In 1970 my father, Phil Evens, entered social-work education by becoming a lecturer in applied social studies at Oxford University. There, he discovered that he did not fit into the exclusive network of “North Oxbridge Society”, and so he moved nearer to his ideological home and working-class identity by setting up an Applied Action Research Community Work Project in 1973. It was called the Barton Project, after the council estate on which it was based.
His experiences and other contributions to the development of community work were published in Community Work: Theory and practice (1974) and The Barton Project (1976). Both books applied his Christian faith to his work, and called for the active involvement of Christians in community work and other public services.
Similarly in 1976, Bob Holman 'resigned his professorship in social administration at Bath University to become a community worker on the city’s deprived Southdown estate. He saw his affluence and position as inconsistent with his Christian faith. He and his wife, Annette, and their two children, Ruth and David, moved from a comfortable middle-class area in the city to a home next to the estate and he started the project where he then worked.'
In 1976, the Barton Project project lost funding, and my father's job was restructured away. He returned, somewhat disillusioned, to his roots in Somerset, where he became self-employed as a landscape gardener. During this mid-life crisis, he and his family began worshipping for the first time in the C of E, and he continued, as he had done for many years, to set up and run Christian youth clubs. Involvement in wider aspects of Anglican ministry led to his call to train for ordination.
At Trinity College, Bristol, he set up the Voice of the People Trust, to sponsor Christian ministry in urban priority areas through community-work projects linked to parishes. Work on the trust was carried out in conjunction with his ministry, first, as a curate at Aston Parish Church, and then as Vicar of St Edmund’s, Tyesley.
'After a decade in Bath, in 1987 [Bob Holman] went to live and work on the vast and deprived Easterhouse estate in Glasgow. He always wanted to show what could be done to motivate and involve people and bring communities together. Bob spurned any distinction between himself and other residents, calling himself a “resourceful friend”. His daily work involved filling in social security forms, accompany young people to court or helping a neighbour to raise a loan for a new cooker.'
Holman, who died on 15 June, became a regular contributor to the Guardian which published some extracts from his writing following his death:
'I will not lose my Christianity. It came before my socialism. The example and values of Jesus Christ led me to seek a societal implementation through politics. The writings of Richard Tawney and the practices of Keir Hardie and George Lansbury led me into the Labour party. But Christianity is more than politics. It will be with me to the end.'
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Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals - All That Has Grown.
Showing posts with label bath. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bath. Show all posts
Saturday, 25 June 2016
Thursday, 16 June 2016
Allow yourself to be found by God
Here is my sermon from today's Eucharist at St Stephen Walbrook:
As a seven year old I got lost on a very busy bank holiday in the Parade Gardens in Bath. The Parade Gardens are popular pleasure grounds which overlook the River Avon and the weir by Robert Adams’ Pulteney Bridge.
So, for my panicked parents as they searched for me, there was not only the fear that I might have been taken but also the fear that I might have gone in the water. As it was, while they were combing the whole area looking for me, I was happily enjoying an ice cream at the local Police Station where I had been taken by those who realised that I was lost. Eventually, my parents also came to the Police Station and we were reunited.
Their searching for me was a sign of their love. Understandably, because of the love that they had as parents for their children they would not stop searching until I had been found. The shepherd and woman in these two stories are exactly the same. Because of their concern for the sheep and coin which are lost, they will not give up searching until they have been found. The sheep and the coin are loved and this love is revealed or proved through the search.
The point of these parables then is for us to know that we are similarly loved by God because he also searches for us until we are found. This search is the story of the Gospels:
Christ Jesus,
who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
but emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death—
even death on a cross. (Philippians 2. 6 – 8)
Christ went on this search to seek and save those who are lost. That is why these parables are told in the context of the welcome Jesus gave to sinners. As a result, we find Paul saying, in 1 Timothy 1:15: “The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the foremost.”
John Newton was another who came to regard himself as the foremost among sinners and who wrote: “Amazing Grace, how sweet, the sound. That saved, a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now I'm found.”
Christ’s search for us, his journey of salvation, shows how much we are loved by him. He gives up all he has in order to seek us out and rescue us. This is love, we read in 1 John 3, “not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.”
How much are you loved by God? So much that his Son left all he had in heaven to become a human being and die to rescue you for God. Imagine how I felt as a child to be found by my parents, imagine how the sheep in the story felt to be found by the Shepherd. That is what it means to be loved by God, to be found by God.
Do you know that kind of love? Have you been sought and found? The Good Shepherd searches for the lost with God’s attentive love, looking and listening, finding and carrying; carrying us home, like a sheep on the shoulders, from the cliff edges of our lives.
The lost almost universally consider themselves worthless but these parables specifically deny that assumption. What is lost is the most precious thing or person of all; the person or thing for which everything else will be given up or set aside. What is lost and found is us. We are the ones for whom Christ searches at the expense of all that he has, including, in the end, his own life. We are the most precious lost person for whom he searches. We are precious, we are loved. Do you know that love? Have you received that love?
The Revd Richard Carter says:
“Christ is saying forgiveness is not about our punishment, it’s not even about our repentance, it’s about being found, being found by God, and allowing ourselves to be found. That’s all you have to do. You have to allow yourself, allow yourself to be found by God, and it is the greatest gift you will ever receive; a free and undeserved gift. The extent of it is astonishing, it takes your breath away.”
“Amazing love! how can it be That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me.”
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
And Can It Be.
As a seven year old I got lost on a very busy bank holiday in the Parade Gardens in Bath. The Parade Gardens are popular pleasure grounds which overlook the River Avon and the weir by Robert Adams’ Pulteney Bridge.
So, for my panicked parents as they searched for me, there was not only the fear that I might have been taken but also the fear that I might have gone in the water. As it was, while they were combing the whole area looking for me, I was happily enjoying an ice cream at the local Police Station where I had been taken by those who realised that I was lost. Eventually, my parents also came to the Police Station and we were reunited.
Their searching for me was a sign of their love. Understandably, because of the love that they had as parents for their children they would not stop searching until I had been found. The shepherd and woman in these two stories are exactly the same. Because of their concern for the sheep and coin which are lost, they will not give up searching until they have been found. The sheep and the coin are loved and this love is revealed or proved through the search.
The point of these parables then is for us to know that we are similarly loved by God because he also searches for us until we are found. This search is the story of the Gospels:
Christ Jesus,
who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
but emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death—
even death on a cross. (Philippians 2. 6 – 8)
Christ went on this search to seek and save those who are lost. That is why these parables are told in the context of the welcome Jesus gave to sinners. As a result, we find Paul saying, in 1 Timothy 1:15: “The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the foremost.”
John Newton was another who came to regard himself as the foremost among sinners and who wrote: “Amazing Grace, how sweet, the sound. That saved, a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now I'm found.”
Christ’s search for us, his journey of salvation, shows how much we are loved by him. He gives up all he has in order to seek us out and rescue us. This is love, we read in 1 John 3, “not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.”
How much are you loved by God? So much that his Son left all he had in heaven to become a human being and die to rescue you for God. Imagine how I felt as a child to be found by my parents, imagine how the sheep in the story felt to be found by the Shepherd. That is what it means to be loved by God, to be found by God.
Do you know that kind of love? Have you been sought and found? The Good Shepherd searches for the lost with God’s attentive love, looking and listening, finding and carrying; carrying us home, like a sheep on the shoulders, from the cliff edges of our lives.
The lost almost universally consider themselves worthless but these parables specifically deny that assumption. What is lost is the most precious thing or person of all; the person or thing for which everything else will be given up or set aside. What is lost and found is us. We are the ones for whom Christ searches at the expense of all that he has, including, in the end, his own life. We are the most precious lost person for whom he searches. We are precious, we are loved. Do you know that love? Have you received that love?
The Revd Richard Carter says:
“Christ is saying forgiveness is not about our punishment, it’s not even about our repentance, it’s about being found, being found by God, and allowing ourselves to be found. That’s all you have to do. You have to allow yourself, allow yourself to be found by God, and it is the greatest gift you will ever receive; a free and undeserved gift. The extent of it is astonishing, it takes your breath away.”
“Amazing love! how can it be That Thou, my God, shouldst die for me.”
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
And Can It Be.
Saturday, 5 December 2015
Edwina Bridgeman: Conveying the poetry in the everyday
"Edwina Bridgeman conveys the poetry in the everyday. Her narrative constructions from wood and multifarious found objects bring new life to unwanted things. They highlight the joy of simple delights and the endurance of the human spirit." Her mixed media work is created from found objects. "Celebratory, life-affirming, almost spiritual her narrative work has a 'wise innocence'."
"Never one to let negativity triumph, Edwina’s underlying message is one of hope and generosity of spirit. The obvious hand-making of the figures in this exhibition celebrates making as an activity whilst also representing an investment of time and love. Any one of us could be the ‘Fool’, we are all vulnerable, and it is only through thoughtfulness and kindness that we can support and encourage."
"Edwina Bridgeman works widely in the community and in particular as lead artist for Artsparks at the Royal United Hospital in Bath. She lives in Somerset with her family. Her career began in theatre; after taking a Diploma in Technical Theatre Arts she worked for 10 years as a scene painter, latterly at the Bristol Old Vic. Returning to full-time education, she took a BTEC in Art and Design and more recently an MA in Fine Art. Since 1996 she has made sculptures from recycled materials using a process of construction and assembly."
Her Ship of Fools installation at the Victoria Art Gallery in Bath (Nov 2014 - Jan 2015) saw the "ever popular Bath artist turning her attention to a subject that has intrigued her for a long time." Dominating the show was a central installation of a fragile-looking vessel made from cardboard and found objects. The ship invited visitors to interact with it and explore what it felt like to be named a ‘fool.’ The gallery walls were lined with over 100 figures and animals - an audience perhaps, or future passengers waiting on the quay.
"Edwina Bridgeman works widely in the community and in particular as lead artist for Artsparks at the Royal United Hospital in Bath. She lives in Somerset with her family. Her career began in theatre; after taking a Diploma in Technical Theatre Arts she worked for 10 years as a scene painter, latterly at the Bristol Old Vic. Returning to full-time education, she took a BTEC in Art and Design and more recently an MA in Fine Art. Since 1996 she has made sculptures from recycled materials using a process of construction and assembly."
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World Party - Ship Of Fools.
Saturday, 22 March 2014
Beyond Airbrushed from Art History: Michael Kenny
Bath Abbey is presenting the sculpture 'The Crucifixx' (1976) by Michael Kenny, one of the most influential British sculptors of the 20th century, in the Abbey’s sanctuary during Lent, until Thursday 24 April.
Alan Garrow, Vicar Theologian at Bath Abbey explains why the piece is so special especially at this time of year:
“Crucifixx looks hurriedly assembled from off-cuts – the scraps of wood remaindered on a workshop floor. To the soldiers who executed Jesus his death was not something that required thought or care – it was just an ugly ‘everyday’ event. Set in the sanctuary of Bath Abbey this ‘ordinary’ object becomes part of a richer and more expansive story. Here, that which was thrown away has become central; that which was temporary has become permanent; that by which humans are torn apart has become the means by which they are restored to wholeness. But, it is too easy to jump to the end of the story. This sculpture holds us in, and makes us wrestle with, a place of desolation and seeming worthlessness.”
Kenny’s ‘The Crucifixx’ is a precursor to the artist's 'Stations of the Cross, 1998-99', a series of drawings completed just before Kenny's death in 1999, and described as one of the finest examples of genuinely religious art within the Christian tradition, made since the Reformation. While 'The Crucifixx' is on display at the Abbey, Kenny's last major series of drawings 'The Stations of the Cross, 1998-99' can be seen at Quest Gallery, Bath.
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Over The Rhine - Sacred Ground.
Alan Garrow, Vicar Theologian at Bath Abbey explains why the piece is so special especially at this time of year:
“Crucifixx looks hurriedly assembled from off-cuts – the scraps of wood remaindered on a workshop floor. To the soldiers who executed Jesus his death was not something that required thought or care – it was just an ugly ‘everyday’ event. Set in the sanctuary of Bath Abbey this ‘ordinary’ object becomes part of a richer and more expansive story. Here, that which was thrown away has become central; that which was temporary has become permanent; that by which humans are torn apart has become the means by which they are restored to wholeness. But, it is too easy to jump to the end of the story. This sculpture holds us in, and makes us wrestle with, a place of desolation and seeming worthlessness.”
Kenny’s ‘The Crucifixx’ is a precursor to the artist's 'Stations of the Cross, 1998-99', a series of drawings completed just before Kenny's death in 1999, and described as one of the finest examples of genuinely religious art within the Christian tradition, made since the Reformation. While 'The Crucifixx' is on display at the Abbey, Kenny's last major series of drawings 'The Stations of the Cross, 1998-99' can be seen at Quest Gallery, Bath.
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Over The Rhine - Sacred Ground.
Thursday, 2 June 2011
Bath and Malmesbury
I've had a few days away in Bath and the surrounding area driving to a soundtrack of Mojo's latest cover CD, a complitation of Communion artists.
Communion was born in the Summer of 2006 at London’s Notting Hill Arts Club. Founded by Ben Lovett (Mumford and Sons), former Cherbourg bassist Kevin Jones, and acclaimed producer Ian Grimble, it quickly grew into a flourishing community of musicians and fans alike, providing a first independent platform for the freshest young artists on London’s circuit and beyond. The monthly night has now seen the likes of Noah and the Whale, Laura Marling, Mumford and Sons, JJ Pistolet and Peggy Sue all grace the stage from the very start of their fledgling careers. Communion Records was founded in September 2009 priding itself on creating a close working family in which to allow artists to develop at their own pace.
Bath's Fringe Festival added additional interest to our visit with several of the photos above taken in the FAB at the Officer's Club exhibitions. I also enjoyed seeing paintings by Cecil Collins and Graham Sutherland at the Victoria Art Gallery and the new extension to the Holburne Gallery (see photo above) but the exhibition highlight was definitely Helpless Angels at the bo.lee gallery which saw paintings by Fran Williams supplemented by the angel sculptures of other gallery artists. Williams' paintings deal in primal light-dark contrasts to suggest an emergent sense of the angelic in her distressed characters. Look out for the gallery's Shadowside London exhibition from 13th - 18th June at Blackall Studios Shoreditch.
Other forthcoming exhibitions that should be of interest include The Acts of the Apostles by Ulrich Lindow at Malmesbury Abbey from 19th June throughout the summer and Mark Angus: Flying Figures at the Victoria Art Gallery from 23 July - 2 October.
Sculptor Ulrich Lindow works in northern Germany near Malmesbury's twin town of Niebüll. His The Acts of the Apostles installation is described as "a dramatic re-enactment of the events narrated in the New Testament." Lindow has imagined a red glow from the tongues of flame reflected in the colouration of the rough hewn faces of his disciples (see photos above).
Originally from Bath, Mark Angus is one of Europe's best stained glass artists. His stunning work for churches and cathedrals in England and Germany is well known, but his freestanding glass figures - glowingly coloured diving and backlit figures exploring the theme of Eternal Youth - go on public view for the first time in the exhibition at the Victoria Art Gallery.
While in Malmesbury I also saw the Photographic Exhibition in the Town Hall, which includes excellent work by Betsy Little and Fred Goudie among others, and found a secondhand copy of Messenger of Beauty: The Life and Visionary Art of Nicholas Roerich. Roerich was a Russian-born artist whose paintings explore the mythic origins, the natural beauty, and the spiritual strivings of humanity and of the world.
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Marcus Foster - Circle in the Square.
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