THE experience of trauma can be so deeply felt that it is impossible to find the words to express how we feel. As the Psalmist said, “I am so troubled I cannot speak.” But can another provide the words for us? In her poem “The Minister”, Anne Stevenson acknowledges that we need the minister to take care of the words. In this book, four newly ordained ministers give us appropriate words, words to still the hurting soul in a time of waiting.
An extended foreword by Karen O’Donnell, one of the foremost scholars reflecting on trauma in relation to the Church’s worship, sets the tone for the prayer resources that follow. These are modelled on New Patterns for Worship, and provide the building blocks of liturgical prayer, from the Gathering to the Ending of the service. And, like New Patterns, this book also includes a couple of sample services. Most of these prayer units are drawn from authorised Church of England Common Worship sources, and some are fresh compositions, sensitively phrased, if a little too prolix. As well as words, there are also suggestions for movement, such as the use of prayer stations, and simple ritual actions.
The resources here could be used at any time, but they were written specifically for Holy Saturday, described here as “the gap” between the grief of Good Friday and the joy of Easter morning. This understanding of Holy Saturday, however, is perhaps too episodic. It may well seem as though nothing happens on that day, but the legend of the harrowing of hell and the Easter icon testify that Christ is in the dark caverns of death, drawing the departed into the light of life. Further, Easter is not a “happy ending”. The risen Christ bears on his body the marks of human suffering, and, even on the cross, words are spoken that are intimations of resurrection.
Alongside these theological qualifications, I wonder whether the material here was sufficiently trialled and tested before it was published. Liturgical writing takes time. Nevertheless, here are some imaginative resources for those occasions when people need to gather in a safe space to be held by the compassion of Christ.
The Revd Christopher Irvine is a teaching fellow of St Augustine’s College of Theology and teaches for the Mirfield Liturgical Institute.
In the Sacred Pause: Liturgies for times of stillness and waiting
Claire Brockelsby, Ian Henderson, Dan Krawczyk, and Mary Kilikidi
Canterbury Press £14.99
(978-1-78622-686-0)
Church Times Bookshop £11.99
