A JOURNEY, IN MAYTIME, TO F LI O TT Ronald Blythe, preacher at the Eucharist at I hear the litany being blown about as FRIENDS OF S L D E

2011’s Pilgrimage, subsequently wrote this it descends to the redundant church. N G

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LITTLE GIDDING I

I piece in his ‘Word from Wormingford’ col- Young and old, familiar nameless D

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umn in the , 27 May 2011. faces, often beautiful, enter its cold R F

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‘If you came this way,’ wrote the poet space. Then the last lap to where Eliot G H famously, ‘… you would fi nd the found that ‘prayer is more than an April 2012 T hedges White again, in May, with order of words’. voluptuary sweetness.’ And he was The Bishop of lays BECOMES OUR PRESIDENT right. It is the feast of Matthias, the fl owers on ’s tomb- We are very pleased that the Right otherwise anonymous man chosen to stone. The Ferrar brothers and George Revd Stephen Conway, the Bishop of mend the broken circle, and we are on Herbert were Westminster schoolboys Ely, has agreed to become the Presi- pilgrimage to Little Gidding. who could hardly have expected to end dent of the Friends of Little Gidding. The verges wave with cow parsley, up here in . From the fi rst foundation of the the clouds are mountainous, and red Part of their education was to be Friends in 1946, the Bishops of Ely kites are acrobatic. It really is the most crocodiled along the Thames path by were the President, but the position marvellous tramp. At Steeple Gid- , learning all the was left vacant when the Friends were ding, I watch the procession breast a way. And, rather to my surprise, for reconstituted in 2003. Now, at last, grassy hill, a happy ‘over the top’, and continued on page 15 the link with our diocesan bishop is happily restored. Pictured, left, at his enthronement last year, Bishop Stephen told us, ‘It is with delight that I accept your invita- tion to take up the role of President. I greatly enjoyed my visit to Ferrar House in the summer and look for- ward to learning more.’ The role of President is largely an honorary one, but Bishop Stephen has asked to meet the Friends Committee to discuss how he can participate. Members will have an opportunity to meet our new President on Saturday 19 May, when he will lead this year’s Pilgrimage to the tomb of Nicholas Ferrar. We hope that as many of you as photo by Paul Skirrow possible will be able to come then.

16 1 This Newsletter is published by the Friends MEMBERSHIP continued from page 16 purposeful sanctuary for the eucharist. of Little Gidding. one can become blasé about modern Shorts, big boots, dog-leads, packs. A big thank you to all of you who have pilgrimage and its attempt to get into Now and then I fi nd myself wonder- The Society of the Friends of Little Gidding renewed your membership this year. It step with another age, I fi nd myself ing ‘what the dead had no speech for is a registered charity, number 1102857, is particularly convenient for us if you also learning all the way. when living’, as the lovely familiar Ferrar House, Little Gidding, , can complete a standing order form pe28 5rj. I have, as a matter of fact, come words that Herbert ‘set’ in his verse so that your membership is automati- this way a number of times without are said yet again. The Friends of Little Gidding was cally renewed each year. moving on from literature into faith. At Little Gidding, fi ve miles away, founded in 1946 by Alan Maycock, May we ask all who have not yet But today it is different. It must be another feast awaits, plus for myself with T S Eliot as patron. The Society rejoined to consider renewing your the tumultuous weather, the reali- a destination loaded with language. was reconstituted in 2003 and seeks membership of the Friends for a sation that our route is the one that Such imagery. Such inescapable sen- to celebrate the life and memory of further year? The Committee has Nicholas rode on his horse when, at tences and songs and memories and Nicholas Ferrar and those who in the appointed Sally Seaman to the revived his old schoolfriend’s careful instruc- friendships. Herbert would have been seventeenth century formed the fi rst post of Membership Secretary, and we tion, he cancelled the ruin of Leighton delighted. ‘Delight’ was high in his Little Gidding community, making hope this will help us keep in touch Bromswold. vocabulary. Although young, he could it a holy place; to help maintain the with Members and encourage oth- This was where our pilgrimage not walk far, owing to the ‘mole work- fabric of Little Gidding Church; to ers to join. Sally can be contacted at assist Ferrar House; and to celebrate began. To somehow lift the meanness ing away in his breast’, that is, TB. of Bemerton it had been decided to Ronald Blythe the connection between Eliot and or c/o Ferrar House (address top left). Little Gidding. give Herbert the prebendal church of Thank you for your support for . The main income of the Society is the continuing work of the Friends in It was wrecked, needless to say. Eve- celebrating the life of Nicholas Ferrar little gidding subscriptions and donations from rything they gave him was in disorder, its members – people who love Little and his family, helping to maintain the priesthood most of all. He prob- Saturday 19 May Gidding, whether for its history, its and beautify the church, and to pro- ably never saw Leighton Bromswold, air of spirituality, its peaceful beauty, mote the work of Ferrar House. but today we certainly saw him. I 10.30 am: Holy Communion its place as the inspiration for one preached from the right-hand pulpit, at Leighton Bromswold of the twentieth century’s greatest NEWS SNIPPETS looking down on the wide aisle. He pieces of English poetry – or for the 1 pm: Pilgrimage Walk had told Nicholas to think of Isaiah 35 wonderful hospitality provided at Many Members will know Jonathan to Little Gidding Ferrar House! Young (who was incumbent at Lit- when he got the builders to make it. 4.15 pm: tle Gidding for a year), and Margaret ‘And an highway shall be there, and Please help to support the Friends in Scott (wife of Committee member a way, and it shall be called the Way Pilgrimage leader: their work by visiting and by encour- Richard). Jonathan and Margaret have of Holiness … it shall be for the way- Stephen Conway, Bishop of Ely aging friends and groups to visit, both been ill recently, and still are, and faring men … but the redeemed shall Friends of Little Gidding perhaps as pilgrims, for a quiet time, walk there.’ www.littlegidding.org.uk or for an organized retreat or confer- we send them prayers and best wishes for their recovery. We all look forward Herbert’s pale benches bank this ence; and by encouraging them to purposeful aisle, and his greenish consider joining the Friends of Little very much to seeing you both at the Pilgrimage in May if not before! glass casts a springtime light. We pilgrimage Gidding. move from his handsome nave to his

2 15 FERRAR HOUSE NEWS Nicholas Ferrar Day and the 2011 AGM The decision was made to close Ferrar House from the middle of December to the end of January, and this produced real savings on running costs particularly as it coincided with a relatively mild spell of weather. However, it was possible to take phone calls, respond to emails and take bookings remotely resulting in substantial advantages to the House without any perceived loss of business. A team of volunteers checked the House regu- larly, and there appears to have been no detriment either to the fabric of the building or to the business of the House as a result of the six weeks closure. There is cautious optimism over the bookings, which look hopeful for the coming months. February saw a number of retreatants, Quiet Days, and Group bookings. Availability for Saturdays over the next few months is limited. There have been a number of updates to the blog and an encouraging number of ‘hits’. We look ahead to longer days and clement weather, and the garden group Little Gidding Church was fi lled for Keith Presence, stood down as he is now back in action after the winter break. Maintenance has taken place, the the Festival Day of Nicholas Ferrar, had indicated last year. We are very hedges have been trimmed, and the glories of an English Summer at Little Gid- observed on Saturday 3 December, grateful to Keith for his hard work as ding are just around the corner. when the Rt Revd (who Treasurer over the last few years, and Wendy Skirrow recently retired as Bishop of Salisbury) we hope to continue to see Keith and presided at the Eucharist. As a former his wife Ann at Friends’ events at Little Chairman of the Church of ’s Gidding. Newly-elected as Treasurer Liturgical Commission, and one of the is Peter Powell, who is a paediatrician architects of its Common Worship mod- at Bury St Edmunds, and is also the ern service books, we were guaranteed husband of Frances Ward, the Dean of someone who knew how to lead a St Edmundsbury. service! Afterwards, in the warmth of Elected to the Committee for the Ferrar House, he talked inspiration- year were: Tom Gillum, Tony Hodg- ally of his experiences as a diocesan son, Paul Rose, Richard Scott, Bob bishop, and on the place of singing in Torrens, and Frances Ward. worship (which he approves of!). We Michael Keck continues to be a are very grateful to Bishop David for member of the Committee ex offi cio, travelling down from County Durham as representative of the Giddings to lead our celebration. PCC, and at its fi rst meeting the new The AGM was held after lunch. Committee re-appointed Sally Sea- Both the Chair (Simon Kershaw) and man as Membership Secretary, and the Secretary (Judith Hodgson) were also co-opted Neil McKittrick to the photo by Paul Skirrow re-elected unopposed. The Treasurer, Committee.

14 3 THE WEB OF FRIENDSHIP COMPANIONS OF LITTLE GIDDING Tony Hodgson briefl y reviews Joyce Ran- The Friends’ commitment is to sup- Rule might teach us in the present day. some’s biography of Nicholas Ferrar, port the witness of the Church of St Unsurprisingly, a great deal it would published last year by Lutterworth Press / John, Little Gidding and of the work seem. Much emphasis was placed on James Clarke. done at Ferrar House; to keep the achieving Balance in life: listening to fl ame alive in seeking to preserve the God, through Scripture, Quiet Days Dr Joyce Ransome, ably assisted by her ethos of Christian witness established and Retreats. In Obedience, by listening husband Dr David Ransome, has pro- by Nicholas Ferrar and the Ferrar deeply ‘with the ear of our heart’. In duced a book which stands up well in family in this idyllic, peaceful place. Stability, by being tied to a particular the long line of biographies of Nicho- Sometimes it is a silent, individual wit- place rather than to people – surely las Ferrar which stretches back to the ness, and sometimes it may be in one some resonance with Little Gidding life written by Nicholas’s brother John of a number of activities organised for in that. In the Conversatio Morum, we soon after the former’s death and only and on behalf of the Friends. should strive to be changed into the preserved by a series of miracles. But what if one wants to dig deeper, Likeness of Christ, and be prepared Those of us who have come over to acquire knowledge and ‘stretch to go on being changed. There must the decades to believe that Alan May- oneself in the Faith of Jesus Christ?’ always be an emphasis in looking out- cock’s biography Nicholas Ferrar of Little The answer may be to join the Com- ward into the world and keeping the Gidding, written in the 1930s, was the panions of Little Gidding, a group of Big Vision. last word on the subject, have found Friends who wish to prod a bit more, The Companions concentrate on it quite wonderful that the Ransomes to think more deeply how their lives one or more of a number of issues in have been able to bring together so Ferrar household chose to belong, is can be more faithfully developed and their Witness, including Prayer, Study, much exciting new material which shown by the Ransomes to have been transformed in the Service of God. Lifestyle, Work and Fellowship. to us comparative ignoramuses was infl uential in the formation of The The Companions meet from time There will be a Quiet Day on Friday totally unknown. Society for the Promotion of Christian to time to pray, to think, to listen, to 8 June starting at 10.30 am, incor- The research that they have put Knowledge. consider. porating the regular Service of Holy into this work has been painstaking So, if you think that you know what Last Autumn, the Companions had Communion at 12 noon. and has given their book considerable there is to know, think again and you, the benefi t of hearing Canon Alan Har- Might you be interested in joining authority. For me perhaps a major like me, will be surprised how much grave from who led them the Companions on that day, or of discovery was how the Little Gidding there is to know. Be prepared for some in thought and prayer, considering fi nding out more? If so, please contact experience was by no means an iso- detailed study, but it is infi nitely worth among much else what the Benedictine Tony Hodgson on 01832 275343. lated incident in the life of the Church, while. but how it led on to such important Tony Hodgson developments as the Church of Eng- land’s involvement in education and The Web of Friendship by Joyce Ransome, the creation of voluntary missionary was published by James Clarke & Co, 2011 societies. For instance The Little Acad- ISBN 978 02271 73480 emy, to which some members of the list price £25.50

4 13 LITTLE GIDDING CHURCH LITTLE GIDDING PILGRIMAGE 2012 At a meeting of PCC last year, it was decided to ask the Little This year’s Pilgrimage is on Saturday Choral Evensong follows. After Even- Gidding Church Subgroup to assess what work needed to be carried out to con- 19 May. The Pilgrimage leader will song, Tea is served in Ferrar House. solidate the future of St John’s Church into the foreseeable future. be the Bishop of Ely, Stephen Con- The Pilgrimage has grown in In conjunction with the church architect, six main areas were identifi ed: way, who is the new President of the numbers since it was re-established • Fabric repair (mainly at the east end of the church) Friends. We are delighted that Bishop a few years ago. Beginning with a • Restoration of three of the nave windows Stephen will be with us all day and we dozen people, it has climbed to about • Restoration of the church bell hope that many of you will be able to 80 people last year, many returning • Re-gilding of the weather vane join us as pilgrims and meet our new each year and bringing friends. If you • Restoration and re-gilding of the inscription over the west door President. would like some leafl ets to publicise • Conservation of woodwork The day follows the now-estab- the Pilgrimage, to give to friends, or Reports and estimates were subse- lished format: Holy Communion at to put in your church, please contact quently sought. These are now to Leighton Bromswold Church at 10.30, the Chairman, Simon Kershaw, chair@ hand and indicate that the restoration followed by lunch. The Pilgrimage littlegidding.org.uk or download a copy in total will be in the order of £30,000. Walk begins from the ‘Hundred Stone’ from the Friends website. Why not As the church is a Grade 1 Listed in the village at 1 pm. There are short suggest a parish group take part? To Building, all such matters relating to stations at Salome Wood, help us make practical and catering the church (however small) must be and Steeple Gidding, and we then sing arrangements it is helpful if you can approved by both the Ely DAC (the the Litany on the walk to Little Gid- let us know if you are thinking of Diocesan Advisory Committee for the ding where the walkers are expected coming. Care of Churches) and English Herit- to arrive at about 4.15 pm. Flowers are Below: Bishop lays fl owers age. At the moment a full schedule of laid on Nicholas Ferrar’s tomb and on Nicholas’s tomb at the 2010 Pilgrimage the proposed work is being prepared, and this will be sent to both these bodies, accompanied by the contrac- tors’ reports and estimates. Meanwhile, thought is now being given as to the best way forward to raise the appropriate fi nance. If anyone has any questions, or would like to offer any advice or assist- The Friends will of course give their full sup- ance, please contact the chairman of port to this project by the PCC, and we hope the Subgroup – John De Val (01832 that many members will be able to help. 293417). We will let you know when that stage is Michael Keck reached. Pictures, above and right, by Paul Skirrow.

12 5 LITTLE GIDDING CALENDAR A WEEKEND AT LITTLE GIDDING Regular Services Two deer on the lawn at dawn. Green Evensong is normally said at Little Gidding when there is a fi fth Sunday in the month. woodpeckers check the grass for ants for breakfast. We watch and enjoy Sunday 29 April 6.00 pm Evensong fresh fruit, cereals, and homemade Sunday 29 July 6.00 pm Evensong jam from Little Gidding plums. Sunday 30 September 6.00 pm Evensong Walk a wide circle of local foot- Sunday 30 December 3.00 pm Evensong at Steeple Gidding Church paths. We tiptoe through the Baptists’ A monthly service is held at noon on the second Friday of each month and is followed by graveyard to peep through the ancient lunch in Ferrar House. For catering purposes please email if chapel windows. Great Gidding’s you would like lunch. Services are held on the following Fridays: church visitors’ book offers tantalis- 13 April, 11 May, 8 June, 13 July, 10 August, 14 September, ing snippets written by international 12 October, 9 November, 14 December visitors tracing Giddings ancestors. Skylarks soaring above winter Poetry evenings wheat shoots. Two sea creature fos- sils lie in a fi eld: a collision of times, Poetry evenings are held each month, normally on the evening of the 13th. For further infor- sea, sky and a vast fi eld like the ocean, mation please contact Judith Hodgson . disappearing over the horizon. ‘The Friday 13 April 7.30 pm intersection of the timeless moment is Eng- Red Kite near Little Gidding Sunday 13 May 7.30 pm land and nowhere.’ (picture by Paul Skirrow) Wednesday 13 June 7.30 pm Soup shared with a joyful mixture I fi nd myself humming phrases from Friday 13 July 7.30 pm of friends old and new, talkative after Mendlessohn’s Elijah throughout the Saturday and Sunday 14 and 15 July John Clare Festival at Helpston their Friday Eucharist in the church. evening. Wednesday 15 August 7.30 pm Poetry group AGM Bask under Indian summer sun Tawny owls call in the night. in the garden, with tea and cake. My Early morning mist hangs over Companions of Little Gidding reading concentration is happily the large fi eld. From my bed I watch distracted by a fl ock of goldfi nches Saturday 28 April golden, heavenly sheep appear in darting between bird feeders. Friday 8 June Quiet Day, led by the Revd Mark Mills-Powell the sun’s low rays, as if lit by ‘tongues Above, a fearless pair of crows cir- of fl ame’, whilst joins Paul for cle and dive bomb the red kite, making Other Meetings and Events morning prayer. him spiral higher and higher above A weekend is never long enough. Saturday 19 May Annual Little Gidding Pilgrimage Ferrar House. We will come this way again– for the The Bishop of Ely, Stephen Conway, will lead the Pilgrimage, presiding at Holy Commun- Read evening prayer with Paul Nicholas Ferrar Day, to continue our ion and preaching at Evensong. Please note the date in your diaries. See page 5 . Skirrow – Elijah’s taunts to the proph- exploration and pilgrimage, and to Sunday 3 June 6.00 pm Visit to Clare College, ets of Baal make me laugh, ‘perchance ‘arrive where we started And know the place to commemorate the of Nicholas Ferrar in 1626. See opposite . your god is asleep’. Did Nicholas Fer- for the fi rst time.’ rar have a sense of humour? I wonder. Sally Seaman October 2011

6 11 IONA COMMUNITIES WEEK Saturday 7 July Seventh Annual T S Eliot Festival Sunday 8 July See further details on page 8 . Last October I represented Little of reconciliation in Northern Ireland; Gidding at a gathering of communi- and the Mennonite Community, part Saturday 1 December Nicholas Ferrar Day ties on Iona. It was a great privilege of the worldwide Anabaptists. 10.30 am Holy Communion, followed by lunch to be included as this was the fi rst In my talk I gave a potted history of Details of the service, including the speaker, will be available shortly. time that the annual meeting of Iona the households that have lived at Little 2.00 pm AGM of the Friends of Little Gidding Community members was joined by Gidding and also the Com- For further details about any event, to book a place or to book your own event, members of other communities and munities based on Little Gidding as please contact the Warden, Mrs Wendy Skirrow, at Ferrar House. also because it implied that we are they could not be present. I also spoke telephone: 01832 293 383; email: [email protected] seen as a dispersed community. about the links between Little Gidding www.ferrarhouse.co.uk Another dispersed community and the Lifestyle Movement of which I present was the Servants of Christ the am chair. A lot of interest was shown For an updated calendar and diary see http://ferrarhouse.wordpress.com King who do a lot of listening before both in the Little Gidding tradition CLARE COLLEGE – Trinity Sunday 3 June deciding together to take action. They and its present manifestations described themselves as a Third Order Openness, welcome, hospitality The liturgical anniversary of Nicholas without a First or Second one, which and generosity were all key words in Ferrar’s ordination as at West- could well apply to the Companions. the presentations and all the commu- minster Abbey on Trinity Sunday 1626 There were also representatives nities were also deeply concerned with has been marked by the Friends for a from: the Ashram Community in simple living. couple of years now. Sheffi eld; The Well at Willen, part of I came back with renewed convic- This year Friends are invited to a the work of the Society of the Sacred tion that what Little Gidding stands service at Clare College, Cambridge on Mission based at Milton Keynes; for still has a lot to offer in our present the evening of Trinity Sunday, 3 June the Othona Community with cen- world. at 6pm. The preacher will be the Revd tres at Bradwell in Essex and Burton Tony Hodgson Vernon White, Canon Theologian of Bradstock in where my elder Westminster Abbey and himself an old member of Clare. After the serv- daughter Susanna met her husband Sheep at Little Gidding ice there is a limited number of places Jim; Corrymeela, a longstanding place (picture by Paul Skirrow) for dinner in the college hall. Further details of the service and dinner will follow soon. Nicholas Ferrar was himself an under graduate and then a fellow at Clare, and we are pleased to renew a Clare College Chapel (picture by Jim Linwood) link with the College. We hope that and others to learn about Nicholas this Cambridge occasion will provide Ferrar and Little Gidding and maybe an opportunity for Friends to gather in even encourage them to visit the place the university city and also for students for themselves.

10 7 ELIOT FESTIVAL 2012 – Saturday and Sunday 7 and 8 July landscapes’ and focuses on Eliot’s correspondence with the modernist poet Hope Mirrlees. The evening concert will feature the renowned Bingham String Quartet playing Beethoven’s String Quartet number 15 in A Minor, opus 132: a piece that Eliot himself noted was a major inspiration for his Four Quartets. The day will also include regular favourites such as ‘My Favourite Eliot’ in which Festival-goers are invited to read a short piece of poetry or prose; and musical interludes for refreshment, and for con- versation with speakers and fellow Festival-goers. On Sunday we will again be joined by Professor Ron Schuchard and members of the International Richard Harries Eliot Summer School. Paul Muldoon, Daljit Nagra and Bernard O’Donaghue will read ‘Little Gidding’, and Professor Muldoon (Professor of Humanities at Princeton, and formerly Professor of Poetry at Supper on the lawn at the 2011 Festival Oxford) will give the Summer School lecture, titled Planning for this year’s Eliot Festival began in September with the pro- ‘The Love Song of T Stearns Eliot’. The day will con- gramme now organized and our attention turning to the practical and catering clude with choral evensong. arrangements. We invite all members of the Friends to support This festival is gaining international prestige as a major celebration of the the Festival both by buying tickets and attending, life and work of T S Eliot – but it’s also a friendly and fun occasion, with an and also by encouraging others to come. Leafl ets opportunity for scholars and enthusiasts to meet and share their interest. and posters are available (online or on paper) – The Festival takes place over two days, on the weekend of 7 and 8 July, and a please make use of these: perhaps your church or leafl et with details of the programme and a booking form is available (and can local library or other be downloaded from the Festival website at littlegidding.org.uk/eliotfestival). group would be happy Sandeep Parmar Following last year’s acclaimed reading of ‘The Waste Land’ this year’s Fes- to display a poster, tival opens with a selection of shorter Eliot poems read by Peter Cochran and or for you to give out leafl ets or to put some leaf- Jenny Sargent, after which Richard Harries and Hugh Black-Hawkins will debate lets out for people to take. If you do not live close the question ‘Poetry and religion: did faith make Eliot a better poet?’. Richard enough to visit Little Gidding regularly, why not Harries, Lord Harries of Pentregarth, was Bishop of Oxford from 1987 to 2006; consider a visit around the weekend of the Festival he is Gresham Professor of Divinity and a well-known writer and broadcaster. and see Little Gidding at its public best? Hugh Black-Hawkins is Chair of the Eliot Society. Please mark the dates in your calendar – 7 and 8 This year’s Eliot Society Lecture is given by Sandeep Parmar, poet and visiting July – and share these details with your friends. We fellow at Clare Hall, Cambridge. Her talk is titled ‘Unreal Cities and Timeless look forward to seeing you at this, one of the high- lights of the summer season at Little Gidding. Paul Muldoon

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