Reignite

Just a reminder that you can hear my reflections on my podcast " Seeking Paradise " that comes out about once a month.  You can access it through the link above to podbean, or get it by searching for "Seeking Paradise" on Apple podcasts or Spotify. 

An Open Letter from Palestinian Christians “Learn to do right; seek justice; defend the oppressed” (Isa 1:17). We, at the undersigned Palestinian Christian institutions and grassroots movements, grieve and lament the renewed cycle of violence in our land. As we were about to publish this open letter, some of us lost dear friends and family members in the atrocious Israeli bombardment of innocent civilians on October 19, 2023, Christians included, who were taking refuge in the historical Greek Orthodox Church of Saint Porphyrius in Gaza. Words fail to express our shock and horror with regard to the on-going war in our land. We deeply mourn the death and suffering of all people because it is our firm conviction that all humans are made in God’s image. We are also profoundly troubled when the name of God is invoked to promote violence and religious national ideologies. Further, we watch with horror the way many western Christians are offering unwavering support to Israel’s war against the...

 

 Gratitude and Prayer - an audio reflection

  I'm interested in setting up a regular contemplation group in Cardiff. Not necessarily for people who go to church, but for anyone who is interested in the deeper practices of contemplation/meditation that opens the heart directly to the reality of the love of God. This would be a radically inclusive space, trying to be guided by love not judgement.  I already run monthly Contemplative Prayer and Chanting nights on zoom and it could work hybrid if anyone just wanted to join me in person in my living room. If anyone is interested in exploring this please get in touch with me. 

 

It was a Saturday morning in May. In the middle of a conversation in rainy Trafalgar Square I raised my finger to try to politely indicate to the person I was talking to that I was going to join the Lord's Prayer that I just realised was starting through the loud speakers. My conversation partner paused for a moment, and I closed my eyes and joined in with the congregation in Westminster Abbey in an act of Christian prayer, "Our Father, who art in heaven..." It was the only time I felt some kind of connection to what was happening there at the coronation service a mile away, a nominally Christian service that I was protesting against, carrying a hand-written sign reading "Christians for a Republic." The whole thing was rather incongruent. I could half hear the music and cadences of an Anglican cathedral service, while in a crowd almost continuously chanting "Not my king! Not my king!" and (my personal favourite) "He's just a normal man! He...

Marking the third anniversary of the COVID lockdown, I'm using this blog to reflect on this time and to point towards the audio archive Doorstep Revolution, a project I was part of putting together as part of Gentle/Radical. The eleventh episode contains reflections on the pandemic experiences of work, redundancy, unemployment, furlough, working from home, adaptation, work, rest, and balance.  You can listen to Episode 11 of Doorstep Revolution  here  (Scroll down to "Episode 11") or look through a transcript here . 

Marking the third anniversary of the COVID lockdown, I'm using this blog to reflect on this time and to point towards the audio archive Doorstep Revolution, a project I was part of putting together as part of Gentle/Radical. The tenth episode contains reflections on hobbies, creativity, cooking, walking, and watching television - the things we did in lockdown to keep us going.  You can listen to Episode 10 of Doorstep Revolution  here  (Scroll down to "Episode 10") or look through a transcript here.

Marking the third anniversary of the COVID lockdown, I'm using this blog to reflect on this time and to point towards the audio archive Doorstep Revolution, a project I was part of putting together as part of Gentle/Radical. The ninth episode contains reflections on mental health and mental illness. The pandemic was a crisis of mental health as much as physical health, and I think we're all still feeling the effects of that. Grief, fear, and isolation were parts of our lives. But people also reflected on those things that gave them joy and a sense of wellbeing - connection, family, nature, love.  You can listen to Episode 9 of Doorstep Revolution  here  (Scroll down to "Episode 9") or look through a transcript here .

Marking the third anniversary of the COVID lockdown, I'm using this blog to reflect on this time and to point towards the audio archive Doorstep Revolution, a project I was part of putting together as part of Gentle/Radical. The eighth episode contains stories of death and grief. This to me is the most powerful episode, as residents talk about tender stories of losing loved ones. This was a time of loss and isolation, as well as gratitude and reflection on life, death, and change.  You can listen to Episode 8 of Doorstep Revolution  here  (Scroll down to "Episode 8") or look through a transcript here . 

Marking the third anniversary of the COVID lockdown, I'm using this blog to reflect on this time and to point towards the audio archive Doorstep Revolution, a project I was part of putting together as part of Gentle/Radical. The seventh episode contains stories of health, illness and healing. These are some of the stories of people who caught the virus, as well as reflections on masks, social distancing, and the NHS.  You can listen to Episode 7 of Doorstep Revolution  here  (Scroll down to "Episode 7") or look through a transcript here . 

  Marking the third anniversary of the COVID lockdown, I'm using this blog to reflect on this time and to point towards the audio archive Doorstep Revolution, a project I was part of putting together as part of Gentle/Radical. The sixth episode contains stories of homeschooling. This was one of my favourite episodes as it contains some really funny, touching, and interesting accounts of this time that was such a challenge for parents everywhere.  You can listen to Episode 6 of Doorstep Revolution  here  (Scroll down to "Episode ") or look through a transcript here . 

Marking the third anniversary of the COVID lockdown, I'm using this blog to reflect on this time and to point towards the audio archive Doorstep Revolution, a project I was part of putting together as part of Gentle/Radical. The fifth episode features stories of family life, parenting, and raising children in a time of pandemic. This was a tough time for children and families, and those caring for others. Children reacted in different ways and parenting and caring became of whole different ball game. Our participants reflect on these realities.  You can listen to Episode 5 of Doorstep Revolution  here  (Scroll down to "Episode 5") or look through a transcript here . 

Marking the third anniversary of the COVID lockdown, I'm using this blog to reflect on this time and to point towards the audio archive Doorstep Revolution, a project I was part of putting together as part of Gentle/Radical. The fourth episode features stories of pregnancy and birth. These are stories of two families, living round the corner from each other in Riverside, who reflect on what it was like going through these experiences at such a strange time. Here are two stories of isolation as well as hope.  You can listen to Episode 4 of Doorstep Revolution  here  (Scroll down to "Episode 4") or look through a transcript here . 

Marking the third anniversary of the COVID lockdown, I'm using this blog to reflect on this time and to point towards the audio archive Doorstep Revolution, a project I was part of putting together as part of Gentle/Radical. The third episode is different from others as it features only one person, Derek, speaking from his allotment. It's a slow, gentle, conversation, to the background of the tweeting of the birds around the allotment.  Derek’s reflections touched on work, his disillusionment with academia, moving to Wales from Malaysia, the impacts of the pandemic on family and perhaps most importantly, for Derek at least, vegetables, food growing, and his allotment. You can listen to Episode 3 of Doorstep Revolution here (Scroll down to "Episode 3") or look through a transcript here.

  Marking the third anniversary of the COVID lockdown, I'm using this blog to reflect on this time and to point towards the audio archive Doorstep Revolution , a project I was part of putting together as part of Gentle/Radical.  The second episode reflects on dreams of community, how people expressed desires for a greater sense of local community in Riverside. It was those moments of staying at home, of going out and clapping on a Thursday night during the lockdown that made people think about local community more. Everyone's attention was on the very local, as there was no where else we could go. And one of the positive things of this time was feeling a greater sense of connection to the local neighbourhood. Did we build on that? Or has life now gone back to "normal"? I think, sadly, it mainly has gone back to "normal" with people engaging less with their neighbours. Maybe we missed an opportunity. The work of "doing community" is really tough, lo...

As we mark the third anniversary of the COVID lockdown, it seems like a good time to do some reflection on the last three years, and this season of pandemic. As we all know this was like nothing else any of us had ever experienced, but I just want to reflect more locally on Riverside, and draw your attention to the audio archive Doorstep Revolution, a project I was part of putting together as part of Gentle/Radical.  In the first episode we hear about those initial reactions to what was going on in March 2020. I think it is easy to forget how scary it all was at the time. When I listen back to these stories I remember that sense of fear, and just a sense of not knowing what was going on. It was difficult to know how serious it was, how scared you should be. I know I had the Black Death in my mind, when a third... a half?... of Europe's population died. We didn't know it was that, but we also didn't know it wasn't that. We just didn't know how bad it was. A lot of ou...

Once a month I run Contemplative Prayer and Chanting, on the second Wednesday of the month, 7.30pm, on zoom. This is a time of chanting and guided contemplative prayer to open the heart to Love. This practice is rooted in the conviction that there is a universal, unconditional source of love within each person and that it is possible to have a personal encounter with this source. The source has many names, but we often name them as “God”.  To get the invite please email s_lingwood@hotmail.com Facebook event page

Join us at all every Saturday during March 2023 for an hour of silence as an Earth Vigil for climate justice.  We hold silence:  • As an act of grief for the climate and ecological catastrophe unfolding, particularly affecting people in the Global South.  • As an act of protest to demand the UK Government acts with urgency to reach net zero carbon as fast and justly as possible, ensuring energy is affordable for ordinary people in the UK while also providing reparations to the Global South for the loss and damage they are already suffering because of climate change.  • As an act of prayer and meditation to bring our deepest spiritual commitments and practices to this work.  People of all faiths and none are welcome to join us. If you can, bring a chair. When:  11am to noon Saturday 4th, 11th, 18th, 25th March 2023. Where: Next to the Betty Campbell statue, outside the UK Government Building, Ty William Morgan, Wood Street, Cardiff City Centre, CF101EP

Radical Christianity is about encountering the God of love . It is first and foremost rooted in the discovery of a universal and unconditional source of love at the heart of reality and within each person. God is the name we give to this source of love. It is possible to have a direct and real personal encounter with this God through spiritual practice. We encounter God, and are nourished by God, through the regular practice of prayer, or contemplation.  Radical Christianity is about following a man called Jesus . It is rooted in the teaching of Jesus of Nazareth, a Jewish prophet living under occupation of the Roman Empire two thousand years ago. It understands that's Jesus' message was the message of liberation. His message was that when we truly encounter God, and let God's love flow through us, we begin to be liberated from the powers of empire and violence and encounter the  "realm of God" - an alternative spiritual and social reality rooted in love rather th...

 For the service on 19th February 2023