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Thursdays weekly 6.15 p.m. Christian Zen Group
Introduction for beginners at 6.15 p.m., sitting 6.30 – 8 p.m. with two short periods of walking meditation.
Please bring your own mat and Zen cushions if you have one. You are welcome to sit on a chair or on the floor as you choose.
Sitting (Zazen) is a centuries-old practice by which we seek to experience clear reality in the present moment by sitting still and silent in God’s presence, quieting the constant stream of thoughts.
‘Be still and know that I am God.’ Psalm 46.10
Further information from the Rev. Maggie Hindley at the Centre on 020 7372 1765 or maggie.hindley@londoninterfaith.org.uk
background information on the work of LIFC …
The Centre aims to provide a space where inter faith meetings, study and dialogue can take place amongst different world religions. The centre is funded and run by a single faith (Christian) but with many faith involvements. The London Inter Faith Centre was founded by the Church of England ten years ago, for the last five of which it has been joined by the United Reformed Church. As a ’single faith’ Christian hosted place of meeting, study and dialogue between faith communities and with the secular world it functions ecumenically and benefits increasingly from many faith involvement.
The Centre works with a definition of inter faith as faiths in encounter and the issues raised thereby The Centre seeks through a variety of courses, conferences, seminars, open occasions and events, to promote the encounter between faiths, without foreclosing on the conclusions.
Just as the Centre works with a definition, so it has a motto true to self and open to others – and thus endeavours to create a safe space within which those of differing and sometimes conflicting points of view can start to build communication with one another, leading to mutuality, trust and sometimes cooperative shared action.
Many of those interested in such issues may not represent or wish to be perceived as representing a whole tradition or even part of it – and so the Centre also has a Friends scheme for individuals, whereby individuals as individuals, of any faith or none, can actively participate in particular aspects of the work.
‘Inter faith’ means different things to different people – and for some involves multi-faith worship. While recognising that there are ways in which different traditions can explore sacred space and time together (See Sacred Silence) and while pursuing issues of spirituality that impact upon the spectrum of religious and even sometimes non-specifically-religious response, nonetheless the Centre avoids that which may effectively compromise mainstream worshippers of different religions. This site is under development to address these and other issues. We would be interested to know your views.
Stories that heal, stories that harm
A participatory day of cross-disciplinary dialogue and discussion. The aim is to pool learning from those working with personal and community narratives, in order to build a more complete picture of the field, stimulate best practice, and allow cross-fertilisation of ideas.
In collaboration with the London Inter Faith Centre, The Forgiveness Project and The International School of Storytelling
The day will include: interviews with key practitioners; panel discussions; small group think tanks; live stories; and creative networking.
With contributions from:
Professor Reno Papadopoulos, Centre for Trauma, Asylum and RefugeesSue Hollingsworth, International School of Storytelling, SussexEamonn Baker, Towards Understanding and Healing, Northern IrelandKelly Connor, Author and biographical storyteller
Aimed at: Community practitioners, peace-makers, academics, storytellers, narrative therapists, creative performers, mediators, palliative care workers, oral historians, psychologists, biographical counsellors, and all those interested in the application of narrative and personal story.
Key themes and questions that we hope to discuss during the day:
How is the field of personal story evolving and what new questions are guiding our work?
What new conversations are evolving between community practitioners, academics, narrative therapists, and creative performers?
How is learning being shared across disciplines?
Where exactly does the healing occur in story work?
What do we know about the psychological processes behind transformation?
What is our current thinking about the risks of story work and what have we learned about retraumatisation?
How have our ethics developed?
What is going on in the brains of teller and listeners – what do we know about the neurobiology of story and narrative?
What learning is emerging about the different effects of crafting personal stories for performance and ‘natural’ storytelling?
Come and learn, ask new questions, listen and share your own expertise.
Prices:
Early bird price: £48 (before 11 June)
Not so early price: £55
Includes lunch
Some concessions available, please enquire.
Contributor biogs: [this will be updated shortly]
Kelly Connor, author and biographical storyteller. In 1971 Kelly Connor, then aged 17, was responsible for the death of a 77-year-old woman. She has since moved to England and written a memoir about her experience.
Edward Mackay is the Director of Common Ground in Tower Hamlets, a community mediation service which has adopted narrative mediation as their central approach.
Teya Sepinuck is the founder and director of Theatre of Witness, a model of performance that gives voice to those who have been marginalized, forgotten or are ‘invisible’ in society. For the past 25 years, she has been creating and producing Theatre of Witness projects with prisoners and their families, survivors and perpetrators of abuse, refugees, immigrants, elders and those who have lived through war.
Her work has taken her to Poland and Northern Ireland where she is currently artistic director of the Theatre of Witness Programme at The Playhouse in Derry /Londonderry creating original works with ex-combatants, members of the security forces, survivors, witnesses and those living with the intergenerational legacy of the Troubles. Teya, who has a Masters Degree in Community Counseling was an adjunct faculty in dance at Swarthmore College from 1974 – 1991. She is the recipient of Philadelphia Human Rights Award for Arts and Culture from the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations, a Local Hero Award from Bank of America, as well as Cultural Arts Award from Women’s Way and the Mayor’s Commission on Women.
In partnership with:
London Inter Faith Centre
The Forgiveness Project
The International School of Storytelling
St Ethelburga’s Centre for Reconciliation & Peace
When: Friday 29 June 2012 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Location: The London Inter Faith Centre 125 Salusbury Rd Queens Park London, NW6 6RG United Kingdom
Contact: Phone: 07989 545 958 Email: justine@stethelburgas.org
Event Fee: Early bird price £ 48.00
