Churches and services in England at Christmas --- 2013

Dear family and friends,

This blog entry features photos from churches or church-related events which I have visited or taken part in here in England with my friend Debbie, and once also with Debbie's husband and my friend Tim, from Sunday to Sunday, December 15th to the 22nd, 2013, although I am going to work backwards chronologically.  Debbie gave me permission to share some of her photos too, and I've given her credit below for the ones which are hers.

The picture above is of Canterbury Cathedral, where Deb, Tim, and I attended the 11:00 Sung Eucharist service this past Sunday, the 22nd. Directly below is a picture of Deb and Tim outside the cathedral, and a shot that did not come out very well of part of the nativity scene.  I was moved by the service, including the sermon, the chorale music, and especially the Eucharist. The one surprising event was at the end, when the priest very slightly, and without any real damage, singed the hairs on his forehead, when he lent down to talk to the children after he had lit the fourth Advent candle.  He made light of it (pun intended!), but it was a scary moment because we could not quite tell what was happening.

Last Thursday, the 19th, Deb and I were in London for the afternoon to meet up with and have lunch with a friend of mine from my theological network, which we very much enjoyed.  Deb and I also attended the 5:00 PM Evensong Service at Westminster Abbey, and below is a photo she took.  We were not allowed to take pictures inside, but the abbey was stately and beautiful, and we loved the service, for which a chorus of young boys and a few men sang.

Next is a picture Debbie took of Bath Abbey, taken from the Roman Baths on Monday, the 16th.  We did not tour the abbey, but I liked this photo.

And below are three photos from the two events Debbie and I attended in Exeter beginning late in the afternoon on Sunday, the 15th, my last Sunday in Exeter.  The first two are from the Exeter Nativity Processional, which began down the main street of the city (called the High Street), and ended inside the Cathedral.  I took the photo of Mary, Joseph, and the donkey, with city folks following in procession, and Deb took the photo of one of the two llamas, which were dressed to look like camels.  This photo was taken inside the Cathedral.  The third and last photo is of two Christingles, which Deb and I brought home from the service that we went on to attend that same evening, at the United Reformed Church I attended while I was in Exeter.  We loved that service, which was filled with light and warmth.

I wish you all a blessed and happy Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.  May the true Light of the World, which came into the world as a tiny baby, shine on us and on all people.

Love to all,
Jane

Three months in Exeter come to a close

Today, Friday, December 13, is the end of my three-month residency at the University of Exeter.  I arrived in the city of Exeter exactly three months ago, on Friday, September 13, after my wonderful friend Debbie so gamely picked me up that morning from Heathrow Airport at a horribly early hour and drove me to Exeter. Debbie stayed for that first weekend to help me get my flat set up, to make sure that I bought real food to eat at the grocery store, and to help me navigate the area.  If Debbie had not done that, I would never be where I am today:  a very happy person, ending an extremely rich time at the University of Exeter and in the city of Exeter.

I also was thrilled that Debbie and her husband Tim came to visit me for a week, and that Debbie came back again with our friend Beth, when Beth was visiting from North Carolina. Debbie, Tim, Beth, and I go back a few decades now (not to admit our ages), and it was wonderful for us to see each other.

Debbie is arriving tomorrow to spend a couple of days with me and help me pack up, and we are going to do some final site-seeing, including taking a quick trip by train to Bath. Then on Tuesday we will fill up her car with my stuff and head to Kent, where I will spend Christmas with Debbie and Tim, something I can hardly wait to do.

The photo above shows the Amory Building at the University of Exeter.  This building houses several departments, including the Theology Department, and so I spent quite a bit of time there, although many of the lectures and classes I sat in on were held in other buildings. There was no way for me to capture this on my camera, but the university is built on a very steep hill.  Many of the buildings are built into the hill, so you can enter on the ground floor in the front, and, in the case of Amory, walk out the back door on the fourth floor (using American floor numbering), or, in the case of another building I was in, walk out the back door on the seventh floor!   I will not miss all the hills and steps, but I sure got a lot of exercise, and the Kingswood hill and hills at Putnam Park will seem like nothing to me when I get back home!

Today I assisted Morwenna with the three final seminars for her first year undergraduate Patristics course.  We didn't end until 5:00 PM, so we went up to the very end of the term.  I have deeply appreciated being able to participate with Morwenna and her students, and I am grateful to have been given so many opportunities to learn about teaching theology.

I said good-bye all week to folks, including my fellow PhD students, professors, undergrads, staff, people at church, people at my favorite restaurant, etc.  And I walked around on a few different days just to say good-bye to places or buildings where I've been.  So, it's all wrapped up now, and I can thank God, as well as all of you who have journeyed with me as my friends, for all that has transpired.

Thank you for your friendship, interest, and support.  I wish you a blessed rest of Advent and Christmas season.  And I am posting below my two favorite photos from the time I was here.

Blessings to all,
Exeter Jane

Tiny creches or nativity scenes on my kitchen mantel in Exeter

Dear family and friends,

The purpose of this blog entry is to share three photos with you. The first one is above, and the other two are at the bottom of this posting.

I wanted to do a few religious decorations for Advent and Christmas, but I can't take things home.  A few weeks ago, I bought six African candles from the Fair Trade booth at the Exeter Cathedral (the booth at which I was working, as a visitor!).  Then I mentioned to my landlady, who is a wonderful person and friend, that I wanted to put something religious on the mantel in the kitchen, in addition to the candles.  She scrummaged around in her Christmas boxes until she found the box which contained her collection of tiny nativity or creche scenes, which she has collected from Oxfam stores and various places. They are from different cultures, and they portray the holy family in different ways, and they are very colorful as well as spiritually inspiring.  So I arranged my mantel over the kitchen table with the creches she let me borrow, and my six African candles.  I am not going to light the candles, as I am going to take them to Deb and Tim's house for Christmas.  So I am "double dipping" on the candles!

Some of you will know I also like penguins, so I begged my landlady to lend me two penguins and a huge pine cone, which I saw as she was looking for the creche sets.   You can see these on the kitchen table.  Of course, I didn't have to beg, as she was very gracious in lending these to me.

Do not be deceived by the bare kitchen table. This is where I work, because it's the only place in the "flat" with internet access, and the table is always full of my research books and papers.  But I cleaned it up so that I could take these photos for you.

Advent blessings to all,
Exeter Jane