Start:Stop-The Song of Songs

Marc Chagall, Le cantique des cantiques (The Song of Songs), 1975

Start:Stop offers ten minute reflections, starting each quarter of an hour, between 7.45am and 9.15am. This is my reflection from 12th February 2019. Thank you for joining us for Start:Stop. This reflection will last around ten minutes and you are welcome to come and go as your schedule dictates. We begin with a bible reading which can be found on page 652 of the Old Testament. 

Three Byzantine Saints Reunited with St Stephen - The Treasures of Byzantium

Akathistos by Nick Bicât - Performed by Cantata Dramatica with dancers from Middlesex University

“Chaire numphe anumpheute!” (Hail unwedded bride) sang out Pulcheria (Frances M Lynch) as she led her sister-in-law Eudocia (Hannah Scott) and Melania the Younger (Rhian Davies) around the altar at St Stephen Walbrook on 30th January 2019 at the opening of Akathistos by Nick Bicât. The piece was performed as part of ‘Treasures of Byzantium’ by Cantata Dramatica in aid of the charity Lepra. The community choir of St Stephen Walbrook was invited to join with the chorus at key points in the text. Whilst the performance was a world premiere, it wasn’t the first time that these three female saints from Byzantium had been associated with a church dedicated to St Stephen; disputes about their various claims on the relics of the first Christian martyr continued even after their deaths.

A reflection on Psalm 12

The Mock Marriage of Orlando and Rosalind (As You Like It - Act IV Scene I) by Walter Howell Deverell 

Have we made all the world a stage?

Addicted to our own applause? 

Do we owe our Sunday Best to a child refugee?

Who gave us virtues to be seen - or not to be seen : what is the answer?

We cannot ask the faithful - they have been cast out.

A reflection on Psalm 1

Pacino di Bonaguida, Tree of Life, 1310

A personal reflection and prayer based on Psalm 1, one of the psalms appointed for Morning Prayer today.

The Tree of Life.

Evergreen.

Rooted.

Strong yet tender.

Yearning for the Son.

The Cross of Jesus.

BOOK REVIEW - Phoebe : A Story by Dr Paula Gooder

“I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon of the church at Cenchreae, so that you may welcome her in the Lord as is fitting for the saints, and help her in whatever she may require from you, for she has been a benefactor of many and of myself as well.” (Romans 16:1-2)

Start:Stop-Mother Maria Skobtsova and Homeless Jesus

Thank you for joining us for Start:Stop. This reflection will last around ten minutes and you are welcome to come and go as your schedule dictates. We begin with a bible reading which can be found on page 30 of the New Testament. 

Five things I learnt from my first Rosary ADVENTure

During Advent I took part in the Rosary ADVENTure, praying the Rosary each day. The Rosary ADVENTure was devised by Fr Rick Morley, a priest from New Jersey and Fr Sam McNally-Cross, the Vicar of St Thomas Kensal Rise in London. They created a Twitter account to form a community of pilgrims from around the world committed to praying the rosary through Advent, with prayer intentions tweeted at the same time each day. Each tweet was ‘liked’ or ‘retweeted’ when prayers had been said.

A reflection on Psalm 76

I am Not Alone - Isaiah 43:2 - Richard Rice

God’s love for me and my love for Him connects me to the whole of creation. Achieving a state of unity, peace and reconciliation both within and without is therefore fundamental to my existence. 

Start:Stop-How Lovely Are Thy Dwellings

The Dome of St Stephen Walbrook

Thank you for joining us for Start:Stop. This reflection will last around ten minutes and you are welcome to come and go as your schedule dictates. We begin with a bible reading which can be found on page 572 in the Old Testament. We have been thinking a lot about journeys recently – you will see that the Wise Men made it to the manger when we celebrated the Epiphany on Thursday – today our reading has a similar theme:

Les Cinq Vierges by Thomas Merton

Alla Nazimova performs the dance of the seven veils in Charles Bryant’s Beardsley-inspired Salomé (1923)

This month marks fifty years since the death of Thomas Merton who has been described as the most influential American Catholic author of the twentieth century. This poem - one of four written in French - appears to bring the parable of the wise and foolish bridesmaids into the twentieth century in more ways than one.

Start:Stop-Just In Time Christianity

The Wise and Foolish Virgins, Edward Burne-Jones (1859)

Thank you for joining us for Start:Stop. This reflection will last around ten minutes and you are welcome to come and go as your schedule dictates. We begin with a short bible reading which can be found on page 29 of the New Testament section of the bibles.