Stations of the Cross

In the new Cathedral of Coventry in the Unity Chapel there were rough wooden posts.  On each of them was a paper maché character.  These represented the stations of the Cross.  They were not your traditional depiction and I found them quite interesting.

Not being familiar enough with the stations to be able to do them without the guide I still appreciated being able to stand in front of each of them and contemplate the meaning and significance of each one of the stations. 

Jesus is condemned by Pilate in the traditional station.  This one is simply titled CONDEMNED.  When have you felt condemned or conversely when have you condemned someone?

Traditionally the second station is Jesus "accepts" his cross or as this station says BURDEN.  Take time to consider the burdens that we carry, why we carry them and how we can lighten our load

In the traditional third station Jesus falls for the first time. This is simply titled FALLEN. What has you stumbling and falling?

 

Traditional Stations mark the  fourth as Jesus meets his afflicted mother.  This is titled ABANDONED.  Have you felt abandoned? Have you abandoned someone or thing? How did it make you feel?

At the fifth station Simon is compelled to help carry the cross.  Here the title is simply SUPPORTED.  Think of a time when you have been supported and conversely when you were the one that supported.

Traditionally the sixth station is Veronica offering her veil to Jesus. Seeing Jesus in distress she offers a cloth for him to wipe his face.  Here we simply have SEEN.  Think of a time when you felt that you were in the presence of the divine and felt seen by God

The traditional seventh station Jesus falls for the second time.  Simply titled FALLEN.  When have you fallen again and reopened wounds or caused fresh wounds and bruises

At the eighth station Jesus speaks to the women.  This one is titled EMPATHISED.  When have you felt Jesus speaking to you.

At the nineth station Jesus falls for the third time.  FALLEN here is quite dramatic and our image is barely holding on.  When have you been so filled with despair and how have you hung on?

The tenth station Jesus is stripped of his garments.  This is titled SHAMED. Here our vulnerabilities are exposed

The traditional eleventh station Jesus is nailed to the cross.  NAILED is the title of this piece.  

The twelfth station, Jesus dies upon the cross.  

KILLED 

At the thirteenth station, Jesus is taken down from the cross.  RELEASED is the title of this next piece.  When have you felt free from obligations, duty, burden?

At the fourteenth station, Jesus is placed in the Sepulcher.  This stop is entitled TRANSFORMING.  How have you been changed and transformed by your experiences?

Almighty God, we pray you graciously to behold this your family, for whom our Lord Jesus Christ was willing to be betrayed, and given into the hands of sinners, and to suffer death upon the cross; who now lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.  (Good Friday Collect, Anglican Church of Canada)

A Pilgrimage to Canterbury

This candle burns perpetually as a reminder of prisoners of conscience and all those who suffer unjustly for their beliefs and actions.  "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good people do nothing."

My DH asked at dinner "what are you going to write tonight?". I told him I had no idea but I hoped inspiration would hit.  It is not for a lack of it.  Today we made our way to the bus station and hopped the local stagecoach to Canterbury.  The bus we hopped was not direct but it sure was fun to drive through all the little villages and see the countryside.  Since the bus had the top level we ascended so we could see the scenery better.

It was mostly green fields dotted with livestock.  Baby lambs were very much in evidence.  At the restaurant this evening lamb was on the menu...and I just could not even stomach the thought!  

The first thing I see is this little lamb statue

But I digress.  Canterbury is a bustling city and once we reached our destination we hopped off and began to wander around.  We knew we would have no problem locating the Cathedral since it towered over the city quite spectacularly.  

We arrived at the visitor centre to pay the entrance fee.  Today was a discount day because we could not go into the nave of the church since there were graduation ceremonies taking place in there.  We could visit the crypt and chapels and some of the garden.

As we wandered around the parts where we were allowed and read interesting bits of history about the Cathedral and some of the clergy my DH pondered that neither of us likely thought we would ever be here to walk through this building, see the majestic beauty of it and literally walk the stairs that so many did over such a long period of history.  I teased my DH about checking out our new house on the grounds and then I said to him this is far too grand I am a mere peasant from the colonies!  Never mind they have never had a female clergy.  Better start them gently--that won't be me!!

While we had a few good laughs as we wandered about there were times of reflection and prayer.  How could there not be in such a place?

 

A section of the cloister.  

The ceiling of the cloister halls contain bosses which represent an array of late medieval English heraldry

Some of the arches of the cloister have rich coloured glass.  From the arches you look out on the graves of some of the archbishops and the floors of the cloister halls are all stones engraved with the names of who was buried there.

One of the many chapels

As you stand to one side of the church and look up!  

The chapel of Saints and Martyrs of our own time.  

Notice the sculpture off to the side and see the picture below for a closer look

The inscription for this chapel says

"In this chapel we thank God for the sacrifice of martyrdom, whereby truth is upheld and God's providence enriched.  We pray we may be worthy of their sacrifice."

Looking back toward the Nave.  The candle burning here is where the shrine of Thomas Beckett was before it was forcibly removed.  He was killed by the King's guards because, despite their friendship,  he did not side with the king but rather the church.  

Trinity Chapel

Ruins of the infirmary that was destroyed after an earthquake

This seemed to be the lodgings...

Since this was the Dean's door!

Some of the passages and their various door ways

Just a random shot of the grounds

A garden area on the grounds

Another section of this massive structure.

People were bustling about everywhere.  Some rushing others strolling and pausing.  Some kneeling in prayer.  Whatever brought each person to this building today there is no doubt we were all seekers and pilgrims.  

Notice how worn the step are in places from

 so many years of use.

“Faith is a belief in things that your senses have not experienced and your mind does not understand, but you have touched them in other ways and have accepted them. It is easy for one to speak of faith; it is another thing to live it.”
— Peace Pilgrim

Dover-a stroll through history

 

The Gatehouse, where soldiers kept watch 

and stopped anyone not a soldier from getting closer to the castle, how you ask...well an arrow to the shoulder apparently did the trick

A slow start on a foggy day and I have decided that visiting castles is just not happening for me.  A few years ago we were in Scotland and I hiked the five kilometres to the old castle ruins only to arrive and discover it was closed.  Today my DH and I decided on a later start to the day.  We hopped a bus to Dover, and began the walk up the hill to Dover Castle.  We are nearly there when we are stopped at a gate and told "the castle is closed today and tomorrow, come back on Wednesday.  That is all fine and good but we will be on the move again and going back won't be an option.  So we did not get to explore the castle and caves.  Down the hill we go again.  On the trek down we met a local who was happy to chat and suggest what we should see.  

The outside walls that we could see from our walk

Churches are not open today either ( only Sunday and Wednesday) so we only saw St. Mary from the outside. And no luck with graveyards or ancestoral information either.  I will need to head towards Devon.  My DH suggested I plan it after all when might I have the chance again.  Well it is a four hour train ride and it will have to keep for my next trip!

The church of St. Mary the Virgin. One of Dover's important churches for over 400 years.

So we went to the museum for a look around.  The bronze aged boat was fascinating, it was excavated in Dover.  The information about smuggling along the coastline was quite entertaining.

The boat dates back to before the time of Moses and King Tut

There was a special exhibition that was just set up, a tribute to Dunkirk.

A Bomb.  

The sign says to not climb on it!  I didn't need to be told twice

Knitted and crocheted poppies.  

These poppies were the result of an appeal to local crafters in 2017 so that this rug of poppies could be made as a tribute

And then we hired a taxi to take us to the White Cliffs so we could at least walk some of the trail.  

Not the panoramic shot but breathtaking none the less

Did I tell you it is foggy today??  The photo opportunities were not so good and as I write the blog I am listening to the fog horn.  A sound I quite like listening to, except it means poor visibility for those on the water.

A bus ride back to Folkestone and a walk along The Leas was a lovely ending to our excursion today.  

 

Folkestone Beach just below our hotel.  

I saw someone coming out of the cold water!!!

Hallowed be thy name

As my DH and I wandered through the ruins of Coventry Cathedral we noticed a number of plaques survived and it would seem a few were added at various places throughout the ruins.  I went to find what I figured would be the beginning of the Lord's Prayer.  I thought that it would be a prayer walk of some sort using the familiar words.  Much to my surprise it was a focus for prayer but using only one line from the prayer.  Six stones in total on the walls, relatively high up and were not necessarily seen at first glance.  But each one a unique call to prayer.

The Lord's Prayer was offered in the gospels by Jesus when he received the request to "teach us to pray."  The prayer began with a line of intimacy followed by an acknowledgment of the sacred reverence of calling upon God.  I sometimes get asked why I use different forms of the prayer.  The answer is simple I don't like it to be done by rote so that we do not have to stop and think about the words or what they mean.  The prayer holds powerful meaning.  It begins with intimacy, has reverence for the creator and hope for the coming of the kingdom, a call to provide for our needs, forgiveness given and received, a call to help us avoid the things that draw us from God's presence.

Here, however, we are going to hallow God's name as we take a short walk around the ruins and call to the fore where we will praise God.

Our focus at the first stop is the home.

The second focus is the Arts and creating

 The third focus is on education and a growing mind

The fourth is a focus to pray for government members and leaders

Fifth is the suffering, personal or corporate

At the Sixth spot the focus was on commerce

In what seems like the strangest of places to revere God's Holy name, a bombed out church, is the reminder that this too is a sacred space.  It reminds us of what was lost but more importantly that the building, as important as it was, did not end our relationship with the holy.  Here we are reminded that God can be praised, prayers can be raised in all places.

A stone that survived in the tower wall.  Hallowed is the one that reminds us of the importance of finding a place of peace.

Reconcilation

And finally we finish at the sculpture of reconcilation.  Placed here near the walk to Hallow God's name as a reminder that in the face of destruction human dignity and love will triumph over disaster and bring nations together in respect and peace.

May we Hallow God's holy name and presence.