'From Hong Kong to Wickford' exhibition viewing evenings

We have held two further exhibition viewing evenings for the 'From Hong Kong to Wickford' exhibition at St Andrew's Wickford.

On Monday, Martin Singleton gave a talk entitled 'Flying Wild: Beautiful Birds and Insects' based on his photographs and included in the exhibition, which also feature in Ho Wai-On's video 'Flying Wild'.

Tonight, Ho Wai-On (Ann-Kay Lin) spoke about and showed extracts from her videos which include images from her collaborators in the exhibition. She spoke about music, rhythm and image modification/animation saying that, in her videos, she uses photos and videos clips given to her as raw materials meaning that the finished product is quite different from the the original photo or video clip.

The exhibition can be viewed until 16 December 2023 during St Andrew’s opening hours: Sat 9 am - 12.30 pm; Sun 9.30 am - 12 noon Mon 2 – 3.45 pm; Tue 1 – 4.30 pm; Wed 10 am - 12 noon; Fri 10 am – 1 pm.

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Ho Wai-On - Four Songs.

Unveiled: Ho Wai-On in conversation

Unveiled on Friday 7 October, 7.00 - 9.00 pm, at St Andrew's Wickford featuring composer Ho Wai-On in conversation with Jonathan Evens. The evening will include audio and video clips from her work. Wai-On will speak about her compositions and cross-cultural combined arts work.

Ho Wai-On (surname: Ho, aka Ann-Kay Lin) is from Hong Kong but has lived most of her life in or near London. She is best known as a composer, and creator/director of cross-cultural combined arts projects. She has written more than one hundred compositions for various combinations − vocal, choral, instrumental, ensemble, orchestral, electro-acoustic, music theatre, dance, music for the stage, multi-media, and the scores for three short films. Her works reflect different cultures including Western, Chinese, Japanese and Indian; and span various art forms including music, dance, theatre, design, multi-slide projection and music videos. She has lectured and received numerous commissions.

Unveiled
A regular Friday night arts and performance event
at St Andrew’s Church, 7.00 – 9.00 pm
11 London Road, Wickford, Essex SS12 0AN
Exhibitions, open mic nights, performances, talks and more!

• Unveiled – a wide range of artist and performers from Essex and wider, including Open Mic nights (come and have a go!).
• Unveiled – view our hidden painting by acclaimed artist David Folley, plus a range of other exhibitions.

Initial Autumn Programme

• 30 September - Simon Law in concert. Simon has fronted the rock bands Fresh Claim, Sea Stone and Intransit, as well as being a founder of Plankton Records and becoming an Anglican Vicar.
• 7 October – Conversing with composers – Hear Classical composer Ho Wai-On speak about her work and view videos of her work - https://www.howaion.co.uk/aboutme.html.
• 14 October – Visit to Luke Jerram’s ‘Gaia’ installation at Chelmsford Cathedral. Measuring seven metres in diameter and created from 120dpi detailed NASA imagery of the Earth’s surface the artwork provides the opportunity to see our planet, floating in three dimensions. Tickets cost £4.00.
• 21 October – ‘Wickford Famous’ – a talk by Ken Porter (Basildon Heritage)

Unveiled’s Autumn Programme will continue to 25 November.

Advance Notice: Unveiled - Rev Simpkins & the Phantom Folk, Friday 18 November, 7.00 - 9.00 pm, St Andrew's Wickford. 

Rev Simpkins’ music mixes the colourful folk tradition of Appalachians Mountains with the melodiousness and carefully-observed lyrics of the Kinks. Close harmonies intertwine with banjo, French horn, and bass.

At this concert the band will perform the Rev’s acclaimed fourth album and book, Saltings in its entirety.

Created with the Illustrator, Tom Knight, Saltings is a loving portrait of the mystery and beauty of Essex's salt marsh wilderness, and a meditation on the real human cost of the wilderness time of the pandemic.

Found within 50 miles of London, the saltings are one of England’s last natural wild spaces. Working as a parish priest a few miles away, Matt came to the saltings to retreat and compose these compelling and compassionate songs about his community’s real-life experiences during the pandemic. Saltings portrays hope found amid wilderness.

The Reverend Matt Simpkins is the fourth generation of his family to be ordained priest in the Church of England. Prior to ordination, Matt was a professional musician having been a choral scholar at Oxford University and a Lecturer in Music. He collaborated with Kenney Jones of the Small Faces to reconstruct the orchestral parts of their 1968 psychedelic masterpiece Ogden’s Nut Gone Flake. In 2019 a diagnosis of cancer and a period of illness brought an opportunity to make new music and the Rev released the hope-filled album Big Sea in 2020, which was selected as one of Louder than War’s albums of 2020.

‘a triumph…hypnotic and compulsive listening’ Fatea on Saltings

‘tender...magnificent...outstanding’ Vive le Rock on Saltings

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Ho Wai-On - Fly Wild.

How can the faith sector support social prescribing?

The 4th International Social Prescribing Network conference programme was packed with great speakers, the latest research and provided an opportunity for anyone interested or involved in social prescribing to come together. The conference, which was on the 10th and 11th March 2022, was recorded and videos of sessions are now being made available. 

I was involved in a breakout session on the question of 'How can the faith sector support social prescribing?' This session shared examples of how different faith organisations are supporting and collaborating with social prescribing schemes and other VCFSE organisations. Also involved were Dr Peter Rookes, Birmingham Council of Faiths - Faith Organisations and Social Prescribing, and Sufia Alam - London Muslim Centre - providing perspectives from Community Organisations.

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Solomon Burke - Don't Give Up On Me.

Remembering Ervin Bossányi

Remembering Ervin Bossányi was an event held at the Liszt Institute dedicated to Hungarian-born artist Ervin Bossányi, best known for his stained glass windows at Canterbury Cathedral.

Ervin Bossányi (1891-1975) was born in a small village in southern Hungary and educated in Budapest. He worked as a painter and sculptor mainly in northern Germany until his forced emigration in 1934. In due course, he would establish a new career as a notable stained glass artist in England. He created stained glass windows for Senate House Library, University of London, the Tate Gallery (‘The Angel Blesses the Women Washing the Clothes’), the Victoria and Albert Museum (‘Noli me tangere’), as well as for York Minster, the President Woodrow Wilson memorial chapel in Washington National Cathedral, Washington DC and Canterbury Cathedral, among others.

Art historian Monica Bohm-Duchen, founding director of Insiders/Outsiders, led a panel discussion with family members, stained glass experts and others to explore the extraordinary life and unique cultural contribution of this still too little-recognised artist.

Panel participants:

• Ilona Bossányi: granddaughter of Ervin Bossányi
• Revd Jonathan Evens: Team Rector for Wickford and Runwell, who writes regularly on visual arts and has a special interest in émigré artists who worked for the Church
• Alfred Fisher MBE: stained glass artist, who worked with Bossányi
• Caroline Swash: stained glass artist and author of The 100 Best Stained Glass Sites in London

The video of this event is above. Due to technical issues, recording ended after Alfred Fisher had spoken. In my presentation, which is as a result absent from the recording, I briefly mapped out the context within which Bossanyi’s work and vision can best be understood and appreciated, by showing the extent to which aspects of his approaches were shared with others in his day and time. My paper will be published by ArtWay shortly.

My Artlyst interview with Ilona Bossanyi about her grandfather can be found at Ilona Bossanyi: Tate’s Ervin Bossanyi Stained Glass Window Mothballed After 2011 Redevelopment.

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Zoltán Kodály - Missa Brevis.

Mission Summer School recordings

The Mission Summer School was a week aimed at practitioners wanting to engage more deeply with the theology of mission and explore how it relates to their own practice. Also for those already studying, providing an opportunity to be immersed in the theology and practice of mission.

Register at https://bit.ly/3sTjSYT for the opportunity to access recordings from the Mission Summer School (£10 fee).

Participants said:

• “Thank you so much for such a rich and brilliantly put together Summer School. It is so helpful and opening of the mind that when we finish I am not sure where to begin!!”
• "Each passing day has been richer than the last."
• "Rich insights and stories that challenged and enlightened."
• "All Theology Colleges should include training like this for all students."
• "To learn in a multi national / future way brings a breadth and depth that you do not always get in theological college."

The Summer School was structured around the 4 Cs of Commerce, Culture, Congregation and Compassion from the book ‘A Future Bigger than the Past’ by Sam Wells. Each morning Sam taught on each of those areas providing the framework for the day. Participants encountered churches/groups/organisations with a particular focus on the day’s theme. This included viewing activities, meeting people involved, hearing testimonies from the work, and engaging with some of the challenges and complexities involved.

Each evening we invited people to be part of a conversation about the theme of the day. We opened-up these conversations about practice and theology to include participants in discussion.

The Mission Summer School came from a partnership between HeartEdge and St Augustine’s College of Theology which provides in-depth and experiential engagement with the theology and practice of mission.

Register at https://bit.ly/3sTjSYT for the opportunity to access recordings from the Mission Summer School (£10 fee).

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Wovenhand - Good Shepherd.

(Still) Calling From the Edge & Telling Encounters

Since 2012, an annual conference has held space for disabled people- to gather, to resource each other and the church. It’s a partnership between St Martin-in-the-Fields & Inclusive Church, working #withnotfor disabled people. If you want to sign up to receive information about Disability Conferences each year, fill in this sign up form. You can also follow the Disability Conference on Twitter: @livingedgeconf

(Still) Calling From the Edge 2021

This year’s conference is entitled ‘(Still) Calling From the Edge’ and takes place online on the 16th October 2021. Booking and more information is on the Eventbrite page. In addition to the main conference in October, there are two pre-conference online events. The first is ‘Out of the Depths’ and is a music-based workshop. The second is ‘Called to the Feast’ and is an art-based workshop.

Telling Encounters 2020

Telling Encounters: Stories of Disability, Faith, Church and God was our 9th annual conference on disability & church in partnership between St Martin in the Fields & Inclusive Church. Recordings of sessions from the conference can be viewed here.

Devised during the pandemic, we were entirely online for the first time and hosted by HeartEdge. It was a steep learning curve to work out how to transition the conference to an online format with talks, workshops, small groups, liturgy, marketplace, chaplaincy and coffee hangout. Thanks to the disabled-led planning team and conference staff for making this work. 

Sadly due to technical issues BSL & captions were not captured on all the recordings. Huge thanks to Rachel Noel, our tech lead, for the enormous undertaking of streaming, recording and rendering the films to be the best they can be. 

Krysia Waldock's blog conference report https://www.inclusive-church.org/2021/03/12/telling-encounters-stories-of-disability-faith-church-and-god/ .

Fiona MacMillan wrote about the conference planning in Finding Abundance (ed Samuel Wells, Canterbury 2021).

An archive of materials from earlier conferences can be found at https://www.inclusive-church.org/disability-conferences/.

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Victoria Williams - Holy Spirit.

Rediscoveries and new discoveries

In a week of rest I've been taking time to enjoy the following:

Revolutionary Army of the Infant Jesus say they: 

'have always been concerned with the sacred or — perhaps more accurately — the loss of the sacred. We are searching for its echoes and traces which are scattered and hidden in surprising and forgotten places.

We have spoken in the past about the theology of Icons in the Eastern Church. They are fragments of a restored creation; elements of nature that have been transfigured to create images of heavenly glory. We are not claiming that our music in any way realizes this ideal, but it is an idea that has influenced us almost from the inception of RAIJ. It has been an even more explicit inspiration for this album and its title, Beauty Will Save the World, which is a quote from Dostoevsky, a writer steeped in the Orthodox tradition.

In the Western tradition, art is illustrative and beauty is an aesthetic concept whereas to the Eastern Church art is sacramental and beauty is the pursuit of divine truth, so questions about the sacred and the beautiful necessarily converge.' (NPR)

'Victoria Williams - Happy Come Home' is a film by D A Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus of the storytelling, improvising, tree-hugging, spellbinding talent that is Victoria Williams.

Pennebaker explains that: 'David Geffen asked us to make a short video portrait of Victoria Williams, whose first record he was about to release. He wanted radio stations to see what she looked like. So we took her back home to Louisiana and made a half-hour film with her that we loved.'

The remainder of the film can be found here, here and here.

Grant Alden writes in 'No Depression' that: 'Victoria’s records and concerts are like one imagines church should be. They are open and honest and celebratory, full of delight and respect, able to sweep black clouds to the side with a soft breath.' 

Long Hot Summers - The Story Of The Style Council: Documentary about the band that Paul Weller formed after The Jam split up in 1982, with insight from key members, collaborators and fans. 'When Paul Weller announced The Style Council's arrival in March 1983, he'd come a very long way. In fact, at the age of just 24, he was already a musical veteran with six albums and nine Top 10 singles under his belt with The Jam. As their leader he had become a deity-like figure and for his fans, The Jam's split was unimaginable. But creatively restless and of inquisitive mind, Paul jettisoned them at their height to form a collective with an eventual core line-up of Paul with Mick Talbot, Dee C Lee and Steve White. Over four albums and 17 singles, The Style Council made a stand and became the standard bearers of progressive soulful pop and social comment. This is their story.'

Shadow Network: Media, Money, and the Secret Hub of the Radical Right - In 1981, emboldened by Ronald Reagan's election, a group of some fifty Republican operatives, evangelicals, oil barons, and gun lobbyists met in a Washington suburb to coordinate their attack on civil liberties and the social safety net. These men and women called their coalition the Council for National Policy. Over four decades, this elite club has become a strategic nerve center for channeling money and mobilizing votes behind the scenes. Its secretive membership rolls represent a high-powered roster of fundamentalists, oligarchs, and their allies, from Oliver North, Ed Meese, and Tim LaHaye in the Council's early days to Kellyanne Conway, Ralph Reed, Tony Perkins, and the DeVos and Mercer families today.

In Shadow Network, award-winning author and media analyst Anne Nelson chronicles this astonishing history and illuminates the coalition's key figures and their tactics. She traces how the collapse of American local journalism laid the foundation for the Council for National Policy's information war and listens in on the hardline broadcasting its members control. And she reveals how the group has collaborated with the Koch brothers to outfit Radical Right organizations with state-of-the-art apps and a shared pool of captured voter data - outmaneuvering the Democratic Party in a digital arms race. In a time of stark and growing threats to our most valued institutions and democratic freedoms, Shadow Network is essential reading.

Our Lady Peace: When Mark Van Doren, the American poet and teacher, wrote his famous work, "Our Lady Peace" in 1943, he couldn't have imagined the concept of rock'n'roll, let alone that a Canadian rock group would adopt his title for their name. 'Our Lady Peace were one of the quintessential bands of the 1990s alternative boom. The group shared qualities with many of its guitar-driven contemporaries, such as angsty power chords and propulsive beats. But front person Raine Maida's iconic jolts from chest voice to falsetto singing and enigmatic, labyrinthine lyrics helped set the group apart from the pack.'

Some of the above are rediscoveries and others new discoveries.

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The Revolutionary Army of The Infant Jesus - Bright Field.

The Beauty Project

The Beauty Project is about sharing and exploring our experience of beauty during the pandemic. The project has been created by Rachel Weir, who writes:

'As the first lockdown began in March, like many people, I found myself spending far more time outdoors, often taking long walks with the dog, and catching glimpses of beauty everywhere along the way.

This autumn I began studying for an MA, learning about how beauty has been understood by the philosophers through the ages and just how hard a subject it is to pin down. Is beauty somehow ‘out there’ as Plato believed? Or is it entirely ‘in the eye of the beholder’ as Hume maintained? And what does it ‘do’ for us psychologically and spiritually when we have that mysterious experience of finding something beautiful?

As I read the many elaborate theories about how all this might work, I began wondering how people were actually experiencing beauty now, in this time of intense suffering and loss. I know how important beauty has been to me in these past six months and I wanted to see if I could gather together a record of how it has been for others.'

Rachel hopes the project will provide a place of hope and encouragement in these dark times and invites you to share an experience if you can.

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Gungor - Beautiful Things.

Voting Your Conscience: The Role of Faith and Values

Yesterday, with our co-hosts The CEEP Network, HeartEdge presented a timely seminar on voting and how our faith and values factor into where we place our ‘X’ on the ballot. The conversation, moderated by Chip Edens of Christ Church Charlotte, was deep and meaningful. The recording is now available and may be accessed here.

Our panelists - Jan Cope, Provost of Washington National Cathedral; Robert Hendrickson, Rector of St. Philip’s Tucson; Russ Rook, Partner at Good Faith Partnership; Tricia Hillas, Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons; and, Kim Jackson, Vicar of Church of the Common Ground and Candidate for Georgia Senate - shared their unique perspectives and important observations on how faith impacts their voting. This outstanding panel also shared what keeps them hopeful in this moment.

We invite you to watch this powerful recording as I am confident you will be inspired.

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R.E.M. - Stand.

HeartEdge and the visual arts

Lots of art-related resources have been added to the HeartEdge video resource over the past two weeks.

I have interviewed the artists Sophie Hacker and Matthew Askey on the theme of 'Imaging the Invisible'. View these interviews here and here.

Additionally I have begun a new ongoing series entitled 'Seeing Salvation - Art in churches' shares practical approaches to using art in church settings.

Initial sessions are:

• 5 June - Session 1: Art Trails.
• 12 June - Session 2: Art and contemplation.
• 19 June - Session 3: Art workshops.
• 26 June - Session 4: Art meditations.
• 3 July - Session 5: Arts Festivals.
• 10 July - Session 6: Art exhibitions.
• 17 July - Session 7: Art projects.

The first two sessions in the series can be viewed here and here. Register for a zoom invitation for the remainder of the series at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/seeing-salvation-art-in-churches-tickets-108959314242?fbclid=IwAR38qSNIiWLSwIL1rCp5YX6zOOqIVZsMBUHlJo2YPHMU-UfoK1BB9yDY9Mc.

Inspired to Follow: Art and the Bible Story uses fine art paintings that can be found in the collection of the National Gallery as a spring board for exploring these two questions. The course provides a way of deepening one’s Christian faith and exploring what it means to follow Jesus today.

What’s the programme?

• 7 June: Luke 1:26-38 / ‘The Annunciation’ Fra Filippo Lippi, about 1450-3, NG666
• 14 June: Luke 1:26-38 / ‘Mystic Nativity’, Sandro Botticelli, 1500, NG1034
• 21 June: Mark 1: 1-12 / ‘The Baptism of Christ’; predella panel, Giovanni di Paolo, 1454, NG5451
• 28 June: Luke 10:25-42 / ‘Christ in the House of Martha and Mary’, Diego Velásquez, probably 1618, NG1375
• 5 July: Mark 11: 4-12 & 15-19 / ‘Christ driving the Traders from the Temple’, El Greco, about.1600, NG1457
• 12 July: Mark 11: 4-12 & 15-19 / Christ washing the Feet of the Disciples, Jacopo Tintoretto, about.1575-80, NG1130
• 19 July: Matthew 26: 36-54 / ‘The Agony in the Garden’ by Giovanni Bellini, about.1465, NG726
• 26 July: Matthew 26:57-68 / ‘Christ before the High Priest’, Gerrit van Honthorst, about.1617, NG3679
• 2 August: Luke 23:26-38 / ‘Christ carrying the Cross’, Italian, Venetian, about. 1500, NG6655

Email jonathan.evens@smitf.org for a zoom invite.

Additionally I was interviewed on art and HeartEdge today for 1.17 at All We Can. Every day at 1.17pm, All We Can is sharing positive and uplifting content on the theme of ‘Colossians 1:17 – All Things Hold Together’ – a series of encouraging broadcasts that you can watch and join in with from the comfort of your home. You can catch them every day on their Facebook page. View the interview that I gave here.

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Ola Gjeilo - Sanctus.

Encounter Series Videos

Encounter Series

The Autumn Lecture Series at St Martin-in-the-Fields featured lectures which focused on the theme of encounter. How are we changed by the people, events or objects we encounter when we meet them face-to-face? How do prejudices shift? How are new insights born? What inspires us to new ways of being and relating to God and to others? How do we become who we truly are through those we meet? How do we encounter God in our lives? In each of these lectures prominent and inspirational leaders, thinkers and practitioners speak from a personal but also public perspective about the way such encounters have changed the course of their lives.

This year, for the first time, we recorded the Autumn Lecture Series. Videos of Encounter 2018 are now available through our website. A study guide produced for churches wishing to use the videos with their congregations is available from jonathan.evens@smitf.org.


To watch Sam Wells introducing the Series click here


To watch Richard Carter introducing the speakers click here


To watch Rowan Williams Encountering the Other click here


To watch Christianity Encountering Islam (filmed at Baitul Futuh Mosque) click here


To Watch Encountering London click here


To watch Encountering Jesus of Nazareth
click here


To watch Encountering the Sacred click here


To watch Encountering God click here

The Encounters exhibition by Nicola Green which was shown at St Martin's during the Autumn Lecture Series is accompanied by a book published by Brepols publishers titled Encounters: The Art of Interfaith Dialogue.

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Anthony D'Amato & Ricky Ross

Great gig tonight at Emmanuel Billericay with Anthony D'Amato and Ricky Ross. Here are two of the best songs from both standout sets: 

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Anthony D'Amato - Ballad Of The Undecided.

St Stephen Walbrook - Art videos

The website for St Stephen Walbrook has had additional videos added relating to the art exhibitions that have been held there and films that have been made there in recent years.

These videos can be found in the Gallery section of the website and feature work by Francis Bacon, Daniel Bourke, Terry Ffyffe, Michael Takeo Magruder, Kim Poor and Paul Raftery.

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Genesis - Watcher Of The Skies.

Artlyst interview: Mark Dean projects ...

My latest article for Artlyst is an interview with Mark Dean, whose Stations of the Cross we recently hosted at St Stephen Walbrook as an all-night Vigil on Easter Eve.

In the interview Mark speaks about the elements of his work which often come together in quite surprising ways. He says:

"It does sometimes feel like it’s not just up to me – that there is an underlying relationship that I am drawing out, or noticing. And so the collaborative basis of this project feels like an extension of that process. And this is confirmed by the fact that all three of us (and of course the churches we are partnering with) have a common relation in our Christian faith, despite our quite different approaches. So without making grand claims, I would say it is the Holy Spirit that binds it all together. Actually, this goes back to the previous question about the sense of the sacred in art. The late critic Stuart Morgan once said to me that the problem with the Modernist engagement with spirituality wasn’t that it wasn’t real, but that it was somehow exclusive – as though only artists were privy to the spirituality that generated creativity. Understanding the working of the Holy Spirit throughout the world helps us to avoid that kind of elitism, which can be understood as a form of Gnosticism."

This aspect of his work is further explored by Lucy Newman Cleeve in her essay for the Stations2017 catalogue and in an interview that she gave to Elephant Magazine about the project. Stations2017 has been reviewed by Art & Christianity Journal, while the videos shown can be viewed on Mark Dean's website.

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Neil Young - Cowgirl In The Sand.    

St Stephen Walbrook: New website

St Stephen Walbrook has a tremendous new website which can be found at https://ststephenwalbrook.net/. On the site you will find details of our regular weekly services and upcoming events, live sermons as well as many articles about the rich history, heritage and features of this unique church, described by Sir John Summerson as ‘the pride of English architecture’.

The Events calendar on the site is powered by Churchapp which enables you to create a MyChurch account providing on-the-go access to our calendar and other useful information such as rotas. Churchapp also enables our online giving facility.

We have included on the homepage this prayer, written by Bishop Thomas Ken, which is at one time thought to have been inscribed on the door of St Stephen Walbrook: “O God, make the door of this house wide enough to receive all who need human love and fellowship, narrow enough to shut out all envy, pride and strife. Make its threshold smooth enough to be no stumbling-block to children, nor to straying feet, but rugged and strong enough to turn back the tempter’s power. God make the door of this house the gateway to Thine eternal kingdom.”

As part of our commitment to cultural programming, the site also includes two artist's perspectives on the interior of St Stephen Walbrook. Paul Raftery and Dan Lowe's time-lapse video of the church was recently premiered in the Sacred Geometries exhibition at the Anise Gallery. Daniel Bourke is undertaking a digital residency with St Stephen Walbrook re-creating the building as a virtual environment. His video on the website is one of his initial imaginative responses to the space.

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Daniel Bourke - St Stephen's.

#Joytotheworld

Today the Church of England launches its #JoyToTheWorld Christmas campaign with www.AChristmasNearYou.org and four special videos.

Over 27,000 services and events, ranging from the contemporary to traditional carols and nativity stories, have been added to a new website that enables the public to enter their postcode and find Christmas services and events happening near them.

Smartphone users will also be able to geo-locate the nearest services and add a reminder to their calendar. So far more than 2,300 congregations are providing mulled wine and 3,500 sharing mince pies after services.

In addition to the www.AChristmasNearYou.org website, there are four videos being released throughout December, each one sharing a moment of true Christmas joy. The short films star Gogglebox vicar Revd Kate Bottley, Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons Revd Rose Hudson-Wilkin, Becoming Revered author Revd Matt Woodcock and comedian Paul Kerensa.

Underpinning the launch of the campaign will be a targeted nationwide social media campaign on Facebook and Twitter to encourage the public to share Christmas #JoyToTheWorld.

Speaking about her moment of Christmas joy from her former church in East London, Revd Rose Hudson-Wilkin said:

"Mine has got to be at the very end of the Midnight Mass then we hear the words 'Yea, Lord we greet thee' - our first acknowledgment that Christmas has now arrived.

"Most Sundays people rush home to their rice and peas and dinner but we mingle, we stop and we greet each other and it's a wonderful moment. The Christmas Mass has got people attending who you wouldn't normally see and we get to pass on this Christmas joy."

Watch Rose's film here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFjyw_njzvg

Commenting on the launch of the new website, Revd Arun Arora, Director of Communications at the Church of England, said:

"We think a perfect Christmas includes a Church Christmas. No matter how good the dinner or how expensive the present, a deeper joy is to be found in Church at Christmas.

"Whether it's midnight mass, a nativity play, a carol service of the joy of welcoming the Christ child on Christmas day, the best kind of Christmas involves a visit to Church."

Visit www.AChristmasNearYou.org to find out more.

Church of England parishes across the country can get still involved by uploading their services to www.AChristmasNearYou.org/upload and also by sharing their moments of joy on social media using the hashtag #JoyToTheWorld.

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Pentatonix - Joy To The World.

God in Fashion

What has God got to do with fashion? In the video above Revd Peterson Feital explores how the Bible references clothing, what God would do differently if He was in charge of London Fashion Week and how Christians working in fashion are brought together through prayer.

Drawing upon his Christian beliefs and own intimate experience of the fashion industry, Simon Ward, formerly CEO of the British Fashion Council, recently launched The Character of Fashion, his powerful new book which investigates what the fashion industry can learn from God in order to change how it views the world and operates.

Some of the themes discussed in the book include not only how people can utilise their faith to better support each other in the workplace and create new and imaginative designs; but also how Christian values can tackle such contemporary and controversial issues as body image, the over-sexualisation of young models and the working conditions of low paid clothing manufacturers.

The first book in a series that has been dubbed ‘Multi-Talented God’, The Character of Fashion was launched at Simon Ward’s local church, St Sepulchre’s in Holborn, to coincide with London Fashion Week, which he had previously organised for many years in his role on the British Fashion Council.

Can faithful shoppers be shoppers of faith? How does religion relate to fashion? Can spirituality have style? Should the fashion industry respond to people who want to express their faith and spirituality through their clothes?

Artscom Centenary Professor of Cultural Studies Professor Reina Lewis, London College of Fashion brings together fashion designers and consumers, bloggers and journalists, educators and entrepreneurs, politicians and activists in a timely appraisal of these issues. With participants from secular and religious communities, Faith and Fashion provides an open forum for discussions about the opportunities - and the challenges - of melding religion with fashion.

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After The Fire - High Fashion.

Update: Sophia Hub Redbridge

Ros Southern writes:

Entrepreneur's club

In August there are two Wednesday morning sessions 10-12 in Mont Rose college, Cranbrook Road, Ilford. The topic for August is Freebies, Sharing Resources and finding friendly buildings. Information here.

17th August - with Vic Norman of London Pub Tours - social media and no cost marketing
31st August - speaker to be advised.

Follow up from the great Redbridge creatives meet up entrepreneur's club to follow next week :) So far we've made contact with 25 of you!

Other support for start-ups and businesses

The best first point for any business is to attend the London Small Business Centre 3 hour workshop on starting your own business. They take place monthly at Enterprise Desk. Next one is Tuesday 20 September 1-4. Details of the workshops and dates here.

See the Enterprise Desk info on the Council website for info on business support with Leonore Lord. Info here

The Timebank is a very practical platform for start-ups. We are currently running focus groups to see how we can take it to a higher level. Please do sign up and try it out. We hope to be re-integrating with the ECHO London Timebank soon. I'll be at the Enterprise Desk on Tuesday 16, 23 and 30 between 12 and 3 for any queries or help.

Support for charities and voluntary groups

Our Enterprising Redbridge project is ending its first phase. The final seminar is on Thursday 22 September 5.30-8. Great training and input. Info here.

Other great offers...

• Offer of 2 minute promotional interview-style video for £30. Contact start-up Muhammad of Marketing Scope. Info here
• Offer of free photo shoots by local mature photography student, info here
• Monthly workshops in Ilford library about open source IT to support your business or personal needs. Info here
• Free stalls for crafts and green businesses at the Ilford green pop up market, 2nd Saturday of the month. See about last one here and celebrity visit.
• Join Streetlife to get local trade. info here
• Book up for the London business show in November for free. Info here

Please Like our Facebook page, follow us on Twitter and feel free to send in guest blog info.

Best wishes,

Ros Southern
Coordinator, Sophia Hubs Redbridge
07707 460309

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Peter Case - Ain't Gonna Worry No More.

The Easter Vigil Service at St Stephen Walbrook

The Easter Vigil Service at St Stephen Walbrook is on Saturday 26 March at 6.00pm and includes the lighting of the Paschal Candle, renewal of Baptismal Vows and the first Eucharist of Easter. The setting, Mozart’s Mass in Bb, will be sung by the St Stephen Walbrook Choir with Joe Sentance on organ. The preacher will be The Revd Sally Muggeridge and the service will be followed by hot cross buns and drinks. All are most welcome.

'Lamentation for the Forsaken' by Michael Takeo Magruder can also be viewed. In this art installation, Takeo offers a lamentation not only for the forsaken Christ, but others who have felt his acute pain of abandonment.

Click here to view Arriving at Station XIII, a short series of videos exploring the development of this newly commissioned artwork for the Stations of the Cross project. The videos follow Takeo's progress as he conceives, develops and finally presents his installation at St. Stephen.

The installation was visited as part of a mini-pilgrimage undertaken by the Bishop of London and Archbishop of Westminster to three stations in the Stations of the Cross 2016 exhibition. Click here to see photographs from their visits to Salvation Army International Headquarters and St Giles Cripplegate and here to see videos of the visit to St Stephen and the other Stations.

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Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Missa Brevis in Bb.

Mini-Pilgrimage: Bishop of London & Cardinal Nichols

Stations of the Cross 2016 organisers Terry Duffy and Aaron Rosen 

with Cardinal Vincent Nichols outside St Stephen Walbrook

The Bishop of London and Cardinal Vincent Nichols undertook a mini-pilgrimage together today based on the Stations of the Cross 2016 exhibition, going from Salvation Army International Head Quarters to St Stephen Walbrook to St Giles Cripplegate.

At St Stephen Walbrook the Cardinal and Bishop viewed 'Lamentation for the Forsaken' by Michael Takeo Magruder speaking with the artist and praying the following prayer: 

Lord Jesus, enwrapped in death, upon the cloth that bound you was impressed your face, the face of the Son of the living God. Grant us the courage to seek your kingdom amidst the forsaken. Give us the grace to behold your suffering face upon those killed in conflict. May they rise to everlasting life with you who lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.

Cardinal Nichols spoke about seeing with the eyes of faith while Bishop Richard highlighted the importance of slowing down to reflect, something which this installation is achieving for busy City workers.

'Lamentation for the Forsaken' can be seen until Good Friday at St Stephen Walbrook (weekdays, 10am – 4pm, except on Wednesdays, 11.00am - 3.00pm), as part of ‘Stations of the Cross 2016’ an exhibition across 14 iconic locations in London during Lent. In his installation, Takeo offers a lamentation not only for the forsaken Christ, but others who have felt his acute pain of abandonment. 

Click here to view Arriving at Station XIII, a short series of videos exploring the development of this newly commissioned artwork for the Stations of the Cross project. The videos follow Takeo's progress as he conceives, develops and finally presents his installation at St. Stephen.

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Paradise - One Mind, Two Hearts.