Wednesday, February 20, 2013
changing sabbatical gear
The last few days have been a delightful change of gear after an intense sabbatical period. Shannon arrived back from Germany on Friday and we’ve had a wonderful time catching up and being tourist. London called over the weekend – Natural History Museum, Science Museum, Harrods, Globe Theatre, Sung Eucharist at St Pauls, British Library, Sherlock Holmes Museum.
Monday included the Bate Music Museum, playing the oldest known English oboe and farewell cups of tea with folk who’ve helped make our time so much richer relationally.
Today we fly home. It’s been just over two months since Team Taylor left Australia for English shores. Workwise I have
- completed a 5,000 word book proposal and lodged it with an editorial board
- written about 25,000 further words on various chapters of that proposal –
- interviewed 20 folk around England and Scotland as part of the Fresh Expressions ten years old project. That has involved nine separate trips, from Bristol to Aberdeen to Cambridge to London
- done some profitable networking – enjoyed good pub time with Pete Ward, postgraduate practical theology at Aberdeen University, led Pocket Lamp worship at mission shaped ministry Board meeting, spent time with pioneers at Church Missionary Society and Ridley College
Personally, spiritually I’ve had a wonderful break. I’ve been blessed by some wonderful art in Europe, London and Glasgow (read back through the blog over the last few months). I woke up in Paris and realised I’d forgotten I was a Principal. A good thing! I’ve enjoyed compline prayer at Ripon College, although still can’t get my head around the practice of plain song when only a handful of folk are present.
When I get back, I enter my last phase of sabbatical – 6 weeks of intensive writing. It’s time to complete something!! I feel like I’m well positioned to do that. I’ve incubated, researched, data analysed and read enough that I’ve now got two books inside me and it’s time for the waters to break!
)
A great sabbatical by the sounds of things, Steve. After 26 years (Anglican Theological College & ordained ministry), I still can’t get my head around plain song, no matter how many are there!
Comment by Chris McLeod — February 21, 2013 @ 3:24 pm
There must be a reason Chris.
Steve
Comment by steve — February 21, 2013 @ 6:11 pm
Really looking forward to your new writing, Steve – especially to see how your gender studies affect the way you write about emerging Church. It’s a curiosity to me that nearly all the worship/emerging projects I founded in the UK have subsequently been attributed to men – it’s not that women don’t engage or pioneer, but that people looking on immediately assume the men who stand beside them really were doing the work/having the ideas. I’m hatching an idea for a new book too: no doubt very different from yours, but it will be interesting to see the cross-currents. I get my first-ever sabbatical next spring 🙂
Comment by Maggi — February 24, 2013 @ 4:36 am
Thanks maggi. Still trying to work out how to say what needs to be said re gender. If women leaders lead to women growing, how to practically grow people when ministry models are sole charge?
Do you have sabbatical plans and/or a place?
Steve
Comment by steve — February 24, 2013 @ 10:01 pm
Just forming plans but unlikely to involve a lot of travel as my son will be in school
… Will let you know what transpires. Just having uninterrupted time to write will be fantastic.
Comment by Maggi — February 25, 2013 @ 2:14 am