I always notice old churches...there's something about them like a story that is yet to be told, or old stories that need to be told. Anyhow, if I wasn't driving most of the time I would walk into them if I could.
I’m always amazed that you can just walk in… in the English countryside you find these tiny old churches in the middle of nowhere and they’re almost always open and completely empty. I guess that’s the whole point of them, but it still seems miraculous somehow.
When I was pet-free, I would roll my eyes and skip the service that week. Now that I have 2 pups, I desperately want to take them but our minister thinks it’s a stupid ritual which he refuses to conduct. Hard to believe really, because he’s such a kind man in every (other) way!
Remember I said go find the Fibonacci numbers in nature? Now that I know about them, and fractals too, and constants, (because for my own writerly reasons I stupidly put my toe in the mathematical waters,) it is getting hard not to see them, or perhaps, put a better way, to see them where they are and not see them where they are not. It's like going to a play and taking apart the experience while experiencing the whole at the same time: writing, acting, direction, lighting, costuming, sound effects. etc. Way back in high school when asked to parse a poem, the chiefest complaint of students was that the parsing ruined the enjoyment of the work. It seems a lame excuse to avoid the work of understanding and enjoying art, or in the case of maths, the powerful emotional impact of nature on our senses by its long-evolved means.
I like the fact that those who offer the animal blessings at your local CofE relate at the level of the parish. What a humane thing that is.
Happy Thanksgiving Leah!! : it was a lovely Toronto day today - not quite perfect- but sunny in parts & then cool and quiet & somewhere up there some stars are shining - except we can't see them in east Toronto . The trees are changing here and everyone is cooking Turkey this weekend & thinking about their upcoming Halloween plans (aka costume) . Some things never change.. The Maple Leaf forever!! 😂😂 . hugs Victoria xox
Observation always leads me to contemplation: an artist's highway to inspiration! Your musing also speaks to cultural shifts/differences. A few days ago I attended a formal charity luncheon which would usually include an opening prayer but this time that Christian custom was replaced by words of gratitude for being on Indigenous lands. I wondered if that meaningful offering of praise would be a 'new normal' for Canadian culture. Awareness of signs of any sort can lead us to greater understanding and tolerance. I try to channel Montaigne often as I practise my version of Awelogy. https://catchmydrift.blog/2021/04/12/re-awe/
Yes! And mine is about churches, too. Not English churches, but American ones. The way they often have these signs outside that have messages on them. The kind made up of interchangeable letters, so that they get changed frequently. It's so crass, I think that's what I notice about them. The same signs that people use to advertise what's for sale at the convenience store, or what's playing at the movie theater. And there are different styles. Sometimes serious, just a Bible verse or something. Or the times of the services. And then sometimes it brings out the wit, dad jokes, and puns. During the early days of the pandemic, one near us read, "God hasn't cancelled church, he's just moved it to your place."
Your reference made me think of the clever way that The Simpsons First Church of Springfield makes fun of that practise. Reverend Lovejoy is such a great character. During football season he posted; "Every Sunday is Super Sunday."
Maybe I read this too fast but you seem dismissive of those who love, respect, and revere other living creatures who are not of our species, as if love of our dogs and cats are for "transvestites with shaved legs" or "lonely old ladies." What about Albert Schweitzer's "reverence for life?" The interspecific bond is real and strong and life-giving; wish you'd meditated about that for a spell.
Not at all, I think it’s a lovely ritual and feel nothing but boundless love for all creatures as well as my neighbourhood transvestite and his gorgeous shaved legs.
I loved reading about how you took your time to read the posters on the trees before the wind blew them away . And how the posters were signposts of your children's milestones.
My mom is Episcopalian (the American version of Anglican), and I've gone with her to at least a couple animal blessings in the past, once when we had a dachshund named Toddy (who sadly passed from a heart disease only a few years after we got him), and again with our first cat, Leina (who is still with us, thank goodness). Both times we mainly just sat in a circle outside the church while the priest gave a sermon about animals and blessed each of them in turn. I'm not sure if this is something that all churches do, however, so maybe the mystery won't be 100% broken by my account. I can say that it was a really nice experience though, and felt very communal and nature-based.
Homes: I almost never see a house or apartment building without a story starting in my mind about someone living in that particular focal point of light, air, architecture and geography.
I bless animals every day by not eating them
I always notice old churches...there's something about them like a story that is yet to be told, or old stories that need to be told. Anyhow, if I wasn't driving most of the time I would walk into them if I could.
I’m always amazed that you can just walk in… in the English countryside you find these tiny old churches in the middle of nowhere and they’re almost always open and completely empty. I guess that’s the whole point of them, but it still seems miraculous somehow.
So true. And what’s interesting is they have that vibe about them, like an invitation to walk in!
Old cemetries do that to me . But then again I have an unusual fixation on death .
When I was pet-free, I would roll my eyes and skip the service that week. Now that I have 2 pups, I desperately want to take them but our minister thinks it’s a stupid ritual which he refuses to conduct. Hard to believe really, because he’s such a kind man in every (other) way!
Remember I said go find the Fibonacci numbers in nature? Now that I know about them, and fractals too, and constants, (because for my own writerly reasons I stupidly put my toe in the mathematical waters,) it is getting hard not to see them, or perhaps, put a better way, to see them where they are and not see them where they are not. It's like going to a play and taking apart the experience while experiencing the whole at the same time: writing, acting, direction, lighting, costuming, sound effects. etc. Way back in high school when asked to parse a poem, the chiefest complaint of students was that the parsing ruined the enjoyment of the work. It seems a lame excuse to avoid the work of understanding and enjoying art, or in the case of maths, the powerful emotional impact of nature on our senses by its long-evolved means.
I like the fact that those who offer the animal blessings at your local CofE relate at the level of the parish. What a humane thing that is.
I completely agree— the best sort of Christianity, perhaps that’s why I’m drawn to it?
Happy Thanksgiving Leah!! : it was a lovely Toronto day today - not quite perfect- but sunny in parts & then cool and quiet & somewhere up there some stars are shining - except we can't see them in east Toronto . The trees are changing here and everyone is cooking Turkey this weekend & thinking about their upcoming Halloween plans (aka costume) . Some things never change.. The Maple Leaf forever!! 😂😂 . hugs Victoria xox
Observation always leads me to contemplation: an artist's highway to inspiration! Your musing also speaks to cultural shifts/differences. A few days ago I attended a formal charity luncheon which would usually include an opening prayer but this time that Christian custom was replaced by words of gratitude for being on Indigenous lands. I wondered if that meaningful offering of praise would be a 'new normal' for Canadian culture. Awareness of signs of any sort can lead us to greater understanding and tolerance. I try to channel Montaigne often as I practise my version of Awelogy. https://catchmydrift.blog/2021/04/12/re-awe/
Yes! And mine is about churches, too. Not English churches, but American ones. The way they often have these signs outside that have messages on them. The kind made up of interchangeable letters, so that they get changed frequently. It's so crass, I think that's what I notice about them. The same signs that people use to advertise what's for sale at the convenience store, or what's playing at the movie theater. And there are different styles. Sometimes serious, just a Bible verse or something. Or the times of the services. And then sometimes it brings out the wit, dad jokes, and puns. During the early days of the pandemic, one near us read, "God hasn't cancelled church, he's just moved it to your place."
Your reference made me think of the clever way that The Simpsons First Church of Springfield makes fun of that practise. Reverend Lovejoy is such a great character. During football season he posted; "Every Sunday is Super Sunday."
I remember that episode!
Thank you Leah!You are wise and wonderful and great fun!
Dunno about the first two but I’m certainly having fun. Hope you are too Murray.
Maybe I read this too fast but you seem dismissive of those who love, respect, and revere other living creatures who are not of our species, as if love of our dogs and cats are for "transvestites with shaved legs" or "lonely old ladies." What about Albert Schweitzer's "reverence for life?" The interspecific bond is real and strong and life-giving; wish you'd meditated about that for a spell.
Not at all, I think it’s a lovely ritual and feel nothing but boundless love for all creatures as well as my neighbourhood transvestite and his gorgeous shaved legs.
I loved reading about how you took your time to read the posters on the trees before the wind blew them away . And how the posters were signposts of your children's milestones.
Made me smile . Thank you .
Huh... I did not read that at all.
My mom is Episcopalian (the American version of Anglican), and I've gone with her to at least a couple animal blessings in the past, once when we had a dachshund named Toddy (who sadly passed from a heart disease only a few years after we got him), and again with our first cat, Leina (who is still with us, thank goodness). Both times we mainly just sat in a circle outside the church while the priest gave a sermon about animals and blessed each of them in turn. I'm not sure if this is something that all churches do, however, so maybe the mystery won't be 100% broken by my account. I can say that it was a really nice experience though, and felt very communal and nature-based.
Homes: I almost never see a house or apartment building without a story starting in my mind about someone living in that particular focal point of light, air, architecture and geography.