What is in Kelvin's Head?

  • Back from Retreat (all perky and ready to go)

    Just back from a week on retreat in a Jesuit house in sunny Spain.

    It is a while since I’ve made a retreat and four years since I went to this particular place. Like before, I’ve come back all perky and ready to go.

    I realise as I look back over the last few weeks that much of the blogging has been quite technical church synod stuff. Normal service begins again here.

    It has been interesting reflecting on my life here at St Mary’s recently. I didn’t particularly go on retreat to do this but inevitably, one thinks about where one is coming from and in conversation with other retreatants, you do find yourself thinking a lot about the life you have as you hear of the lives of others.

    This retreat wasn’t a silent one – it consisted of mostly imaginative Ignation exercises and group sharing in the morning, siesta/sun/snooze in the afternoon heat and then a Jesuit examine style of prayer in the evening before mass. Quieter in the mornings. Chatter later in the day. It was just what I needed and I’m very grateful to those who make this kind of thing happen. The theme, by the way, was Mentoring.

    No doubt I’ll have lots of emails and messages to deal with when I get back into the office this afternoon.

    I’ve just checked the cathedral website to realise that this Sunday is one of those bumper ones which make life around here so wonderful. It is the last blast of the West End Festival this week and so we’ve a special Choral Service in the morning (Darke in E) and then the extraordinary spectacle of an Orchestral Choral Evensong in the evening.

    Yes, you heard that right – Orchestral Choral Evensong. A very big choir and an orchestra and music that you know and love:

    Orchestral Choral Evensong
    sung by the Cathedral Choir and St Mary’s Festival Chorus,
    accompanied by St Mary’s Festival Orchestra
    Introit: I was glad – Parry
    Responses: Rose
    Psalm: The Lord is my shepherd – Howard Goodall
    Canticles: Stanford in A
    Anthem: Greater Love – Ireland

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2 responses to “Sermon on 10 August 2003”

  1. Avatar
    Anonymous

    Re: Sermon on 10 August 2003
    Hi Kelvin – like the blog. Are you going to be posting all your sermons to the blog or just selected o­nes? Lots of people post them in advance – there are a couple of sites that i read every week before writing my sermon, but I have not heard of anyone else posting them for comments after they have been preached. I'm surprised that members of your congregation have not taken the chance to comment o­n this o­ne of yours – it is worthy of comment! Did anyone object to it?

    SIMON

    Reply
  2. Avatar
    Anonymous

    Re: Sermon on 10 August 2003
    Simon – thanks for the comment – the first o­ne o­ne to be made. You should try this blogging yourself, you would like it. You always used to keep a journal, I seem to remember. I think that I will probably be posting most sermons. There are just a few occasions in the year when I do something else rather than preach in a straightforward way (eg singing and then commenting o­n the song).  It will be interesting to see whether people do take advantage of the chance to comment. No-one objected to it o­n Sunday, and quite a few made encouraging comments. It feels good to be in a church where I can preach that kind of sermon. I could not do so everywhere, as you yourself know well!

    Reply

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