How long does it take to get to know you?

Vicar "plans to visit all 9000 homes in his new parish during Lent to get to know his new flock."  Church Times

 This is a tricky post to write as I am fully supportive of the concept of getting to know parishioners (note - not congregation - though I don't mind getting to know them too).  But, and I am afraid it is a but, I don't think this is the way to do it.  After all, with 9,000 homes it averages 6 minutes per home, and that assumes working 24 hour days for the 40 days of lent (I figure he needs to take services on Sunday).  If we get a bit more realistic and assume he can spend 8 hours a day for the 40 days then simple maths says that it becomes 2 minutes each - and that is ignoring time between houses - lets hope he doesn't have any of those large houses where it would take 2 minutes to walk down the drive!


If we get a little more realistic then not everyone will want to talk to him!  (I was talking to a priest one day about wearing a clerical collar - I assumed that wearing one on the train might lead to more space around me.  Not at all - she described it as a "nutter magnet").  And in the hours available, assuming that he gets away in 30 seconds from those who are out or not interested, it gives 250 hour long conversations.

When I started writing this post my assumption was that it was an impossible thing to do, and having read "If you meet...", which among other things suggested to me that the days of mass clergy visiting were over because of other priorities, I wasn't sure it was realistic.  Having crunched the numbers it now seems a better idea, but one which would realistically take a little longer than lent to carry out properly.  One for my kit bag when I move on methinks.  It feels like the kind of thing that you can do when you are new, before the congregation realise the interregnum is over!

Just found that it might be 10,000 parishioners, not 9,000 homes! http://www.cofeguildford.org.uk/  Makes it more conceivable still.

Our Sound is Our Wound - Part 1

"their sound itself becomes a wound - a sacrifice that they willingly make, fashioning a beauty that needs neither explanation or excuse." p2 (talking about a string quartet)

I don't get it!  At least, not yet.  I am reading this as part of my lenten study (see here).  This post will record my thoughts on the introduction and there will no doubt be others.

Lucy Winkett is using sound as a metaphor and as a tone deaf non musician I am not finding this easy.  That said, in the introduction she also writes a lot of things that I do understand and which do resonate, and for which the sound metaphor adds not one jot (for me).

There is no normative experience against which everything everything should be measured, and, when we recognise this, our relationship with God and our understanding of human beings will be only expanded and enriched. (Sparked by the idea of the deaf musician - especially Evelyn Glennie) p5

Emotional or psychological wounds are harder to see and therefore easier to hide.  But part of maturing as people, whatever our circumstances, is that we learn to live with the wounds from our past.  It can be precisely from contemplating and accepting those wounds that we begin to mend, and that we learn that it is never to late to start again.  p6

Christians offer modern society the conviction that wounds, which are a part of the human condition, are given meaning by meditating on them in the light of the wounds of God, seen in Jesus. p7

All language that we use about God is metaphor... p8 

I found all of these quote immensely powerful, but so far I am finding the attempt to force them into a "sound" straitjacket unhelpful.  That said I am looking forwards to the rest of the book!

Lent starts here!

http://www.cartoonchurch.com/content/cc/lent/

No, I'm not going to give up blogging for lent (shame I hear you cry!).  Instead I am going to continue, but with added Christian Aid!  As for the past few years Christian Aid are running "Count Your Blessings" which is a scheme to help you reflect on other parts of the world and raise money at the same time.  Today's challenge:

883 million people worldwide often don’t know where their next meal is coming from.  Give 10p for each hour between your last meal and your next.

Well, lets say that is 5 hours, as I am writing in the afternoon and had a late lunch, so that's 50p.

I read a good blog on lenten discipline, so using the Vernacular Curate's pattern ...

There goes the chocolate until after Easter - which might also have beneficial effect on the waistline.  Lets just hope I don't forget like I did one year and have a choccy biscuit without even realising L.  Still I remember reading someone somewhere saying that it is good to fail at your lenten discipline because it reminds you that you can achieve nothing alone!

I too will be blogging and I have bought the Archbishops Lent book by Lucy Winkett - so that can join my pile of unread books (hope not).

As I am in the same Archdeaconry as my Vernacular mate I too have been offered an extra day off a week during lent.  There has been much talk among the clergy about how this isn't helpful, life is even busier in lent - so please can we have the time off at another  time.  With little experience of a clerical lent I think that our Area Bishop had it spot on - if it is not possible to find an extra day off in lent then we are doing too much and need to stop doing some things - if you do what you've always done you'll get what you've always got.  I have put these days in my diary, but to do so meant having to take some other things out - perhaps easier as a curate than an incumbent, but the principle holds.  As for taking on something new... not sure about that one for me, though I am planning to attend the Churches Together for Chesham Lent lectures which has an excellent set of speakers.

And finally... time - that old chestnut - well, not looking good on this front - but with the extra time off I think I will be less stressed and am planning to make time to read a new book!

And with people out there watching in there might just be the odd extra incentive to keep things going.