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| Mosaic based on the Deesis Mosaic, Hagia Sophia |
1.0 Preparation
(1.1) I had been joining with the College community online for Morning Prayer (and sometimes Compline) since the lockdown started so had grown familiar with the format. I had previously led Morning Prayer on two occasions, once "live" and the second time using basic pre-recorded sections. The Facebook broadcasts were started by a fellow student as a way of joining together as a community for worship, even though we could not physically meet together. I think this original driving purpose - of creating community - and the timing of my turn to lead Morning Prayer for the third time (in Eastertide, and following the 'Walk to Emmaus' gospel reading on the preceding Sunday) were significant influences on the way I prepared for this service and the themes that emerged from my reading of the scriptures appointed for the day and how I chose to lead the worship. (The Gospel reading from the preceding Sunday, particularly Luke 24.32, seemed particularly influential: "Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening up the scriptures to us?") These factors seemed to create a sense of responsibility as a leader of worship to facilitate the opening up of the scriptures for the college community, even if we were not physically alongside one another.
(1.3) Most of my colleagues who had led the service before me had either used Common Worship Daily Prayer or the Book of Common Prayer (and not an alternative form like the Celtic Daily Prayer such as that used by the Northumbria Community, which I have used before for personal prayer) - perhaps because the former are more easily accessible online? As Pandita Ramabai is remembered for bringing the Word to new audiences in a language accessible to them, I decided from an early stage to use the Common Worship order of service, rather than the Book of Common Prayer - opting for what I saw as its more accessible language. Others may disagree on that point, of course!
(1.4) Next, I turned to the readings from scripture appointed for Morning Prayer on that day. Both readings were engaging and well known events in the story of our relationship with God. The task of meditating on the readings might have been more difficult if that has not been the case! I read both texts using a form of Lectio Divina. The reading from Exodus described the offerings made by the Israelites to construct the tabernacle - the dwelling place of God - and detailed the construction of the ark of the covenant. The reading from Luke described the birth, circumcision and naming of John the Baptist and included Zechariah's famous song of praise, in which, after being filled by the Holy Spirit, he prophesied that his son will point to the Messiah.
(1.5) Through the process of Lectio Divina, the themes of offering ourselves to God and the importance of the name by which God has called each of us, stood out. In our current situation, restricted to our homes due to the Covid-19 pandemic and participating in worship online via Facebook, all I knew about some of those worshipping with me was their name and, if they used one, a profile picture. I decided to use the names and Facebook profile pictures of those who follow the College Facebook page as part of the worship - to create art as devotional aids for prayer and as a symbol of offering ourselves to a God - helping to "open up" the scriptures in a sort of visual sermon. I have previously used a technique of making photo-mosaics overlaid onto works of art, using an easy-to-use piece of free software. Inspired by the life and legacy of Mary Ramabai I spent time researching images of Christ by artists from different cultures all around the world, as a basis for the mosaics. The effect of using Facebook profile pictures as a basis for the mosaics seemed to resonate with images from our contemporary situation - a time when news channels and newspapers have been using montages of photographs of the victims of Covid-19. It may have been the case that some of the "profile pictures" I used in creating the artworks were people who were unwell or even those who have died. Therefore at the same time as being seen as an image of praise and thanksgiving, inspired by the scripture, the mosaics may to some convey a sense of grief, lament and the darker or perhaps sinful side of the human condition.
(1.5) Through the process of Lectio Divina, the themes of offering ourselves to God and the importance of the name by which God has called each of us, stood out. In our current situation, restricted to our homes due to the Covid-19 pandemic and participating in worship online via Facebook, all I knew about some of those worshipping with me was their name and, if they used one, a profile picture. I decided to use the names and Facebook profile pictures of those who follow the College Facebook page as part of the worship - to create art as devotional aids for prayer and as a symbol of offering ourselves to a God - helping to "open up" the scriptures in a sort of visual sermon. I have previously used a technique of making photo-mosaics overlaid onto works of art, using an easy-to-use piece of free software. Inspired by the life and legacy of Mary Ramabai I spent time researching images of Christ by artists from different cultures all around the world, as a basis for the mosaics. The effect of using Facebook profile pictures as a basis for the mosaics seemed to resonate with images from our contemporary situation - a time when news channels and newspapers have been using montages of photographs of the victims of Covid-19. It may have been the case that some of the "profile pictures" I used in creating the artworks were people who were unwell or even those who have died. Therefore at the same time as being seen as an image of praise and thanksgiving, inspired by the scripture, the mosaics may to some convey a sense of grief, lament and the darker or perhaps sinful side of the human condition.
(1.6) I noticed that in preparing for the service I naturally gravitated towards the Old Testament and New Testament lessons rather than other scripture - the Psalm, canticles and responsories which separate them. Perhaps this is a result of years of attendance at the Eucharist at churches where the gospel is often brought out In procession and surrounded by much ceremony? However, I realised that in its earliest forms, such as those used by the Desert Fathers, it was the Psalms that were the basis of the Office. Psalm 136 had been appointed for the morning of April 30th 2020 in the Common Worship Lectionary and immediately I heard the words through the music of Heinrich Schütz, whose setting of this psalm I remember hearing at the BBC Proms some years ago, performed by a period orchestra. The second half of each verse was set to full choir and orchestra with drums and natural trumpets, vividly emphasising the rhythm and repetition of the phrase "for his mercy endures forever."
2.0 Production
(2.1) In order to incorporate artwork I had started to make, I decided to pre-record the service. I had found free software to enable the use of pre-recorded and live elements and broadcast these as a single output on Facebook, but was not yet confident in its use, so decided to record the service piece by piece.
(2.2) My previous sessions leading Morning Prayer had been to a single fixed camera position with no variety in presentation technique. This time I decided to add variety in order to differentiate between different parts of the service. I created a running order with scene changes based roughly around the four part structure of the Daily Office; an introduction or preparation sequence, followed by the Word (the Psalm and bible readings) then the prayers and finally the conclusion.
(2.3) My partner Henry suggested recording the opening and closing sections outside, as if to welcome people in to our home (a virtual handshake) - with the scripture readings taking place inside, by candlelight.
(2.3) My partner Henry suggested recording the opening and closing sections outside, as if to welcome people in to our home (a virtual handshake) - with the scripture readings taking place inside, by candlelight.
(2.4) I decided to use the mosaics I had made to create slow animations highlighting different parts of each image and broadcast these with audio recordings made off-camera of the psalm, canticles, responses and prayers - but to be in vision throughout the reading of the Lessons so as to highlight the importance of this scripture.
(2.5) Sourcing multi-cultural images of Christ that seemed to work appropriately with the canticle or responsory being read was time consuming. I was slightly disappointed to find out that the image I selected of the Black-American Christ from the 16th Street Baptist Church in Alabama had been made by a white Welsh artist, but it was the first image of a "black Jesus" in stained glass, so decided to use it. Making bespoke images in this way would obviously not be possible every day; but with the canticles and responsory only changing seasonally, if at all, they could be used more than once.
(2.6) Neither Henry nor I felt we had recovered from recent colds enough to confidently sing the psalm, but I was keen to incorporate music into the introduction of the service and as Common Worship permits the inclusion of a suitable hymn, I asked my friend Ben Schoeman, a talented pianist, to record "Lord enthroned in heavenly splendour." This is most commonly sung at a Eucharist and the choice of hymn was driven by my wish to use the same hymn for another service later in the week, but only bothering Ben once! Whilst the text is not seen as being directly related to any of the scripture used during the service, it is seen as a suitable Easter hymn and the theme of coming into the presence of God at the Eucharist seemed to link to the text of the Old Testament reading from Exodus, especially in the words used in the New English Hymnal "Thou art here, we ask not how."
(2.7) The decision not to use any images on screen during the reading of the Old and New Testament lesson - and to read them indoors next to a candle - was intended to differentiate this part of the service from the rest. Whilst the focus was on the scripture, I placed some visual cues on the shelves behind me which seemed to have some significance to the scripture and the commemoration of Mary Ramabai as a translator of the scriptures. This was obviously limited to what I had to hand at home. An African head (I didn't have any Indian objects in honour of Mary Ramabai but thought this would signal the cross cultural outlook of her work) and sculptures of open hands and a mug with the college logo, referencing the community watching and the theme of offering ourselves to God that I identified in the passages from scripture. Reading indoors and by the light of the candle rather than outdoors and in sunlight was an attempt to replicate the sense of being in church and a more intimate setting with the 'light of the world' speaking to us through the text. In practical terms the amount of light needed to allow me to see clearly and for those watching to see my face, meant the surrounding darkness I initially envisaged was not apparent at all!
(2.8) The Gospel canticle which followed the responsory was a repetition of the Song of Zechariah that we heard in the Gospel reading just before - to differentiate this reading and its use as a canticle, I decided that both the canticle and the responsory that preceded it should be spoken out of vision whilst on screen to show a slow animation of John Petts Memorial Window at the 16th Street Baptist Church.
(2.9) Whilst preparing for the service, I experimented with making images using the text of all the first names of those people who had liked or followed the College Facebook page, but found this technique was time consuming compared to the mosaic of images and the result not as aesthetically pleasing, so I decided I would use the list of names in intercessions instead. There were too many names (over six hundred) to call out by name. I decided to use Facebook's insight data to identify the forty people who had engaged with the previous services of Morning Prayer the most and to use only those names during the intercessions. The number 40 seemed an appropriate choice given our current state of 'exile'. As it happened two names were repeated and so there were 38 individual names used during the service.
(2.10) The prayers were introduced out of vision. This seemed to flow better from the Gospel canticle. I used the image based on the mosaic from the Hagia Sophia for the on screen animation during the prayers. A "white" looking Jesus. I think it was appropriate to have a mixture of images given the commemoration of Mary Ramabai who translated the word into Indian languages and, according to Exciting Holiness, was known for "pioneering an Indian vision of the faith" but what message did using the "white" Jesus for the prayers - including the Lord's Prayer suggest? One reason for the selection was that of all the images it was the only one to show just the face of Jesus, with no additional distractions; but perhaps I could have sourced an alternative from a different culture to my own? Perhaps as a backdrop to the Lord's Prayer I ought to have added a montage of the different images of Christ, using all the artwork I had created.
(2.11) I spent some time trying to consider the most appropriate prayer response. Common Worship allows for the set prayer responses to be modified. I wanted to draw together the themes from the scripture of offering ourselves to God and God calling us by name. I did not find any text I felt was suitable to quote from the readings or psalm appointed for the day, so improvised a response based on the words used at confirmation services, which I discovered later is based on scripture (Isaiah 43.1). Initially I wrote the following as a prayer response:
Lord you have called me by name and made me your own.
All I am is yours.
(2.12) But I wondered if the individual focus was appropriate for corporate worship and considered changing "me" to "us" and amending the rest of the text accordingly. At the last moment I reverted back to my original wording. As well as listing the names in alphabetical order, in three groups, I added intercessory petitions focussing on the College community and the coronavirus pandemic and allowed space for silent reflection.
(2.13) This was the last section of the service I recorded before stitching the elements together. I was conscious that whilst under normal circumstances our college worship takes place within the college building (or chapel at West Malling), being broadcast on Facebook meant anyone could view and participate. I decided to add large surtitles to the video at each point a congregational response was expected, so as not to limit active participation to those who have a prayer book or access to the online app.
(2.13) This was the last section of the service I recorded before stitching the elements together. I was conscious that whilst under normal circumstances our college worship takes place within the college building (or chapel at West Malling), being broadcast on Facebook meant anyone could view and participate. I decided to add large surtitles to the video at each point a congregational response was expected, so as not to limit active participation to those who have a prayer book or access to the online app.
3.0 Participation
Pre-recording the service meant that I could also participate in it along with those watching elsewhere, in real time. The service was streamed on Facebook 'as live' at 9am on Thursday 30th April. This commentary was written immediately afterwards and based on notes recorded during the service, reacting to comments made by those watching elsewhere and my own thoughts and feelings :-
(3.1) Preparation
(3.1.1) The opening seemed to go more smoothly than I imagined. Calm and at a sensible pace, not too rushed. Beginning outside in our small courtyard, with the doorframe (accidentally!) in shot gave the opening section a sense of being welcomed to a service, like standing at the church door. In some way I felt that the setting seemed to suggest 'Eastertide', with the green plants and the subterranean courtyard with the spiral stairs - a journey upwards; a visual reference to scripture and the liturgical calendar. The sunlight behind me on the wall at different times also helped create a celebratory feeling and a sense of new beginnings. I am pleased I took Henry's advice and recorded the open and close of the service outdoors.
(3.1.2) Juggling both the Prayer Book and a copy of Exciting Holiness was not as inelegant as it felt when recording. I think it was helpful to show an image of Pandita Mary Ramabai (perhaps easier to show a caption or graphic of who is being commemorated in this digital service than passing around an image in church), but was it right for me to introduce so specifically the themes I had identified from the scripture and how these influenced the prayers and the use of images during the worship? Whilst it wasn't a sermon or homily and only a few introductory sentences, should I have just let the service flow and allowed the Spirit to do its work? Allow people to engage with the scripture on their own terms? As far as I know, John the Baptist pointed to Christ, he didn't take people by the ear and drag people to him! I think some introduction was necessary because many who would see the video may not be regular attendees at Morning Prayer.
(3.1.3) Including the hymn, the 'preparation' section of the service was one fifth of its total length. Is that too much? What is too much? Perhaps I should have timed others in preceding days to determine what was appropriate in terms of a 'running order?' Would a shorter hymn be better? Were people singing along or did they go and do something else during the music? Some commented on Facebook that the pitch was a bit high for early morning. Ben's playing is very expressive and fascinating to watch - offering his own (considerable!) talents to God - echoes of the reading from Exodus and the unwritten theme for the service. I think it was right to keep him in-vision for the whole hymn, with surtitles not subtitles so as not to obscure the view of the keyboard.
(3.1.4) I thought I left more space for silence after Ben's hymn and the opening prayer but the video transition effects seem to have eaten up a lot of it! Was there enough silence? Perhaps a longer gap between the end of the hymn and the opening prayers would have been better - and definitely something I think I would have done if "live" rather than editing together different recordings. But perhaps it is easy to underestimate the length of silence - the fact this service was recorded meant that I can look back and scrutinise things like this - which would not be possible in normal circumstances before the lockdown. Maybe the silences I normally create between different parts of a service aren't longer, but just seem longer at the time?
3.2 The Word of God
(3.2.1) Reading the verses of the psalm alternately with Henry whilst saying the second half of each verse in unison emphasised the rhythm of the text. I think the text would have been too long for one person to sing or say it alone and the order of service had the second half of each verse printed in italics, implying some form of different approach to the first half. The unison second half was reminiscent of the musical setting by Schütz which I remembered while preparing for the service. I wonder if people would find the choice of image strange. I wanted to start with an image based on an Indian artist in honour of the life of Mary Ramabai - it is a shame I could not find any suitable images by women artists. Solomon Raj's "Bread from Heaven" woodcut seemed to fit with the theme of the psalm, God's mercy and love for his people. Whilst the image seems to show Jesus and elements we recognise from the last supper, the position of Jesus in the sky suggest a post resurrection theme and the title could refer to both Old and New Testament texts.
(3.2.2) Henry and I said the contemporary refrain at the end of the Psalm and the Gloria in unison. I have not always read the refrain at previous services but the text, especially its reference to our troubled times, seemed very relevant.
(3.2.3) I think the gap between the end of the Gloria and the announcement of the Old Testament reading was sufficient and better than the time between the hymn and opening prayer in the first section of the service.
(3.2.4) I wore blue and purple (the only clothes I had which related to the colours of yarns mentioned in the reading from Exodus), but nobody seemed to comment on this - perhaps nobody noticed.
(3.2.5) I am not sure that starting to read from the bible with it in shot, then continuing with the autocue was successful? Did it seem awkward - especially at the point I chose to change my focus from the bible; did it seem as though the words I was reading (God's instructions about the offerings to make) were my words? Perhaps that was distracting. The readings in the videos we use for the London Internet Church daily prayers are all given straight to camera, with no bible or other 'prop' - but the scripture reference is given on screen throughout the reading, to make clear that it is from scripture and not a sermon or reflection. Perhaps that would have been a better approach?
(3.2.6) I didn't end the reading "This is the word of the Lord" as some people have done. There was no instruction in the order of service to require this. As the canticle which follows was also the word of the Lord - and in some sense the whole act of worship (and indeed our whole lives as disciples of Christ) are inspired by the Living Word, I felt it did not seem an appropriate thing to say - but doing so would perhaps have raised the importance of this section of the service - and the place of scripture in it. In hindsight perhaps "Here ends the first lesson" might have been better - but this traditional language doesn't seem to suit that of the rest of the service - and again, if we learn at all times, not just when we hear scripture proclaimed, then every moment can be considered a "lesson"? Our lives as disciples are a lesson which never ends - we never achieve perfection?
(3.2.7) During the canticle which followed, comments on Facebook showed that people realised that the images used were made up of their Facebook profile pictures. There was a wonderful moment when the animation of the images seemed to tie in perfectly with the scripture - the Spirit at work! Whilst verse five of the canticle was being read:
"Your right hand, O Lord, is glorious in power:
your right hand, O Lord, shatters the enemy."
(3.2.8) The animation of the mosaic based on James He Qi's "The Risen Lord" focussed on the outstretched right hand of Jesus. But did the people whose faces were used for that part of the mosaic relate to the second half of the verse more than the first - and verse six which follows, describing the fate of the enemy at the hand of God? I might have been a bit disturbed if my face was in focus when the word enemy was read aloud. But we are all sinners - all enemies of God in that sense. Perhaps the fact that multiple faces were always in shot depersonalised any sense of identifying particular people as good or bad at different points in the canticle. In any event, the whole image whilst made up of individual profile pictures, is of Christ.
(3.2.9) Another serendipitous encounter occurred later at verse seven of the gospel canticle, from the Song of Zechariah:
"And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High"
As the animation of the mosaic based on John Petts window for the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama focussed on the "You" in the text at the foot of the cross, taken from Matthew 25:40.
(3.2.10) I noticed the left of the longer surtitles were being obscured by the Facebook video 'premiere' sign, not helpful for those watching live, but others joining later would not be affected.
(3.2.11) Seeing the bible held in shot at the start of the gospel reading made me realise the cover isn't very appealing! It is a large study bible but not grand or embellished with gold leaf like the ones used in church. The only leather bound and gold leafed bibles we have at home are the King James Version. Perhaps I should have read the gospel holding one of those but with the NRSV translation printed on a separate sheet and held inside? Would people watching think the bible was too dusty and not dog-eared enough to be used for study? I hardly use it these days, tending to use the online bible app. Would any of this distract people from engaging with the scripture?
(3.2.12) Speaking directly to the camera and not using any artwork or other images on screen during the reading of the scripture was meant to signify the special nature of this part of the service. Did this work or was I more of a distraction? Whilst I think I read clearly from the autocue I think my facial expressions need work! Did the eyebrow raises and other gestures distract from the scripture? Sometimes I think I made very unusual expressions. I wonder what I look like when I read in church? Perhaps I always make odd faces now and then? Did I look engaged with the scripture, as though these words were changing me? I'm not sure I did, so how could I expect others to have a similar response.
3.3 Prayers
(3.3.1) Whilst in preparing the service I debated the choice of using a personal or a collective prayer response. I think in hindsight, maybe a collective response might have been better ("all we are" rather than "all I am" is yours), after all, the service is a collective act of prayer and worship - not an individual one. But when heard and read alongside the composite images made up of hundreds of individuals, I think a sense of the collective nature of the worship comes across.
(3.3.2) Reading the collect in-vision and the Lord's Prayer out of vision seemed to work - one might close one's eyes when reading the Lord's Prayer in church so it seemed to make sense for me, as leader of the service, not to be in vision. The words of the Collect and their reference to the Easter season also seemed appropriate in the setting of the courtyard outside, amongst the sunshine and plants.
3.4 Conclusion
(3.4.1) As with the opening section, I think concluding the service outside seemed appropriate in the circumstances and was possible to do with a pre-recorded service. Had the service been broadcast live, or been in a church or chapel with the congregation physically present, this would not have been as easy - but gave the sense online of welcome and then departure. In a physical setting - and before Covid-19 restrictions - it would have been possible to offer a handshake or some other acknowledgement at the church door.
(3.4.2) Lots of comments were posted on Facebook afterwards and I tried to respond to them all, to show appreciation but also a presence and sense of community (a virtual handshake). One comment was from a priest in Kent who remarked how much it meant that her name was mentioned in the prayers, as part of the extended College community. She had been joining online both morning and evening for several weeks. But by naming only the top 40 users who most regularly interact at morning prayer, have I excluded anyone joining for the first time or someone who joins less frequently?
(3.4.3) The College Administrator emailed and asked for copies of the images to use in future. Did the images have more impact than the scripture? Have I pointed people to what I have done rather than what God does for us?
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