Holy Ground

I have been to my fair share of religious worship houses. My favourites, for lack of a better word, are always the more elaborate and, I don't know, refined almost. I like the interior of a High Church building. I love cathedrals and even quiet little village churches. Ornate and lavish furnishings. Something about these places moves me.

God becomes less of a buddy and more of an Omnipotent Lord. I think it's important for us to ensure that God is not just seen as some overshadowing power who smites and blesses. He is a friend, a comforter. The word "paraclete" is used in John's gospel to denote the Holy Spirit. In my limited knowledge of Greek, I am assuming that this comes from the Greek word παρακελεω meaning to comfort or urge. God is a comforter and He loves us very much. This is a necessary and Biblical view of God, but this is not all that He is. He is also the God of the Old Testament. God is almighty and powerful, capable of leveling mountains and valleys.

I think that today's church buildings sometimes subtract from this view of God. God as a friend is the much more important view of God. While I concede that the High Church basically eliminates the buddy-buddy view of God, I feel that in many Protestant churches, and the Churches of Christ to be sure, have completely ignored this view of god. Ideally, we would have a perfect mesh of the two. But that's just it, isn't it? We can't be perfect.

Within the Protestant tradition, I often see church buildings themselves as homey, very welcoming places. However, when I walk into the York Minster or stand in the shadow of Salisbury Cathedral's spire I picture God sitting on a throne, surrounded by angels. I have a sense of awe in the presence of God. The need to remove my shoes and kneel on holy ground is intense. When at Highland, I picture God with His arm around me. The images are completely different, yet our God encompasses both. I get much more of the comforting God and perhaps that is why I am so transfixed with awe by the dominion of God evoked in these ornate houses of worship.

Salisbury Cathedral

Artifacts & Texts

It's certainly been a long weekend! London was lovely, but we left Oxford at 7:00 and didn't make it back until 1:30 the next morning. I think there were tired eyes and sore feet all around.

We began the day with a visit to Shakespeare's Globe. Our guide was hilarious and made the tour very amusing. Fun fact from that stop? Fermented urine can be used as a stain remover. I don't think I'll try that one out.

We then took the tube over to the British Library and lunch. I had a tasty Cornish Pasty. Yummm! After a short rain shower, we walked over to the British Library. Entering the Treasure Room of the British Library, I cannot help but be amazed at the immense collection of treasures. Everything from the Lindisfarne Gospels to handwritten Beatles' lyrics are displayed in this room. My eyes were soon drawn to the significant Codex Sinaiticus, which dates to the 4th century. Here before me lay one of the two earliest surviving copies of the complete New Testament. Other Christian manuscripts include the Gutenberg Bible and a papyrus copy of Hebrews, and Tyndale's New Testament (the first Bible printed in English). Also fascinating was a letter from Jane Austen on her writing desk, Handel's Messiah and the only surviving manuscript of Beowulf.

If you've ever been down in a subway, you know those places are crazy. The London Underground is no different. Several of us got on heading to Tottenham Court Road. For some reason, all but ten of us got off and came a little later. But I am proud to say that I led my group valiantly and we had absolutely no problems. We even minded the gap!

We eventually moved on to the British Museum. This place just blows my mind as it is so large and chalk-full of history. One of the most important items on display here is the Rosetta Stone, which made the translation of Egyptian hieroglyphics possible. One room is set up to the exact dimensions of the Parthenon and contains the Elgin Marbles, brought from the Parthenon in Greece. Walking through this vast hall enthused me even more about my potential trip to Athens.

After this our group split up and I went off with my family for the evening. The restaurant we wanted to go to had been closed, so we ended up at a Pizza Hut (limited time, limited budget). It was some of the best pizza that I have ever had. Next up for the night was Wicked. I have to admit, I was a bit unsure of this show (it's not established, it's American, etc...). However, I was pleasantly surprised and I even woke up the next morning singing songs from the show. I'm glad I went, even if I was too short to see over the bars.

This morning I went to church at the University Church of St. Mary the Virgin. It was a fascinating service. The church is Anglican, but have a fairly relaxed style. They actually had a baptism this morning and the entire service was centered on this. I had never witnessed an infant baptism before and it was very interesting. In fact, the lesson was on the merit of infant baptism and I don't think that I've ever heard a lesson on that before!

The rest of today has been spent writing papers, reading for my classes and feeding the ducks in University Parks. The day was long, but beautiful as the sun shone the whole day through. Tomorrow it's back to the daily grind of classes and I now I'm off to read Gregory of Nyssa.

Picnic in the Park

What a glorious day! The sun was out and shining brightly today. A few of us took a picnic lunch over to University Parks this afternoon. I had a lovely Branston Pickle sandwich, salt and vinegar crisps and an apple. It was a beautiful afternoon.

Right now we're enjoying an episode of Inspector Morse, a British show set in Oxford. In fact, we've seen several episodes of Inspector Lewis (the sequel series to Morse) being filmed around town. Anyhow, it's certainly a very interesting show.

Tomorrow we take a day-trip to London. The Globe, the British Library and the British Museum are all on the agenda for tomorrow. Heavy rains are forecasted, but I think it will be a great trip nonetheless.

Rain

Rain, midnight rain, nothing but the wild rain

On this bleak hut, and solitude, and me

Remembering again that I shall die

And neither hear the rain nor give it thanks

For washing me cleaner than I have been

Since I was born into this solitude.

~Edward Thomas (1878-1917)

Okay, so I'm not really this depressed. However, rain has been the word of the week so far and this is an excerpt from a poem, entitled "Rain" in fact, which is one of our reading assignments for today. It is a bit melancholy sitting at my window and watching the rain come down while reading this morose poem. Nevertheless, my cup of hot tea is warming me up and Mom's apple crumble with custard was a perfect finish to this wet day.

I am hoping that the sun will come out tomorrow, as Oxford is usually fairly sunny during the summer. In fact, July and August are typically the least rainy months of the year. Thankfully this constant drizzle (and occasional downpour) has yet to get me down. I think the extra hours of daylight may be helping with that.

So far my days have been long and work-filled. Today I read for more than five hours in order to complete our assignment for tomorrow. I'm hopeful that our reading assignments will decrease, especially when the weather clears up. And who knows, maybe I'll actually speak in class tomorrow as that hasn't happened yet. Whoops!

But now, with the readings finished, tea in hand and the soft patter of rain against the window pane, it's time to relax!

Day One (and Two)

I'm looking out the first floor window of my home for the next five months: 10 Canterbury Road. I have my Ribena (a blackcurrant juice drink) on the desk beside me and a cool breeze from the open window refreshes me. It's so nice to finally have a few minutes to just relax. I feel like I've been going full speed since the plane touched the ground yesterday morning.

We took a coach to Oxford and had just enough time to find our rooms before we ate lunch. I for one was thankful for the milk chocolate digestive biscuits that the Morgans provided for us. After unpacking, we headed out for a little tour of Oxford. I am happy to say that I am now very well reacquainted with the town.  My favourite stop on tour? Our family's old house. It's a lovely little three-story house in one of the oldest parts of Oxford.

3  Bath Place, Holywell Street (our old house)

Almost as soon as we were turned loose for the evening, it began to rain. And it wasn't just a nice English drizzle, but a heavy downpour, complete with thunder (a bit of a rarity in Oxford when we lived here). By the time we made it back from grocery shopping we were all fairly wet. The rest of the evening consisted of a house rules meeting, reading for today's classes and an early turn-in.

Today, the first day of classes, began bright and early at 8 in the morning (that's 2 AM back in Texas) and I'm still not quite adjusted to the time difference. I think both of the classes are going to be fantastic as the discussions were very insightful. The Symposium is in a classroom at Linacre College, which is a graduate college. It's a lovely stroll from the houses through University Parks to Linacre. Today we were treated to a nice lunch of citrus chicken in the college's cafeteria.

These first two days have been wonderful. I still can't believe that I will be here for half of a year. I am so blessed to have this wonderful opportunity and it is only just beginning! 

The Adventure Begins

On to my next adventure. This one's a bit longer, a bit farther away. My family is headed to church this morning and we'll go straight from church to Dallas. After a nine-hour plane ride we'll land in London, England.

And then it's five months in Oxford, England. I am so excited and so ready. It always seems I am going home to Oxford and I am thrilled to share this with people. I can't wait to see what amazing things God has in store for me. I know my classes will be fantastic. Of course, any course in which Lord of the Rings is a textbook is automatically amazing.

Nine Days, No Nights

Wow! What an amazing week I've had - the beauty, the work, the relationships. I'm ready to go back to Alaska. Because I didn't have computer access during my trip, I'll just log it all as I reflect on those twelve wonderful days.

Our trip begin rather hectically when, upon check-in at the Abilene airport we were informed that we did not actually have seats on the plane. The plane was simply too heavy and we were put on standby. In the end, Mom and Dad drove to Dallas while us kids flew with the bags and the rest of the group.

We proceeded to Dallas where we had the roughest landing I've ever experienced. Our group of thirty staked out a spot in which we could wait out our seven-hour layover. Eventually we boarded the plane and landed in Anchorage seven hours later.

Sunday morning we drove from Anchorage to Kenai for church. The Seward Highway (our road for the day) has been voted one of the most scenic drives in America. The mountains rise out of the sea and kiss the sky, filling the horizon.

Our group stayed with host families and we stayed with the wonderful Neil family. Sunday evening they took us four-wheeling. I had never done that before and it was a great experience, even if I did somehow manage to inexplicably break through a bright orange barrier. We drove through the woods, over hills, through creeks, into the mud and all the while we were looking ahead at the mountains.

We learned quickly that our slogan, "Nine days, no nights", was perfect. The sun set around 1 am and then rose again around 4 am. The three hours of "night" were more like dusk. In fact during the summer you can never see the stars because it doesn't get dark enough. By the end of the week we were all exhausted.

On Monday we began our work. A group of ten of us focused on clearing a prayer path. We cleared a quarter-mile trail, laid typar, and dumped 3 inches of gravel over the entire thing. Kudos to those people who pushed those 900 wheelbarrows full of gravel. I shoveled gravel and raked it out which was not a very physically demanding task, but one which took careful precision. One of my key objectives of this trip was accomplished during this time; I wanted to build relationships. I worked side-by-side with people from Highland as I shoveled gravel. But as I was smoothing and packing down the path, I bonded with a couple of the Kenai youth. Briana and Brittany are awesome and I loved our fun and deep conversations.

Also amazing was the food we ate. I can now say that I have eaten moose, caribou, Dall sheep and bear. We also enjoyed large quantities of salmon and halibut. One evening we went to a family's house and had shrimp, caught by them that morning. Talk about fresh seafood! Anyone who has been on a labour-intensive mission trip knows that the people who prepare food for the team are the some of the most important and most adored people around.

We continued working on the prayer path throughout the week while the rest of the group tackled various other projects. These included picnic tables, a fire pit, and a gazebo (fondly referred to as a gazilion as it was really more like a pavilion). Moose were everywhere - along the road, in the flats, in backyard - and one day we had a moose and her two calves walk through our site along the prayer path.

Wednesday evening we began our VBS - Arctic Edge. Those three evenings wore me out! We had eight preschoolers, three of which were special-needs kids. I had so much fun with these children but it certainly was exhausting. The other adults in my room were amazing and handled the children beautifully. The children kept coming each night, so I suppose we did a good job. By the time Sunday morning rolled around, the kids were clinging to us. When I asked a little girl where she wanted to sit during church she announced, "With you, by Trevor". What a wonderful thing to hear.

Saturday, we all went our separate ways to have fun (although I thought the entire week and even the work was fun). Our extremely generous host family took us halibut fishing. We fished out of Homer, stopping our boat about an hour from the harbor. Although we ended up with six halibut, I didn't catch a single one. However, I did pull up a giant cod. Reeling in 150 ft. of line with a 30 lb. fish struggling on the hook, while standing on a boat rocking on the ocean - well, let's just say I had a hard time with that. However, it sure was beautiful. Mountains and glaciers loomed on the horizon. Bald eagles soared overhead and sea otters floated beside us.

Sunday morning we said our goodbyes and our family headed to Seward. In Seward we saw bears - brownies as the locals call the Grizzlies - and more eagles. We hiked up to Exit Glacier, which is part of the Harding Icefield. Close your eyes and you are transported to a time of ice long gone. I could feel the chilled air off of the glacier's face, hear the melting water trickle down, and listen to the ice creak and groan.

Monday consisted of sea kayaking and a wildlife cruise. We kayaked around Fox Island in the cold ocean water. I have to admit I was a bit nervous but of course it was an experience a lifetime. A bald eagle flew by us almost close enough to touch. Starfish lined the rocks along the shore and puffins zoomed around us. Adorable and funny, puffins are my new favourite bird. One little puffin had eaten so much that he couldn't quite take off and fly, but instead bounced across the surface of the water. Our kayaking experience concluded with a delicious salmon bake on the island.

We then boarded a boat for a tour of Resurrection Bay. Dall porpoises escorted our boat, putting on a show as they swam under us and leapt into the air. Sea lions fought on the rocks and bellowed out warnings. By far the most stirring experience that day was the moment when the humpback whales surfaced. A mother, her calf and an "escort" were slowly traveling across the bay. Sleek grey bodies rose from the depths and jets of water shot through blow holes. What a mighty God we serve!

After our humbling experiences on the Kenai Peninsula, we drove to Anchorage on Tuesday and began our journey home. I was not ready to leave but I am ready to go back. Going from the upper 50's to 99 degrees was not pleasant. We went from saying "look, humpback whales" to "look, grackles". The mountains flattened out to plains and the ocean disappeared completely.

The beauty and love that I witnessed on this trip were truly awe-inspiring. Our God is awesome and powerful. He worked in spectacular ways this past week and I think it's safe to say that none of us are the same anymore.

In the words of the Blind Boys of Alabama (Everyone should go out and watch Brother Bear):

There's a bond between us

Nobody can explain

It's a celebration of life

And seeing friends again

I'd be there for you

I know you'd be there for me too

So welcome to our family time

I am so blessed to have such a wonderful family spread out across the globe. This week I saw the love of Christ embodied in the welcoming hearts of the Kenai church and the serving hands of the Highland campaigners. Expedition Kenai was a roaring success.