My last post was about the Churches Together Prayer Tent at Downham Market Festival, and following Angela's comment on the post I'd like to think a little more about who came and why....
The tent has been placed on the Festival site for almost 10 years now, with Tim and I responsible for setting up the installations and the team for the last 5 years. It represents a small part of the work that we do in the community, but is by contrast a large and visible representation of that work.. The installation itself is carefully thought out and prepared to be colourful and inviting, but I suspect that more people come because of the relationships we have built than anything else, because they felt comfortable with us they came....
...and because this was not a formal or churchy setting they felt free to engage with what was on offer....
What was on offer was the Through the Church Year Installation, which beginning with Advent took folk on a journey through the life of Jesus. At each section there was an interactive meditation and a Chance to respond (pray).
The fact that most folk took longer at the sections for Lent and Good Friday provides the Church with an instructive reflection, folk want to engage with a Jesus who meets them where they are, one who understands temptation and suffering. They don't want an unattainable, untouchable Jesus. The Church folk as I mentioned yesterday were more interested in the Christmas and Easter sections, I wonder if in our rush to communicate the Good News we forget that sometimes we have to make room for it, by that I mean that often people carry around with them the concept that they are not and cannot be good enough. Negative images of Church and church folk abound, and an unreal rush to communicate the good stuff ( and it undoubtedly is good stuff) misses the depths that some need. We have Good news because of the wilderness and because of Good Friday.
I believe that what we saw yesterday was the evidence of a real hunger for meaning and depth to life, Tim was surrounded by about ten members of one family as he told Jesus story from the Jesus Deck, mixing in his testimony and being relaxed enough to answer questions, treating them as welcome interruptions. I spent over half an hour with one couple, again using the Jesus Deck, they picked cards one by one to speak into their past, present and future, finding once again that this representation of the Gospels opened connectionsand made room for meaningful dialogue.
Meeting people where they are is essential, I believe that most people are aware of the spiritual side of their nature but quite often don't know how to go about exploring what it might mean for them to be spiritual beings. This work contrasts the Mind Body and Soul outreach that I am more often involved in, here people are aware of their spirituality and are actively seeking, yesterday I think that for some folk that seeking began as they allowed a misunderstood or ignored part of themselves to surface. For some this was joyful, for others ( and these were the majority), it meant finding the suffering Jesus and allowing themselves to be found by him.
