Newsfeed archive 2021-22
Grace Barbecue / Saturday 9th July
Grace BBQ 2022. Please bring something to drink and whatever you would like to cook on the coals. Everyone welcome.
Wolf Fields Labyrinth launch / Saturday 18th June
The Wolf Fields labyrinth will be officially opened on Saturday 18th June as part of the Art Day at Wolf Fields Nature Reserve. See the flyer above for the timing and the other things that are happening. All are welcome.
After the end of the public open day, there will be a barbecue from 5.30pm for members of Grace, The Table and Southall Outside Church, and of course we will walk the labyrinth. It will be great to see you - please bring your own food to put on the barbecue, and something to drink.
Prospect Wood / Saturday 11th June
The next Grace is a gathering in Prospect Wood, a woodland in West Sussex. We will gather from lunchtime through to the evening. It will be a case of bring your own lunch and we’ll provide food in the evening round the fire. But we need to know numbers ahead of time to organise lifts and food. So please could you reply a.s.a.p. if you plan to come and also say if you are able to drive. Details will be sent to those who sign up.
Bog standard human goodness / Saturday 14th May
Join us at Grace for a service with 6 stations to pause and reflect and pray.
It’s the last Grace before Pentecost. Rowan Williams describes life in the Spirit as "bog standard human goodness"". It seems like a good way to bring together the threads we have explored through Lent on 'being disciples’. You don’t need to have been part of that to join or for it to make sense.
There will be a cafe afterwards.
Hope to see you there!
Being Disciples Liturgies
The collected Being Disciples liturgies are now in the archive here:
- Being Disciples Liturgy 1: Being disciples
- Being Disciples Liturgy 2: Faith, hope, love
- Being Disciples Liturgy 3: Forgiveness
- Being Disciples Liturgy 4: Holiness
- Being Disciples Liturgy 5: A confession in a time of overwhelm
- Being Disciples Liturgy 6: Life in the Spirit
Uncommon ground / Saturday 9th April
How do we create community while celebrating our differences? How do we affirm and love others when we don't like some of the things they do? How do communities of difference work in the world?
Our Lent series of events are based on the book 'Being Disciples' by Rowan Williams. This service is inspired by chapter 5 'Faith in society' - it would be great if you read it before the service, but we have taken a bit of a tangent so it's OK if you haven't! The article is available online here.
Wolf Fields labyrinth - finishing the outlines
On Saturday 26th March we finished the outlines of the Wolf Fields labyrinth. Now it remains to add the woodchip path surface, and tidy up the heights of the stakes.
The opening celebration is set for 18th June: activities 11-4pm with barbecue afterwards.
More photos here on Flickr.
Wolf Fields labyrinth - creating the outlines
On Saturday 12th March we had a very productive afternoon at Wolf Fields, creating the final outlines of the labyrinth by hammering in wooden stakes along the lines we had painted in November. By the end of the afternoon we had done about 2/3rds of the lines - the limiting factors were the number of hammers, and our hands and arms, tired by the constant hammering.
It will take another afternoon to put in the rest of the stakes, and then we will even up the heights, prior to adding the woodchip path surface.
More photos here on Flickr.
Lent programme
Throughout Lent we will be reading and reflecting on the book ‘Being Disciples’ by Rowan Williams. At Grace services, Gracelets and meals together, we will focus on chapters from the book as detailed below.
We start with a working afternoon on 12th March at Wolf Fields in Southall where we hope to make some real headway with the labyrinth we have been constructing there. We hope to then revisit Wolf Fields on Easter Day to walk the finished labyrinth.
- 12th March - Wolf Fields Southall - Labyrinth working party
- 12th March - Grace at St. Mary's - Chapter 1 Being Disciples
- 23rd March - Lent Meal 1 - Chapter 2 Faith, hope and love
- 29th March - Gracelet (online) - Chapter 3 Forgiveness
- 4th April - Lent Meal 2 - Chapter 4 Holiness
- 9th April - Grace at St. Mary's - Chapter 5 Faith In Society
- 17th April - Easter Day - Easter morning celebration at Wolf Fields Southall
- 27th April - Gracelet (online) - Chapter 6 Life in the Spirit
We’d love you to join us on some or all of these dates so:
- Buy the book
- Get the dates in the diary
We’ll send out further details of times and venues before each activity.
Being disciples / Saturday 12th March
Lent has often been a season in the church where discipleship is explored. We’re following suit and will be reading Rowan Williams' (short) book Being Disciples. This month's Grace is the first dive into that theme. If you have a chance to read the first chapter that would be great but please come regardless. Hope to see you there Saturday 12th March 8pm at St Mary’s Church, Ealing.
Together / Saturday 12th February
After two years which have kept us apart in many ways, we are thinking about what it means to be together - together with God, and with one another as a community. What can we do together that we can't do apart?
The service will be in the Polygon in cafe style.
Labyrinth / Saturday 8th January
Another movie of the labyrinth, shot on Mike Rose's mysterious new camera - we were all wondering what it was doing.
Labyrinth / Saturday 8th January
A couple of movies of the labyrinth. The church heating was not on so we kept our coats and hats on! Our feet were cold after walking the labyrinth in socks. The cafe in the Polygon was thankfully nice and warm afterwards.
Labyrinth / Saturday 8th January
We start the new year walking the labyrinth – a prayerful space where we can reflect on the past, connect with God and look forward to the opportunities and challenges of the year ahead.
There will be a café afterwards with space to catch up and relax.
Nine archive page
The Nine archive page is here. Our first hybrid service!
The slideshow for the service (pdf version) is here. It contains most of the words and images.
The Apple Music link for the playlist is here.
The Spotify link for the playlist is here.
Nine / Saturday 11th December
We are going traditional and are planning on doing our version of 9 readings and tunes.
Essentially 9 people or groups have a reading to ‘do something with’ whether this be through art, a discussion, a presentation of some ideas, an activity to complete, a sermon (unlikely) - anything goes, together with a song that you think adds something or complements the reading.
We are hoping for a hybrid event this year so that some of our Grace diaspora will be able to join us and (hopefully) contribute from wherever and whenever they may be.
Cafe afterwards with mulled wine and mince pies.
Wolf Fields labyrinth - marking out
In May and July we joined people from St. John's Southall and A Rocha to clear the ground for the labyrinth. In October we laid a groundsheet over the cleared area. On 18th November we marked out the labyrinth pattern on the groundsheet.
The initial setting out lines were in chalk, then we drew the pattern with white paint to survive the weather until the final materials arrive. We used black paint to correct the white paint, painting out unwanted parts of the lines and mistakes.
For the final construction we propose to use circular timber stakes hammered in along the lines, the tops left about 50mm above surface to retain wood chip path filling. The filled-in white shapes will be cut out for planting.
There are more photos here on Flickr.
Planetary Mess photos and archive
Planetary Mess in the archive here.
Photos are being added here.
Planetary Mess / Saturday 13th November
Our November Grace falls the day after COP26 ends. We will share bread and wine using the planetary mass liturgy which still feels so poignant. There will be space for prayer, lament and reflection. We’d love to see you there. A simple cafe will follow.
Archive now updated for 2021
The services for 2021 to date (October) have been added to the archive - see the 2020-21 and 2021-22 sections here. The 2019-2020 services have also had much material added, eg Advent, Labyrinth, Space, so dig around.
Also the March 1999 lent eucharist - this was probably a Gracelet, but a significant one.
Embers / Saturday 9th October
A reflective service inspired by Jon Hopkins' track 'Sit around the fire'.
It feels like the past two years have left many things burned out and reduced to ashes, but among the ashes may be embers that can be nursed into flame again.
What for you feels like it has turned to ashes? Is there an ember at the core of you that you would like to fan into flame? What are the embers of Grace that we would like to fan into flame? What would you like to leave as ashes?
Join us at 8pm in real life at St Mary's Ealing.
Café afterwards, possibly with burnt offerings.
Gracelet / Autumn dates
Gracelet is a simple service on Zoom, with a regular liturgy of quiet reflection and community prayer. We found it valuable during lockdown so we are continuing it even though the main services are back in the church.
Gracelet is in the fourth week of every month, alternately Tuesday or Wednesday. A flyer is above, and the dropdown menu at the top of the page has the dates also. 8pm unless otherwise noted. The Zoom link will be sent out in the Whatsapp group or the email list, or email freshinfo@freshworship.org nearer the time.
Unlocked / Saturday 11th September
At the start of a ’new year’ for Grace, we return home to St Mary’s church after a long absence.
However, we are going to meet earlier than usual, 6.30pm outside Ealing police station, 67-69 Uxbridge Road W5 to spend time at a photo exhibition. We will walk then down to St Mary’s where we will gather from 7.30pm.