• Mary Magdalene – Pray for Us

    Am terribly saddened to hear news just in from the Bishop of California that two of the icons of Grace Cathedral in San Francisco have been destroyed.

    One was of John Donne and this one was of Mary Magdalene.
    Mary Mag

    I saw her every day when I spend three weeks living at Grace Cathedral last year. She always seemed to me to be particulary striking, serene and somehow unsettling. She was a bearer of the divine, in other words.

    There are images which some people cannot bear. This proved to be one one such.

    Mary Magdalene and John Donne – pray with us for a world free from violence, free from attack, free from fears within and fears without.

    Amen.

8 responses to “Deck the hair…”

  1. (fabulous for an alleged evangelical) ryan Avatar
    (fabulous for an alleged evangelical) ryan

    Out of interest, is there a proper churchy rule or convention on the right time for Christmas trees to go up? Don’t know if the grumpiness in your post is personal or praepostorial

  2. Kimberly Avatar

    A properly churchy time for the Christmas tree to go up is at Chrismas. i.e. after the fourth Sunday of Advent and in time for the Midnight Mass.

    Grumpiness about Christmas in October is natural and appropriate, surely.

  3. Anne Avatar
    Anne

    On a sliding scale of grumpiness which is worse, harumph or bah humbug?[PS M and S had hot cross buns in their bakery today]

  4. ChickPea Avatar
    ChickPea

    Ah, Kelvin…….. I wonder, is there a link between the demoralising ‘Facebook’ notices bewailed in your last post and your enticing sentiments expressed in this ?

    Perhaps you need to create a little sunshine to tempt them – a little progressive development of the fly-fishing technique, the swish and flick of the wrist, the fleeting glimpse of temptation just enough in sight to, er, arouse interest……

    Maybe your own bedecked seasonal tree (call it an ‘Advent Tree’ to thwart the Christmas Tree Traditionalists – thereby launching yourself as a trend-setter) – such tree selected and styled with eagerness in longing anticipation of future festivities……..

    (You could call it ‘forward planning par excellence’, even, to gain bonus brownie points and thwart critics)…..

    Then, perchance, the ‘Facebook Fanatics’ may clamour to, er, beat a path to your door ?

    (Tho……. more to the point……. would you honestly be wanting them to ?……….is that really where Everyman finds his bosom buddies ?)

    PS. Put your dazzling Advent Tree prominently in your window and WE’ll all come round so’s you’re not lonely – how’s that for a Gloom-Buster to tweak the morale, eh ?

  5. kelvin Avatar

    I think that facebook is just another meeting place and similar patterns of community seem to play out there though sometimes at a faster rate than in face to face communication. Certainly, the flirting, fighting and flummery as well as thoughtful the slow conversation that I recognise from off-line communication, is all present there too.

    Would I want to entice those who would be enticed by early Christmas trees, albeit dressed up in another name.

    I’d rather not.

    [BTW Anne – three Harumphs certainly trump a single Bah Humbug]

  6. Rev Ruth Avatar

    I think it is just attention seeking.

  7. ryan Avatar
    ryan

    Your new hair looks lovely incidently. Am sure you’re turning heads at that clergy conference.

  8. kelvin Avatar

    Ryan, your faith in my hair is almost unbearably touching. At this clergy conference, however, it was trumped by the hair of the Rector of St Margaret’s, Newlands.

    He came to the conference whilst his hair did not, his having been shaved completely bald the day before.

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