Categories: uncategorized
Date: 02 September 2003 12:15:24
Things that I saw and did:
Got to indulge my Orthodox leanings with a talk from Bishop Stephen of the Celtic Orthodox Church on Friday evening and a splendid Liturgy on Saturday morning. The choir did what a choir ought to do in church - stand near enough the people so that they provided enough volume to help the singing along and keep us all in tune. The Liturgy of St James is long but rather marvellous when you sit down to study the words. One thing that strikes you is how, at different points in the service, the Deacon invites us to continue our intercessions - a reminder that the intercession of Jesus and his Church continues at all times and in all places.
Good talks also from Dave Tomlinson on the current homosexuality issue, Jo Ind on sex in general, Ian Stillman on getting jailed in India for possessing a bag drugs he was physically incapable of lifting and Leslie Griffiths on RS Thomas (though Leslie does need to learn that if the PA is turned up you don't need to shout quite so much into the mic).
Picked up a splendid Taize CD and heard Billy Bragg. Bunked off Sunday Communion (heard a lot of it, though). Sad I missed Mike Riddell and Cathy Burton (who was playing whilst I was at a talk on the nature of silence in the venue right next to the main stage).
Curious moment of the weekend - the compere of the debate on silence saying how much she'd learned about the subject, and me thinking that we'd have learned a lot more if you had been wittering so much, darling.