Take Risks

I'll start off with an advance apology. After all it is the Church of England - we usually apologise for having any sort of view on anything at all, so the word 'sorry' is definitely in the vocabulary.


I'm sorry if articles don't appear as often as they have been for the next few weeks - with assignment dates looming my attention is elsewhere, but I am thinking of you dear reader. Consequently the articles that you do get may have more of a "Dear Diary, this is what I've been doing flavour" than usual.

So, anyway, term started on the 20th April, and it was almost straight down to business. This Easter term is very short - exams for those who have them (essays for those who don't) are in the last week of May, and there's 4 weeks of teaching to be given and received in some modules. There's no messing about with short courses - once we'd had a full college 'Hall Meeting' and the staff had had a training day it was back into the timetable.

I've still got lectures in Greek, Old Testament and 'Life & Service', and as I mentioned last time 5 pieces of work to hand in. It tends to keep the mind focussed. Add into that the half-hour for a college photograph (all in suits and dresses - very nice), and the odd game of croquet as a de-stressing activity AND the lovely hot weather forcing us out onto the benches to sunbathe and the week soon passes. Already one week of the four gone.

Friday's Life & Service saw us being sent out onto the streets of Cambridge to talk to real people about their views on/relationship with The Church. That was really interesting, and encouraging. It's so easy to sit in your study and think you know what people think without actually asking them. The picture at the top is of us in our highly stressed de-briefing afterwards.

Saturday saw '160 Glorious Years' - a celebration of four 40th birthdays as Charlie, Jane, Mark and I shared a party in the Ridley Lecture Hall. Families, friends and a lot of the students joined us - I've never seen so many people in the seminar room that we were using for the food!

It would have been nice to have Sunday as a day of rest after the party, but being trainee vicars we all had things to do on Sunday morning. I had managed to agree to jointly lead the 10am service at St George's*, along with the other 3 ordinands. So a bright and early start as we celebrated St George's day a few days late, making a dragon and slaying it with a lightsaber before talking about the myths and realities of both George and Jesus, with only a minor controversy between High and Low Church ordinands as I nearly said a prayer that 'must' be said by a priest if a priest is present. The 'highs' couldn't contemplate a priest not doing that bit, the 'lows' didn't even know there was such a requirement!!

After rushing home for a barbecue lunch with Mum and Dad, it was time to go back to Ridley to restore the rooms to a state fit for theological study. I'm sure Our Lord Jesus Christ must have been familiar with the smell of stale wine, and what was good for him is good for Ridley students.

In gaps between lectures I managed to finish one essay, which Tasha now needs to proof-read, and attend a seminar and start the reading for the Theological Reflection which I must do on Romsey Mill.

On Wednesday night I went to a talk by Canon Andrew White, the so called 'Vicar of Baghdad'. Truly inspiring, if totally bonkers. He's a former Ridley student, who had no idea when he was at Ridley that he'd be doing the challenging and dangerous work that he's doing now. I asked him what advice he had for ordinands who were trying to discern their long-term calling: his answer was 'Take Risks'.

So that leads me to Thursday, where at a Common Room meeting I've been appointed to the risky task of 'Student Hosts Deacon' for the next 12 months, and I think I've persuaded a number of students to do a social action project. More on those another time, as well as something about St George's.

Extreme essay avoidance

I haven't written for a while - that's because I've been enjoying my Easter Holidays. For the last 20 years my Easter Holiday has consisted of the same as most other people - Good Friday and Easter Monday - but while I'm in Cambridge I get four glorious weeks! And glorious is an apt description - wherever I've been the sun hasn't been far behind.

We spent most of the first week furniture shopping. Yes, I am a poor student, but one in receipt of a bequest, so we trolled around the sofa and dining table outlets of Cambridge and even as far afield as exotic Newmarket, before returning to the first sofa shop and a local pine/oak business to place our orders.

Much of the second week was spent reading theology books in preparation for writing an essay. Then I had an e-mail from my landlord's agent giving me permission to remodel the patio. Not something I make a habit of, but since we arrived it had been bugging us! In order to meet building regulations for disabled access into our three-storey, narrow-doorway, no-downstairs-bedroom-or-bathroom house the builders had left a hideous and impractical ramp leading into our kitchen, rendering the patio useless for anything other than putting a single chair out on. My books were put down and my most extreme form of essay avoidance so far was in action within ten minutes! And over the course of the next few days it was transformed, for the cost of a few bags of cement and 24 hours hire of a slab cutter, and several trips to the tip.

BEFORE and AFTER

It might not look like much, but the lack of a six inch step in the middle of the area makes all the difference! And Cambridge is not one of those places that hides behind fancy words - the tip is not known as a 'civic amenity site' in these parts...

By now it was a few days before Easter and time to visit Ferndown. Staying for a few days with Tasha's parents in Blandford we seemed to make the 40-mile round trip to Ferndown at least once each day - I think we did more mileage that way than actually getting from and to Cambridge. We visited St Mary's church twice, the house and Lidl once, the beach and Beth's friend Louise once each, and met some of our former youth group in the pub one evening before having dinner with the Caleys. And even went into Blandford...

It was great getting back to St Mary's - it was the first time I'd returned since August, and I needed to catch up with a few people, but even more people needed to catch up with me. I can tell who has been reading the blog and our magazine articles from the questions asked of me! Our arrival on Good Friday was previously unannounced, but we were only 30 seconds or so into the service when Rev Martin Howard asked for volunteer children and did a spectacular double take when Isaac appeared in front of him!!

By the Wednesday after Easter we were back home and into the final week, and I couldn't avoid it any longer. The 'Theology and Practice of Mission' essay needed to be written, and I was running out of excuses. It got mostly written on Thursday, and is now stewing before I polish it off in a few days time - it's not due in for another couple of weeks, but 4 more assignments, one Sunday service, one sermon and a few other things all need to be started.

Easter Term started today, and I'd barely got to Ridley before Tash phoned, very excited, announcing that the new sofas will be delivered tomorrow at 9am. Up until then I'd been planning to do some reading today. My mission changed in an instant to a new and unexpected bonus essay avoiding tactic of disposing of the two old CYFA-worn sofas before tomorrow morning. An hour later, one was in its new home in C staircase kitchen. By now there are three other students pitching in for the second one!

Jade's funeral

I was a little surprised when I turned on the TV at lunchtime to find BBC News carrying live coverage of Jade's funeral, even though I shouldn't have been - our final chance to see every aspect of her life being broadcast.

I've been sceptical about Jade's personal faith, but reading the text of the sermon preached at her funeral I take it back - the vicar who knew Jade best in these last few weeks is quite clear that Jade genuinely turned to Jesus as she faced death. I hope the wider church is ready to welcome all those who come through its doors in the coming weeks and months asking the same questions as Jade.

For the text of the sermon go to: http://www.chelmsford.anglican.org/jade-goodys-life-celebrated-at-buckhurst-hill-church.html and then pick up that dusty copy of the Bible, turn to Luke's Gospel, read it for yourself (it will only take about an hour - same as an episode of Big Brother) and make your own decision.