Because you're worth it

I have just returned from co-leading a residential weekend for the curates in our Diocese - the Anglican diocese of Winchester. Curates are recently ordained ministers who are still in the initial phase of their training and formation which lasts for four years after ordination.

We took the L'Oreal tag-line as our theme for the weekend and set it beside Psalm 8 which contains these words:

³

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
   the moon and the stars that you have established;
⁴what are human beings that you are mindful of them,
   mortals^* that you care for them?

⁵Yet you have made them a little lower than God,^*
   and crowned them with glory and honour.
⁶You have given them dominion over the works of your hands;
   you have put all things under their feet,

We spent the weekend exploring the question "what is the worth of a human being" resisting the temptation to carry out a chemical analysis or explore the Greek notion of a soul weighing 21 grams! It was an enjoyable weekend and the 42 participants all made a really useful contribution. We set out a framework and invited folk to participate by bringing their own experience and questions to provide the material. It worked very well. Each session borrowed a tag-line from the world of advertising.

We began on Friday evening:

Session #1 Fanatical about film (Borrowed from Odeon cinemas) in which we watched Crimes and Misdemeanors together.

Saturday

Session #2 Prepare to want one (Borrowed from Hyundai) In which we shared reflections on the film related to our theme and then explored some recent newspaper headlines and tried to get inside the story from our own perspective through considering how the headline appeared, or not, to value the people the story was about.

Session #3  Challenge everything (Borrowed from EA Games) in which folk were split into small groups to work through a passage of the Bible together and some quotations to continue our reflection on the central theme.

Session #4 Life is random (Borrowed from ipod nano) in which we invited folk into 'open-space' conversations about any subject they were prepared to host that touched on our theme.

Session #5 Wassssssssup? (Borrowed from Budweiser) explored how notions of the individual and their worth are portrayed through advertising. Plenty to reflect there.

Sunday

Session #6 It's good to talk (Borrowed from BT) in which folk were invited to reflect on their priestly vocation in the light of the ministries of hospitality and reconciliation God calls us towards. Participants were then invited to dream what their ultimate church community might be like if there were no resource constraints. Then into groups to discuss the outcomes.

Pentecost Eucharist in which we celebrated the coming and empowering of The Comforter - God's Holy Spirit.

All in all an excellent weekend. thanks to everyone involved.