For two-thirds of the world, poverty is the order of the day. Yet, as Epicurus knew, “Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants’ It is that kind of poverty of which Jesus speaks when he tells the rich young man to “sell everything you have, give to the poor, and […]
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Subtle Degrees
Posted on by James Woodward
subtle degrees of domination and servitude are what you know as love but love is different it arrives complete just there like the moon in the window like the sun of neither east nor west nor of anyplace when that sun arrives east and west arrive desire only that of […]
The purpose of wealth?
Posted on by James Woodward
Clearly, the purpose of wealth is not security. The purpose of wealth is reckless generosity, the kind that sings of the lavish love of God, the kind that rekindles hope on dark days, the kind that reminds us that God is with us always. It creates in the holy heart a freedom of spirit that […]
seagull
Posted on by James Woodward
If my spirit descended now, it would be a lost gull flaring against a deepening hillside, or an angel who cries too easily, or a single glass of seawater, no longer blue or mysterious, and still salty. From Philip Levine, Holding on
Misericords
Posted on by James Woodward
A misericord (sometimes named mercy seat, like the Biblical object) is a small wooden shelf on the underside of a folding seat in a church, installed to provide a degree of comfort for a person who has to stand during long periods of prayer. Prayers in the early medieval church for the daily divine […]
blossoming
Posted on by James Woodward
If humans could be that intensely whole, undistracted, unhurried, swift from sheer unswerving impetus! If we could blossom out of ourselves, giving nothing imperfect, withholding nothing! From Denise Levertov, The métier of blossoming
Bangor Cathedral
Posted on by James Woodward
Bangor Cathedral is an ancient place of Christian worship situated in Bangor, Gwynedd, north-west Wales. It is dedicated to its founder, Saint Deiniol. The site of the present building of Bangor Cathedral has been in use as a place of Christian worship since the 6th century. The cathedral is built on a low-lying and inconspicuous […]
Favourite galleries: Oriel Ynys Mon, Wales
Posted on by James Woodward
Oriel Ynys Môn is a museum and arts centre located in Llangefni, Ynys Môn, Wales. A two-part centre, the History Gallery provides an insight into the island’s culture, history and environment. The Art Gallery has a changing programme of exhibitions, encompassing art, craft, drama, sculpture and social history. It also houses a series of permanent […]
What is faith?
Posted on by James Woodward
Faith is belief that God is leading us to become in tune with the universe, however different we see ourselves to be. Faith is trust in the unknown goodness of life without demand for certainty in the science of it. Faith is belief that the God we call “our God” is either the God […]
A sense of alleluia
Posted on by James Woodward
Every segment of life is both gift and challenge, both endowment and responsibility. It is the warp and woof of the fabric we call time. The delicate interplay between the two has the power to rock us back and forth between total confidence and abject despair. We lurch through life between doubt and faith, […]
What kind of a God is this God we seek?
Posted on by James Woodward
God, we know, is a mystery in which we lived every moment of every day. The only question is, How? What kind of a God is this God we seek? Is God a teasing giant who must be pacified as we go through life? Is life an obstacle course designed to merit only the perfect, only […]
gold and grey
Posted on by James Woodward
I was welcomed here–clear gold of late summer, of opening autumn, the dawn eagle sunning himself on the highest tree, the mountain revealing herself unclouded, her snow tinted apricot as she looked west, tolerant, in her steadfastness, of the restless sun forever rising and setting. Now I am given a taste of the […]
THE VOICE OF YOUR OWN LONGING
Posted on by James Woodward
“What’s extraordinary is that the crucial thing we need for breaking free is already inside us: our longing. And the voice of our longing is repetition, insistently calling out to what’s beyond anything we’re familiar with or even understand… As you start being drawn behind appearances you begin to touch the bare bones […]
Beetroot and Feta Salad
Posted on by James Woodward
Ingredients 6 small Beetroot, raw, unpeeled 6 tbsp Olive Oil, 3 tbsp for the dressing 1 pinch Salt 1 pinch Black Pepper, freshly ground 1 Red Onion, very finely sliced 50g Rocket 100g Feta Cheese, cubed 1 handful Mint Leaves, torn, to garnish 1 tbsp Balsamic Vinegar, (for dressing) 1 tbsp Dijon Mustard, (for dressing) […]
God: Some Conversations.
Posted on by James Woodward
I have just finished a ten day consultation with 24 clergy here in St Georges House – a fascinating and moving journey for us all. Here is our aspiration as set out by my colleague Hueston Finlay: To try and speak of God is, unavoidably, to work with words and images carved from the world’s […]
The North Quire Aisle, St Georges Chapel
Posted on by James Woodward
The work of the preservation of the Chapel is fascinating. Slowly the Chapel is being restored and at the moment work has begun of the North Quire Aisle. Scaffolding was erected in the North Quire Aisle in June allowing experts to undertake conservation cleaning of all the stonework in the area. The North Quire Aisle […]
leaves
Posted on by James Woodward
Life is the only way to get covered in leaves, catch your breath on the beach, rise on wings; to be a dog, or stroke its warm fur; to tell pain from everything it’s not; to squeeze inside events, hang out in views, and seek the least of all possible mistakes. A fantastic […]
the leaning grasses
Posted on by James Woodward
A poem should be palpable and mute As a globed fruit Dumb As old medallions to the thumb Silent as the sleeve-worn stone Of casement ledges where the moss has grown – A poem should be wordless As the flight of birds A poem should be motionless in time As the moon climbs Leaving, […]