I went to a social gathering at my Field Ed church (actually the vicar's house) this evening. It reminded me how much I really enjoy the people in this little church, and how blessed I am to be there. I'll be back - robed and ready - tomorrow at Saint Middle School, where we make a sacred space out of a middle school auditorium every Sunday at 9 and have it packed up by noon. Remarkable what you can fit into one little trailer!
There is now a retired woman priest who is serving as a priest associate. She is a fascinating person, and I'll enjoy working with her in KidZone when I'm not doing Adult Spiritual Formation stuff.
It should be another rich experience. I'm psyched.
Would be really interested to hear what the accoutrements are that the church feels it needs to transform St Middle School into a sacred space...Church on the Hill is likely to be closed for some months while the roof is renewed, which seems to me like the perfect time to help the congregation review what are the essentials of worship, of being church etc...Your findings would help so much.
ReplyDeleteIt's really a bit like a clown car! In the trailer are several rolling wooden carts. Each cart has its appointed role. One carries all the folding tables (one for altar, on smaller one for credence table, several for information in our virtual narthex, several for the Sunday school). One is the Altar Guild cart, with Rubbermaid totes on one side filled with all the altar appointments, and the other side a closet for vestments, the various and sundry textile items like altar frontals and paraments and the like, and albs for the acolytes and such. One is the information table cart, which has all the stuff you'd normally put on tables in the narthex, plus the kits to keep small children occupied. Another cart is for Coffee Hour, another is for the sound equipment for the musicians and another is for Sunday School. The trailer is about 4 ft by 8 ft and all this stuff fits in neatly. Remarkably, it all is unpacked in about 30 minutes and repacked in about 45 minutes. Oh, and we've got four kneelers in there too! Suffice to say, we've got several engineers and a couple of contractors in the parish, and they designed this marvel of efficiency. St G's has been using it for five years (whie we try and raise the money to build a church) and it has required very little in the way of maintenance, just a replaced wheel here and there on the carts, or replacement of a board or two. Let me see if the vicar has a master list, and I'll get it to you.
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