Change is something that happens when we’re not looking. We think that we’re doing one thing, but it turns out to be something completely different. After a January that felt interminable, two things happened at once - I began reading the Salt Path and I started a new project. As the month of February now races to a close, I realise that, like Raynor and Moss in the Salt Path, I too have walked out into a new freedom - ‘a new season has crept into me’.

Anna is an elderly Israelite woman who recognises the Messiah in the infant Jesus. Described in Luke 2:36-38, she is devout, spends her nights and days fasting and praying, and is a Prophet. Denise is a writer and poet, who recognises the divine presence in unexpected places. Her father, Paul Levertov, was a Russian Hasidic Jew who converted to Christianity. This is an imaginary conversation between them.

Last Sunday, after several weeks of grey colourless days which ran into each other and were barely distinguishable, the snow came, softly, suddenly, and the world was transformed. It was as though we’d all been let out to play, just for a day. And we seized the opportunity and ran, skated, slid and slithered with it wherever it would take us. Suddenly Winter wasn’t so bad after all.

“Christmas is all about God doing whatever it takes to be with us”, said Louise. We may not be with all the loved ones we hoped to see this Christmas, but God is with us, so who are we to despair? Merry Christmas everyone and may the Christchild fill your hearts and dreams always.

I’m being ‘bothered’ by trees at the moment. Two of them are real, two of them are literary and one is metaphorical. This Advent, may the ‘season of right doubt’ connect us through prayer and preparation, and with the greenery of Hope and Right Doubt entwined around our advent wreaths, let us move forward to the joy that awaits us.

“In the space of an instant a tiny community had formed. We stood looking at each other, nodding slightly sheepishly” - Sometimes community is formed by accident, not by design. In this month’s Chair’s Blog, Anne Dixon reflects on a community brought together by the instinct to protect themselves and those they love.

As we continue our focus on Eucharist in this time, there are three intertwining threads running through our discussions, which I wanted to summarise for all those who have taken part and shared their thoughts.

What was discussed in the young people’s breakout room at the CPW Autumn Lecture on 20th October? Harry Cook interviews his brother to find out.

Paul Marley reflects on a challenging and instructive evening in which the vast scale of time and space allowed us to explore questions beyond our comfort zones.

CPW Member Bill Phillips thanks Professor Monica Grady for a wonderfully informative and stimulating evening at the CPW Autumn Lecture on 22nd October 2020.

In this article Mike Campbell shares his experience of virtual church: “I am certain God is present at these services, and I have found myself spiritually refreshed and renewed by them. There is a real feeling of community… This lockdown has shown the laity can survive without the Church, but I am not sure how long the laity could survive without the Eucharist.”

At CPW we embrace this rediscovery of the symbols of Eucharist. We celebrate, give thanks and share with exuberance. For many of us it is one of the most authentic experiences of the sacrament. We are truly a Eucharistic Community. At the moment, our community has never felt more scattered. Though we can see beloved faces and hear each other’s voices, watching others eat is not shared food. So what is to be done?

Mary Huckfield remembers her mum, Maura Chadwin, who died on the 18th of July 2019, exactly one month after her 84th birthday and less than two months after she and her husband Steve had celebrated their 60th Wedding Anniversary. Maura began her CPW journey in the early 70s. That first holiday marked the beginning of many, many CPWs and lead to the establishment of lifelong friendships which would enriching her own faith and that of her family.

“As the last sounds of appreciation for the concert piece died away and we began to prepare for our final night prayer, one young girl turned to her mother and said, “Where are the Thank You’s?” When I heard this story I knew we needed to act. So I’d like you to imagine we are all gathered in the lounge/hall of Malvern, Penmaenmawr, Kintbury or Hyning. We are all in high spirits. The week is ending, tomorrow we go home. I just have a few thank you’s to say…”

“CPW is my favourite part of the summer holidays, so when I was told that it was cancelled, I was really upset. Then I was told that it was going to be held over Zoom and, to be honest, I didn’t want to do it. I thought it wouldn’t work and I didn’t want to talk to people I miss and can’t hug but, after the first session, I was so happy that I had joined.”

“What a wonderful week! How so worthwhile it has been for all of us privileged to be part of it. Thank God for people of vision in 1945 who set in motion such a wonderful “CPW Way” for our continuing re-discovery of the beauty and wonder of Him who walks shoulder to shoulder alongside us. This week has been a truly “HUMAN” experience of authentic Incarnation embodied in a Zoomed week in which young and old have celebrated together.”

“CPW is the embodiment of joy, it is a community which has refused to give into the challenges of a pandemic. I felt myself being lifted up, reminded that God is with me and in that I should feel an overwhelming joy knowing this. I was reminded of the reason I joined CPW, the joy and enthusiasm I experienced through a CPW family in my parish. I found this joy infectious and wanted my family to experience it also.”

On the 5th day of the virtual week, on a day titles ‘wake up’, three speakers gave us moving and vivid examples of how they are responding to calls for justice, peace, and the integrity of the earth within their own lives and the organisations for which they worked.

A speaker told us about many families in Leicester who were struggling to survive – refugees and asylum seekers who are now struggling to navigate the UK benefits system, access food points and ensure they are obtaining the assistance to which they are entitled.

Dr Ally Kateusz is an art historian, specialising in the intersection of women and religion. In her report on Dr Kateusz’s talk, Mary Ring describes how Ally uses her research to depict that Jesus left women followers as equals: powerful leaders who preached, prayed publicly, healed, evangelized and baptised.