Photos of Europe

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We arrived home last Wednesday, pretty exhausted after a 2 1/2 week trip. How can you take in London, the Cotswolds, Rome, Tuscany, and Venice in that short a time? I’ll be spending the last part of my sabbatical catching up with myself, getting ready to return to Grace on May 8th.

I was challenged by Marc Viera when we visited in London to make good on my promise to reflect poetically on our travels, since I had argued in an earlier post that art was the only way that humans can reflect on the ineffable. I’m not going to back off, but I would say in my own defense that the 1000 photos I took during these journeys are an example of my trying to capture God’s presence in that which I experienced. But here’s a stab at my poetic reflection.

Where in the World is God in This?

I find myself asking this question,

even as I struggle to define

just what it is I’m doing.

Is this a pilgrimage,

or a pleasure trip?

What does it mean to be prayerful

in the whirlwind of sights and sounds?

I have a strong sense of god in creation,

especially these beautiful sites we’ve seen,

but what about the gypsy beggars we seem to encounter everywhere?

Jesus is here with me,

but am I even aware of his presence?

God’s Spirit washes over me,

but I seem to lose my focus and awareness.

I’ve been most inspired and touched

being in God’s homes, those incredible churches

where the faithful have gathered for centurues

and where communities of faith live on.

The English vicar whose church we attended in Rome

knocked me down and made me smile

as he ended the service in this way.

“The blessing of God Almighty,

the Father, the soan,

and Her Holy Spirit,

be with you always.

To which I say “Amen! Alleluia!”

 

PS

I believe I posed two trivia questions during my travels. No one has answered either. So, a challenge for you. Answer one of these questions (the answer must be posted here as a comment) and I’ll give you a prize.

What is a “royal peculiar?”

When and why did Ben Franklin live in London?

 

Peace and love-

Bob

 

 

Tavarnelle Val Di Pesa

We’ve been here in the Chianti region of Tuscany since Monday, after spending last weekend in Rome. The scenery is the most abundantly beutiful I’ve ever seen. We’ve visited several hill towns and will return today for our second day in Firenze (Florence). On Monday we drive to Venice, then home on Wednesday. So much to report, so little time. I’m writing from a cafe in town that has one computer. Ciao.

Providence in London

Rhea and I were lucky today to meet with Marc and Jen Viera, Grace parishioners living in London, for coffee this afternoon. Jen is here working on her master’s in English, to be followed by her PhD, concentrating on William Shakespeare. Marc is working in occupational therapy in a neurotherapeutic hospital. They joined Grace and were married at the parish shortly after I arrived. At that time Marc was an environmental consultant and Jen was a ballerina. Big and important changes have happened in both their lives since then! Please look at the parish newsletter concerning their (reluctant) need to find homes for their dog and their parrot since Jen has been accepted in a wonderful PhD program here. It would be great if Grace could help with this. One poignant tourist/reality note: as we stood this morning outside Buckingham Palace waiting for the regularly scheduled changing of the guards, and as the time grew late, I approached a policeman, who informed me, matter-of-factly and without rancor, that “these are not toy soldiers,” and that the reason the changing of the guard would not happen today as scheduled is that the unit responsible has been deployed in Iraq/Afghanistan and has just returned home, much in need of rest. I felt humbled, guilty, and angry that I can take for granted the war that is underway and the sacrifice being made by so many. I also want this war to end, as do (apparently) many here in Britain. So, ironically, just as the man selling me a newspaper on Sunday thanked me as an American for our invaluable help in WW II, so too do many Brits want us and the UK out of Iraq. Pray for peace. Tomorrow is our last day here, with the highlight (I hope) being a visit to Ben Franklin’s house (trivia question: why did he live here, and for how long?).

A Royal Peculiar

We returned to Westminster Abbey today for a 90 minute tour led by one of the vergers. It was fascinating. I’m not going to tell you what a royal peculiar is, only that Westminster Abbey is one. Look it up, and we’ll talk about why this exists here in Britain. Meanwhile, I’m sure the tours that Grace parishioners will be doing are just as wonderful as the one we experienced today. Rhea and I laalso visited the Tate Modern Museaum and walked over the Millennium Bridge back to St. Paul’s Cathedral (not a royal peculiar) to catch the tube. St. Paul’s, by the way, is full of war memorials of ll sorts from way back indicative, I think of the fact that the  church is “established” here. Tomorrow we drive to Blenheim, Oxford, and the Cotswo..lds for the day.

Snow in April

We woke up yesterday to a snow storm, the first in 20 years here in London. The temperature was an unseasonably chilly 43 maximum (the star magnolia tree outside our window had already bloomed!) We went to church at Westminster Abbey, and were pleasantly surprised that the sermon was about Martin Luther King. It turns out that in 1998 the Abbey installed ten statues over the West entrance depicting 20th centurt Christian martyrs, with MLK in center position. The niches used for the statues had been empty since the Middle Ages! Here’s a list of those memorialized

20th century martyrs

In 1918, the Grand Duchess Elizabeth of Russia was killed by the Bolsheviks.

Manche Masemola was a Anglican catechumen from South Africa who was killed in 1928 by her parents at the age of 16.

Maximilian Kolbe was canonised by the Roman Catholic Church after being killed by the Nazis in 1941.

In 1941, Lucian Tapiede, an Anglican from Papua New Guinea, was killed during the Japanese invasion.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a Lutheran pastor and theologian. killed by the Nazis in 1945.

Esther John, a Presbyterian evangelist from Pakistan, was allegedly killed by a Muslim fanatic in 1960.

One of the world’s most famous civil rights activists,Martin Luther King, a baptist, was assassinated in 1969.

In 1972, Wang Zhiming was killed during the Chinese cultural revolution. He was a pastor and evangelist.

In 1977, Janani Luwum was assassinated during the rule of Idi Amin, in Uganda, for being an Anglican Archbishop.

Oscar Romero was a Roman Catholic Archbishop in El Salvado, assassinated in 1980.

 

After church we visited the new Churchill Museum and the Cabinet War Rooms, then had a late lunch in Piccadilly and strolled down the Pall Mall to Buckingham Palace. Today we’re off to “the City” to see how the judicial system works here and to Harrod’s for upscale takeout dinner.

On the Road Again

Tonight we leave for London with our friends Bob and Dorothy Mahoney from Boston. Bob and I grew up together in Virginia. It’s a long story, but suffice it to say it’s good to have life-long friends. We’ll be staying in Rhea’s dad’s time share at Sloane Square (thanks, Gene and Barbara!) for a week, after which we fly to Rome for 2 days, then drive to Tuscany (Chianti) for a week. We’ll end our trip with 2 days in Venice, and return here on 4/23. I’m a bit overwhelmed by the complexity of this trip, but we’re going with lots of suggestions (many from you) and nothing on our agenda but to look around. In the meantime, our family has been grieving this week. My 59 year old 1st cousin, Bill Patterson, died in his sleep Monday morning. Not only was Bill too young to die, but he was also very fit (mountain climbing, hiking, etc). Pray for Bill’s family. he’ll be buried tomorrow in Shrewsbury.Pray for Peace.Bob 

En Route

 

It’s Thursday, about 2 PM. We boarded the Auto Train yesterday afternoon for an overnight ride from Sanford, FL to Lorton, VA. We suspected that there was a problem when we awoke at 4 AM to find that the train wasn’t moving. When we got up this morning we found out that a freight train derailed at midnight in Richmond, damaging the tracks (and maybe spilling hazardous materials). So here we sit, with the prospect of arriving AT LEAST 10 hours late and with no alternative but to sit it out. So, what does all this mean? I remember my friend Zara who taught us on our trip to Alabama in 2005 that pilgrims need to ask this question: “What does the discomfort I’m experiencing tell me about what it means to be a pilgrim?” First, it’s dangerous to be on pilgrimage. And, not only are we in danger, but this particular event actually has put millions of others up and down the East coast at risk. It bothers me that our country hasn’t figured out a way to invest in infrastructure such that railroads, or local streets, or bridges, or sea ports, or airports are safe. Second, it could be worse, much worse, and for many in our country and particularly in other less affluent countries conditions every day are way worse. Our focus at Grace on the MDG’s comes to mind, and the relevance these initiatives have for all of us. What’s striking is that we as a nation have the capability to do miraculous things to improve the living conditions of the poor, but we choose to spend our money in huge amounts supporting a war at great cost in terms both of dollars and human lives on all sides. Finally, this experience reminds me that we are on this journey together, not alone. Having just finished The Last Week, I’m reminded that we travel with Jesus, on the road, on the way, on the road to Jerusalem, to experience again the events of Holy Week. When you’re a pilgrim, as we all are, it doesn’t matter that Easter was just 4 days ago. Every week is Holy Week if we’re following Jesus on the way.

Easter at the Beach

Rhea woke me up on Easter morning at about 6:30 to tell me there was a church service underway on the beach just in front of our motel room (Peter, Rhea’s brother, had gotten us the “best room in the house” for our Easter weekend visit). Sure enough, there were a couple of hundred people huddled on the beach listening to the Methodist (I think) minister as she preached about Easter. Due to the early date for Easter and the fact that the East coast of Florida is well West of RI, it was actually still pretty dark for the “sunrise” service. Later that morning we attended the 9 o’clock service at Christ Episcopal Church in Ponte Vedra, one of the largest Episcopal churches in the country. It was impossible (as it had been on Palm Sunday) not to compare their service with ours. I’ll spare you the details, but suffice it to say I REALLY missed being at Grace for Easter. We’re now in Vero Beach visiting our friends Ric and Steph Zimmermen (Ric was our quarterback at Harvard – if you’re interested, I’ll show you the highlight films! jusy joking). Tomorrow we go back to Orlando and jump on the Auto Train again, arriving in Virginia Thursday morning, then driving home. We’ve had a wondeful trip, but we’re both ready to get back to RI.

Naples (Florida, that is)

We left RI on Saturday, drove to DC, had a wonderful visit and went to Palm sunday at the Washington National Cathedral. 2500 + people, a beautiful service, but not THAT MUCH nicer than ours! We took the Auto Train to Orlando, then drove 4 hours ehre to Naples, where we’re visiting our friends Don and Ellen O’Neill. The big news is this: I really should be playing golf left handed, a fact that was proven to me this  morning on the golf range, when I finally hit with a left handed club (for those of you who haven’t noticed, I’m totally aoth paw). This afternoon we’re travelling East an hout to Ommokolee, a community of mostly migrant workers whrer the O’Neill’s are involved in what I wouls call social justice work on behalf of its children. Tomorrow we head acrfoss the state, and will spend one night with Rhea’s high school friend Nan and her husband Flo, then on to outside Jacksonville to spend Easter weekend with Rhea’s brother Peter and his  family.