Tavener's Requiem

John Tavener

Last evening Gill and I had the privilege of attending the world premier of John Tavener's Requiem. The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Cathedral was a fitting venue for the performance.. as it allowed for the performers to be placed around the building, forming the four arms of a cross. In the centre was a lone celloist who represented (in the words of Tavener) the Primordial Light.

Different too was the content of this requiem for it contained works from the four major faiths of the world. To quote Tavener, "Today, the different religious traditions are often in conflict with each other, but inwardly every religion is the doctrine of the self and its earthly manifestations." He goes on to say, "The purpose of our existence in this world is precisely to understand the true nature of who we are."

I think I can understand a little what Tavener is saying. Some would argue that it is only in finding God do we find our true selves. However, God is in all of us and the more we discover our true self the more we discover about God

Tavener writes, "The essence of this Requiem is contained in the words "Our Glory lies where we cease to exist". That is, when one's false self is extinguished, the true self shines forth, and we have, in a way, become one with God."

The true self may never fully shine forth in this world but if we are truly open to God, if we are willing to take time to sit quietly in his presence, putting aside all thought, then I believe we can at least have a small glimpse of that future glory

Disaffected Youngsters

Over the past four years I have been working with disaffected young people here in inner city Liverpool. Every Monday morning I feel as if I am stepping into a totally different world from the one I inhabit at home or church. Their world is one of drugs and violence. Most have been in trouble with the law, some on numerous occasions.

People tell me that they are failures. I am no expert, but it strikes me that it is we that have failed. For years we have been trying to address the problem of these children, but instead of making things better they have only become worse. Numbers of young people like these are increasing at an alarming rate. Social Workers, Police and Government seem powerless to do anything. Packs of young people roam our streets and they are becoming increasingly violent.

We try to offer things but the thing that strikes me most is their lack of interest in anything other than their hum-drum existence. Many of my youngsters have no idea of even what day it is, let alone the month or the year. Ask them what they did the night before and they can't remember. Call me cynical, but I have come to the stage when if anyone tells me they have an answer I tend not to believe them.


Perhaps the real answer lies in prayer. Instead of critcising them we should pray for them. We should be humble enough to admit that we do not have answers and we need a power greater than ourselves.

However, that prayer has to be selfless for we are not praying for them to become 'good little Christians', rather we are asking the author of love to love them and lift them out of the despair and hopelessness and give them meaning and direction whether they turn to Christ or not. After all, they are individuals created in the image of God, even if they want to hide it under a hood.

A Franciscan Benediction

I came across this the other day. - I have no idea who wrote it, but I particularly like the final verse - Dave

A Franciscan Benediction

May God bless you with discomfort

At easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships
So that you may live deep within your heart.

May God bless you with anger
At injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people,
So that you may work for justice, freedom and peace.

May God bless you with tears
To shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger and war,
So that you may reach out your hand to comfort and
To turn their pain into joy.

And may God bless you with enough foolishness
To believe that you can make a difference in the world,
So that you can do what others claim cannot be done
To bring justice and kindness to all our children and the poor.

We are Still Here

It is quite some time since we last placed anything on this blog. Both of us have been busy getting on (or not) with the things we have to do. Writing, it seems, has taken a back seat.

Since our last post we have thrown ourselves into our teaching world. Gill continues to teach part time and offer one to one support to young dyslexic children. I still work two mornings a week with disaffected children in Inner City Liverpool and, like Gill, offer support to dyslexic children. I am also involved with the training work of the Diocese of Liverpool. I have the grand title of Officer for Post Initial Ministerial Education! Sound's impressive, but the truth is something else. Basically, I am part of a team teaching and supporting Church of England Readers after their licensing. The way that the Church trains its Ministers (both Ordained and Lay) is changing. In years to come the numbers of ordained, full-time paid ministers will decrease and those being trained now may well have to fill in the gaps - hence the training.

On a lighter note, we are now the proud owners of two ducks and two chickens! The chickens were a 60th Birthday present to Gill from her sister. The ducks were another story. - Lets just say I was conned. Anyhow, they are very busy clearing the garden of slugs and snails and we have the advantage of fresh, free range duck and chicken eggs. As soon as the weather gets better I will post some pictures.

Hopefully, we will get back to posting here. Every Christmas we seem to get various long missals from members of our family. I find it hard enough just to write 'Merry Christmas.' - I suppose that is what comes of being dyslexic.