‘Adjusting to crisis’
Greetings,
The Principal has just written to University students to say that University in-person events over this weekend involving sport, student societies, the Byre Theatre, the Library and Chapel are postponed. That means that we will not be able to hold our service of worship in St Salvator’s Chapel this Sunday 20 September. I am very sorry to be sharing this news with you. I have already written to everyone who had reserved a space in the service. I know how much people have appreciated our return to St Salvator’s Chapel over recent weeks, and I very much hope that this measure will be temporary. No decision has been taken about events following this weekend.
As it is, we had planned to hold an online version of the Chapel service at 2 pm on Sunday. Instead, we will now have that online service at 11 am (British Summer Time). Here is the link: Join Microsoft Teams Meeting You do not need to have Microsoft Teams downloaded on your laptop, but it can work better if you do. I hope you will be able to attend the service in that way if you wish to, with a sermon from our Assistant Chaplain Revd Sam Ferguson on Agents of Grace, music from members of St Salvator’s Chapel Choir, and readings and prayers as usual. Here is the image Sam chose for the order of service, of vineyards near Taizé in France:
This also means that the Orthodox service which was to have taken place in St Leonard’s Chapel this Sunday for the first time since spring has also been cancelled.
An item which a chorister has been preparing for Sunday is a setting of Let all the world in every corner sing, by George Herbert. The second verse now seems full of irony given the closing of the chapel doors:
Let all the world in every corner sing,
My God and King!
The church with psalms must shout, no door can keep them out…
And the very next line goes on to say:
But, above all, the heart must bear the longest part.
Indeed, many hearts are bearing the longest part, experiencing loss, isolation and uncertainty. It looks, at least for a while, that our connection will again come through a zoomunity (even if we have migrated to Teams). Here is Vaughan Williams’ setting of this text: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7qh9ZMhj-o
The Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, is this weekend. Let’s hope that the twelve months which begin now is a time of increasing community and blessing.
As we move into a time of increased tension in news broadcasts and University communication, please know that your Chaplaincy team continues to care for the whole community. You are welcome to contact us, and to arrange to see Sam, me or another chaplain, to discuss how things are going for you.
Whatever your weekend holds, I wish you a time of companionship and hope.
Yours,
Donald.