As we approach the third anniversary of our youth church, we are realising increasingly that there is a connection between ritual and creativity. It’s said that Beethoven used to start his day by counting out exactly 60 coffee beans, which he would then grind into the perfect cup of coffee before sitting down to compose. Ernest Hemingway would get up at dawn, always, irrespective of how late he had been out the night before. Bejamin Franklin believed strongly in what he referred to as morning ‘air baths’ – sitting next to an open window for several hours, no matter the weather.
The quirky things that people do to enrich their lives are pretty interesting. Rituals seem to have the capacity to lay a firm foundation in people’s lives around which the air flow of life can move more freely. The words of Orson Welles in the title of this piece perhaps point to the truth that these geniuses are tapping into. In any case, we are discovering that the stability of a first Wednesday of the month Eucharist service provides for us a launch pad into all kinds of creative expressions of worship as we go through each month.
The third Wednesday of each month gives us an opportunity to hear creative testimony of the power of God at work in our lives, to join together creatively in prayer and to hear Biblical truths creatively expounded through the homily. Our small groups, which meet on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of each month have allowed us to complete the Archbishop of York’s young leader’s award this term, an award scheme which requires immense creativity in engaging in all kinds of community service.
Similarly, we are very much looking forward to the ‘Hope explored’ course being delivered through our small groups in the run up to Christmas. All parents and grandparents will be invited to this course, and we are hopeful that this will build on the success of our ‘safer falling for older adults’ judo course already delivered to grandparents this term through our judo club.
Through it all, it is the Eucharist that grounds us as we encounter Jesus in this profoundly supernatural act of worship. All pupils and their families are warmly invited to attend any of our services or meetings.
“For God is not a God of disorder but of peace—as in all the congregations of the Lord’s people.”
1 Corinthians 14:33
Mr Pountain
Head of Religious Education / Director of Spirituality