A letter from Cape Town

Happy Christmas to you all
I thought this would be a good time to pen a brief update and circulate it via the Abbey Blog to let you know what we have been doing. Our family arrives in two waves to spend Christmas with us on Sunday and so this seems a good time to try and capture the first three weeks.
Settling in and settling down was both easy and took longer than expected! Richard and I have loved our apartment above offices in Adderley Street which is the Oxford Street of Cape Town and comes complete with Christmas lights - athletes in one display and a nativity in the next!! We are also just 5 minutes walk from the Cathedral - which has a labyrinth!!
Today is a public holiday so the 7.15 daily Eucharist is delayed until 8am and an interfaith walk around the main worship places of the city begins at the Labyrinth at 9am. This is organised by the Cathedral committee for reconciliation and justice with whom I was privileged to meet. Many of the folk here played significant parts in the fight against apartheid and the Cathedral had a significant role in that so there is a real passion to interpret the themes of justice and reconciliation for our own days and to be active in these areas. The interfaith walk is in its fourth or fifth year and the Mayor joins in!
Last Sunday we went to St Cyprians in Langa to the kind of African service people talk about: 3 and a quarter hours long and in Xhosa - although Fr Antoni kindly slipped in the odd English words every 15 minutes or so to help us keep track. What struck Richard and I even as we walked in was how like Church of the Holy Spirit - the ‘mission’ Church of St Mary’s Kenton it was. This was where Richard did his early scouting and we both attended Holiday Clubs. (I believe that a Greek Orthodox community now worships there). We stayed to lunch - kind of the equivalent of the lunch club Christmas dinner but VERY different. During the service all the ‘indoor members’ of the Church who are not usually able to attend were called forward - bags of groceries for their Christmas were blessed (by me!!) and distributed and after the service they were given lunch in the church hall. The catering was vat sized (I have the pictures to prove it!) Like many churches St Cyprians has an outreach programme and they feed those who can’t feed themselves at lunchtimes during the week. They are supported in doing this by their link parish in the Diocese of York.


We have made the most of our time off here as well - highlights were a half day at Cape Point and another half day in the V and A Waterfront. We did a trip down the coast to Hermanus and have done two glorious sunset drives along different coast roads. Last Saturday evening we did a special Jazz tour which involved going to musicians houses eating with them and listening to them talk about their music and their history -t his was organised by a company called Coffeebeansroutes who do good - slightly different tours. Absolutely fascinating and we came home turned on the telly and there was our host of a couple of hours ago narrating a programme about Jazz!! Then on Sunday we went to a concert in the Kirstenbosch Gardens - fab venue for concerts with Table Mountain as a backdrop to the stage. I hadn’t really taken much notice of Freshly Ground (World Cup song Waca Waca artists) but they are great - we have the CD but decided not to join the mile long queue to get it signed just joined the mile long queue to get out of the car park instead!!!
As you can tell we’re getting a lot of opportunities to do things we might not normally do! We’re also enjoying working together - as I write we are sitting opposite sides of the kitchen table working together having just stopped for lunch. This is a real blessing!
So what next! As I said our family joins us for Christmas and after that we set off for Kimberley. We had hoped to travel by train but can’t, so instead we shall drive - taking in a little of the Garden Route on the way. In between starting and finishing this letter I have been on the interfaith pilgrimage - too much to mention here so look out for another instalment!
With our love and prayers for a blessed and joyful Christmas
Sue and Richard

Traditional Skills: Crafts that Built the Abbey August 2010

Even the weather did its very best for us over the August Bank Holiday weekend, just testing us with only one sharp shower on Sunday afternoon, which did nothing to dampen the enthusiasm that characterised the three days of the Traditional Skills event.

Not only did we have skills aplenty on display, in the guise of the supremely talented craftsmen and women, but also the passion that goes with a love of the crafts and skills they continue and the materials they work with. Watching these people in action and listening to them talk about their work was a true privilege, and gave the visitors an illustration of their enthusiasm for what they do.

There was enthusiasm unbounded for the hands-on opportunities, displayed by both the young and not so young. Hundreds of commemorative bookmarks were produced under the guidance of the Bookbinders; hundreds of holes drilled in pieces of wood with hand tools, and medieval joints demonstrated by courtesy of the Woodworkers; machine- embroidered motifs were proudly taken home, and perhaps have even given two teenage boys thoughts for GCSE choices! Stone was chipped and stained glass arranged; iron was shaped at the Blacksmith’s forge and letters were shaped with the Calligrapher’s quills.

The Wallingford Scouts, providing refreshments and supervising the car park as a means of fund-raising, showed modern youth in a very positive light and were on hand to help, cheerfully and enthusiastically, whenever a job needed doing.

There was so much to watch, talk about and do that many visitors had to return more than once. Everyone involved loved the event – the craftspeople spoke highly of the genuine interest shown by the visitors and of the happy atmosphere. The visitors loved what the craftspeople provided for them. Those of us involved in the organisation just loved to see it happening as we had envisaged it.

The reactions and comments from the craftspeople and the visitors leave us in no doubt that Traditional Skills is a very special event. By its nature its outcome is immeasurable. We can only wonder whether one day someone will announce that what they saw and did at Traditional Skills took their life in a certain direction.

Perhaps anyone who may have thought that we had simply organised a repeat of the 2008 event will realise they missed a real gem in 2010. Those of us who were there know we were part of something very special which will live long in the memory.



(Blogged by Sue Dixon, principal organiser behind the Traditional Skills 2010 event)

Reflections on the First 6 weeks of Priestly Ministry

After spending a year serving as a Deacon in the Dorchester Team Ministry at the end of June came the time for me to be ordained as a priest. For the four days prior to the ordination itself I went on a retreat, along with 34 others to be ordained priests in the diocese, to Cuddesdon. This time allowed for some reflection and prayer before the momentous day itself and was a welcome time to step back from the business of ministry, enabling me to reflect on the year past and the years to come.

The ordination itself took place on a splendidly sunny Sunday on the 27th June 2010. I was fortunate that the ordination to the priesthood took place in Dorchester Abbey where I have a spent a lot of time over the previous year alongside five other candidates for the priesthood (including my wife Hannah). The service itself was lovely and ably conducted by Bishop Colin Fletcher, who is my area Bishop (Bishop of Dorchester). The archdeacon of Oxford Julian Hubbard preached a good sermon, reflecting on the similarities and differences between a wedding service and an ordination which gave us food for thought.

After the service a different sort of food was provided in a hog roast in the cloister garden which many people from the team attended on a sweltering afternoon. Most managed to find some shade from the trees to sit down and eat together. As usual the hospitality and cooking skills of the team were on display, with a good array of salads and desserts provided alongside the roasted pork.

From that day on there have been a series of firsts for me. My first celebration of communion came the following Sunday when I took the eight o’clock BCP service at the Abbey. This quiet and prayerful service seemed to me to be a low pressure way of celebrating for the first time and it was a great privilege to do so. After this service we had breakfast together with pastries hastily fetched from the local Co-Op and freshly made coffee, which all went down well.

The following Saturday saw the first wedding service I conducted, which was a nerve racking experience. So may things that I had to remember! Fortunately I was assisted by a good team of churchwardens who looked after lots of the practical issues. All I had to do was get the words right and avoid the ‘Holy Goats and Holy Spigits’ from Four Weddings and a Funeral. All passed off very well and a good time was had by all.

Looking back over my first six weeks there, in some ways, has been very little change in going about my daily business of ministry, but in some ways things have changed enormously especially on Sunday mornings. No longer am I assisting with communion services I am now taking them myself and sometimes even doing them solo. I look forward to many more years of offering my priestly ministry to the Church and hope to continue to grow in the knowledge and love of God and help others to do the same.

(Blogged by David Cleugh, newly ordained priest of the Dorchester Team Ministry)

Come Experience the Traditional Skills Weekend 28-30 August 2010

With three weeks to go before “Traditional Skills in Action – Crafts that Built the Abbey” we are down to the last details. We started planning this event immediately after the conclusion of our first “Traditional Skills” in 2008 (all these photos are from 2008 event), which attracted 3000 visitors over the weekend and resulted in many requests from both participants and visitors to “please do another one”. Several of this year’s craftsmen were with us in 2008 but we also have people joining us for the first time and new crafts and skills on display.

How do the skills of today’s craftsmen compare with those of the medieval craftsmen who built Dorchester Abbey? Have the tools, the techniques, the materials changed much in the intervening 900 years? Come and meet the contemporary craftspeople and ask them.



As well as having the opportunity to be close-up to highly-skilled, modern-day master craftsmen and women, try your hand at many of the skills for yourself – possibly the best way of discovering that the experts make it look much easier than it really is, or perhaps of realising a talent you didn’t know you had!

Entry to “Traditional Skills” is FREE and the event is open from 12 noon to 6pm on 28 and 29 August and from 10am to 4pm on Bank Holiday Monday 30 August – whatever the weather.

The sculptors, the blacksmith, the builder and the man who does wattle and daub will certainly be hoping that there will be no rain in Dorchester-on-Thames over the August Bank Holiday weekend.They will be demonstrating their skills under the cover of a marquee in the Cloister garden whilst the woodworkers, the calligraphers, the bookbinder, the stained-glass artist and the embroiderer will be demonstrating their crafts inside the Abbey. We don’t have room for the butcher and the baker this year - and the candlestick-maker (i.e. the silversmith!) finds himself working in Scotland – maybe we'll see him next time!


(Blogged by Sue Dixon, organiser behind the Traditional Skills Weekend 2008 and 2010)

Wycliffe Student Summer Placement 2010

I am Judith Griffin (below), a first year theology student from Wycliffe Hall, Oxford (left) and hope to be ordained into the Church of England next summer. At the end of the first year we need to have 5 weeks on a work placement where we will gain experience of a church environment which is different from that of our own. I have come from an inner city church so I was keen to know more about country parish life and ministry.

I was completely overwhelmed by the kindness and the warm welcome which I received from everyone whom I met in Dorchester. I was particularly struck at how much time many people give up volunteering for so many roles within and associated to the Abbey. The hard work and team spirit enables this historical place of prayer to be open and accessible to everyone. I was amazed at the variety of events and services that are available that reach out to all different sorts of tastes, needs and age groups.

Under the excellent leadership of Sue and the willingness of the volunteers to coach me, I feel that I have been privileged with the best experience that I could have ever imagined. I have learnt so much practically, but what stands out as a continual thread is the community and the way in which people relate to one another in love and understanding. Through Sue’s example the practical aspect of being a priest and being part of such a community is something that I can see is lived and enjoyed and is not contrived or something confined to a 9 to 5.30 perspective.

I will take away many valuable nuggets of experience and remember my time at Dorchester with warmth. This positive time has added to my excitement about the prospect of becoming ordained and I can’t wait to get out there and use what I have learnt this summer.

Thank you Sue, to you, your family, the team and everyone who I met; it was like being part of a large family .......and I shall also miss the cake!

(Blogged by Judith Griffin, Wycliffe Hall Ordinand on a 5 week placement at Dorchester Abbey during June/July 2010)

Discovering Dorchester Archaeological Schools Visits and Public Open Day 2010

Saturday 24th was a very busy Excavation Open Day on the allotment site for the Discovering Dorchester Community Archaeology Project, with well over 250 people visiting the site. This was the culmination of the July excavations by Oxford Archaeology and University of Oxford students; as Education Officer for the Project, I was pleased with the very enthusiastic response of children and adults.

My name is Jo Richards (seen in background of picture below right). I have worked in professional archaeology throughout my career; for many years as an archaeological illustrator and reconstruction artist, and more recently in the field of archaeology education, heritage interpretation and exhibition design. As a freelance adviser I also demonstrate late medieval plant use and 14th century needlework. I believe the current term for this is ‘portfolio working’!

This is my second summer in Dorchester-on-Thames, since I was recruited through Oxford Archaeology South. I work closely with Oxford Archaeology and the University of Oxford, who are directly responsible for the archaeological excavation programme, thereby providing a broadly historical and site-specific educational programme. In conjunction with the educational work at the dig I collaborate with Margaret Craig at Dorchester Abbey and John Metcalfe of Dorchester Museum, and we have had a very successful season, with over 70 pupils from two local schools visiting the excavation on the allotments site.

On these visit days, we ‘rotate’ groups between the abbey, museum and excavation, where children and their teachers and helpers have a site tour to see archaeology in action. There is a dedicated education marquee, and children can experience a number of activities including finds-washing, using micro-digs, examining tiny snail samples under the microscope and design their own roman coin/roman road/roman pot. After a site tour, I give a brief introduction to timelines, local history and what archaeologists do, including a chance to try on a hard hat, high-visibility jacket and a pair of enormous steel-capped boots!

It doesn’t stop there! There are Roman and Saxon Loans Boxes available for Oxfordshire schools to borrow free of charge throughout the year. I am available for pre-visits to schools before the excavation season starts, and in 2011 we are looking to expand this opportunity further. A number of teachers and parents have been very enthusiastic about the opportunities for hands-on experience of archaeology – there is no better way to enthuse the local community about the impressive and unique historic landscape on their doorstep.
(Blogged by Jo Richards, Discovering Dorchester Archaeological Educational Officer)

Mayors and Chairs Welcome Dinner

On a sultry (but dry!) Monday evening on Monday 19th July 2010, a large group of almost 80 people gathered for drinks on the lawn outside the Abbey. Principle guests were the Mayors and Chairs of the County, district and town councils from across Oxfordshire together with their partners.
The hosts were the Bishop of Dorchester, Colin Fletcher (photo right), and Oxfordshire’s Lieutenancy. Some 20 of the County’s 35 Deputy Lieutenants and their partners were there to welcome the guests. The Bishop of Oxford, John Pritchard (photo left), and his wife were also present. The Rev Canon Sue Booys, generously lending the gloriously spacious Abbey for the evening, enabled it all to happen.

The main purpose of the evening was to wish the Mayors and Chairs well at the start of their Civic year; to give them an opportunity to meet and mingle with each other, and for the group of Deputy Lieutenants, increasingly engaged in activity across the County, to get to know their opposite numbers in the Civic Community.

Being a Mayor or Chair is an onerous task: the list of events which they are asked to attend and be involved with is very substantial, and continues unabated through the whole of the Civic year. The impact that they can have, particularly in encouraging volunteering activity and thanking people all over the county for the tireless contribution that so many make to the well being of their local communities, is of great importance. This is true especially at a time of real economic austerity in public services, when the demands on our Civic authorities and the volunteering sector is greater than it has been for many years. So the evening was a big opportunity to thank and support and encourage our Mayors and Chairs, and to forge links with the Lieutenancy which should help both sides to do their jobs more effectively than would otherwise be the case. But if this makes it all sound too serious, it wasn’t. Drinks were followed by dinner in the Abbey – delicious food prepared and served by Sean and his team from the White Hart. A seating plan for the first course was matched by a free for all seating for the pudding giving maximum opportunity for guests to mingle and talk and gossip and moan and discuss current issues and problems. Some (short!) speeches were part of the mix.

At the end of dinner, all guests were invited to move down into the Chancel where Bishop Colin said Compline, a service which has been used in the Abbey, at the end of the day, for hundreds of years stretching right back to the Abbey’s 12th C monastic traditions. It is a service which encourages quiet contemplation and thought at the close of what had no doubt for all been a busy Monday, but more importantly an opportunity to think quietly about the challenges ahead. An appropriate end to a very special evening.

(Blogged by the Lord-Lieutenant of Oxford, Tim Steventon)