Now that they’re finally catching breath after a very busy summer, the newly expanded Wild Goose Resource Group team share highlights from Iona, Greenbelt Festival and more.
The last six months have been both hectic and eclectic for our WGRG team, with Jane and Iain officially joining Jo as Music Resource Workers in the summer.
In June, things started with a bang with a Big Sing for the Community’s AGM. It was a delight to deliver this as a full WGRG team, as well as to connect with the members so early on. The wholehearted singing of the gathered community is always a joy and it was wonderful to see many familiar faces, and get to know some new ones.
It was off to Bishop Auckland for Jane the following week with global song workshopsas part of the ‘Faithful Flourishing’ day for the URC Northern Synod. The walls of Auckland Palace resounded to the strains of enthusiastic voices, accompanied on occasion by musical frogs, ukulele, djembe and percussion!
Meanwhile, Jo headed across the Atlantic to lead a 5-week Residency in Creative Worship with a United Methodist congregation in New Hampshire.
At the end of June, Jane was invited to facilitate music for an ecumenical service for the national Restore Nature Now’ march in London. Finding appropriate songs that address the environmental crisis seemed particularly important and Iain was able to make suggestions from the Church of Scotland’s newly published hymn supplement: ‘God Welcomes All’. A packed church sang ‘Earth is full of wit and wisdom’ (words by Adam Tice), and ‘The Garden of the world’ (Shirley Erena Murray and Swee Hong Lim). Outside the church, we gathered with families and children for a version of ‘Rise and shine and give God the glory’. We sang out semi-improvised verses appropriate for those about to take to the streets in the service of the planet. One of those ‘you had to be there’ moments perhaps.
July brought introductions to Mainland and Island Staff, as well as beginning to renew links with critical friends, fellow travelers and connectors.
Iain ran a week at Iona Abbey on global song and was joined by Sally Ann Morris and guests from Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Netherlands, Sweden, UK and USA. Throughout the week we sang songs from every continent (except Antarctica) and sang in many locations across the island. The week culminated in a public song festival at the village hall. It was amazing to experience the energy of such an international group and explore how we can find common ground through music.
In mid-August Jo led worship and workshops at the Church of Scotland’s four-day Candidates’ Gathering in St Andrews. Participants were those at every stage of training for one of the four recognised ministries.
Late August was all about the Greenbelt Festival. Four days in a field full of song, conversation, unexpected delights and grace-filled moments. We were reunited as a WGRG team in the Iona Community’s ‘Wild Goose’ venue offering workshops, worship, and wee sings. We collaborated with Christian Aid on morning worship and delivered a mighty Big Sing as part of the festival programme. It was a delight to meet such a wide variety of people and understand how resource group material lives out there in the world.
September saw Jane and Jo head to the mystic east (or ‘Edinburgh’ as some folk call it!) to deliver an Iona Community evening for the Anglican-Lutheran Society in Edinburgh. They were exceptional singers! In October Iain led singing sessions at the Ignatian Spirituality Centre on psalms and creation. Jo led worship at ‘Mission Possible’ a day conference organised by Glasgow Presbytery.
Most recently, Team WGRG facilitated music and worship for the Community’s October Plenary as well as doing a nifty side-line in defrosting infinite vats of soup. As before, you had to be there…
USA North East