Last night I heard about a Sunday School teacher who was teaching on the 'how many times must I forgive' theme to a group of youngish children at a local Anglican church.  Part of their pattern of worship is that the children bring in to the service what they have made/coloured to show the congregation.

As the priest patiently waited at the front, a long piece of string was carriedinto the church, eventually stretching the entire length of the aisle.  On it the children had strung 490 hand-painted pieces of pasta.

This for me is a very graphic and powerful illustration of 70x7, and if it isn't in a book somehwere, it should be.

Firstly, the love that went in to counting out 490 pieces of macaroni/penne and painting them different colours sothat the exercise would be more pleasurable for the children.

Then the patience and collaboration of the children to string so many 'beads of forgiveness' together.

Lastly, the sight of this 'rosary of reconciliation' stretching for - I guess - around 50 feet would be an amazing way of visualising what Jesus meant.  

As a symbol of what forgiveness involves - creativity, love, patience, generosity and enormity (not the right word but I can't think of a better one) - this is the one of the best I've come across.

I have had an amusing few minutes choosing CDs to put in the box to take to Swanwick for the quiet room (Do you play music in a quiet room?  Discuss.).  Will my Eternal Forest CD be too 'New Age' for some folk?  Will Psalms for the Soul or Peaceful Spirits - 25 Gregorian Chants be deemed too liturgical?  Is Karl Jenkins' Armed Man or Garth Hewitt/Paul Field's Dalit Drum too radical?  Or The Best Worship Songs in the World Ever Since We Did The Last Version Volume 63.75 (I exagerate only everso slightly) too noisy? What does help other ministers to chill out, to unwind, to reflect, to meditate, to pray?

In the end I have a stack of two dozen as eclectic, catholic and ecumencial as I am - including some 'secular' stuff and some from the world church.

My own favourites include Karl Jenkins' Armed Man, (did you know the first public perfomance was the day before 9/11?) some Taize, Barber's Adagio for Strings and an early recording by Libera.  The Gregorian chant is wonderful, but 25 tracks is too much all at once, and a few Rutter compilations are always good value, as are some organ pieces.  I also have a few instrumental versions of contemporary worship songs which manage to lose some of the aggressive triumphalism that sung versions can become.  I guess it depends what mood I'm in what I choose to listen to.

I know I'm not going to please everyone with what I offer, and frankly I'm not going to try, I just hope that somewhere in amongst it all is something someone finds helpful and restful.

The old adage - if you want something done, ask a busy person.  Well at the moment, that person seems to be me!  And despite my recollection of half decent clip art of this cliche, the thing on the left is the best I could find today.  Ah well.

Today I have been wearing my "Ministers' Conference Treasurer" hat which, for some mysterious reason, means I make the name badges and juggle the bedroom allocations around to accommodate all the last minute changes - and in a manner that will not trouble those who maintain ministerial disicpline!!

In the allied role of "Ministers' Conference Committee Member" I have been gathering together things for the 'quiet room' which I am co-organising.  My dining table is now hidden by the various objects I will be transporting to Swanwick and back again.

In my role as 'local minister with a vaguely creative streak' I am doing final preprations for the all age interactive worship I am leading at the Association Day in two weeks time.  It has caused amusement to people who've called into Dibley manse to see all the props stacked up in my living room. 

Last week I was at a national committee meeting where I am Association rep, in a couple of weeks I have another where I am a ministerial rep. In between I have to do some interviewing wearing my school governor hat.  Somewhere in amongst all this I am meant to sort out my work proposal for my research for 2007-8 and organise all the Christmas services for Dibley Churches Together.

Most of the time these hats can be worn one at a time then put away for a month or three.  At the moment several have landed all at once.  It is both a pleasure and a privilege to be invited to take on these various roles - they give me lots of interest, keep me out of mischief and bring tremendous rewards.  At the same time, there is always the danger that I'll drop the lot...

So, if you happen to meet me in the next week or two and I seem particularly hassled and scratchy, it could be because I am concentrating totally on keeping all these hats in the air at once...

As posted earlier, I am going to be at a conference later this week where one of the talks is entitled 'rightly handling the word of truth.'  In fact, as part of the planning team, I am involved in setting up a quiet room for those who want/need a bit of space from the speakers or from each other or whatever.  In an attempt to keep some sort of link, I have been hunting down Bible texts that fit the themes ready to put onto cards as prompts for thought, if people want them.

"Rightly handle the word of truth" is a translation of 2 Timothy 2:15 - which of course everyone (except me) already knew.  I looked it up in several translations and then in my trusty Greek-English interlinear, being reminded once again how good it would have been had I ever got to grips with Greek, ah well.

The word used is (in transliteration) 'orthotomounta' which means 'cutting straight' (or, precisely, straight cutting) of the 'word-of-truth' (I have hyphenated as I think that's kind of what the Greek implies - the double use of a 'the' word being important).  The commentators admit it is tricky to translate the intent of the sentence.  I guess there is an easy leap to 'orthodoxy' and a resultant, potentially narrow view of how the 'word-of-truth' so often equated with the Bible (though some translations see it more as 'message' than literal 'word') should be approached.

I feel I need to turn this idea over a bit in my mind - what might 'straight cutting' as a metaphor mean?  No frills preaching?  Only one permitted interpretation?  Exposition? 

Apprarently in everyday Greek, the word was used in relation to road making - preparing the means for people to travel.  That seems to allow for more variety - the straight cut road would be used by people travelling for all sorts of purposes, to and from different places and situations.  The road itself is the same whatever the journey upon it.

A straight line is the shortest distance between two points - so might 'straight cutting' be about making clear connections, avoiding diversions in thought?

* * *

One of the things I like about preparing for services and events is the thought journeys I get to go on myself.  The stuff above doesn't make a whole lot of sense and it hardly cuts straight through anything.  I guess what I am hoping with the quiet room - and my contribution to it - is that other people will have the space to do some wandering and wondering - including what it means to handle appropriately and carefully the timeless message of truth contained within scripture.

On Thursday I went to Manchester for a meeting with my university supervisors at my 'old' college.  The place was a building site as there is extensive work in progress to re-model the library, provide additional toilet facilties and (I think) a much needed social area.

The library is looking good. I have to admit, though, part of me is sad to see the demise of the old, slightly musty, wide open spaces that served adequately for generations.  The new look library is definitely more functional and feels more business like, the study areas are better equipped and connecting the books and periodicals areas is good sense.  The most sensible thing is that it is no longer necessary to traipse through the library to reach the chapel, nor will readers be disturbed by singing.  The loss, from my view point, is that the chapel now becomes rather separated from the rest of the building and some of its more delightful aspects may be less apparent - I'll have to see the finished result to know (and I won't be sorry if the fuschia pink and turquoise colour scheme has gone!)

The re-shaping of the library means that the area where I used to sit and work is due to disappear into toilets or something equally functional.  Thankfully, I'm not greatly attached to buildings or places, so I won't feel cheated by this - afterall, I also had to suffer the inadequate loos and social space for four years.

What is good is that the old place will serve a new generation of students and 'house users', that it will continue to change and develop as is needed in the process.  I hope that those who use the new look place will find as much pleasure and fulfilment as I did in my time, and that they, too, will be able to look back with fondness on their time at the minister machine in Manchester.