London, 2021
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Our Lady Peace - Life.
Sunday, 30 May 2021
Living God's Future Now - w/c 30 May 2021
'Living God’s Future Now’ is our mini online festival of theology, ideas and practice.
We’ve developed this in response to the pandemic and our changing world. The church is changing too, and - as we improvise and experiment - we can learn and support each other.
This is 'Living God’s Future Now’ - talks, workshops and discussion - hosted by HeartEdge. Created to equip, encourage and energise churches - from leaders to volunteers and enquirers - at the heart and on the edge.
The focal event in ‘Living God’s Future Now’ is a monthly conversation where Sam Wells explores what it means to improvise on God’s kingdom with a leading theologian or practitioner.
The online programme includes:
- Regular weekly workshops: Biblical Studies (Mondays fortnightly), Sermon Preparation (Tuesdays) and Community of Practitioners (Wednesdays)
- One-off workshops on topics relevant to lockdown such as ‘Growing online communities’ and ‘Grief, Loss & Remembering’
- Monthly HeartEdge dialogue featuring Sam Wells in conversation with a noted theologian or practitioner
Find earlier Living God’s Future Now sessions at https://www.facebook.com/pg/theHeartEdge/videos/?ref=page_internal.
Regular – Weekly or Fortnightly
Tuesdays: Sermon Preparation Workshop, 16:30 (GMT), livestreamed at https://www.facebook.com/theHeartEdge/. Please note there will be no Sermon Preparation workshop on Tuesday 6 April.
Wednesdays: Community of Practitioners workshop, 16:30 (GMT), Zoom meeting. Email jonathan.evens@smitf.org to register.
Fortnightly on Mondays: Biblical Studies class, 19:30-21:00 (GMT), Zoom meeting. Register in advance: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMrcOmgrTgsHt2ceY7LepLhQYqQxS1G1ix9 2021 dates - Gospels & Acts:
• 7 Jun: Lecture 11 Luke-Acts
• 14 Jun: Lecture 12 Luke-Acts
Sunday
Inspired to Follow: Sunday 30 May, 14:00 (GMT), zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/inspired-to-follow-art-and-the-bible-story-tickets-148401610211. ‘Inspired to Follow: Art and the Bible Story’ helps people explore the Christian faith, using paintings and Biblical story as the starting points. The course uses fine art paintings in the National Gallery’s collection as a springboard for exploring questions of faith. Session 20: Saint Peter. Text: Acts 10:30-48. Image: ‘Christ appearing to Saint Peter on the Appian Way (Domine, Quo Vadis?)’, Annibale Carracci, 1601-2, NG9.
Theology Group: Sunday, 30 May 2021, 19:00 – 20:00 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/theology-group-tickets-155514922319. The St Martin-in-the-Fields and HeartEdge Theology Group provides a monthly opportunity to reflect theologically on issues of today and questions of forever with Sam Wells. Each month Sam responds to questions from a member of the congregation of St Martin-in-the-Fields who also chairs the session and encourages your comments and questions.
Tuesday
Pilgrimage post-Pandemic: Tuesday 1 June, 19:00 BST, zoom. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/pilgrimage-post-pandemic-tickets-154148118171. How is Pilgrimage changed by pandemic? In this workshop we explore this question with those who organise Pilgrimages. How Pilgrimage organizers and hosts are building better, safe experiences for the present and future. How do virtual Pilgrimages work in practice? What will they feature outside of lockdown? Revd Dr Donald Fishburne regularly leads groups on faith pilgrimages and helps other Pilgrimage hosts plan and lead fruitful group travel and spiritual experiences, through www.EO.Travel/Episcopal. Rev. Heather Prince Doss is an owner of Progressive Pilgrimage and regularly leads spiritually-minded trips to the Holy Land, Ireland, Scotland, and Europe. Eugene Ling organises the annual Pilgrimage to Canterbury for The Connection at St Martin-in-the-Fields. Long-time Episcopal priest Donald Fishburne and his wife Sarah enjoy helping new Pilgrimage hosts design their group experience as part of the faith journeys of Christians and seekers. They also recruit hosts and speakers on a variety of Pilgrimages. Donald leads online spirituality small groups, such as “Our Lenten Journey through the Wilderness toward Resurrection,” which features virtual pilgrimage elements. Rev. Heather Prince Doss is the owner of Progressive Pilgrimage and pastor of Eliot Presbyterian Church, a multicultural congregation in Lowell, Massachusetts, USA. As a child of military parents, she has been traveling since birth and loves to help people experience God and deepen their faith by encountering new places, peoples, and cultures through travel. Eugene Ling has been the Annual Pilgrimage Coordinator for the Connection at St Martin’s since 2014 and is also a member of St Martin-in-the-Fields. This 4-day, 74 miles pilgrimage, from St. Martin’s to Canterbury Cathedral, normally involves about 120 pilgrims and volunteers each year. In 2020 it was replaced by a virtual Pilgrimage which involved 44 virtual pilgrims all over the world, walking for 2,833 miles. This Annual Pilgrimage is a fundraising event for the Connection at St Martin’s to support homeless people around London.
Livestream
Tuesday 1 June 16:30 -17:30 (BST)
Live streamed on the HeartEdge Facebook page here.
A live preaching workshop focusing on the forthcoming Sunday's lectionary readings in the light of current events and sharing of thoughts on approaches to the passages.
Thursday
Poetry, Refuge, Exile: Voices of Migration - Thursday 3 June, 16:30-18:00 (BST), zoom. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/poetry-refuge-exile-voices-of-migration-tickets-153707195359. This is the third of a 4-part series on the themes of Migration, Theology and Community. Four poets – Amir Darwish, Jennifer Langer, Alison Phipps, Tawona Sitholé – and Lia Shimada (chair) will explore how poetry emerges from, and gives voice to, diverse experiences of exile, flight, abuse, hope, refuge and belonging. They will be joined by representatives from the Helen Bamber Foundation – a pioneering human rights charity supporting refugees and asylum seekers who are the survivors of extreme human cruelty. Mapping Faith: Theologies of Migration and Community (published by Jessica Kingsley, 2020) brings together over 35 writers, poets, artists and practitioners, from primarily Jewish, Muslim and Christian backgrounds. Royalties from book sales will be donated to the Helen Bamber Foundation, with whom HeartEdge has a longstanding relationship. This event is co-sponsored by the Susanna Wesley Foundation, which facilitated the production of the book. Alison Phipps holds the UNESCO Chair in Refugee Integration through Languages and the Arts at the University of Glasgow, where she is also Professor of Languages and Intercultural Studies, and Co-Convenor of the Glasgow Refugee, Asylum and Migration Network. Tawona Sitholé is Artist in Residence of the UNESCO Chair for Refugee Integration through Languages and the Arts at the University of Glasgow. He co-founded Seeds for Thought, an arts organization based in Glasgow. Amir Darwish is a poet and writer of Kurdish origin, whose work has been widely translated. Born in Aleppo, he came to Britain as an asylum seeker in 2003. Amir holds advanced degrees in History, International Relations, and Creative and Life Writing. He is currently working on his doctorate. Jennifer Langer is a poet and the founding director of Exiled Writers Ink. She has edited four anthologies of exiled literature and is a Research Associate at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. Lia Shimada is a geographer and theologian based at the University of Roehampton, where she serves as Senior Researcher for the Susanna Wesley Foundation and Associate Chaplain of Whitelands College. She is the editor of Mapping Faith: Theologies of Migration and Community (Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2020).
Friday
Jesus Is Just Alright: What Pop Songs About Jesus Can Teach Christians Today (SESSION 1: Beer With Jesus) – Friday 4 June, 16:30 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/jesus-is-just-alright-tickets-145857685263. For over fifty years, pop musicians in all genres have explored the meaning and significance of Jesus in their music. The result is a rich collection of songs that consider important spiritual questions like faith, doubt, and prayer in unique and often provocative ways. Through a combination of listening and discussion, this four-part series invites participants to explore a different spiritual topic each week. Join us to listen to great music that asks tough questions about our faith and our lives as Christians. SESSION 1: Beer With Jesus - Cowboy, soldier, friend, mother, gangsta: Jesus has appeared in all these guises – and many more – in pop songs over the past 50 years. By exploring what these different incarnations say about the ways modern Christians have imagined Jesus, this session will challenge us to consider how our own assumptions affect the way we relate to him. Do they help us to follow him – or are they a hindrance? And do we fall into the trap of recreating Jesus in our own image?
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Revolutionary Army of the Infant Jesus - Prayer.
Friday, 28 May 2021
Living God's Future Now - June 2021
'Living God’s Future Now’ is our mini online festival of theology, ideas and practice.
We’ve developed this in response to the pandemic and our changing world. The church is changing too, and - as we improvise and experiment - we can learn and support each other.
This is 'Living God’s Future Now’ - talks, workshops and discussion - hosted by HeartEdge. Created to equip, encourage and energise churches - from leaders to volunteers and enquirers - at the heart and on the edge.
The focal event in ‘Living God’s Future Now’ is a monthly conversation where Sam Wells explores what it means to improvise on God’s kingdom with a leading theologian or practitioner.
The online programme includes:
Regular – Weekly or Fortnightly
Tuesdays: Sermon Preparation Workshop, 16:30 (GMT), livestreamed at https://www.facebook.com/theHeartEdge/. Please note there will be no Sermon Preparation workshop on Tuesday 6 April.
Wednesdays: Community of Practitioners workshop, 16:30 (GMT), Zoom meeting. Email jonathan.evens@smitf.org to register.
Fortnightly on Mondays: Biblical Studies class, 19:30-21:00 (GMT), Zoom meeting. Register in advance: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMrcOmgrTgsHt2ceY7LepLhQYqQxS1G1ix9 2021 dates - Gospels & Acts:
• 7 Jun: Lecture 11 Luke-Acts
• 14 Jun: Lecture 12 Luke-Acts
May
Shut In, Shut Out, Shut Up Season 4: Ableism, Faith & Church – Friday 28 May, 16:30-18:00 BST, Zoom. Register for a Zoom invite at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/shut-in-shut-out-shut-up-ableism-faith-church-tickets-152921752077. Ableism is discrimination and social prejudice against disabled people. Like racism and sexism, it classifies entire groups of people as 'less than'. In this groundbreaking 4th series of Shut In, Shut Out, Shut Up we explore the context, culture and practice of ableism in faith and church. Since 2012 the Living Edge conference has held space for disabled and neurodivergent people to gather, to resource each other and the church. These HeartEdge Shut In Shut Out Shut Up series shares some of this experience, providing new space to ask challenging questions. Come and join the conversation with Fiona MacMillan and Rev Dr Hannah Lewis and Dr Rachel Holdforth (Practice). Fiona MacMillan (she/her) is a disability advocate, practitioner, speaker and writer. Fiona chairs the Disability Advisory Group at St Martin in the Fields and is a trustee of Inclusive Church. She leads the planning team for their annual disability conference, now in its 10th year.
Inspired to Follow: Sunday 30 May, 14:00 (GMT), zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/inspired-to-follow-art-and-the-bible-story-tickets-148401610211. ‘Inspired to Follow: Art and the Bible Story’ helps people explore the Christian faith, using paintings and Biblical story as the starting points. The course uses fine art paintings in the National Gallery’s collection as a springboard for exploring questions of faith. Session 20: Saint Peter. Text: Acts 10:30-48. Image: ‘Christ appearing to Saint Peter on the Appian Way (Domine, Quo Vadis?)’, Annibale Carracci, 1601-2, NG9.
Theology Group: Sunday, 30 May 2021, 19:00 – 20:00 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/theology-group-tickets-155514922319. The St Martin-in-the-Fields and HeartEdge Theology Group provides a monthly opportunity to reflect theologically on issues of today and questions of forever with Sam Wells. Each month Sam responds to questions from a member of the congregation of St Martin-in-the-Fields who also chairs the session and encourages your comments and questions.
June
Pilgrimage post-Pandemic: Tuesday 1 June, 19:00 BST, zoom. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/pilgrimage-post-pandemic-tickets-154148118171. How is Pilgrimage changed by pandemic? In this workshop we explore this question with those who organise Pilgrimages. How Pilgrimage organizers and hosts are building better, safe experiences for the present and future. How do virtual Pilgrimages work in practice? What will they feature outside of lockdown? Revd Dr Donald Fishburne regularly leads groups on faith pilgrimages and helps other Pilgrimage hosts plan and lead fruitful group travel and spiritual experiences, through www.EO.Travel/Episcopal. Rev. Heather Prince Doss is an owner of Progressive Pilgrimage and regularly leads spiritually-minded trips to the Holy Land, Ireland, Scotland, and Europe. Eugene Ling organises the annual Pilgrimage to Canterbury for The Connection at St Martin-in-the-Fields. Long-time Episcopal priest Donald Fishburne and his wife Sarah enjoy helping new Pilgrimage hosts design their group experience as part of the faith journeys of Christians and seekers. They also recruit hosts and speakers on a variety of Pilgrimages. Donald leads online spirituality small groups, such as “Our Lenten Journey through the Wilderness toward Resurrection,” which features virtual pilgrimage elements. Rev. Heather Prince Doss is the owner of Progressive Pilgrimage and pastor of Eliot Presbyterian Church, a multicultural congregation in Lowell, Massachusetts, USA. As a child of military parents, she has been traveling since birth and loves to help people experience God and deepen their faith by encountering new places, peoples, and cultures through travel. Eugene Ling has been the Annual Pilgrimage Coordinator for the Connection at St Martin’s since 2014 and is also a member of St Martin-in-the-Fields. This 4-day, 74 miles pilgrimage, from St. Martin’s to Canterbury Cathedral, normally involves about 120 pilgrims and volunteers each year. In 2020 it was replaced by a virtual Pilgrimage which involved 44 virtual pilgrims all over the world, walking for 2,833 miles. This Annual Pilgrimage is a fundraising event for the Connection at St Martin’s to support homeless people around London.
Poetry, Refuge, Exile: Voices of Migration - Thursday 3 June, 16:30-18:00 (BST), zoom. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/poetry-refuge-exile-voices-of-migration-tickets-153707195359. This is the third of a 4-part series on the themes of Migration, Theology and Community. Four poets – Amir Darwish, Jennifer Langer, Alison Phipps, Tawona Sitholé – and Lia Shimada (chair) will explore how poetry emerges from, and gives voice to, diverse experiences of exile, flight, abuse, hope, refuge and belonging. They will be joined by representatives from the Helen Bamber Foundation – a pioneering human rights charity supporting refugees and asylum seekers who are the survivors of extreme human cruelty. Mapping Faith: Theologies of Migration and Community (published by Jessica Kingsley, 2020) brings together over 35 writers, poets, artists and practitioners, from primarily Jewish, Muslim and Christian backgrounds. Royalties from book sales will be donated to the Helen Bamber Foundation, with whom HeartEdge has a longstanding relationship. This event is co-sponsored by the Susanna Wesley Foundation, which facilitated the production of the book. Alison Phipps holds the UNESCO Chair in Refugee Integration through Languages and the Arts at the University of Glasgow, where she is also Professor of Languages and Intercultural Studies, and Co-Convenor of the Glasgow Refugee, Asylum and Migration Network. Tawona Sitholé is Artist in Residence of the UNESCO Chair for Refugee Integration through Languages and the Arts at the University of Glasgow. He co-founded Seeds for Thought, an arts organization based in Glasgow. Amir Darwish is a poet and writer of Kurdish origin, whose work has been widely translated. Born in Aleppo, he came to Britain as an asylum seeker in 2003. Amir holds advanced degrees in History, International Relations, and Creative and Life Writing. He is currently working on his doctorate. Jennifer Langer is a poet and the founding director of Exiled Writers Ink. She has edited four anthologies of exiled literature and is a Research Associate at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. Lia Shimada is a geographer and theologian based at the University of Roehampton, where she serves as Senior Researcher for the Susanna Wesley Foundation and Associate Chaplain of Whitelands College. She is the editor of Mapping Faith: Theologies of Migration and Community (Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2020).
Jesus Is Just Alright: What Pop Songs About Jesus Can Teach Christians Today (SESSION 1: Beer With Jesus) – Friday 4 June, 16:30 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/jesus-is-just-alright-tickets-145857685263. For over fifty years, pop musicians in all genres have explored the meaning and significance of Jesus in their music. The result is a rich collection of songs that consider important spiritual questions like faith, doubt, and prayer in unique and often provocative ways. Through a combination of listening and discussion, this four-part series invites participants to explore a different spiritual topic each week. Join us to listen to great music that asks tough questions about our faith and our lives as Christians. SESSION 1: Beer With Jesus - Cowboy, soldier, friend, mother, gangsta: Jesus has appeared in all these guises – and many more – in pop songs over the past 50 years. By exploring what these different incarnations say about the ways modern Christians have imagined Jesus, this session will challenge us to consider how our own assumptions affect the way we relate to him. Do they help us to follow him – or are they a hindrance? And do we fall into the trap of recreating Jesus in our own image?
Inspired to Follow: Sunday 6 June, 14:00 (GMT), zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/inspired-to-follow-art-and-the-bible-story-tickets-148401610211. ‘Inspired to Follow: Art and the Bible Story’ helps people explore the Christian faith, using paintings and Biblical story as the starting points. The course uses fine art paintings in the National Gallery’s collection as a springboard for exploring questions of faith. Session 21: Saint Paul. Text: Acts 9:1-19. Image: ‘The Conversion of Saint Paul’, Karel Dujardin, 1662, NG6296.
God’s Unfailing Word: Sunday 6 June, 18:30 (BST), zoom. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/gods-unfailing-word-tickets-154549695299. A three-part series of conversations on the nature of Christian-Jewish relations in the 21st century. With Rabbi Daniel Epstein (Western Marble Arch Synagogue) and Revd Dr Sam Wells (St Martin-in-the-Fields). Based on the recently (2019) published God’s Unfailing Word (https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2019-11/godsunfailingwordweb.pdf).
Book Launch - A Theology of Disagreement: New Testament Ethics for Ecclesial Conflicts – Tuesday 8 June, 19:00 BST, zoom. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/book-launch-theology-of-disagreement-tickets-154468153405. A Theology of Disagreement examines how New Testament texts inform Christian approaches to disagreement. Even the most casual contemporary observer of Christianity must recognise that the notion of Christian community being identifiable through the mutual love of its members (John 13:35) is difficult to reconcile with the schismatic reality of current ecclesial life. Nonetheless, disagreement remains an ethical subject neglected by theologians. Join author Revd Dr Christopher Landau and his guests, Revd Canon Dr Joanna Collicutt, Professor David Ford, Revd Selina Stone, and Dr Elaine Storkey, to explore the nature of an ethic of disagreement, and its practical implications for the church's public theological witness, as well as its liturgy.
Living God’s Future Now conversation – Lucy Winkett: Thursday 10 June, 6.00 pm, Zoom. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/living-gods-future-now-conversation-lucy-winkett-tickets-154136828403. ‘Living God’s Future Now’ describes a series of online seminars, discussions and presentations hosted by HeartEdge. They are designed to equip, encourage and energise church leaders, laypeople and enquirers alike, in areas such as preaching, growing a church, shifting online, deepening spirituality in a congregation and responding to social need. The focal event in 'Living God's future now' is a monthly conversation in which Sam Wells explores what it means to improvise on God’s kingdom with a leading theologian or practitioner. Earlier conversations have included Walter Brueggemann, John McKnight, Chine McDonald, +Rachel Treweek, Stanley Hauerwas, Barbara Brown Taylor, Kelly Brown Douglas, Steve Chalke, and Presiding Bishop Michael Curry, among others. At 6.10 pm (GMT) on Thursday 13 May 2021, Sam Wells and Lucy Winkett will be in conversation to discuss how to improvise on the kingdom. Lucy Winkett was ordained in 1995, having worked previously as a professional soprano. One of the first generation of women to be ordained in the Church of England, she served her title in Manor Park, Newham before becoming the first woman priest appointed at St Paul’s Cathedral, later becoming Canon Precentor. She has been Rector of St James’s Church, Piccadilly since 2010. With degrees in history and theology, she broadcasts regularly on religion, gender and contemporary culture and is a long-standing contributor to Radio 4’s Thought for the Day.
Jesus Is Just Alright: What Pop Songs About Jesus Can Teach Christians Today (SESSION 2: Would Jesus Wear a Rolex?) – Friday 11 June, 16:30 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/jesus-is-just-alright-tickets-145857685263. For over fifty years, pop musicians in all genres have explored the meaning and significance of Jesus in their music. The result is a rich collection of songs that consider important spiritual questions like faith, doubt, and prayer in unique and often provocative ways. Through a combination of listening and discussion, this four-part series invites participants to explore a different spiritual topic each week. Join us to listen to great music that asks tough questions about our faith and our lives as Christians. SESSION 2: Would Jesus Wear a Rolex? What would Jesus think if he came back today? That’s a question posed by artists working in genres as diverse as folk, hip-hop, punk, country, and heavy metal. Though written by non-Christians, most of these songs have no problem with Jesus, but instead with his followers, accusing them of sins including hypocrisy, judgmentalism, intolerance, and greed. Listening to these “prophetic” songs will challenge participants to consider how they can better follow Christ in their own lives and as representatives of the Church.
Inspired to Follow: Sunday 13 June, 14:00 (GMT), zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/inspired-to-follow-art-and-the-bible-story-tickets-148401610211. ‘Inspired to Follow: Art and the Bible Story’ helps people explore the Christian faith, using paintings and Biblical story as the starting points. The course uses fine art paintings in the National Gallery’s collection as a springboard for exploring questions of faith. Session 22: The New Jerusalem. Text: Revelation 21:1-5, 9-11, 22-27, & 22:1-5. Image: ‘Christ Glorified in the Court of Heaven’; central predella panel, probably by Fra Angelico, about 1423-4, NG663.1.
Creation Care Course: Thursday 17 June, 16:30-18:00 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/4-week-creation-care-course-tickets-145829458837?fbclid=IwAR0GX9eziBXIu-maafuP_nAMtoHRdbBthqoV9J-PI83mpQ_Yq46SftYMfb4. The environment is God’s gift to everyone. We have a responsibility towards each other to look after God’s Creation. Tackling climate change is a vital part of this responsibility. In a recent address to faith leaders on 4th February, ahead of the Glasgow conference on climate change in November 2021, the Archbishop of Canterbury said: “To think climate change is a problem of the future rather than a scourge of the present is the blind perspective of the privileged. We look around and see that Mozambique has been hit again by tropical storms. In Nigeria, desertification has contributed indirectly to conflict between people competing for dwindling resources. Floods and cyclones have devastated crops in Melanesia, risking poverty and food insecurity.” In this 4-week Creation Care Course, we will provide you with vital information about climate change, its impacts on people, and reflect on our role as Christians in taking practical climate action. Week 1: Caring for Creation, we will take a theological perspective on creation care and tackling climate change, using bible studies and a wide range of theological resources.'
Serving God and Mammon? Thursday 17 June, 17.30 pm (BST), zoom. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/serving-god-and-mammon-tickets-154144948691. Commerce affects culture, congregation and compassion in many ways. One is when business executives are brought into a faith or not-for-profit context in leadership roles. Sometimes these skills arrive as a bonus: for example the person specification for Archbishop of Canterbury doesn’t ask for a business background. When and how should we ask for those skills? What pitfalls should we avoid? Joanna Moriarty has worked in two very competitive marketplaces, first as a religious publisher and currently as a partner in the charities and social enterprise practice of the recruiter Green Park. Her trustee experience includes Feed the Minds, a charity focused on women’s literacy and social inclusion in the developing world, and she was a member of the Church of England Archbishops’ Anti-racism Task Force. She is designated a National Leader of Governance by the National College of Teaching and Leadership and works with boards to raise their effectiveness and impact. Joanna has recruited many business leaders for both executive and non-executive roles in faith and not-for-profit contexts. At 5.30pm on Thursday 17 June Douglas Board, who has many years’ experience of his own as a senior recruiter, will engage in conversation with Joanna to bring out many fascinating and practical insights which can help any values-driven organisation looking to add commercial skills. Then they will respond to your questions. Douglas initiated the HeartEdge discussion on 22 April on the human purpose of business; his current book ‘Elites: can you rise to the top without losing your soul?’ has been called ‘profound’ by the Financial Times. He is the external adviser to the Church of England’s renewal of its process of discernment for ordained ministry.
HeartEdge/CEEP transatlantic conversation – Big Tech, the Church & society: Thursday 17 June, 20.00 (GMT). Register at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/156567514651. The pandemic forced the Church to move online to a greater extent than ever before. Suddenly worship was moved from in-person to online. Fellowship, community-building, and Christian education all became hybrid experiences. Much was good in this forced evolution. Positivity and creativity emerged as experiments found success or failed to capture the needs of the moment. With the end of our current health pandemic in sight, questions remain about the relationship between the Church and technology (and, not just the technology tools but the companies that run these platforms as money-generating enterprises). During this panel, our participants will tackle questions like: Is ‘online church’ simply about accessing the tech needed for online services or are we baptizing Facebook, Instagram, whatever, and calling it 'church’? How do we avoid re-creating Christian subcultures online while imagining different and better futures in which all can contribute towards a new understanding? How can attention to relationship and a ‘beyond in the midst’ when online encourage us to pause and reflect? Underlying these questions are societal and ethical issues raised by the actions of Big Tech companies like Facebook, Google, and Twitter. As we think about using these platforms for the Church, how do we account for the business models of friendship platforms, the platforms’ monetization of data, and discerning approaches to free speech and taxation. Finally, with all this complexity, how can the Church be a counterpoint to the neglect that comes from both instant responses and an assumption of human control? Join our panel for this important discussion. Panelists include: Genelle Aldred - Head of Communications, The Pipeline, Owner, GA/C; London, United Kingdom; Stacy Williams Duncan - Founder, Learning & Change Strategist at Learning ForTE, Rector, Little Fork Episcopal Church; Charlottesville, Virginia; Mark Howe - CEO, MVH Solutions; Avignon, France; John Reader - Associate Researcher, William Temple Foundation, United Kingdom.
Jesus Is Just Alright: What Pop Songs About Jesus Can Teach Christians Today (SESSION 3: Jesus, Forgive Me for the Things I’m About to Do) – Friday 18 June, 16:30 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/jesus-is-just-alright-tickets-145857685263. For over fifty years, pop musicians in all genres have explored the meaning and significance of Jesus in their music. The result is a rich collection of songs that consider important spiritual questions like faith, doubt, and prayer in unique and often provocative ways. Through a combination of listening and discussion, this four-part series invites participants to explore a different spiritual topic each week. Join us to listen to great music that asks tough questions about our faith and our lives as Christians. SESSION 3: Jesus, Forgive Me for the Things I’m About to Do. Pop songs are full of prayers. But rather than relying on familiar words, musicians lift their voices to Jesus in ways that are often highly personal and heartbreakingly honest. This session explores what we can learn about prayer – and faith – from the pleas and tears of a wide variety of artists. What to do they pray for? Why and how? How do we see ourselves in these songs, and how might it affect the way we think about prayer?
God’s Unfailing Word: Sunday 20 June, 18:30 (BST), zoom. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/gods-unfailing-word-tickets-154549695299. A three-part series of conversations on the nature of Christian-Jewish relations in the 21st century. With Rabbi Daniel Epstein (Western Marble Arch Synagogue) and Revd Dr Sam Wells (St Martin-in-the-Fields). Based on the recently (2019) published God’s Unfailing Word (https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2019-11/godsunfailingwordweb.pdf).
Creation Care Course: Thursday 24 June, 16:30-18:00 BST, zoom- https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/4-week-creation-care-course-tickets-145829458837?fbclid=IwAR0GX9eziBXIu-maafuP_nAMtoHRdbBthqoV9J-PI83mpQ_Yq46SftYMfb4. The environment is God’s gift to everyone. We have a responsibility towards each other to look after God’s Creation. Tackling climate change is a vital part of this responsibility. In a recent address to faith leaders on 4th February, ahead of the Glasgow conference on climate change in November 2021, the Archbishop of Canterbury said: “To think climate change is a problem of the future rather than a scourge of the present is the blind perspective of the privileged. We look around and see that Mozambique has been hit again by tropical storms. In Nigeria, desertification has contributed indirectly to conflict between people competing for dwindling resources. Floods and cyclones have devastated crops in Melanesia, risking poverty and food insecurity.” In this 4-week Creation Care Course, we will provide you with vital information about climate change, its impacts on people, and reflect on our role as Christians in taking practical climate action. Week 2: Understanding Climate Change, we will look at climate change, its drivers and impacts from a scientific perspective.
Jesus Is Just Alright: What Pop Songs About Jesus Can Teach Christians Today (SESSION 4: If I Believe You) – Friday 25 June, 16:30 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/jesus-is-just-alright-tickets-145857685263. For over fifty years, pop musicians in all genres have explored the meaning and significance of Jesus in their music. The result is a rich collection of songs that consider important spiritual questions like faith, doubt, and prayer in unique and often provocative ways. Through a combination of listening and discussion, this four-part series invites participants to explore a different spiritual topic each week. Join us to listen to great music that asks tough questions about our faith and our lives as Christians. SESSION 4: If I Believe You. Pop songs include some of the most honest and powerful examples of spiritual searching that you can find. Whether they are doubting believers, faithful doubters, unwilling atheists, or simple humans hungering for meaning, pop musicians bring to life approaches to faith that rival the psalms in their depth and nuance. This session will use these songs to help us understand and articulate the various ways we consider “belief”, and how that relates to our identities as modern Christians.
Theology Group: Sunday, 27 June 2021, 19:00 – 20:00 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/theology-group-tickets-155515644479. The St Martin-in-the-Fields and HeartEdge Theology Group provides a monthly opportunity to reflect theologically on issues of today and questions of forever with Sam Wells. Each month Sam responds to questions from a member of the congregation of St Martin-in-the-Fields who also chairs the session and encourages your comments and questions.
See www.heartedge.org to join HeartEdge and for more information.
Are we missing something? Be in touch with your ideas for development.
Want to run an online workshop or series with HeartEdge? Don't keep it too yourself. Be in touch and let's plan.
We’ve developed this in response to the pandemic and our changing world. The church is changing too, and - as we improvise and experiment - we can learn and support each other.
This is 'Living God’s Future Now’ - talks, workshops and discussion - hosted by HeartEdge. Created to equip, encourage and energise churches - from leaders to volunteers and enquirers - at the heart and on the edge.
The focal event in ‘Living God’s Future Now’ is a monthly conversation where Sam Wells explores what it means to improvise on God’s kingdom with a leading theologian or practitioner.
The online programme includes:
- Regular weekly workshops: Biblical Studies (Mondays fortnightly), Sermon Preparation (Tuesdays) and Community of Practitioners (Wednesdays)
- One-off workshops on topics relevant to lockdown such as ‘Growing online communities’ and ‘Grief, Loss & Remembering’
- Monthly HeartEdge dialogue featuring Sam Wells in conversation with a noted theologian or practitioner
Regular – Weekly or Fortnightly
Tuesdays: Sermon Preparation Workshop, 16:30 (GMT), livestreamed at https://www.facebook.com/theHeartEdge/. Please note there will be no Sermon Preparation workshop on Tuesday 6 April.
Wednesdays: Community of Practitioners workshop, 16:30 (GMT), Zoom meeting. Email jonathan.evens@smitf.org to register.
Fortnightly on Mondays: Biblical Studies class, 19:30-21:00 (GMT), Zoom meeting. Register in advance: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMrcOmgrTgsHt2ceY7LepLhQYqQxS1G1ix9 2021 dates - Gospels & Acts:
• 7 Jun: Lecture 11 Luke-Acts
• 14 Jun: Lecture 12 Luke-Acts
May
Shut In, Shut Out, Shut Up Season 4: Ableism, Faith & Church – Friday 28 May, 16:30-18:00 BST, Zoom. Register for a Zoom invite at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/shut-in-shut-out-shut-up-ableism-faith-church-tickets-152921752077. Ableism is discrimination and social prejudice against disabled people. Like racism and sexism, it classifies entire groups of people as 'less than'. In this groundbreaking 4th series of Shut In, Shut Out, Shut Up we explore the context, culture and practice of ableism in faith and church. Since 2012 the Living Edge conference has held space for disabled and neurodivergent people to gather, to resource each other and the church. These HeartEdge Shut In Shut Out Shut Up series shares some of this experience, providing new space to ask challenging questions. Come and join the conversation with Fiona MacMillan and Rev Dr Hannah Lewis and Dr Rachel Holdforth (Practice). Fiona MacMillan (she/her) is a disability advocate, practitioner, speaker and writer. Fiona chairs the Disability Advisory Group at St Martin in the Fields and is a trustee of Inclusive Church. She leads the planning team for their annual disability conference, now in its 10th year.
Inspired to Follow: Sunday 30 May, 14:00 (GMT), zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/inspired-to-follow-art-and-the-bible-story-tickets-148401610211. ‘Inspired to Follow: Art and the Bible Story’ helps people explore the Christian faith, using paintings and Biblical story as the starting points. The course uses fine art paintings in the National Gallery’s collection as a springboard for exploring questions of faith. Session 20: Saint Peter. Text: Acts 10:30-48. Image: ‘Christ appearing to Saint Peter on the Appian Way (Domine, Quo Vadis?)’, Annibale Carracci, 1601-2, NG9.
Theology Group: Sunday, 30 May 2021, 19:00 – 20:00 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/theology-group-tickets-155514922319. The St Martin-in-the-Fields and HeartEdge Theology Group provides a monthly opportunity to reflect theologically on issues of today and questions of forever with Sam Wells. Each month Sam responds to questions from a member of the congregation of St Martin-in-the-Fields who also chairs the session and encourages your comments and questions.
June
Pilgrimage post-Pandemic: Tuesday 1 June, 19:00 BST, zoom. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/pilgrimage-post-pandemic-tickets-154148118171. How is Pilgrimage changed by pandemic? In this workshop we explore this question with those who organise Pilgrimages. How Pilgrimage organizers and hosts are building better, safe experiences for the present and future. How do virtual Pilgrimages work in practice? What will they feature outside of lockdown? Revd Dr Donald Fishburne regularly leads groups on faith pilgrimages and helps other Pilgrimage hosts plan and lead fruitful group travel and spiritual experiences, through www.EO.Travel/Episcopal. Rev. Heather Prince Doss is an owner of Progressive Pilgrimage and regularly leads spiritually-minded trips to the Holy Land, Ireland, Scotland, and Europe. Eugene Ling organises the annual Pilgrimage to Canterbury for The Connection at St Martin-in-the-Fields. Long-time Episcopal priest Donald Fishburne and his wife Sarah enjoy helping new Pilgrimage hosts design their group experience as part of the faith journeys of Christians and seekers. They also recruit hosts and speakers on a variety of Pilgrimages. Donald leads online spirituality small groups, such as “Our Lenten Journey through the Wilderness toward Resurrection,” which features virtual pilgrimage elements. Rev. Heather Prince Doss is the owner of Progressive Pilgrimage and pastor of Eliot Presbyterian Church, a multicultural congregation in Lowell, Massachusetts, USA. As a child of military parents, she has been traveling since birth and loves to help people experience God and deepen their faith by encountering new places, peoples, and cultures through travel. Eugene Ling has been the Annual Pilgrimage Coordinator for the Connection at St Martin’s since 2014 and is also a member of St Martin-in-the-Fields. This 4-day, 74 miles pilgrimage, from St. Martin’s to Canterbury Cathedral, normally involves about 120 pilgrims and volunteers each year. In 2020 it was replaced by a virtual Pilgrimage which involved 44 virtual pilgrims all over the world, walking for 2,833 miles. This Annual Pilgrimage is a fundraising event for the Connection at St Martin’s to support homeless people around London.
Poetry, Refuge, Exile: Voices of Migration - Thursday 3 June, 16:30-18:00 (BST), zoom. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/poetry-refuge-exile-voices-of-migration-tickets-153707195359. This is the third of a 4-part series on the themes of Migration, Theology and Community. Four poets – Amir Darwish, Jennifer Langer, Alison Phipps, Tawona Sitholé – and Lia Shimada (chair) will explore how poetry emerges from, and gives voice to, diverse experiences of exile, flight, abuse, hope, refuge and belonging. They will be joined by representatives from the Helen Bamber Foundation – a pioneering human rights charity supporting refugees and asylum seekers who are the survivors of extreme human cruelty. Mapping Faith: Theologies of Migration and Community (published by Jessica Kingsley, 2020) brings together over 35 writers, poets, artists and practitioners, from primarily Jewish, Muslim and Christian backgrounds. Royalties from book sales will be donated to the Helen Bamber Foundation, with whom HeartEdge has a longstanding relationship. This event is co-sponsored by the Susanna Wesley Foundation, which facilitated the production of the book. Alison Phipps holds the UNESCO Chair in Refugee Integration through Languages and the Arts at the University of Glasgow, where she is also Professor of Languages and Intercultural Studies, and Co-Convenor of the Glasgow Refugee, Asylum and Migration Network. Tawona Sitholé is Artist in Residence of the UNESCO Chair for Refugee Integration through Languages and the Arts at the University of Glasgow. He co-founded Seeds for Thought, an arts organization based in Glasgow. Amir Darwish is a poet and writer of Kurdish origin, whose work has been widely translated. Born in Aleppo, he came to Britain as an asylum seeker in 2003. Amir holds advanced degrees in History, International Relations, and Creative and Life Writing. He is currently working on his doctorate. Jennifer Langer is a poet and the founding director of Exiled Writers Ink. She has edited four anthologies of exiled literature and is a Research Associate at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. Lia Shimada is a geographer and theologian based at the University of Roehampton, where she serves as Senior Researcher for the Susanna Wesley Foundation and Associate Chaplain of Whitelands College. She is the editor of Mapping Faith: Theologies of Migration and Community (Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2020).
Jesus Is Just Alright: What Pop Songs About Jesus Can Teach Christians Today (SESSION 1: Beer With Jesus) – Friday 4 June, 16:30 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/jesus-is-just-alright-tickets-145857685263. For over fifty years, pop musicians in all genres have explored the meaning and significance of Jesus in their music. The result is a rich collection of songs that consider important spiritual questions like faith, doubt, and prayer in unique and often provocative ways. Through a combination of listening and discussion, this four-part series invites participants to explore a different spiritual topic each week. Join us to listen to great music that asks tough questions about our faith and our lives as Christians. SESSION 1: Beer With Jesus - Cowboy, soldier, friend, mother, gangsta: Jesus has appeared in all these guises – and many more – in pop songs over the past 50 years. By exploring what these different incarnations say about the ways modern Christians have imagined Jesus, this session will challenge us to consider how our own assumptions affect the way we relate to him. Do they help us to follow him – or are they a hindrance? And do we fall into the trap of recreating Jesus in our own image?
Inspired to Follow: Sunday 6 June, 14:00 (GMT), zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/inspired-to-follow-art-and-the-bible-story-tickets-148401610211. ‘Inspired to Follow: Art and the Bible Story’ helps people explore the Christian faith, using paintings and Biblical story as the starting points. The course uses fine art paintings in the National Gallery’s collection as a springboard for exploring questions of faith. Session 21: Saint Paul. Text: Acts 9:1-19. Image: ‘The Conversion of Saint Paul’, Karel Dujardin, 1662, NG6296.
God’s Unfailing Word: Sunday 6 June, 18:30 (BST), zoom. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/gods-unfailing-word-tickets-154549695299. A three-part series of conversations on the nature of Christian-Jewish relations in the 21st century. With Rabbi Daniel Epstein (Western Marble Arch Synagogue) and Revd Dr Sam Wells (St Martin-in-the-Fields). Based on the recently (2019) published God’s Unfailing Word (https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2019-11/godsunfailingwordweb.pdf).
Book Launch - A Theology of Disagreement: New Testament Ethics for Ecclesial Conflicts – Tuesday 8 June, 19:00 BST, zoom. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/book-launch-theology-of-disagreement-tickets-154468153405. A Theology of Disagreement examines how New Testament texts inform Christian approaches to disagreement. Even the most casual contemporary observer of Christianity must recognise that the notion of Christian community being identifiable through the mutual love of its members (John 13:35) is difficult to reconcile with the schismatic reality of current ecclesial life. Nonetheless, disagreement remains an ethical subject neglected by theologians. Join author Revd Dr Christopher Landau and his guests, Revd Canon Dr Joanna Collicutt, Professor David Ford, Revd Selina Stone, and Dr Elaine Storkey, to explore the nature of an ethic of disagreement, and its practical implications for the church's public theological witness, as well as its liturgy.
Living God’s Future Now conversation – Lucy Winkett: Thursday 10 June, 6.00 pm, Zoom. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/living-gods-future-now-conversation-lucy-winkett-tickets-154136828403. ‘Living God’s Future Now’ describes a series of online seminars, discussions and presentations hosted by HeartEdge. They are designed to equip, encourage and energise church leaders, laypeople and enquirers alike, in areas such as preaching, growing a church, shifting online, deepening spirituality in a congregation and responding to social need. The focal event in 'Living God's future now' is a monthly conversation in which Sam Wells explores what it means to improvise on God’s kingdom with a leading theologian or practitioner. Earlier conversations have included Walter Brueggemann, John McKnight, Chine McDonald, +Rachel Treweek, Stanley Hauerwas, Barbara Brown Taylor, Kelly Brown Douglas, Steve Chalke, and Presiding Bishop Michael Curry, among others. At 6.10 pm (GMT) on Thursday 13 May 2021, Sam Wells and Lucy Winkett will be in conversation to discuss how to improvise on the kingdom. Lucy Winkett was ordained in 1995, having worked previously as a professional soprano. One of the first generation of women to be ordained in the Church of England, she served her title in Manor Park, Newham before becoming the first woman priest appointed at St Paul’s Cathedral, later becoming Canon Precentor. She has been Rector of St James’s Church, Piccadilly since 2010. With degrees in history and theology, she broadcasts regularly on religion, gender and contemporary culture and is a long-standing contributor to Radio 4’s Thought for the Day.
Jesus Is Just Alright: What Pop Songs About Jesus Can Teach Christians Today (SESSION 2: Would Jesus Wear a Rolex?) – Friday 11 June, 16:30 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/jesus-is-just-alright-tickets-145857685263. For over fifty years, pop musicians in all genres have explored the meaning and significance of Jesus in their music. The result is a rich collection of songs that consider important spiritual questions like faith, doubt, and prayer in unique and often provocative ways. Through a combination of listening and discussion, this four-part series invites participants to explore a different spiritual topic each week. Join us to listen to great music that asks tough questions about our faith and our lives as Christians. SESSION 2: Would Jesus Wear a Rolex? What would Jesus think if he came back today? That’s a question posed by artists working in genres as diverse as folk, hip-hop, punk, country, and heavy metal. Though written by non-Christians, most of these songs have no problem with Jesus, but instead with his followers, accusing them of sins including hypocrisy, judgmentalism, intolerance, and greed. Listening to these “prophetic” songs will challenge participants to consider how they can better follow Christ in their own lives and as representatives of the Church.
Inspired to Follow: Sunday 13 June, 14:00 (GMT), zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/inspired-to-follow-art-and-the-bible-story-tickets-148401610211. ‘Inspired to Follow: Art and the Bible Story’ helps people explore the Christian faith, using paintings and Biblical story as the starting points. The course uses fine art paintings in the National Gallery’s collection as a springboard for exploring questions of faith. Session 22: The New Jerusalem. Text: Revelation 21:1-5, 9-11, 22-27, & 22:1-5. Image: ‘Christ Glorified in the Court of Heaven’; central predella panel, probably by Fra Angelico, about 1423-4, NG663.1.
Creation Care Course: Thursday 17 June, 16:30-18:00 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/4-week-creation-care-course-tickets-145829458837?fbclid=IwAR0GX9eziBXIu-maafuP_nAMtoHRdbBthqoV9J-PI83mpQ_Yq46SftYMfb4. The environment is God’s gift to everyone. We have a responsibility towards each other to look after God’s Creation. Tackling climate change is a vital part of this responsibility. In a recent address to faith leaders on 4th February, ahead of the Glasgow conference on climate change in November 2021, the Archbishop of Canterbury said: “To think climate change is a problem of the future rather than a scourge of the present is the blind perspective of the privileged. We look around and see that Mozambique has been hit again by tropical storms. In Nigeria, desertification has contributed indirectly to conflict between people competing for dwindling resources. Floods and cyclones have devastated crops in Melanesia, risking poverty and food insecurity.” In this 4-week Creation Care Course, we will provide you with vital information about climate change, its impacts on people, and reflect on our role as Christians in taking practical climate action. Week 1: Caring for Creation, we will take a theological perspective on creation care and tackling climate change, using bible studies and a wide range of theological resources.'
Serving God and Mammon? Thursday 17 June, 17.30 pm (BST), zoom. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/serving-god-and-mammon-tickets-154144948691. Commerce affects culture, congregation and compassion in many ways. One is when business executives are brought into a faith or not-for-profit context in leadership roles. Sometimes these skills arrive as a bonus: for example the person specification for Archbishop of Canterbury doesn’t ask for a business background. When and how should we ask for those skills? What pitfalls should we avoid? Joanna Moriarty has worked in two very competitive marketplaces, first as a religious publisher and currently as a partner in the charities and social enterprise practice of the recruiter Green Park. Her trustee experience includes Feed the Minds, a charity focused on women’s literacy and social inclusion in the developing world, and she was a member of the Church of England Archbishops’ Anti-racism Task Force. She is designated a National Leader of Governance by the National College of Teaching and Leadership and works with boards to raise their effectiveness and impact. Joanna has recruited many business leaders for both executive and non-executive roles in faith and not-for-profit contexts. At 5.30pm on Thursday 17 June Douglas Board, who has many years’ experience of his own as a senior recruiter, will engage in conversation with Joanna to bring out many fascinating and practical insights which can help any values-driven organisation looking to add commercial skills. Then they will respond to your questions. Douglas initiated the HeartEdge discussion on 22 April on the human purpose of business; his current book ‘Elites: can you rise to the top without losing your soul?’ has been called ‘profound’ by the Financial Times. He is the external adviser to the Church of England’s renewal of its process of discernment for ordained ministry.
HeartEdge/CEEP transatlantic conversation – Big Tech, the Church & society: Thursday 17 June, 20.00 (GMT). Register at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/156567514651. The pandemic forced the Church to move online to a greater extent than ever before. Suddenly worship was moved from in-person to online. Fellowship, community-building, and Christian education all became hybrid experiences. Much was good in this forced evolution. Positivity and creativity emerged as experiments found success or failed to capture the needs of the moment. With the end of our current health pandemic in sight, questions remain about the relationship between the Church and technology (and, not just the technology tools but the companies that run these platforms as money-generating enterprises). During this panel, our participants will tackle questions like: Is ‘online church’ simply about accessing the tech needed for online services or are we baptizing Facebook, Instagram, whatever, and calling it 'church’? How do we avoid re-creating Christian subcultures online while imagining different and better futures in which all can contribute towards a new understanding? How can attention to relationship and a ‘beyond in the midst’ when online encourage us to pause and reflect? Underlying these questions are societal and ethical issues raised by the actions of Big Tech companies like Facebook, Google, and Twitter. As we think about using these platforms for the Church, how do we account for the business models of friendship platforms, the platforms’ monetization of data, and discerning approaches to free speech and taxation. Finally, with all this complexity, how can the Church be a counterpoint to the neglect that comes from both instant responses and an assumption of human control? Join our panel for this important discussion. Panelists include: Genelle Aldred - Head of Communications, The Pipeline, Owner, GA/C; London, United Kingdom; Stacy Williams Duncan - Founder, Learning & Change Strategist at Learning ForTE, Rector, Little Fork Episcopal Church; Charlottesville, Virginia; Mark Howe - CEO, MVH Solutions; Avignon, France; John Reader - Associate Researcher, William Temple Foundation, United Kingdom.
Jesus Is Just Alright: What Pop Songs About Jesus Can Teach Christians Today (SESSION 3: Jesus, Forgive Me for the Things I’m About to Do) – Friday 18 June, 16:30 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/jesus-is-just-alright-tickets-145857685263. For over fifty years, pop musicians in all genres have explored the meaning and significance of Jesus in their music. The result is a rich collection of songs that consider important spiritual questions like faith, doubt, and prayer in unique and often provocative ways. Through a combination of listening and discussion, this four-part series invites participants to explore a different spiritual topic each week. Join us to listen to great music that asks tough questions about our faith and our lives as Christians. SESSION 3: Jesus, Forgive Me for the Things I’m About to Do. Pop songs are full of prayers. But rather than relying on familiar words, musicians lift their voices to Jesus in ways that are often highly personal and heartbreakingly honest. This session explores what we can learn about prayer – and faith – from the pleas and tears of a wide variety of artists. What to do they pray for? Why and how? How do we see ourselves in these songs, and how might it affect the way we think about prayer?
God’s Unfailing Word: Sunday 20 June, 18:30 (BST), zoom. Register at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/gods-unfailing-word-tickets-154549695299. A three-part series of conversations on the nature of Christian-Jewish relations in the 21st century. With Rabbi Daniel Epstein (Western Marble Arch Synagogue) and Revd Dr Sam Wells (St Martin-in-the-Fields). Based on the recently (2019) published God’s Unfailing Word (https://www.churchofengland.org/sites/default/files/2019-11/godsunfailingwordweb.pdf).
Creation Care Course: Thursday 24 June, 16:30-18:00 BST, zoom- https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/4-week-creation-care-course-tickets-145829458837?fbclid=IwAR0GX9eziBXIu-maafuP_nAMtoHRdbBthqoV9J-PI83mpQ_Yq46SftYMfb4. The environment is God’s gift to everyone. We have a responsibility towards each other to look after God’s Creation. Tackling climate change is a vital part of this responsibility. In a recent address to faith leaders on 4th February, ahead of the Glasgow conference on climate change in November 2021, the Archbishop of Canterbury said: “To think climate change is a problem of the future rather than a scourge of the present is the blind perspective of the privileged. We look around and see that Mozambique has been hit again by tropical storms. In Nigeria, desertification has contributed indirectly to conflict between people competing for dwindling resources. Floods and cyclones have devastated crops in Melanesia, risking poverty and food insecurity.” In this 4-week Creation Care Course, we will provide you with vital information about climate change, its impacts on people, and reflect on our role as Christians in taking practical climate action. Week 2: Understanding Climate Change, we will look at climate change, its drivers and impacts from a scientific perspective.
Jesus Is Just Alright: What Pop Songs About Jesus Can Teach Christians Today (SESSION 4: If I Believe You) – Friday 25 June, 16:30 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/jesus-is-just-alright-tickets-145857685263. For over fifty years, pop musicians in all genres have explored the meaning and significance of Jesus in their music. The result is a rich collection of songs that consider important spiritual questions like faith, doubt, and prayer in unique and often provocative ways. Through a combination of listening and discussion, this four-part series invites participants to explore a different spiritual topic each week. Join us to listen to great music that asks tough questions about our faith and our lives as Christians. SESSION 4: If I Believe You. Pop songs include some of the most honest and powerful examples of spiritual searching that you can find. Whether they are doubting believers, faithful doubters, unwilling atheists, or simple humans hungering for meaning, pop musicians bring to life approaches to faith that rival the psalms in their depth and nuance. This session will use these songs to help us understand and articulate the various ways we consider “belief”, and how that relates to our identities as modern Christians.
Theology Group: Sunday, 27 June 2021, 19:00 – 20:00 BST, zoom - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/theology-group-tickets-155515644479. The St Martin-in-the-Fields and HeartEdge Theology Group provides a monthly opportunity to reflect theologically on issues of today and questions of forever with Sam Wells. Each month Sam responds to questions from a member of the congregation of St Martin-in-the-Fields who also chairs the session and encourages your comments and questions.
See www.heartedge.org to join HeartEdge and for more information.
Are we missing something? Be in touch with your ideas for development.
Want to run an online workshop or series with HeartEdge? Don't keep it too yourself. Be in touch and let's plan.
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David Bowie - Tryin' To Get To Heaven.
Tuesday, 25 May 2021
Big Tech and the Church: Imagining Opportunities and Challenges Going Forward
Thursday, June 17th, 3:00pm EDT (8.00pm BST)
Please register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/156567514651.
The pandemic forced the Church to move online to a greater extent than ever before. Suddenly worship was moved from in-person to online. Fellowship, community-building, and Christian education all became hybrid experiences. Much was good in this forced evolution. Positivity and creativity emerged as experiments found success or failed to capture the needs of the moment.
With the end of our current health pandemic in sight, questions remain about the relationship between the Church and technology (and, not just the technology tools but the companies that run these platforms as money-generating enterprises). During this panel, our participants will tackle questions like:
Is ‘online church’ simply about accessing the tech needed for online services or are we baptizing Facebook, Instagram, whatever, and calling it 'church’?
How do we avoid re-creating Christian subcultures online while imagining different and better futures in which all can contribute towards a new understanding?
How can attention to relationship and a ‘beyond in the midst’ when online encourage us to pause and reflect?
Underlying these questions are societal and ethical issues raised by the actions of Big Tech companies like Facebook, Google, and Twitter. As we think about using these platforms for the Church, how do we account for the business models of friendship platforms, the platforms’ monetization of data, and discerning approaches to free speech and taxation. Finally, with all this complexity, how can the Church be a counterpoint to the neglect that comes from both instant responses and an assumption of human control?
Join our panel for this important discussion.
Panelists include:
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Please register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/156567514651.
The pandemic forced the Church to move online to a greater extent than ever before. Suddenly worship was moved from in-person to online. Fellowship, community-building, and Christian education all became hybrid experiences. Much was good in this forced evolution. Positivity and creativity emerged as experiments found success or failed to capture the needs of the moment.
With the end of our current health pandemic in sight, questions remain about the relationship between the Church and technology (and, not just the technology tools but the companies that run these platforms as money-generating enterprises). During this panel, our participants will tackle questions like:
Is ‘online church’ simply about accessing the tech needed for online services or are we baptizing Facebook, Instagram, whatever, and calling it 'church’?
How do we avoid re-creating Christian subcultures online while imagining different and better futures in which all can contribute towards a new understanding?
How can attention to relationship and a ‘beyond in the midst’ when online encourage us to pause and reflect?
Underlying these questions are societal and ethical issues raised by the actions of Big Tech companies like Facebook, Google, and Twitter. As we think about using these platforms for the Church, how do we account for the business models of friendship platforms, the platforms’ monetization of data, and discerning approaches to free speech and taxation. Finally, with all this complexity, how can the Church be a counterpoint to the neglect that comes from both instant responses and an assumption of human control?
Join our panel for this important discussion.
Panelists include:
- Genelle Aldred - Head of Communications, The Pipeline, Owner, GA/C; London, United Kingdom
- Stacy Williams Duncan - Founder, Learning & Change Strategist at Learning ForTE, Rector, Little Fork Episcopal Church; Charlottesville, Virginia
- Mark Howe - CEO, MVH Solutions; Avignon, France
- John Reader - Associate Researcher, William Temple Foundation
Soul Sanctuary Gospel Choir - The Prayer.
HeartEdge May Mailer
May HeartEdge Mailer is at the post. Usual mix of ideas, encouragement, plus this month - politics and preaching, 'Woke' church, plans for post-pandemic church, Greg Smith on flags, Val Barron on commercial, Sami Award on doing Palestinian theology - plus an extract from the new book by Carla Grosch Miller...
Have a rummage here.
Have a rummage here.
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Natalie Bergman - Paint The Rain.
Monday, 24 May 2021
Mission Summer School
Engage more deeply with the theology of mission and explore how it relates to your own practice.
Register at https://bit.ly/3pHkwWE
Programme
- Input structured around the four Cs of Commerce, Culture, Congregation and Compassion.
- A mix of teaching and conversation with leading scholars and practitioners including Dupe Adefala, James Butler, Andrea Campanale, Revd Heather Cracknell, Professor Maggi Dawn, Revd Jonathan Evens, Rev Richard Frazer, Shannon Hopkins, Revd James Hughesdon, Zaza Lima, The Ven. Rosemarie Mallett, Professor Anthony Reddie, Dr Cathy Ross, Rachel Summers, Revd Dr Sam Wells, and Revd Erica Wooff, among others.
- Workshops to engage with the themes and issues presented.
- Encounters with churches, organisations and projects (HeartEdge and Fresh Expressions) to get a hands-on feel for how it works out in practice including: American International Church, Bloomsbury Central Baptist Church, Forest Church, Notre Dame de France, Sacred Space Kingston, St Barnabas Ealing, St John’s Waterloo, St Martin-in-the-Fields, St Paul’s Marylebone, and The Table Southall, among others.
Structured around the four Cs of Commerce, Culture, Congregation and Compassion from the book ‘A Future Bigger than the Past’ by Sam Wells, each morning Sam will teach on each of those areas providing the framework for the day. Participants will encounter churches/groups/organisations with a particular focus on the day’s theme. This might include viewing activities, meeting people involved, hearing testimonies from the work, and engaging with some of the challenges and complexities involved.
Each evening we will invite to people to be part of a conversation about the theme of the day. We will open-up these conversations about practice and theology to include participants in discussion. The evening programme is also offered as a stand-alone strand for those unable to join the main summer school.
The mission summer school comes from partnership between HeartEdge and St Augustine’s College which provides in-depth and experiential engagement with the theology and practice of mission.
Covid restrictions
Due to current Covid restrictions the week will be delivered online.
Registration
£70 – Mission summer school (Monday – Thursday, 9.30am-12.30pm, a variety of afternoon tasks taking a couple of hours, 7.30pm-9.00pm, and Friday, 9.30am-4.00pm).
£10 – Evening programme only (Monday – Thursday, 7.30pm-9.00pm).
Register at https://bit.ly/3pHkwWE.
Artlyst - Louis Carreon: Sampling Art History
My latest interview for Artlyst is with Louis Carreon. With a background in tagging, rapping, skateboarding and surfing, Californian-born Carreon is a street artist who is currently sampling art history, and its religious iconography in particular. Inspired by Hip Hop, Carreon riffs off imagery appropriated from the likes of El Greco, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Peter Paul Rubens and Michelangelo Merisi Caravaggio to disrupt and re-present images of the greats in ways to which young people can relate:
'After years of trial and tribulations and many downfalls, redemption was my only Salvation. Truly at that time believed I had to be in pain to produce, to write poetry and to paint. I didn’t know myself and I didn’t believe I could create while working on positivity, health and wellness and a positive future. So as redemption is tattooed across my chest, the story of redemption is what gives me the light and encouragement to give it all to God and leave it out of my hands and to ride this light on this narrative. I used to be a loser now I’m choosing to win...
I am a student always, keeping it humble. I have had God work in my life and am a true believer in prayer. My prayers do come true but in ways that are different from what I expect, meaning that I have to figure out the difference. I am a different person every day, especially with art, being susceptible to energy and change. Art is a current that comes through people’s bodies in movement and the visualization of memories. Some people can only paint their life or what comes through their bodies and memories. For me, crawling out of addiction and crime, redemption was the only story that had authenticity. I create things that take away pain and give peace. Painting is my redemption and keeps me alive.'
As an exclusive to Artlyst the interview features the first full image of Carreon's new and first sculpture 'David Reincarnated', an 8 ft high, 4,000 lb. contemporary reworking of Bernini’s David in marble, with David dressed for the streets of LA. This piece is both evidence of contemporary religious inspiration and a challenge to museums and galleries to acknowledge that reality.
My other pieces for Artlyst are:
Interviews -
'After years of trial and tribulations and many downfalls, redemption was my only Salvation. Truly at that time believed I had to be in pain to produce, to write poetry and to paint. I didn’t know myself and I didn’t believe I could create while working on positivity, health and wellness and a positive future. So as redemption is tattooed across my chest, the story of redemption is what gives me the light and encouragement to give it all to God and leave it out of my hands and to ride this light on this narrative. I used to be a loser now I’m choosing to win...
I am a student always, keeping it humble. I have had God work in my life and am a true believer in prayer. My prayers do come true but in ways that are different from what I expect, meaning that I have to figure out the difference. I am a different person every day, especially with art, being susceptible to energy and change. Art is a current that comes through people’s bodies in movement and the visualization of memories. Some people can only paint their life or what comes through their bodies and memories. For me, crawling out of addiction and crime, redemption was the only story that had authenticity. I create things that take away pain and give peace. Painting is my redemption and keeps me alive.'
As an exclusive to Artlyst the interview features the first full image of Carreon's new and first sculpture 'David Reincarnated', an 8 ft high, 4,000 lb. contemporary reworking of Bernini’s David in marble, with David dressed for the streets of LA. This piece is both evidence of contemporary religious inspiration and a challenge to museums and galleries to acknowledge that reality.
My other pieces for Artlyst are:
Interviews -
- Modus Operandi - What Makes Successful Public Art: Vivien Lovell Interviewed
- Genesis Tramaine: A Queer Devotional Painter
- Lakwena Maciver: Review-Interview Hastings Contemporary
- Nicola Ravenscroft - Sculpture With A Peaceful Stillness
- Artist Hannah Rose Thomas – Tears of Gold – Interview
- Marcus Lyon: Human Atlas Explorations
- Elizabeth Kwant Interview
- Helaine Blumenfeld: Undulating Structures
- National Gallery Explores ‘Sin’ In New Exhibition – Interview Dr Joost Joustra Curator
- Betty Spackman: Posthumanism Debates
- Christopher Clack: Connecting The Material And Immaterial
- Peter Howson Artlyst Interview
- Marleen Hengelaar-Rookmaaker On The Legacy Of ArtWay
- Alastair Gordon A Testament To His Faith
- Katrina Moss Chaiya Art Awards Interview: Where is God in our 21st century world?
- Apocalypse Now: Michael Takeo Magruder Interviewed
- Jonathan Anderson: Religious Inspirations Behind Modernism
- Caravan – An Interview With Rev Paul Gordon Chandler On Arts Peacebuilding
- Art Awakening Humanity Alexander de Cadenet Interviewed
- Michael Pendry New Installation Lights Up St Martin In The Fields
- Mark Dean Projects Stations of the Cross Videos On Henry Moore Altar
Articles -
- Chaiya Art Awards 2021 Gallery OXO
- Marc Chagall’s Exquisite Stained Glass Window Commissions
- George Gittoes Equal parts artist and warrior
- Keith Haring: Personal Spiritual Imagery
- Sean Scully: Philosophical Poetic Pastoral The 12 / Dark Windows
- Arthur Jafa: The Art Of Cutting And Pasting
- Blackpentecostal Breath: Spirit-Led Movement Jumps From Music To Visual Art
- Made in USA Ed Ruscha An American Perspective
- Robert Smithson: The Archetypal Nature Of Things
- If Jesus Is A Man Of Colour Why Did We Make Him Aryan?
- Cosmic Patches And Quilts Five Exhibitions
- Everyday Heroes: Southbank Exhibition Celebrates Low-paid Key Workers
- Entwining Spiritualism And Art – Three Shows
- Of Church And The Visual Arts
- Has The Word Master Reached Its Sell-By Date?
- The People Behind Community Is Kindness Billboard Campaign
- André Daughtry: Art, Rebellion And Racial Justice
- Salisbury Cathedral 800 Years Of Art And Spirit
- Home Alone Together Twenty Five Artists
- Botanical Mind Online: Art, Mysticism and the Cosmic Tree
- Salvador Dalí The Enigma of Faith
- Art And Faith A Time For Seeing
- Andy Warhol: Catholicism His Work, Faith And Legacy
- Kiki Smith: Embodied Art
- Art and Christianity Awards A Positive New Millennium Legacy
- Arnulf Rainer: 90th Birthday Exhibition Celebrated At Albertina Museum
- A Belonging Project And Exiles Loss and Displacement
- Robert Polidori: Fra Angelico Opus Operantis
- Art, Faith, Church Patronage and Modernity
- Contemplating the Spiritual in Contemporary Art
- Mat Collishaw Challenges Faith Perspectives With Ushaw Installation
- Waterloo Festival Launches At St. John’s Waterloo
- John Bellany Alan Davie Spiritual Joy and Magic
- RIFT Unites 17 Art and Science MA Graduates At Central St Martins
- Visionary Cities: Michael Takeo Magruder – British Library
- Van Gogh’s Religious Journey Around London
- William Congdon Holy Sites And The Kettle’s Yard Connection
- Mark Dean Premieres Pastiche Mass At Banqueting Hall Chelsea College of Arts
- John Kirby: The Torment
- Underlying The Civilised Facade
- Curating Spiritual Sensibilities In Changing Times
- Homeless Highlighted: New Beau Exhibition At St Martin-in-the-Fields
- Ken Currie: Protest Defeat And Victory
- Bosco Sodi: A Moment Of Genesis
- Bill Viola And The Art Of Contemplation
- Art In Churches 2018: Spiritual Combinations Explored
- Sister Wendy Beckett – A Reminiscence
- Guido Guidi: Per Strada Flowers Gallery London
- Peter Howson: The play is over – Flowers Gallery
- Camille Henrot: Scientific History And Creation Story Mash Up
- Nicola Green Explores Recent And Contemporary Religious Leaders – St Martin-in-the-Fields
- Art And The Consequences Of War Explored In Two Exhibitions
- Helaine Blumenfeld Translating Her Vision
- Sam Ivin: Physically Scratched Portraits Of Asylum Seekers Exhibited
- Sacred Noise: Explores Religion, Faith And Divinity
- Bill Viola: Quiet Contemplative Video Installation St Cuthbert’s Church Edinburgh
- The ground-breaking work of Sister Corita Kent
- Picasso To Souza: The Crucifixion Imagery Rarely Exhibited
- Michael Takeo Magruder: De / coding the Apocalypse – Panacea Museum
- Giorgio Griffa: The Golden Ratio And Inexplicable Knowledge
- Arabella Dorman Unveils New Installation At St James Church Piccadilly
- Can Art Transform Society?
- Art Awakening Humanity Conference Report
- Central St Martins in the Fields Design Then And Now
- The Sacramental And Liturgical Nature Of Conceptual Art
- Polish Art In Britain Centenary Marked At London’s Ben Uri Gallery
- Refugee Artists Learning from The Lives Of Others
- The Religious Impulses Of Robert Rauschenberg
- The Christian Science Connection Within The British Modern Art Movement
- Artists Rebranding The Christmas Tree Tradition
- Art Impacted - A Radical Response To Radicalisation
- The Art of St Martin-in-the-Fields
- Was Caravaggio A Good Christian?
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Bob Marley - Redemption Song.
CTiW Pentecost Service
Churches Together in Westminster held their annual CTiW Service of the Word for Pentecost yesterday which this year was very kindly being hosted by St Mary le Strand church.
For the benefit of those watching the recording, a service sheet is available on the CTiW website (http://ctiw.london/2021/ctiw-service-of-the-word-for-pentecost/) or from CTiW.net@gmail.com and you may also wish to have a candle ready to light during the service. We are grateful to Canon Peter Babington, Priest-in-Charge and the people of St Mary le Strand for hosting this service.
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Taizé - virtual choir : Veni Sancte Spiritus.Saturday, 22 May 2021
Windows on the world (328)
London, 2021
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Jorge Ben - Brother.
Friday, 21 May 2021
Living God's Future Now - w/c 23 May 2021
We’ve developed this in response to the pandemic and our changing world. The church is changing too, and - as we improvise and experiment - we can learn and support each other.
This is 'Living God’s Future Now’ - talks, workshops and discussion - hosted by HeartEdge. Created to equip, encourage and energise churches - from leaders to volunteers and enquirers - at the heart and on the edge.
The focal event in ‘Living God’s Future Now’ is a monthly conversation where Sam Wells explores what it means to improvise on God’s kingdom with a leading theologian or practitioner.
The online programme includes:
- Regular weekly workshops: Biblical Studies (Mondays - fortnightly), Sermon Preparation (Tuesdays) and Community of Practitioners (Wednesdays)
- One-off workshops on topics relevant to lockdown such as ‘Growing online communities’ and ‘Grief, Loss & Remembering’
- Monthly HeartEdge dialogue featuring Sam Wells in conversation with a noted theologian or practitioner
W/c 23 May 2021
Sunday
Inspired to Follow
Zoom
Sunday 23 May, 14:00 (BST)
Register here.
‘Inspired to Follow: Art and the Bible Story’ helps people explore the Christian faith, using paintings and Biblical story as the starting points. Session 19: Death of Stephen. Text: Acts 6:8 – 7:60 (extracts). Image: ‘The Martyrdom of Saint Stephen’, Possibly by Antonio Carracci, about1610, NG77.
Theology Reading Group
Zoom
Sunday 23 May, 18:00 (BST)
Register here.
Purgatorio (Italian for "Purgatory") is the second part of Dante's Divine Comedy, following the Inferno and preceding the Paradiso. Explore and discuss Dante’s The Divine Comedy with Sam Wells, St-Martin-in-the-Fields congregation and HeartEdge partners.
Monday
Biblical Studies
Zoom
Monday 24 May 19:30 -21:00 (BST)
Register here.
Join Simon Woodman on two Monday evenings each month for a Biblical Studies class: a lecture followed by discussion, with handouts, looking at the Gospels and Acts. This week: Lecture 10 Luke-Acts.
Tuesday
Art, Scripture and Contemporary Issues
Zoom
Tuesday 25 May 14:00 -15:00 (BST)
Register here.
In a short series, curators for the Visual Commentary on Scripture will speak about their experience of curating for VCS. In this session Susanna Snyder will speak about her experience of curating the Ruth 3-4 exhibition exploring why she made the choices and decisions she did in relation to questions such as: How are we to respond to refugees and migrants? How should we understand and inhabit boundaries?
Sermon Prep Sally Hitchiner and Sam Wells
Livestream
Tuesday 25 May 16:30 -17:30 (BST)
Live streamed on the HeartEdge Facebook page here.
A live preaching workshop focusing on the forthcoming Sunday's lectionary readings in the light of current events and sharing of thoughts on approaches to the passages.
Wednesday
Public Health and Church Engagement post pandemic
Zoom
Wednesday 26 May 10:30-12:00 (BST)
Register here.
In this series of workshops, The Revd. Dr. Gillian Straine CEO of The Guild of Health and St Raphael will be exploring the potential of the church and people of faith to be agents of healing in our post pandemic world. Workshop 3 explores best practice in the healing ministry, including how to pray for healing, the healing sacraments, and how to create an healing atmosphere; exploring the different approaches, and looking at some of the diverse experience of healing.
Community of Practitioners workshop
Zoom
Wednesday 26 May 16:00-17:00 (BST)
Email Jonathan Evens here to take part.
This is open to all, including ordinands and lay leaders. Church leaders join in community, share and reflect together on their recent experiences in the form of wonderings with one of the HeartEdge team and book discussions.
Thursday
Being With Neighbours Internationally
Zoom
Thursday 27 May, 16:00-17:00 (BST)
Register here.
This workshop shares practical examples of how to be with neighbours internationally in a way that leads to mutual flourishing for the whole congregation. We will hear stories from US, UK, Africa, Europe and beyond to inspire our ministries. We will end with a short liturgy of thanksgiving.
Friday
Shut In, Shut Out, Shut Up Season 4: Ableism, Faith & Church
Zoom
Friday 28 May, 16:30-18:00 ( BST)
Register here.
Ableism is discrimination and social prejudice against disabled people. Like racism and sexism, it classifies entire groups of people as 'less than'. In this groundbreaking 4th series of Shut In, Shut Out, Shut Up we explore the context, culture and practice of ableism in faith and church. Come and join the conversation with Fiona MacMillan and Rev Dr Hannah Lewis and Dr Rachel Holdforth.
Coming Up
Mission Summer School - 12 – 16 July 2021
Zoom
12-16 July 2021
For more details and to reg click here
An opportunity to engage more deeply with the theology of mission and to explore how it relates to your own practice.Input structured around the four Cs of Commerce, Culture, Congregation and Compassion. A mix of teaching and conversation with leading scholars and practitioners including the Revd Dr Sam Wells, Professor Anthony Reddie, Dr Cathy Ross, and Revd Heather Cracknell, among others. Workshops to engage with the themes and issues presented. Encounters with churches, organisations and projects (HeartEdge and Fresh Expressions) to get a hands-on feel for how it works out in practice.
For more information please have a look at this video of Sam Wells telling us more, here.
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Sunday
Inspired to Follow
Zoom
Sunday 23 May, 14:00 (BST)
Register here.
‘Inspired to Follow: Art and the Bible Story’ helps people explore the Christian faith, using paintings and Biblical story as the starting points. Session 19: Death of Stephen. Text: Acts 6:8 – 7:60 (extracts). Image: ‘The Martyrdom of Saint Stephen’, Possibly by Antonio Carracci, about1610, NG77.
Theology Reading Group
Zoom
Sunday 23 May, 18:00 (BST)
Register here.
Purgatorio (Italian for "Purgatory") is the second part of Dante's Divine Comedy, following the Inferno and preceding the Paradiso. Explore and discuss Dante’s The Divine Comedy with Sam Wells, St-Martin-in-the-Fields congregation and HeartEdge partners.
Monday
Biblical Studies
Zoom
Monday 24 May 19:30 -21:00 (BST)
Register here.
Join Simon Woodman on two Monday evenings each month for a Biblical Studies class: a lecture followed by discussion, with handouts, looking at the Gospels and Acts. This week: Lecture 10 Luke-Acts.
Tuesday
Art, Scripture and Contemporary Issues
Zoom
Tuesday 25 May 14:00 -15:00 (BST)
Register here.
In a short series, curators for the Visual Commentary on Scripture will speak about their experience of curating for VCS. In this session Susanna Snyder will speak about her experience of curating the Ruth 3-4 exhibition exploring why she made the choices and decisions she did in relation to questions such as: How are we to respond to refugees and migrants? How should we understand and inhabit boundaries?
Sermon Prep Sally Hitchiner and Sam Wells
Livestream
Tuesday 25 May 16:30 -17:30 (BST)
Live streamed on the HeartEdge Facebook page here.
A live preaching workshop focusing on the forthcoming Sunday's lectionary readings in the light of current events and sharing of thoughts on approaches to the passages.
Wednesday
Public Health and Church Engagement post pandemic
Zoom
Wednesday 26 May 10:30-12:00 (BST)
Register here.
In this series of workshops, The Revd. Dr. Gillian Straine CEO of The Guild of Health and St Raphael will be exploring the potential of the church and people of faith to be agents of healing in our post pandemic world. Workshop 3 explores best practice in the healing ministry, including how to pray for healing, the healing sacraments, and how to create an healing atmosphere; exploring the different approaches, and looking at some of the diverse experience of healing.
Community of Practitioners workshop
Zoom
Wednesday 26 May 16:00-17:00 (BST)
Email Jonathan Evens here to take part.
This is open to all, including ordinands and lay leaders. Church leaders join in community, share and reflect together on their recent experiences in the form of wonderings with one of the HeartEdge team and book discussions.
Thursday
Being With Neighbours Internationally
Zoom
Thursday 27 May, 16:00-17:00 (BST)
Register here.
This workshop shares practical examples of how to be with neighbours internationally in a way that leads to mutual flourishing for the whole congregation. We will hear stories from US, UK, Africa, Europe and beyond to inspire our ministries. We will end with a short liturgy of thanksgiving.
Friday
Shut In, Shut Out, Shut Up Season 4: Ableism, Faith & Church
Zoom
Friday 28 May, 16:30-18:00 ( BST)
Register here.
Ableism is discrimination and social prejudice against disabled people. Like racism and sexism, it classifies entire groups of people as 'less than'. In this groundbreaking 4th series of Shut In, Shut Out, Shut Up we explore the context, culture and practice of ableism in faith and church. Come and join the conversation with Fiona MacMillan and Rev Dr Hannah Lewis and Dr Rachel Holdforth.
Coming Up
Mission Summer School - 12 – 16 July 2021
Zoom
12-16 July 2021
For more details and to reg click here
An opportunity to engage more deeply with the theology of mission and to explore how it relates to your own practice.Input structured around the four Cs of Commerce, Culture, Congregation and Compassion. A mix of teaching and conversation with leading scholars and practitioners including the Revd Dr Sam Wells, Professor Anthony Reddie, Dr Cathy Ross, and Revd Heather Cracknell, among others. Workshops to engage with the themes and issues presented. Encounters with churches, organisations and projects (HeartEdge and Fresh Expressions) to get a hands-on feel for how it works out in practice.
For more information please have a look at this video of Sam Wells telling us more, here.
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Tuesday, 18 May 2021
The return of (G)race
Conversations about (G)race is back with Chine McDonald on home and Greenbelt, the power of personal story, redeeming white spaces, uncovering African spirituality & facing up to whiteness. Just an inspiring discussion! With Azariah France-Williams & Winnie Varghese. Produced by Rosie Dawson for HeartEdge, have a listen here.
Earlier episodes in the series are:
3. Sharon Lewis 'Afro-Futurism and recovering faith'
"Your work, the spirit is pulsating through it... it's deeply spiritual..." Writer, director and award-winning film maker, Sharon Lewis in conversation about God and race with Azariah France-Williams and Winnie Varghese. "Black History Month perpetually keeps us in the past... in an iconography we're repressed... We did rebel! We did fight back! We survived and thrived! We were not decimated in terms of spirit... The very basis of Black Future Month is that we exist..." Sharon, Azariah and Winnie on Christianity colonised (and releasing colonial attitudes), coding the future, extending sci-fi, giving up Jesus and recovering Christianity and the church, being angry... and dodgy haircuts...
2. David Neita 'Barriers, boundaries and finding home'
UK based poet and lawyer David Neita in conversation with Azariah France-Williams and Winnie Varghese. “I belong to the Lord – so this is my space…” How to build a space that is welcoming, diverse and hospitable. Plus, poverty, inequality and the importance of poetry to navigate the justice system… And birthing something creative into the world.
1. Broderick Greer 'Black imagination, white reactions'
Broderick Greer Canon Precentor at Saint John's Cathedral in Denver, Colorado US in transatlantic conversation with Azariah France-Williams (UK) and Winnie Varghese (US). Talking God and race - on black resistance, black dignity and joy - and 'being the allies'. Plus the ravages of white supremacy and finding freedom. And how do you pronounce (G)race?
Earlier episodes in the series are:
3. Sharon Lewis 'Afro-Futurism and recovering faith'
"Your work, the spirit is pulsating through it... it's deeply spiritual..." Writer, director and award-winning film maker, Sharon Lewis in conversation about God and race with Azariah France-Williams and Winnie Varghese. "Black History Month perpetually keeps us in the past... in an iconography we're repressed... We did rebel! We did fight back! We survived and thrived! We were not decimated in terms of spirit... The very basis of Black Future Month is that we exist..." Sharon, Azariah and Winnie on Christianity colonised (and releasing colonial attitudes), coding the future, extending sci-fi, giving up Jesus and recovering Christianity and the church, being angry... and dodgy haircuts...
2. David Neita 'Barriers, boundaries and finding home'
UK based poet and lawyer David Neita in conversation with Azariah France-Williams and Winnie Varghese. “I belong to the Lord – so this is my space…” How to build a space that is welcoming, diverse and hospitable. Plus, poverty, inequality and the importance of poetry to navigate the justice system… And birthing something creative into the world.
1. Broderick Greer 'Black imagination, white reactions'
Broderick Greer Canon Precentor at Saint John's Cathedral in Denver, Colorado US in transatlantic conversation with Azariah France-Williams (UK) and Winnie Varghese (US). Talking God and race - on black resistance, black dignity and joy - and 'being the allies'. Plus the ravages of white supremacy and finding freedom. And how do you pronounce (G)race?
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Valerie June - Pushing Against A Stone.
Monday, 17 May 2021
Artlyst: Chaiya Art Awards 2021 Gallery OXO
My latest article for Artlyst shares reflections on the experience of having been a judge for the Chaiya Art Awards 2021:
As judges we have been looking for originality and technical excellence in the artist’s submissions. The call for work asked artists to be authentic and daring. The exhibition will show that these artists have not disappointed us. The Winners Exhibition is a showcase of innovative and exciting artists expressing their creativity in response to spirituality and offering the opportunity to view beautiful and inspiring art that is often difficult to find on display elsewhere.'
“God is . . .” runs at Gallery@OXO, Bargehouse Street, London SE1 9PH from 14 to 23 May 2021, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. every day (till 4 p.m. on last day). It can also be viewed online at chaiyaartawards.co.uk. The 2021 Award winners can be found by clicking here. My exhibition review for Church Times can be found at https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2021/21-may/books-arts/visual-arts/chaiya-art-awards-god-is-at-gallery-oxo. My Artlyst interview of Chaiya Art Awards founder Katrina Moss can be read here and my ArtWay visual meditation on the winning entry in the 2018 Awards is here.
'The varied artwork in this exhibition represents a hand-picked selection of artists sharing their imagination, their creative talent and their unique response to the theme of ‘God is …’ Exhibition curator Lesley Sutton summarises their work: ‘As viewers, our eyes meet the emotions of the artists, their colour palettes revealing personal narratives. Some speak of pain and suffering, questioning where God is when days are dark and He seems to have abandoned us. Others have used brightly coloured canvases of cerulean blue, gilded squares or intricately carved sculptures to invite us to delight in the beauty of the world we call home. Yet others have chosen to remind us of our responsibility as caretakers of the earth and sea and all its inhabitants.’
As judges we have been looking for originality and technical excellence in the artist’s submissions. The call for work asked artists to be authentic and daring. The exhibition will show that these artists have not disappointed us. The Winners Exhibition is a showcase of innovative and exciting artists expressing their creativity in response to spirituality and offering the opportunity to view beautiful and inspiring art that is often difficult to find on display elsewhere.'
“God is . . .” runs at Gallery@OXO, Bargehouse Street, London SE1 9PH from 14 to 23 May 2021, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. every day (till 4 p.m. on last day). It can also be viewed online at chaiyaartawards.co.uk. The 2021 Award winners can be found by clicking here. My exhibition review for Church Times can be found at https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2021/21-may/books-arts/visual-arts/chaiya-art-awards-god-is-at-gallery-oxo. My Artlyst interview of Chaiya Art Awards founder Katrina Moss can be read here and my ArtWay visual meditation on the winning entry in the 2018 Awards is here.
My other pieces for Artlyst are:
Interviews -
Interviews -
- Modus Operandi - What Makes Successful Public Art: Vivien Lovell Interviewed
- Genesis Tramaine: A Queer Devotional Painter
- Lakwena Maciver: Review-Interview Hastings Contemporary
- Nicola Ravenscroft - Sculpture With A Peaceful Stillness
- Artist Hannah Rose Thomas – Tears of Gold – Interview
- Marcus Lyon: Human Atlas Explorations
- Elizabeth Kwant Interview
- Helaine Blumenfeld: Undulating Structures
- National Gallery Explores ‘Sin’ In New Exhibition – Interview Dr Joost Joustra Curator
- Betty Spackman: Posthumanism Debates
- Christopher Clack: Connecting The Material And Immaterial
- Peter Howson Artlyst Interview
- Marleen Hengelaar-Rookmaaker On The Legacy Of ArtWay
- Alastair Gordon A Testament To His Faith
- Katrina Moss Chaiya Art Awards Interview: Where is God in our 21st century world?
- Apocalypse Now: Michael Takeo Magruder Interviewed
- Jonathan Anderson: Religious Inspirations Behind Modernism
- Caravan – An Interview With Rev Paul Gordon Chandler On Arts Peacebuilding
- Art Awakening Humanity Alexander de Cadenet Interviewed
- Michael Pendry New Installation Lights Up St Martin In The Fields
- Mark Dean Projects Stations of the Cross Videos On Henry Moore Altar
- Marc Chagall’s Exquisite Stained Glass Window Commissions
- George Gittoes Equal parts artist and warrior
- Keith Haring: Personal Spiritual Imagery
- Sean Scully: Philosophical Poetic Pastoral The 12 / Dark Windows
- Arthur Jafa: The Art Of Cutting And Pasting
- Blackpentecostal Breath: Spirit-Led Movement Jumps From Music To Visual Art
- Made in USA Ed Ruscha An American Perspective
- Robert Smithson: The Archetypal Nature Of Things
- If Jesus Is A Man Of Colour Why Did We Make Him Aryan?
- Cosmic Patches And Quilts Five Exhibitions
- Everyday Heroes: Southbank Exhibition Celebrates Low-paid Key Workers
- Entwining Spiritualism And Art – Three Shows
- Of Church And The Visual Arts
- Has The Word Master Reached Its Sell-By Date?
- The People Behind Community Is Kindness Billboard Campaign
- André Daughtry: Art, Rebellion And Racial Justice
- Salisbury Cathedral 800 Years Of Art And Spirit
- Home Alone Together Twenty Five Artists
- Botanical Mind Online: Art, Mysticism and the Cosmic Tree
- Salvador Dalí The Enigma of Faith
- Art And Faith A Time For Seeing
- Andy Warhol: Catholicism His Work, Faith And Legacy
- Kiki Smith: Embodied Art
- Art and Christianity Awards A Positive New Millennium Legacy
- Arnulf Rainer: 90th Birthday Exhibition Celebrated At Albertina Museum
- A Belonging Project And Exiles Loss and Displacement
- Robert Polidori: Fra Angelico Opus Operantis
- Art, Faith, Church Patronage and Modernity
- Contemplating the Spiritual in Contemporary Art
- Mat Collishaw Challenges Faith Perspectives With Ushaw Installation
- Waterloo Festival Launches At St. John’s Waterloo
- John Bellany Alan Davie Spiritual Joy and Magic
- RIFT Unites 17 Art and Science MA Graduates At Central St Martins
- Visionary Cities: Michael Takeo Magruder – British Library
- Van Gogh’s Religious Journey Around London
- William Congdon Holy Sites And The Kettle’s Yard Connection
- Mark Dean Premieres Pastiche Mass At Banqueting Hall Chelsea College of Arts
- John Kirby: The Torment
- Underlying The Civilised Facade
- Curating Spiritual Sensibilities In Changing Times
- Homeless Highlighted: New Beau Exhibition At St Martin-in-the-Fields
- Ken Currie: Protest Defeat And Victory
- Bosco Sodi: A Moment Of Genesis
- Bill Viola And The Art Of Contemplation
- Art In Churches 2018: Spiritual Combinations Explored
- Sister Wendy Beckett – A Reminiscence
- Guido Guidi: Per Strada Flowers Gallery London
- Peter Howson: The play is over – Flowers Gallery
- Camille Henrot: Scientific History And Creation Story Mash Up
- Nicola Green Explores Recent And Contemporary Religious Leaders – St Martin-in-the-Fields
- Art And The Consequences Of War Explored In Two Exhibitions
- Helaine Blumenfeld Translating Her Vision
- Sam Ivin: Physically Scratched Portraits Of Asylum Seekers Exhibited
- Sacred Noise: Explores Religion, Faith And Divinity
- Bill Viola: Quiet Contemplative Video Installation St Cuthbert’s Church Edinburgh
- The ground-breaking work of Sister Corita Kent
- Picasso To Souza: The Crucifixion Imagery Rarely Exhibited
- Michael Takeo Magruder: De / coding the Apocalypse – Panacea Museum
- Giorgio Griffa: The Golden Ratio And Inexplicable Knowledge
- Arabella Dorman Unveils New Installation At St James Church Piccadilly
- Can Art Transform Society?
- Art Awakening Humanity Conference Report
- Central St Martins in the Fields Design Then And Now
- The Sacramental And Liturgical Nature Of Conceptual Art
- Polish Art In Britain Centenary Marked At London’s Ben Uri Gallery
- Refugee Artists Learning from The Lives Of Others
- The Religious Impulses Of Robert Rauschenberg
- The Christian Science Connection Within The British Modern Art Movement
- Artists Rebranding The Christmas Tree Tradition
- Art Impacted - A Radical Response To Radicalisation
- The Art of St Martin-in-the-Fields
- Was Caravaggio A Good Christian?
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Gillian Welch - By The Mark.
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