Rural Churches Buildings: Worm Holes in Space & Time

Over the years I have had the pleasure of visiting many small rural churches in the three northern dioceses of Carlisle, Bradford and Ripon & Leeds.

Many of these beautiful churches buildings are well cared for and are still in regular use for worship and personal prayer. Most have been places of prayer for hundreds of years and some possibly for thousands, being built on the site of pre Christian religious sites.

This is perhaps why some are referred to as ‘thin places’ where the veil between earth and heaven is thin and therefore offer a ‘worm hole’ to a different spiritual dimension.

A visit to a rural parish church in summer can be a sensual experience with the pleasure of an ancient stone building surrounded by a grassy grave-yard with possibly sheep grazing.

Heavy wooden doors, with ancient wrought iron door handles, provide the gateways into a different world of shade and shelter from the summer sun or the rain and wind.

The smell of grass and wild flowers outside, gives way to the smell of polished wood, candles and on occasions, the heady smell of lilies in a flower arrangement from a recent wedding.

The peace inside only being disturbed by sheep bleating or possibly the sounds of swallows or sparrows nesting in the church porch, the sound of which can draw us in to prayer. See my blog

“How Listening to bird song has helped my prayer life”

Despite the painting over of murals and the stripping of plaster during the reformation and later re-ordering of buildings, many rural churches today are filled with iconic art and offer a stimulus or focus for prayer.

       

    

    Beautiful stained glass windows

    Hand stitched kneelers

           Banners depicting biblical stories or local scenes

Telling the History of the Place

Most rural church buildings also tell the story of the place and give us a fascinating insight in to the past with ancient inscriptions on grave stones and lists of:

Local men and women who died in the two world wars

    Baptisms

            Former vicars or rectors of the Parish

Some rural churches also give us glimpses in to the past in the form of carved figures of former landed gentry over graves.  If you are lucky there will be a leaflet or small guide book to the church and these are always worth a read as they provide the key to understanding the history of the place and enables your imagination to travel through time.

Still living places of worship

Worship still takes place Sunday by Sunday in most rural parish churches, although some may have to take their turn in a rota as part of large benefice or team of parishes.

In some, the clergy will still carry out the daily office of morning prayer and I have very fond memories of sitting around a flickering candle on a cold morning, praying for the parish and the world with a small group of clergy and readers, when I lived in Wharfedale or joining with a small congregation for the 8 o’clock Communion on a Sunday morning.

Still place of Community Celebration

Rural Churches are important places for community celebration and reflection such as a child’s baptism; a wedding or the last farewell to a local villager.

Harvest festivals in many rural areas are still celebrated even though the number of people now in involved in agriculture has significantly reduced. However rural people still like to put on magnificent displays with window sills piled high with apples carrots, purple and green cabbages, honey, nuts and a whole variety of local produce.

Midnight mass on Christmas Eve is one of the highlights of a village churches year, where a large number of villagers will turn out to the service, some rolling out of the local pub, which can add a certain colour to the event.

Original Community Building

Some rural churches are rediscovering their key role as the original community building and are providing space for a variety of essential local services such as:

Second hand book banks

Libraries

Community Post Offices

 Community shops

Information points

Space for arts and craft sales and exhibitions

All Saints Kirkby Overblow 

Some Parochial Church Councils are also removing the pews, opening out the space to create a wonderful space for community events and flexible worship. In fact the original configuration of older rural churches was without pews and when they are re removed this allows us to travel through time and to see the church architecture shown off  to its best with pillars growing out of the floor like       study ash trees.

The hidden Congregation

Many rural churches have hidden congregations made up of people who stop by for private prayer or reflection, pinning prayer requests on prayer boards or prayer trees.

To support these hidden congregations some churches provide a basic guide to the church building and its history as well as appropriate Christian and other literature to support people in time of need or distress.

Unfortunately many Parochial Church Councils fail to monitor the numbers of visitors. This is a shame as the numbers can be significant and statistics useful when a grant application needs to be made. Yet with a simple people counter on the door numbers can be easily recorded and with the aid of a visitor’s book or even a map the origins of visitors can be monitored and their comments recorded.

Worm Holes in Time and Space

Rural Church buildings are still places for the living yet they also provide ‘worm holes’ in time if we allow our imaginations to reflect on where we are standing.

All around us, under the floor and in church yards are the remains of many past parishioners and the buildings are still soaked in the payer of the many who have gone before which can remind us of the words of the creed:

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

If God and Heaven are outside of time, then so to are the dead and we join with them as part of the great tapestry of the pilgrim church. Rural Parish churches bring us face to face with this reality, giving us a glimpse beyond our own age to that which has gone before and is beyond us. They are places where heaven touches earth or to put it another way are ‘worm holes’ in time and space.

So the next time you are out in the country stop by at a rural parish church. No matter where you are you will have a treat in store, enjoy your journey you never know where it will take you, let your imagination fly.  You will be in good company. 

Parochial Church Councils may find the following web site from the Arthur Rank Centre of interest.   Getting the Most Out of Your Buildings

How Listening to bird song has helped my prayer life

Recently while talking with a colleague about using multi- sensory prayer stations to enable people to pray, she recommend me to view a video featuring an interview with Dr Herbert Benson on YouTube www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQAIaVmHyAE which outlines what Dr Benson calls the Relaxation Response.

The Relaxation Response is perhaps best described as the reverse of the fight or flight response; which is when faced with a stressful situation, our bodies respond by a rush of hormones such as adrenaline to increase our hart and breathing rates and our blood flow resulting in higher blood pressure to prepare our bodies for a fight or to escape.

Howard Benson suggests that our bodies are also imbued with a mechanism to induce a physiological state of quietness, which, relaxes the body, slows our heart and breathing rates and lowers our blood pressure.

In order to achieve this Benson suggests that two factor help these are:

A mental device such as a sound, word phrase, or prayer repeated silently or aloud, or a fixed gaze at an object.

A passive attitude-not worrying about how well one is performing the technique and simply putting aside distracting thoughts to return to one’s focus.

With eighty per cent of his patients choosing prayer as a method to elicit this response he found himself in the unusual position as a physician in the United States of teaching people to pray.

Following watching the video and reading more about “The Relaxation Response”   I started putting the strategies in to practice in prayer in church and at home and found they certainly helped relax my body and enabled me to leave my concerns with God in payer.

One morning I awoke early and as I lay in bed I practiced the techniques, as I did so I found I was listening to the sound of a pigeon call outside my bedroom window and the gentle repetitive calling was the perfect sound on which to focus my mind and to create an attitude of prayer.

On another occasion while camping I was listening to the dawn chorus and a sky lark singing over the fields of North Yorkshire and again found it the perfect melody to draw me in to an attitude of prayer.

This made me wonder, if perhaps St Francis’s attitude towards creation had been elicited by him listening to bird song, while in prayer. 

All Saints Kirkby Overblow has constantly been adapting through the centuries adopting new technologies and responding to the needs of the local community.

All Saints Parish Church sits at the centre of the small village of Kirby Overblow south of Harrogate and has seen many changes since reference was made to a church in the village in the Domesday Book.  Part of the current building dates back to the 14th century although a fragment of carved stone from the10th century has been found during recent works.

During the 18th century, the tower was largely rebuilt and fitted with a new clock (said to have the longest pendulum in Yorkshire); the chancel was re-roofed and re-paved; and a new porch was built.

In the 19th century new windows were pierced in the north wall, the tower arch and the west window were opened up and a completely new chancel arch was built. In addition a new stone pulpit was erected and new pews were installed. In 1890, improvements in lighting came with oil lamps replacing the old system of candles but the following year a fire destroyed the chancel roof and caused much damage to the choir stalls and organ.

The 20th century change continued with further improvements and the installation of electricity and the removal of some pews.

The millennium was celebrated with the installation of a mezzanine floor and a glass arch in the tower.
In the 21st century this pattern has continued with major changes.

When consideration was being given to providing a space for community activities including arts events and  a venue for the thriving drama group to put on productions, various proposals where considered; these  included building an arts barn or further changes being made to the church. The local community opted for and supported the further reordering of the church to provide a high quality and contemporary community space, with villagers giving generously to fund this project.

Under floor heating was installed, the 19th century pine pews were removed, the building re-wired and a fire alarm system installed along with professional stage lighting to cater for theatre and arts productions.

Today anyone entering this building will be struck by its warmth and light and with its modern facilities and with excellent acoustics the building is now used for a variety of uses including: Church Services, Conferences, Parties, Exhibition, Concerts, Wedding and Fashion Shows, Trade Fairs, Musical Events and Competitions, Drama and Film Shows and as a Recording Venue.  Facilities include

• Seating for 120 with clear sight lines
• Flexible seating and tables
• Data projector & screen,
• Microphones and hearing loops
• Sophisticated lighting system for concerts / theatre
• Wall space for posters and for exhibitions
• Exhibition boards for mounting work
• Small Kitchen with tea & coffee making facilities
• WC and parking area

Change continues and with the regular use being made of the building this has revealed the need for an upgraded kitchen area, improved toilet facilities and a meeting room so work goes on.

Thanks to All Saints Kirby Overblow website for much of the material and photographs used in this article.
www.allsaintschurchko.co.uk/

Another Church near Ripon that has undergone a similar transformation is St John's Sharrow see www.stjohnssharow.org/

Holidays, Labyrinths & Holy Days

Recently in order to attend a training day on spirituality, I travelled from Harrogate to Scargill House near Kettlewell in Wharfedale, which lies at the heart of the Yorkshire Dales National Park.

I used to live at Linton, close to Kettlewell, so making this longer journey felt rather different.

As I made my way I noticed that the roads became narrower at each junction, until they were reduced to a single carriageway with passing places. The landscape also became greener and more wooded as I approached Scargill.

As the subject of the day was spirituality I reflected as I drove on the nature of journey and it reminded me of some of the myths where people travel to far off places to receive enlightenment, such as visiting an oracle on a mountain peak or by travelling to the centre of a thick forest.

I observed how there were few buildings in upper Wharfedale and the landscape seemed more soothing on the eye and I started to relax. Perhaps this was due to a  phenomena I had recently heard about that suggests that hard angles found common in an urban setting causes visual stress; where as a natural setting devoid of these is more restful.  This sounded similar to how words on a page create visual stress for some people with certain learning differences such as dyslexia.

One of the spiritual exercises I encountered over the weekend was to follow the patterns of a labyrinth as a visual and Kinesthetic prayer. The prayer exercise involved tracing a journey to the heart of a complex labyrinth where prayers were left with Christ before returning along the same pathway to the mouth of the labyrinth. Unlike a maze you cannot get lost in a labyrinth as you return the way you entered with the journey designed to facilitate reflection and prayer. 

In a way I realised that as I made my journey through the Dales to Scargill House this was like travelling to the heart of a labyrinth and resembled a mini pilgrimage. In fact had the training day be conveniently located nearer home I don’t think it would not have had such a significant impact on me.

So if you are making a journey  this summer, perhaps to your holiday destination, consider the journey and your return like a journey to the heart of a labyrinth, where at the centre you will be able to leave your prayers with Christ. In doing so your holidays will not just be time off from work but will have become Holy Days, which by the way is where we get our word holiday from.   So happy holidays

Resources on labyrinth can be found at: http://labyrinthsociety.org and www.pilgrimpasths.co.uk  and for details of events and accommodation at Scargill see www.scargillmovement.org

The Space We Meet In Affects How We Encounter the Living Word

Many years ago while I was studying community and youth work in Birmingham it  was pointed out to me that the layout of a room  can have a significant impact on the way a group interacts.  I have never forgotten this and when I am asked to facilitate or lead a group I always consider if we can move the chairs and tables or perhaps even use a different room to enable better discussion and dialogue to take place.

Over the last couple of years I have become more conscious that the way our churches are arranged affects the way we worship and encounter Jesus.

With rows of pews or possibly chairs facing the front and a pulpit or a stage or platform it encourages a didactic approach and a focus around one or just a few people at the front. In many ways we have hardly moved on from a pre reformation model of worship and have simply swapped observing the celebration of the Mass for didactic preaching.

The thoughts of an octagonal design of our places of worship to encourage an interactive approach to worship and teaching might seem to be foreign to our understanding of church design, however I believe octagonal designs were originally at the heart of our understanding of faith, community and politics.

Firstly when we look at Jesus’s teaching methods we find he was often asking questions and entering into dialogue. Many of these encounters took place in small groups with his disciples around the meal table, either a picnic on the beach or in someone’s home and the time he spoke in a synagogue he got thrown out; hardly an endorsement of this format.

If we are to adopt a Missio Dei approach and aim to discover where God is at work and aim to enable people to discover God for themselves, this is likely to take place through dialogue and discussion rather than didactic preaching. In fact as is pointed out in Mathews 18 v 20 “ For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” i.e. we encounter the living word or logos in the midst of our encounters with one another.  

It seems to me that it’s unlikely that we will find God in the midst of us if we are just facing each other’s backs and, by listening to one voice we will be missing out on the wisdom of the whole body of Christ.

Such an approach is also empowering and liberating for the people involved and encourages active participation.  It can even work in small rural churches as is demonstrated by the Revd Ann, Priest in Charge of Askrigg, Stallingbusk, Hawes and Hardraw.

Authors such as Frank Viola and George Barna point out that the didactic sermon approach owes more to Greek tradition of trained professional speakers who delivered orations for a fee than to the Christian early tradition of discourse, dialogue and encounter.

A few years ago I was in travelling in Norway and met up with some friends who were from the Sami people and, after being introduced to their reindeer, we were invited in to a yurt for refreshments. What struck me about the yurt was that it had eight sides with a central fire place and had a strong communal/community feel to the space. In the Sami tradition it was also a sacred space with the design of the local Church in Røros picking up this theme with an octagonal nave.

This reminded me of the Marsh Lounge at Scargill House in Wharefdale; which is modelled on the Octagonal Lounge at Lea Abbey, both rooms being the main locations for teaching sessions, celebration and entertainment in these two Christian Communities.  This is no accident as although both communities have other rooms and spaces they have found that the octagonal spaces encourage dialogue and a sense of community which can be transformational. This is lived out in the Scargill Community strap line:  ‘lives shared, lives transformed’.

Some churches including Methodist Churches such as at Hebden Bridge and Wath make nods in this direction. However their design was probably so that congregations could be closer to the preacher and so they could hear their words.

A similar design formula is used in Liverpool’s Roman Catholic Metropolitan Cathedral; to enable the congregation to be as close to the celebration of the Mass as possible.

More recently I have been struck by how the chapter houses of our great cathedrals and ministers are also octagonal including: Salisbury, Westminster and York; in fact as the website of West Minister Abbey points out:

“The octagonal Chapter House, dating from the 1250s is one of the largest in England. The monks met here every day for prayers and to read a chapter from the rule of St Benedict and discuss the day's work.”

The Chapter house at Westminster Abbey was therefore a centre of worship, discussion and encounter for the Christian Community. This octagonal room was also the birth place of our democracy as the King's Great Council first assembled here in 1257, which was effectively the beginning of the English Parliament.

So the next time you are thinking about re ordering a church building for worship perhaps consider an octagonal arrangement to encourage discourse, dialogue and encounters with the living God as the people of God (Laos) gather together for worship.

Andy Ryland January 2013

Barningham Parish Lunch: Raising Funds

Since 2009 a parish lunch has been organised by the Parochial Church Council (PCC) of St Michael & All Angels Church, Barningham, which is located between Richmond and Barnard Castle.

The lunches are held three times a year, with the main aim being to raise funds for the local Church. A more recent development has been that 10% of the profits are now donated to Christian charities, for example Church Urban Fund, Christian Aid & the Children’s Society. A typical Parish lunch will raise over £600 after expenses have been deducted.

The lunches are held in the village hall after Sunday morning worship, with all the vegetable dishes being prepared by Church volunteers; sweets are prepared and provided by individual Church members; the main course, a hot meat or fish dish being supplied by a local caterer. This has included: roast beef, pork or lamb and salmon in season.

The Parish lunches have become extremely popular, with a recent lunch attracting nearly sixty people, including people from the local community as well as friends from the wider area.  There is a real sense of fellowship during the meal as people talk with friends and neighbours; diners often staying to talk long after the meal has finished.

One aspect that has made the initiative possible in Barningham is that there is no local pub or restaurant in the community, so there was no abstraction of revenue from a local business.  It would of course be possible to hold a parish lunch in a community with a local pub or restaurant by either holding the event on their premises or commissioning them to provide some of the catering.

Other churches in the area are now considering replicating the initiative because of its success

The Parish Lunch initiative could be seen to reconnect with the historic pattern of the quarterly feast days in the calendar, which were celebrated at Christmas Easter, Lady Day and Michaelmas. It could also be seen to build on the popularity of harvest suppers, which are still held in many rural communities, following harvest festival services.

Creativity and a Creator God

Last year I had the unusual privilege, of attending my Aunt's 100th birthday party.

Although she’s my God Mother I had not seen her for many years as she lives at the other end of the country but when the invitation arrived I realized this was a unique opportunity, not to be missed and I wondered what Godly wisdom she might have for her God Son,  half her age.

I was met by her granddaughter Rachel who showed me in to the wooden panelled village hall, past bouquets of lilies; which filled the room with their strong scent.

I looked around the room expecting to see an elderly lady in a wheelchair or sitting quietly in a corner.

I thought “where can she be”? “Is she here yet?”

I looked again and realised.

“There she was” with a face brown and wrinkled from many days spent in her garden. She was standing upright in a blue tweed suit and holding a wooden walking stick, which was well-polished through years of use.

I was greeted by kiss on the cheek and congratulated her on her birthday.

Later following cups of piping hot tea, cupcakes and sandwiches, fit for the queen. I was able to ask her a question I am sure, we would all want to ask.

What was her secret? 

Her reply “Find your passion” and she went on to explain that she had found her’s: botanical painting, when she had retired.

And I realised that all the beautiful paintings of local wild flowers, that were hung in the village hall, where her work. Had she been born in the 1700’s she would have made a suitable expedition artist for Captain Cook.

As I considered this, I realised that in finding her passion, she had found herself. 

Indeed in finding herself she had come to understand something of universal and eternal significance.

Christians’ believe that we are made in the image of a creator God.

My Aunt in finding her passion botanical painting had discovered and exercised her creative side and was experiencing the joy of being “herself”, being the person “God” had made her to be and this had filled her with energy and joy to keep on painting into her 100th year.