PRAYING WITH ART WORKSHOP

Meditative Doodling

​​The ‘PRAYING WITH ART’ weekend, hosted at St. Mary’s Handsworth, was a new departure for the Team.  The weekend was led by Sister Anne Reddington rsm, and proved to be very enjoyable and fruitful for those who took part.
 
Anne brought an abundance of resources – wools and threads for weaving, colouring pens and pencils, greenery and flowers for the ‘mindful flower arranging’ session, and a computer full of images to stimulate the imagination.  She created an atmosphere of relaxed activity and a sanctuary of peace by her presence, and especially by the respect with which she treated every effort and every question.
 
The workshop comprised four separate sessions, beginning on Friday evening, and continuing with two sessions on Saturday and a final session on Sunday morning. 
 
The Friday evening meeting was a ‘Meditative Doodling’ session.  Anne used some Lectio Divina, and distributed a leaflet with ideas to get the group started.  The gentle music in the background created a quiet, contemplative atmosphere, and it was clear that everyone was absorbed in the exercise. The blend of activity, and quiet contemplation set created a ‘right’ approach with which to launch the retreat.
 

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Tapestry

​The weaving session on Saturday morning had a strong scriptural base, focusing on God’s desire that we be ‘woven into a tapestry of love’. We were helped to consider offering the separate strands of our lives to be woven ‘in and out, through and through’ as we seek to become what our Creator has in mind for us. As we considered our own shaky efforts at weaving, we saw some expert examples both on the screen and in reality, and were invited to remember a time when God gave us a glimpse of the beautiful side of the tapestry of our own lives after a time at staring at the ugly side. 

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Consider the flowers of the field....

​Laudate Si provided the source of inspiration for ‘Consider the flowers of the field……, for our afternoon gathering.  We reflected on concepts such as how the Divine and human meet in the smallest detail of God’s creation – in the tiniest dewdrop, the single leaf and so forth.   The silence of the group was profound as they attempted to fashion beauty with a few twigs, leaves and flowers while at the same time meditating on the magnificence of God’s creation in a single flower or leaf. Personalities emerged with each creation, but what was obvious was the harmony and beauty in each one. 

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Prayer Collage

​During the final session of the weekend, the group was invited to create a ‘Prayer Collage’ starting with a word or phrase on the theme ‘Ruach’, Breath of God.  Step by step the group was helped to look at images, pictures and words which reflected a personal response to the theme.  It was a fitting way to bring the experience of the week-end to a close.

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We were extremely grateful to Anne for all the skill and effort she put into making a memorable weekend for everyone who participated in it.  

Sr. Brigid McNally