From your Pastor and Teacher, Sharon~

"We may ignore, but we can nowhere evade, the presence of God.
The world is crowded with God.
God walks everywhere incognito.
And the incognito is not always hard to penetrate.
The real labour is to remember, to attend.
In fact, to come awake.
Still more, to remain awake."

— C.S. Lewis, Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer

The real joy of travel is to return home and bring others along through the sharing of stories, photos, and experiences.  This I learned the first time I traveled to Ireland several years ago for a silent retreat.  Ironically, coming back and talking about the silence with you, and then providing similar silent retreat experiences for the congregation, has, since that time, inspired many within RUCC to actually seek silence to strengthen their own spiritual journeys.  

Another area where this exchange has occurred here at RUCC is with Celtic Spirituality.  First there were the annual Celtic Sundays.  These were followed by additional studies on Celtic Christianity.  Then we all experienced a fantastic sabbatical two years ago, with a special focus on all-things-Celtic!  Most recently, during this past summer, several RUCC members and friends traveled to England and Scotland on a Celtic pilgrimage.  Billed as the “Thin Places Pilgrimage” the purpose of this trip was twofold: 1) to experience firsthand some of the sacred places of early non-Roman Christianity, and 2) to bring those experiences back to the whole congregation.  And we can wait no longer!

On Sunday, September 5th, I’ll offer in the meditation a playful way of utilizing Celtic Christian Spirituality to address some of the pressing ecological concerns of our generation.  Sunday, September 12th, we will all experience a special Communion Service from the Celtic Christian community on the Isle of Iona—a tiny piece of real estate off the northwest coast of Scotland that is home to the oldest existing example of non-Roman theology and worship.  Sunday, September 19th, will be a real treat, as the “pilgrims” who traveled this summer will share their experiences of the Divine and thereby invite each of you to notice the “thin places” in your life where God is incognito, places where your world is crowded with God.  This month of worship experiences ends—on Sunday, September 26th—with a very special service of healing, adapted from the Iona Community’s rich worship life.  We will be invited to be both healer and healed, as we seek God’s healing energy for ourselves, for our relationships, for our loved ones, for our community, for our nation, and for our world.  (As an aside, when Leif, Taylor, and I were sitting in the healing service in the Abbey Chapel on Iona one evening, we simply looked at each other, smiled, and, as if with one voice, agreed that this service would be a natural liturgical extension of our weekly sharing of Joys and Concerns.)  We truly hope that you will also find it inspiring and helpful for your own spiritual journey!

Meantime, please know that my door is always open—to talk about how this summer was for you, to share about “thin places,” to speak of things sacred and silly and all points in between.

Blessings and much love,