It is only in the present moment that we can experience or do anything. It is only in the present that we breathe, laugh, cry and relate to others. If we say "I want to be happy", then when can we be happy? Yesterday? Tomorrow? The only real time is now. To be aware of the present moment is deceptively simple , but must be practised if it is to work. While we can close our eyes, we cannot close ourselves off from sounds. Do not to be irritated by intrusive sounds, as this prevents internal peace and stillness. Just accept the inevitability of the presence of the noise. You can allow the sounds to recede slowly into the background . Become aware of breathing. We then start our period of meditation with good intentions only to find that soon we are thinking about something else. Thoughts arise taking our attention away from the meditation . The first thing is to recognise that passing thoughts are always there and are part of our human condition. One strategy is to recognise each distracting thought, but in general not in details; following the thought gives it energy and will take you away from meditation. Instead gently lay the intrusion aside by ignoring it. This is like being aware of a fly or wasp buzzing round the room, but not following it with your eyes, just letting it be. Having started meditation it is helpful to be aware of how we feel at that moment whether we are relaxed, at peace. irritated .angry. and so on. Feelings do affect our meditation ,so to recognise where they come from will help us to understand . and accept them . Negative feelings are not to be despised,. but simply acknowledged . We are now developing an internal silence into which we can retreat. This is not just an absence of thoughts but peaceful inner stillness with a positive quality that we can almost feel. It is an internal condition where in the stillness of the mind we are separated from the everyday busyness of our lives. As the clamour of our thoughts subside, we find a deep peace . There is no striving. here we just "are" no longer occupied with cares and desires, wishes or dreams. Here , time has no power as we are held in timeless space, in a moment of eternity in which love and peace permeate our whole being. This is not just a comfortable feeling but deep inner peace that cannot be adequately described. 
Prayer for Today - 30 April 2020
Loving God, In this time of uncertainty and strangeness, help us to be guided by your wisdom and to know the familiarity of your presence with us. In our anxiety and fear, help us to hear your still small voice of calm and find your peace in our lives. In our illness and grief, help us to feel your healing and comforting arms around us. In our loneliness and despair, help us to know your companionship and your hope on this difficult journey. In all we do and all we are and in whatever we are experiencing right now, may we be strengthened and uplifted by the knowledge that you share our discomfort, pain and fear and that your love for us is constant. Amen. Deacon Belinda Letby Welcome to Tuesday Meditation Group - 28 April 2020
If you would like to join us via Zoom please follow the instructions above to access the ‘meeting room’. We will begin to gather from 1pm. At around 1.15pm the meditation will begin and I will share the words below. We will then have 25 minutes of silence to meditate on the words, or wherever your thoughts might take you. Everyone will be muted so that we do not disturb one another during the silence. At the end of the silence we will all be unmuted and we will have time to share our thoughts, comments, reflections. We will finish no later than 2pm. If you are not able to join us on Zoom, you are invited to read the words below, and then set your timer for 25 minutes of silent meditation. If you would like to share your thoughts, please feel free to send them to me by email or text. May this time of meditation be a blessing to you. Deacon Belinda Letby belinda.letby@wlm.org.uk 075 2818 7006 Please make yourself comfortable, find a favourite chair or sofa in a quiet space and relax. The words below were written by Krish Raval, Director of 'Faith in Leadership' - an organisation that trains and equips public leaders to better understand the motivations and faith-led values of religious communities. This piece was broadcast on Pause for Thought on Radio2 on 4 November 2014. "My grandmother died a few weeks ago at the age of 97 in her native India. A devout woman of indomitable spirit, she once remarked that, for her, the source of both happiness and suffering was the same. When she was 81 years old, she and her youngest son, my uncle, went to worship at a local Hindu shrine. During their return, as my uncle steered his vehicle along the desolate and jagged track home, their car overturned. My grandmother was flung entirely through the windscreen and my uncle hit his head on a milestone. Although bloody and bruised, incredibly, the injuries my grandmother sustained were minor. As she tended to her unconscious son, she prayed for help. And it came. Working in the fields were farmhands who rushed to the scene. They carefully pushed the two casualties on a milk cart until they found a car to take them to hospital. Heartbreakingly, we lost my uncle on that journey. Yet my family and I will never forget that the heroes who had aided him and my grandmother were Muslims, Hindus and Jains who had instinctively mounted a multi-faith relief operation. It was as if tragedy had focused my family and their rescuers on the best of what it means to be human – to give and receive help. Their mutual empathy went deeper than any divisions. For Hindus, happiness at its most basic level will inevitably be temporary and lead to suffering. Prompted perhaps by unspeakable loss and the goodness of perfect strangers, towards the end of her life my grandmother saw true happiness not in the elimination of all harm, but rather in the wholeness that comes from seeing oneself as connected to others. Such happiness endures precisely because it is not focused on the demands of the self but is in service to the rest of creation". In the light of our current situation you are invited to meditate on these words in the silence and reflect on what they may have to say to us today. Welcome to Tuesday meditation Group – 21 April 2020
If you would like to join us via Zoom please follow the instructions above to access the ‘meeting room’. We will begin to gather from 1pm. At around 1.15pm the meditation will begin and I will share the words below. You may want to focus on one of the pictures too – to think about why you are drawn to that particular image. We will then have 25 minutes of silence to meditate on the words, the images, or wherever your thoughts might take you. Everyone will be muted so that we do not disturb one another during the silence. At the end of the silence we will all be unmuted and we will have time to share our thoughts, comments, reflections. We will finish no later than 2pm. If you are not able to join us on Zoom, you are invited to read the words below, focus on one of the images, and then set your timer for 25 minutes of silent meditation. If you would like to share your thoughts, please feel free to send them to me by email or text. May this time of meditation be a blessing to you. Deacon Belinda Letby belinda.letby@wlm.org.uk 075 2818 7006 You are invited to find a comfy place to sit and, if possible, some quiet space for you to rest and be still. Our focus today is on choices. In our everyday lives we all have choices to make, some big, some small, some life-changing, others fairly insignificant, some will make life easier, some harder, some will not only affect ourselves but others too. Even in these times of uncertainty we still have choices to make, decisions to make on the paths to take on our journey. This poem by Robert Frost (below) can speak to us in different ways, can speak into our situations, into our lives. What is it saying to you today as we journey through this strange and unsettling time? The images too (See below), will mean different things to different people. Maybe one in particular reflects the path you are on, or the path you would like to be on, or the one you don’t want to take. If there is an image that you are more drawn to, stay with it during the meditation. What is it saying to you about the choices you are faced with just now? I’m going to read the poem now. Then our time of silent meditation will begin. Robert Frost's poem The Road Not Taken, 1920: Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth; Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear; Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the same, And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back. I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I - I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. |
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Welcome to Tuesday Meditation Group – 14 April 2020
You may like to join us live on Zoom at 1pm today – you will be very welcome. Please see the top of this page for details of how to access the Zoom meeting room.
We will begin to gather at 1pm and then at about 1.15pm we will begin the meditation. Our focus this week is on the image of Cherry Blossom. After I share a reflection and a poem by Toi Derricotte we will then have 25 minutes of silent meditation. You may want to have the image of this Cherry tree to hand to cast your eyes over during the silence. After the silence we will have a few minutes when you are invited to share your reflections, thoughts, comments.
If you are not able to join us on Zoom, you are invited to read the words, focus on the photo, and set your timer for 25 minutes of silent meditation. If you would then like to share your thoughts, please feel free to send them to me by email on miriam.kennedy@wlm.org.uk
May this time of meditation be a blessing to you.
Cherry Blossom Meditation
You are invited to find a comfortable chair and some quietness to rest in your home. This time is for you, your body, your soul, and your mind- all of you. We bring all that we are into this space. We rest in stillness knowing this time can renew us.
Today our meditation is based on the image of cherry blossom. Last week on my weekly walk I was struck by how much the seasons had changed since the last week when I was out for a walk. The pink blossoms on the cherry trees had bloomed and were full of colour and vibrancy against the greenery of grass and evergreen trees. Those tones, textures and smells of the blossom brought such joy to my heart.
I took photos of my husband, son and dog under the blossom as a keepsake of this moment- of experiencing pure excitement from being in a different setting. To move from the walls of my house to standing under that cherry blossom was beauty in all its splendor.
Cheery Trees bloom in such magnificence but their blossom lasts on the tree just a short time. I expect when I go for a walk at the end of this week the blossom may be beginning to fall. What a shame that such beauty lasts just a short time. Or is it? Perhaps God intended us to marvel at its beauty, to feel the need to stop when we see it, take notice, smell the blossoms and have a moment to pause in the footsteps we were taking.
What a gift God gives us through these blush pink or white blooms.
For me this season of Covid 19 has offered me a similar gift - a chance to stop, take notice of my life, smell the blossoms of my everyday ordinary life and have a moment to pause in the usual busy to-ing and fro-ing I had become so accustomed to.
Like cherry blossom on its tree branches, this season of Covid 19 will hopefully be short too. In time we will see life gradually go back to normal as it was. Perhaps when we look back on this time we will see the beauty in it and long for days to work from home, take time to try out new recipes and go for walks which make us feel overwhelmed with joy.
To bring us into some silence I end the reflection with a poem written by Toi Derricotte. She is an American poet and a professor of writing at the University of Pittsburgh.
Cherry Blossom.
I went down to
mingle my breath
with the breath
of the cherry blossoms.
There were photographers:
Mothers arranging their
children against
gnarled old trees;
a couple, hugging,
asks a passerby
to snap them
like that,
so that their love
will always be caught
between two friendships:
ours & the friendship
of the cherry trees.
Oh Cherry,
why can’t my poems
be as beautiful?
A young woman in a fur-trimmed
coat sets a card table
with linens, candles,
a picnic basket & wine.
A father tips
a boy’s wheelchair back
so he can gaze
up at a branched
heaven.
All around us
the blossoms
flurry down
whispering,
Be patient
you have an ancient beauty.
Be patient,
you have an ancient beauty.
You are invite to have 20 minutes of silence to reflect on the image of a cherry tree and its blooms.
Enjoy this time of rest.
You may like to join us live on Zoom at 1pm today – you will be very welcome. Please see the top of this page for details of how to access the Zoom meeting room.
We will begin to gather at 1pm and then at about 1.15pm we will begin the meditation. Our focus this week is on the image of Cherry Blossom. After I share a reflection and a poem by Toi Derricotte we will then have 25 minutes of silent meditation. You may want to have the image of this Cherry tree to hand to cast your eyes over during the silence. After the silence we will have a few minutes when you are invited to share your reflections, thoughts, comments.
If you are not able to join us on Zoom, you are invited to read the words, focus on the photo, and set your timer for 25 minutes of silent meditation. If you would then like to share your thoughts, please feel free to send them to me by email on miriam.kennedy@wlm.org.uk
May this time of meditation be a blessing to you.
Cherry Blossom Meditation
You are invited to find a comfortable chair and some quietness to rest in your home. This time is for you, your body, your soul, and your mind- all of you. We bring all that we are into this space. We rest in stillness knowing this time can renew us.
Today our meditation is based on the image of cherry blossom. Last week on my weekly walk I was struck by how much the seasons had changed since the last week when I was out for a walk. The pink blossoms on the cherry trees had bloomed and were full of colour and vibrancy against the greenery of grass and evergreen trees. Those tones, textures and smells of the blossom brought such joy to my heart.
I took photos of my husband, son and dog under the blossom as a keepsake of this moment- of experiencing pure excitement from being in a different setting. To move from the walls of my house to standing under that cherry blossom was beauty in all its splendor.
Cheery Trees bloom in such magnificence but their blossom lasts on the tree just a short time. I expect when I go for a walk at the end of this week the blossom may be beginning to fall. What a shame that such beauty lasts just a short time. Or is it? Perhaps God intended us to marvel at its beauty, to feel the need to stop when we see it, take notice, smell the blossoms and have a moment to pause in the footsteps we were taking.
What a gift God gives us through these blush pink or white blooms.
For me this season of Covid 19 has offered me a similar gift - a chance to stop, take notice of my life, smell the blossoms of my everyday ordinary life and have a moment to pause in the usual busy to-ing and fro-ing I had become so accustomed to.
Like cherry blossom on its tree branches, this season of Covid 19 will hopefully be short too. In time we will see life gradually go back to normal as it was. Perhaps when we look back on this time we will see the beauty in it and long for days to work from home, take time to try out new recipes and go for walks which make us feel overwhelmed with joy.
To bring us into some silence I end the reflection with a poem written by Toi Derricotte. She is an American poet and a professor of writing at the University of Pittsburgh.
Cherry Blossom.
I went down to
mingle my breath
with the breath
of the cherry blossoms.
There were photographers:
Mothers arranging their
children against
gnarled old trees;
a couple, hugging,
asks a passerby
to snap them
like that,
so that their love
will always be caught
between two friendships:
ours & the friendship
of the cherry trees.
Oh Cherry,
why can’t my poems
be as beautiful?
A young woman in a fur-trimmed
coat sets a card table
with linens, candles,
a picnic basket & wine.
A father tips
a boy’s wheelchair back
so he can gaze
up at a branched
heaven.
All around us
the blossoms
flurry down
whispering,
Be patient
you have an ancient beauty.
Be patient,
you have an ancient beauty.
You are invite to have 20 minutes of silence to reflect on the image of a cherry tree and its blooms.
Enjoy this time of rest.
Loving God
As we are mindful of Boris Johnson, his partner Carrie Symonds and their unborn baby as they face the challenges of coronavirus, we pray for all families who face the uncertainty of ill health at this time.
We hold each person, regardless of their status or public profile, in the light of your love and ask for healing and compassion.
In your infinite mercy, hear our prayer, Amen
Rev Barbara Glasson, President of the Methodist Conference
As we are mindful of Boris Johnson, his partner Carrie Symonds and their unborn baby as they face the challenges of coronavirus, we pray for all families who face the uncertainty of ill health at this time.
We hold each person, regardless of their status or public profile, in the light of your love and ask for healing and compassion.
In your infinite mercy, hear our prayer, Amen
Rev Barbara Glasson, President of the Methodist Conference
Welcome to Tuesday Meditation Group – 7 April 2020
Pull up a chair and make yourselves comfortable. You may like to join us live on Zoom at 1pm today – you will be very welcome. Please see the top of this page for details of how to access the Zoom meeting room.
We will begin to gather at 1pm and then at about 1.15pm we will begin the meditation. We are now in Holy Week and this week’s meditation is reflecting on Good Friday. Our focus is the painting below by Craigie Aitchison, and the words from Sister Wendy Beckett. After sharing these words, we will then have 25 minutes of silent meditation. You may want to have the image to hand to cast your eyes over during the silence, and the words too. After the silence we will have a few minutes when you are invited to share your reflections, thoughts, comments.
If you are not able to join us on Zoom, you are invited to read the words, focus on the painting, and set your timer for 25 minutes of silent meditation. If you would then like to share your thoughts, please feel free to send them to me by email or text.
May this time of meditation be a blessing to you.
Deacon Belinda Letby
Belinda.letby@wlm.org.uk 075 2818 7006
In art, there are few crucifixions that stress the inner truth of Jesus’ death: that Christ accepted with enormous happiness that he had accomplished all that his Father willed.
Shortly before his death, Craigie Aitchison painted this extraordinary crucifixion. The world has been reduced to absolutes, in which only nature is innocent. The earth has become desert, and yet Jesus draws new life, the scarlet poppy. The very presence of the cross has created a strip of living green against which we can make out Aitchison’s beloved Bedlington dog. But above the land soars Christ on the cross, a luminous body blazing with the fire of love. His features are consumed in the intensity of his passionate sacrifice. Over his head hovers the skeletal outline of the Holy Spirit. There are stars in the sky catching fire from the fire of Jesus, and we see the great curve of the rainbow, a sign of God’s covenant with humankind. Aitchison is showing us not what the crucifixion looked like, but what it truly meant.
Crucifixion, 2008, Craigie Aitchison
Pull up a chair and make yourselves comfortable. You may like to join us live on Zoom at 1pm today – you will be very welcome. Please see the top of this page for details of how to access the Zoom meeting room.
We will begin to gather at 1pm and then at about 1.15pm we will begin the meditation. We are now in Holy Week and this week’s meditation is reflecting on Good Friday. Our focus is the painting below by Craigie Aitchison, and the words from Sister Wendy Beckett. After sharing these words, we will then have 25 minutes of silent meditation. You may want to have the image to hand to cast your eyes over during the silence, and the words too. After the silence we will have a few minutes when you are invited to share your reflections, thoughts, comments.
If you are not able to join us on Zoom, you are invited to read the words, focus on the painting, and set your timer for 25 minutes of silent meditation. If you would then like to share your thoughts, please feel free to send them to me by email or text.
May this time of meditation be a blessing to you.
Deacon Belinda Letby
Belinda.letby@wlm.org.uk 075 2818 7006
In art, there are few crucifixions that stress the inner truth of Jesus’ death: that Christ accepted with enormous happiness that he had accomplished all that his Father willed.
Shortly before his death, Craigie Aitchison painted this extraordinary crucifixion. The world has been reduced to absolutes, in which only nature is innocent. The earth has become desert, and yet Jesus draws new life, the scarlet poppy. The very presence of the cross has created a strip of living green against which we can make out Aitchison’s beloved Bedlington dog. But above the land soars Christ on the cross, a luminous body blazing with the fire of love. His features are consumed in the intensity of his passionate sacrifice. Over his head hovers the skeletal outline of the Holy Spirit. There are stars in the sky catching fire from the fire of Jesus, and we see the great curve of the rainbow, a sign of God’s covenant with humankind. Aitchison is showing us not what the crucifixion looked like, but what it truly meant.
Crucifixion, 2008, Craigie Aitchison
Tuesday Meditation Group - 31 March 2020
Welcome to Tuesday Meditation Group.
If you would like to join us via Zoom please see the details below. We will begin at 1pm. We have only 40 minutes in total so we will begin with a few minutes of greetings, followed by the words below written by Sister Wendy Beckett, then 20 minutes of silence, and then a few minutes to share anything with one another. During the silence I will mute everyone, and I encourage you to stay focussed in the silence (it may be a challenge at home with distractions around you) to enable you to get the most out of that time. I suggest you take some time to gaze at the painting beforehand, and to have it to hand during the meditation (either on your computer screen or a printed copy).
If you are not able to join us in that way, I invite you to make yourself comfortable, take time to read the words by Sister Wendy and spend some time gazing at the painting. Then, set your timer to 20/25 minutes for silent meditation, focussing on the words, the painting, or both, and let them take you where they will. Afterwards, if you would like to share your thoughts/reflections please feel free to send them to me by email or text.
Whatever way you are able to join us, may your time of meditation be a blessing.
Deacon Belinda Letby
belinda.letby@wlm.org.uk
075 2818 7006
Gilles, 1721, Jean-Antoine Watteau
Gilles is a man discomforted: he stands exposed, tense and unhappy. Yet we could not call him a man who is not at peace. Something has happened (the artist does not spell it out) that has removed him from his fellow actors and left him painfully alone. Gilles is ill at ease, but he has no option: what is happening must be lived through, and he sets himself to do it. This courage – this acceptance of powerlessness and decision to await consequences from which we cannot escape – this is an element of the confidence that springs from peace. Gilles is at peace because he does not rage against the inevitable. The wisdom is in knowing what is inevitable and what, with courage and intelligence, can be changed. Fundamentally, though, nothing matters except to be true to what we know is right.
Belinda Letby is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting, on Tuesday 31 March, 1pm.
Join Zoom Meeting - See top of page
Welcome to Tuesday Meditation Group.
If you would like to join us via Zoom please see the details below. We will begin at 1pm. We have only 40 minutes in total so we will begin with a few minutes of greetings, followed by the words below written by Sister Wendy Beckett, then 20 minutes of silence, and then a few minutes to share anything with one another. During the silence I will mute everyone, and I encourage you to stay focussed in the silence (it may be a challenge at home with distractions around you) to enable you to get the most out of that time. I suggest you take some time to gaze at the painting beforehand, and to have it to hand during the meditation (either on your computer screen or a printed copy).
If you are not able to join us in that way, I invite you to make yourself comfortable, take time to read the words by Sister Wendy and spend some time gazing at the painting. Then, set your timer to 20/25 minutes for silent meditation, focussing on the words, the painting, or both, and let them take you where they will. Afterwards, if you would like to share your thoughts/reflections please feel free to send them to me by email or text.
Whatever way you are able to join us, may your time of meditation be a blessing.
Deacon Belinda Letby
belinda.letby@wlm.org.uk
075 2818 7006
Gilles, 1721, Jean-Antoine Watteau
Gilles is a man discomforted: he stands exposed, tense and unhappy. Yet we could not call him a man who is not at peace. Something has happened (the artist does not spell it out) that has removed him from his fellow actors and left him painfully alone. Gilles is ill at ease, but he has no option: what is happening must be lived through, and he sets himself to do it. This courage – this acceptance of powerlessness and decision to await consequences from which we cannot escape – this is an element of the confidence that springs from peace. Gilles is at peace because he does not rage against the inevitable. The wisdom is in knowing what is inevitable and what, with courage and intelligence, can be changed. Fundamentally, though, nothing matters except to be true to what we know is right.
Belinda Letby is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting, on Tuesday 31 March, 1pm.
Join Zoom Meeting - See top of page
Lent Meditation for Monday 30th March 2020.
During lent we have been meeting in the quiet space of our church on Monday’s from 1pm-1.30pm for meditation. The hope was to offer local workers and residents a quiet place in the city to reflect, pray and encounter God. Since we are facing this challenging time with Covid-19 Corona Virus the meditations for the will be going online.
Our theme for these meditations has been ‘The Wilderness of…’ and we have been focusing on 5 different topics which are relevant for lent and also living in the city. This week’s topic is ‘The Wilderness of loneliness in the city’ and is the last in the series.
You are invited to find a quiet place in your home and follow the guide below. The mediation will last 15 minutes but you can extend it with a longer silence if you wish. May Jesus who experienced the loneliness of the desert bring you a sense of community today and throughout the week.
Stilling prayer by Ron Rolheiser:
Still my heart so that I may know that you are God, that I may know that you create and sustain my every breath, that you breathe the whole universe into existence every second, that everyone, myself no less than everyone else, is your beloved, that you want our lives to flourish, that you desire our happiness, that nothing falls outside your love and care, and that everything and everybody is safe in your gentle care, in this world and the next.
You ae invited to take a look at your surroundings and offer thanks to God for something which gives you joy in this space.
(Quietness)
Scripture: Adapted from Isaiah 26:20Come, my people, enter your chambers,
and shut your doors behind you;
hide yourselves for a little while
until this time is past.
In this strange time we are all adjusting to a new rhythm of life. Many of us may be feeling a sense of loneliness even if we are surrounded by those in your households. For those who live by themselves or in a community where visitors became a precious part of your day this time of isolation may bring about a different kind of aloneness. In a poem by John O’ Donohue he reflects on his experience of loneliness. You are invited to read his words slowly and choose a sentence which sparks your heart. Then use 5-10 minutes of silence to meditate on that sentence/phrase. You might find it useful to say the sentence aloud 8 times and then have a time of silence.
What do you learn about God in this time of meditation?
A Poem for Loneliness from John O’Donohue’s book ‘To Bless the Space between us.’
When the light lessens,
Causing colors to lose their courage,
And your eyes fix on the empty distance
That can open on either side
Of the surest line
To make all that is
Familiar and near
Seem suddenly foreign,
When the music of talk
Breaks apart into noise
And you hear your heart louden
While the voices around you
Slow down to leaden echos
Turning silence
Into something stony and cold,
When the old ghosts come back
To feed on everywhere you felt sure,
Do not strengthen their hunger
By choosing fear;
Rather, decide to call on your heart
That it may grow clear and free
To welcome home your emptiness
That it may cleanse you
Like the clearest air
You could ever breathe.
Allow your loneliness time
To dissolve the shell of dross
That had closed around you;
Choose in this severe silence
To hear the one true voice
Your rushed life fears;
Cradle yourself like a child
Learning to trust what emerges,
So that gradually
You may come to know
That deep in that black hole
You will find the blue flower
That holds the mystical light
Which will illuminate in you
The glimmer of springtime.
Silence to meditate on a sentence/phrase. (5 – 10 minutes)
Closing prayer
Christ of all seasons in life,
Guide my waking, my sleeping, my solitude and my community.
May I have courage and hope,
Knowing that I am with Christ,
And being held in my creator’s hand.
Amen.
During lent we have been meeting in the quiet space of our church on Monday’s from 1pm-1.30pm for meditation. The hope was to offer local workers and residents a quiet place in the city to reflect, pray and encounter God. Since we are facing this challenging time with Covid-19 Corona Virus the meditations for the will be going online.
Our theme for these meditations has been ‘The Wilderness of…’ and we have been focusing on 5 different topics which are relevant for lent and also living in the city. This week’s topic is ‘The Wilderness of loneliness in the city’ and is the last in the series.
You are invited to find a quiet place in your home and follow the guide below. The mediation will last 15 minutes but you can extend it with a longer silence if you wish. May Jesus who experienced the loneliness of the desert bring you a sense of community today and throughout the week.
Stilling prayer by Ron Rolheiser:
Still my heart so that I may know that you are God, that I may know that you create and sustain my every breath, that you breathe the whole universe into existence every second, that everyone, myself no less than everyone else, is your beloved, that you want our lives to flourish, that you desire our happiness, that nothing falls outside your love and care, and that everything and everybody is safe in your gentle care, in this world and the next.
You ae invited to take a look at your surroundings and offer thanks to God for something which gives you joy in this space.
(Quietness)
Scripture: Adapted from Isaiah 26:20Come, my people, enter your chambers,
and shut your doors behind you;
hide yourselves for a little while
until this time is past.
In this strange time we are all adjusting to a new rhythm of life. Many of us may be feeling a sense of loneliness even if we are surrounded by those in your households. For those who live by themselves or in a community where visitors became a precious part of your day this time of isolation may bring about a different kind of aloneness. In a poem by John O’ Donohue he reflects on his experience of loneliness. You are invited to read his words slowly and choose a sentence which sparks your heart. Then use 5-10 minutes of silence to meditate on that sentence/phrase. You might find it useful to say the sentence aloud 8 times and then have a time of silence.
What do you learn about God in this time of meditation?
A Poem for Loneliness from John O’Donohue’s book ‘To Bless the Space between us.’
When the light lessens,
Causing colors to lose their courage,
And your eyes fix on the empty distance
That can open on either side
Of the surest line
To make all that is
Familiar and near
Seem suddenly foreign,
When the music of talk
Breaks apart into noise
And you hear your heart louden
While the voices around you
Slow down to leaden echos
Turning silence
Into something stony and cold,
When the old ghosts come back
To feed on everywhere you felt sure,
Do not strengthen their hunger
By choosing fear;
Rather, decide to call on your heart
That it may grow clear and free
To welcome home your emptiness
That it may cleanse you
Like the clearest air
You could ever breathe.
Allow your loneliness time
To dissolve the shell of dross
That had closed around you;
Choose in this severe silence
To hear the one true voice
Your rushed life fears;
Cradle yourself like a child
Learning to trust what emerges,
So that gradually
You may come to know
That deep in that black hole
You will find the blue flower
That holds the mystical light
Which will illuminate in you
The glimmer of springtime.
Silence to meditate on a sentence/phrase. (5 – 10 minutes)
Closing prayer
Christ of all seasons in life,
Guide my waking, my sleeping, my solitude and my community.
May I have courage and hope,
Knowing that I am with Christ,
And being held in my creator’s hand.
Amen.
Weekly Meditation Group - Tuesday 24 March 2020
Welcome to our Weekly Meditation Group.
You are invited to find a comfortable place to sit and spend some time in meditation. In all the uncertainty of these days, meditation is a helpful way to reconnect with our self, our thoughts, emotions and senses. We take some time in silence today to think about JOY, and how we have the option of choosing joy, of seeing glimpses of joy amidst the dark moments. I invite you to take time to gaze at the painting, Rainbow Landscape by Rubens, and then read the piece by Sister Wendy Beckett. Then, set your timer for 25 minutes of silent meditation – reflecting on the painting, the words, the moments of joy in your life for which you are thankful. You may want to close your eyes, or continue to gaze at the painting. Afterwards, if you would like to share your thoughts, reflections, concerns, joy, etc, please feel free to send those to me, either by email or text.
Next week, I hope to set up a Zoom meeting so that we can enjoy a ‘virtual’ meditation. I will post the link to that on the website.
May this time of meditation be a blessing to you.
Deacon Belinda Letby
belinda.letby@wlm.org.uk
075 2818 7006
Rainbow Landscape, c1636, Peter Paul Rubens
Choosing Joy
Rubens is consummately the painter of happiness. But this sunlit, unreflecting sense of well-being, precious though it is, is not joy. Joy is something deeper, and in a sense sterner. Although we cannot command it, we choose joy, making a deliberate commitment to happiness (essentially another word for peace). Rubens delights in the positive: the rainbow symbolising hope (and in itself so beautiful), the light glinting on the rich meadows, the benign cattle and their fruitful surroundings. Yet there are dark elements, too, in the picture if we want to seek them out: the sunless woods are not far away. Rubens chooses: he emphasises the good things. Joy is independent of choosing: it overwhelms and suffuses us.
Welcome to our Weekly Meditation Group.
You are invited to find a comfortable place to sit and spend some time in meditation. In all the uncertainty of these days, meditation is a helpful way to reconnect with our self, our thoughts, emotions and senses. We take some time in silence today to think about JOY, and how we have the option of choosing joy, of seeing glimpses of joy amidst the dark moments. I invite you to take time to gaze at the painting, Rainbow Landscape by Rubens, and then read the piece by Sister Wendy Beckett. Then, set your timer for 25 minutes of silent meditation – reflecting on the painting, the words, the moments of joy in your life for which you are thankful. You may want to close your eyes, or continue to gaze at the painting. Afterwards, if you would like to share your thoughts, reflections, concerns, joy, etc, please feel free to send those to me, either by email or text.
Next week, I hope to set up a Zoom meeting so that we can enjoy a ‘virtual’ meditation. I will post the link to that on the website.
May this time of meditation be a blessing to you.
Deacon Belinda Letby
belinda.letby@wlm.org.uk
075 2818 7006
Rainbow Landscape, c1636, Peter Paul Rubens
Choosing Joy
Rubens is consummately the painter of happiness. But this sunlit, unreflecting sense of well-being, precious though it is, is not joy. Joy is something deeper, and in a sense sterner. Although we cannot command it, we choose joy, making a deliberate commitment to happiness (essentially another word for peace). Rubens delights in the positive: the rainbow symbolising hope (and in itself so beautiful), the light glinting on the rich meadows, the benign cattle and their fruitful surroundings. Yet there are dark elements, too, in the picture if we want to seek them out: the sunless woods are not far away. Rubens chooses: he emphasises the good things. Joy is independent of choosing: it overwhelms and suffuses us.
Lent Meditation for Monday 23rd March 2020.
During lent we have been meeting in our quiet space of our church on Monday’s from 1pm-1.30pm for meditation. The hope was to offer local workers and residents a quiet place in the city to reflect, pray and encounter God. Since we are facing this challenging time with Covid-19 Corona Virus the meditations for the next two Monday’s will be going online.
Our theme for these meditations has been ‘The Wilderness of…’ and we have been focusing on 5 different topics which are relevant for lent and living in the city.
This weeks topic is ‘The Wilderness of dryness.’
You will need the following things to participate in today’s meditation:
‘The Wilderness of dryness.’ written by Miriam Kennedy.
Opening prayer:
God of peace in times of trouble- sit with me.
Jesus of healing in times of sickness- sit with me.
Spirit of community in times of scattering- sit with me.
(Silence for a few moments)
Isaiah 35: 1-4
The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad,
the desert shall rejoice and blossom;
like the crocus 2 it shall blossom abundantly,
and rejoice with joy and singing.
The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it,
the majesty of Carmel and Sharon.
They shall see the glory of the Lord,
the majesty of our God.
3 Strengthen the weak hands,
and make firm the feeble knees.
4 Say to those who are of a fearful heart,
“Be strong, do not fear!
Here is your God.
Meditation
You are invited to focus you attention on the coffee granules, or simply imagine dry coffee beans or instant coffee.
Take notice of the coffee’s colour- brown, burnt, earthy.
Take notice how the dryness makes the granules seem individualistic.
Take notice of them as a collective- they are lacking in water so they can fulfill their purpose.
What are we/you in need of this week? What can God offer you to the dryness of life in the city?
(Silence 4 minutes)
You are now invited to focus you attention on the glass of water, or simply imagine a glass of water.
Take notice of the water's transparent quality- are there little bubbles collected on the side of the glass?
Take notice of the shapes, light and colours reflecting from the water.
Take notice of the water's ability to offer life, vitality and energy to those who feel parched.
What are we/you in need of this week? What can God offer you as a life giving drink?
(Silence 4 minutes)
And now you are invited to say this closing prayer aloud and either drink your glass of water, or make yourself a cup of tea or coffee. Dwell in the process of this action of making yourself a drink.
May it offer you refreshment and allow you to blossom today.
Closing prayer:
May I walk forward in the hope and knowledge that God is here,
May we in these scattered times know of Jesus’ passion for community,
May the Holy Spirit breathe truths of grace and love to us as we meander onwards. Amen.
During lent we have been meeting in our quiet space of our church on Monday’s from 1pm-1.30pm for meditation. The hope was to offer local workers and residents a quiet place in the city to reflect, pray and encounter God. Since we are facing this challenging time with Covid-19 Corona Virus the meditations for the next two Monday’s will be going online.
Our theme for these meditations has been ‘The Wilderness of…’ and we have been focusing on 5 different topics which are relevant for lent and living in the city.
This weeks topic is ‘The Wilderness of dryness.’
You will need the following things to participate in today’s meditation:
- 1, A quiet place to sit. It may be your living room, garden, balcony or simply a comfortable chair.
- 2, A small amount of dry coffee granules, or simply your imagination.
- 3. A glass of water, or simply your imagination.
- A phone or laptop so you can see the outline of the meditation.
‘The Wilderness of dryness.’ written by Miriam Kennedy.
Opening prayer:
God of peace in times of trouble- sit with me.
Jesus of healing in times of sickness- sit with me.
Spirit of community in times of scattering- sit with me.
(Silence for a few moments)
Isaiah 35: 1-4
The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad,
the desert shall rejoice and blossom;
like the crocus 2 it shall blossom abundantly,
and rejoice with joy and singing.
The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it,
the majesty of Carmel and Sharon.
They shall see the glory of the Lord,
the majesty of our God.
3 Strengthen the weak hands,
and make firm the feeble knees.
4 Say to those who are of a fearful heart,
“Be strong, do not fear!
Here is your God.
Meditation
You are invited to focus you attention on the coffee granules, or simply imagine dry coffee beans or instant coffee.
Take notice of the coffee’s colour- brown, burnt, earthy.
Take notice how the dryness makes the granules seem individualistic.
Take notice of them as a collective- they are lacking in water so they can fulfill their purpose.
What are we/you in need of this week? What can God offer you to the dryness of life in the city?
(Silence 4 minutes)
You are now invited to focus you attention on the glass of water, or simply imagine a glass of water.
Take notice of the water's transparent quality- are there little bubbles collected on the side of the glass?
Take notice of the shapes, light and colours reflecting from the water.
Take notice of the water's ability to offer life, vitality and energy to those who feel parched.
What are we/you in need of this week? What can God offer you as a life giving drink?
(Silence 4 minutes)
And now you are invited to say this closing prayer aloud and either drink your glass of water, or make yourself a cup of tea or coffee. Dwell in the process of this action of making yourself a drink.
May it offer you refreshment and allow you to blossom today.
Closing prayer:
May I walk forward in the hope and knowledge that God is here,
May we in these scattered times know of Jesus’ passion for community,
May the Holy Spirit breathe truths of grace and love to us as we meander onwards. Amen.
A National Call to Prayer
Click here for - an invitation from Churches Together in England for this Sunday 22nd March to light a candle of hope.
Prayer for Today - Tuesday 17 March 2020
O Love most powerful grant us your strength. O Love most sweet let us taste your goodness. O Love most faithful let us rejoice in your presence. O Love most victorious persevere with us to the last; for Jesu's sake. Amen.
Gertrude of Helfta (1256-c.1302)
Weekly Meditation Group - Tuesday 17 March 2020
Welcome to the Meditation Group. As our building is closed we are offering a 'virtual' time of meditation. The following is the meditation for today. You are invited to look at the paining and then read the words by Sister Wendy Beckett. Then spend 25 minutes in silent meditation - focussing on the words or the painting or both. You may need to set a timer! At the end of the silence you are invited to write down any thoughts, reflections, ideas, etc. If you would like to share those privately with me then please feel free to do so by sending them via email or text.
Belinda Letby - Minister
belinda.letby@wlm.org.uk
075 2818 7006
Click here for - an invitation from Churches Together in England for this Sunday 22nd March to light a candle of hope.
Prayer for Today - Tuesday 17 March 2020
O Love most powerful grant us your strength. O Love most sweet let us taste your goodness. O Love most faithful let us rejoice in your presence. O Love most victorious persevere with us to the last; for Jesu's sake. Amen.
Gertrude of Helfta (1256-c.1302)
Weekly Meditation Group - Tuesday 17 March 2020
Welcome to the Meditation Group. As our building is closed we are offering a 'virtual' time of meditation. The following is the meditation for today. You are invited to look at the paining and then read the words by Sister Wendy Beckett. Then spend 25 minutes in silent meditation - focussing on the words or the painting or both. You may need to set a timer! At the end of the silence you are invited to write down any thoughts, reflections, ideas, etc. If you would like to share those privately with me then please feel free to do so by sending them via email or text.
Belinda Letby - Minister
belinda.letby@wlm.org.uk
075 2818 7006
The painting is Amédéé-David, Marquis de Pastoret, 1826 by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres
This is what Sister Wendy Beckett says about the painting:
The Illusion of Peace
Good is not a judgement we can make about ourselves. We instinctively react against Ingres’s young Marquis, who so obviously has a high opinion of himself. Whether he considers himself virtuous is not spelled out, but he stands before us with the restrained smirk of self-admiration. Those who are genuinely good always doubt their goodness. Peace does not depend upon anything, certainly not upon our own certainty of moral righteousness. It depends on humble desire (with the emphasis on humble) to do what is right. Ingres’s sitter, decorations prominent, simplicity of attire elegantly visible, hands electric with a sense of superiority, has a totally dependent kind of peace. Humiliation and failure would explode it, whereas true peace is impervious to events. Peace rests upon the decision always to struggle towards goodness, whatever our condition. In this light, one feels compassion for Amédéé-David, with all his spiritual disadvantages.
This is what Sister Wendy Beckett says about the painting:
The Illusion of Peace
Good is not a judgement we can make about ourselves. We instinctively react against Ingres’s young Marquis, who so obviously has a high opinion of himself. Whether he considers himself virtuous is not spelled out, but he stands before us with the restrained smirk of self-admiration. Those who are genuinely good always doubt their goodness. Peace does not depend upon anything, certainly not upon our own certainty of moral righteousness. It depends on humble desire (with the emphasis on humble) to do what is right. Ingres’s sitter, decorations prominent, simplicity of attire elegantly visible, hands electric with a sense of superiority, has a totally dependent kind of peace. Humiliation and failure would explode it, whereas true peace is impervious to events. Peace rests upon the decision always to struggle towards goodness, whatever our condition. In this light, one feels compassion for Amédéé-David, with all his spiritual disadvantages.