Membership, News

The Iona Community welcomes 11 new Members

Posted on by Wendy Lloyd
A large group of people sitting in a living room with five candles lit in the middle of the room
27
Jun

Rev Dr Hilary Oxford Smith, pictured seated second from the right, was hallowed in Oamaru, Aoteraoa New Zealand

The Iona Community hallows, or welcomes and blesses, new Members each year in a worship service called ‘the Hallowing Service.’

At the Hallowing Service each new Member makes a public commitment to the Rule of Life of the Iona Community, and is then blessed by the Leader.

Maine, USA

Three people standing together with arms round each other.
Fr. Paul Sullivan with sponsors, Leslie and Charles Simonson

On the feast day of St. Columba, 9th June, at the NEUSA regional gathering of the Iona Community, Fr. Paul Sullivan became the first Jesuit to join the Iona Community as a Member. Leader, Ruth Harvey, led the first Zoom hallowing and coincidentally, Paul’s sponsors, Charles and Leslie Simonson, pictured left with Paul, were the first Members to get hallowed as a couple 52 years ago. Paul’s hallowing took place in Maine, USA and he was the first of 11 people to be hallowed into membership that week. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oamaru Aoteraoa New Zealand

On the 14th June, a Hallowing sevice took place in Oamaru Aoteraoa New Zealand.  The photo from ths gathering is provided above. During a service led by Ruth Harvey by zoom from Glasgow, Rev Dr Hilary Oxford Smith was hallowed in the company of her sponsor,  Iona member Helen Weavers from Newcastle Australia and Hilary’s husband Clive Oxford. Several friends from St Paul’s Oamaru were also present. 

Hilary shares about her experience:
‘The Hallowing service held both online and on site at the Manse of the Right Rev. Rose Luxford, Moderator of the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand in Oamaru, was a touching, happy and lovely gathering.
It is such a gift that, as a worldwide community of diverse peoples, cultures, languages, stories, and experiences, we can accompany and uphold one another, becoming the presence of the Iona Community wherever we live. At the service, I shared some words from Joy Mead’s beautiful book, Winter Song, which beautifully described our time together,
Let us, with you,
hold the beauty, 
the love and diversity, 
harmony and joy, 
faith and relationship, 
blessings and poetry
of this day.’

Glasgow, Scotland

On the 14th June at 4pm in Glasgow, nine new Members were hallowed.

Nine people sitting and standing on a row with an Iona Community banner behind them

The nine hallowed Members, pictured left to right, Jo Clare Young, Holger Dannenmann, William Gibson, Liz Delafield, Petra Meier, Pauline Easton, Francesca Tolond, Penny Gardner and Erica Young.

They stood together and said the following prayer  in unison:

In the presence of our beloved friends
in the company of Members near and far,
and in the name of God,
Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer,
we commit ourselves to the purpose
and to the Rule of the Iona Community.
We, being many, are one in Christ.
In community we will celebrate
the wholeness of our life together
Where it is fractured, we will work for
reconciliation.
Where it is diminished, we will strive for
its fullness
So God help us now and always. Amen.

Find out more about membership of the Iona Community

We would love to welcome you as a Member, Associate, or Friend of the Community. To find out more, take a look at our membership page[/vc_cta]

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