Crucible Eucharist

For the next couple of months Gloucester Cathedral are hosting a sculpture exhibition called Crucible. It is stunning, wonderful and at times provocative. Each day the Cathedral is buzzing with guests coming to stroll around the sculptures. If you haven’t had a chance to see it yet then I’d highly recommend it, even if you have to travel a little way to be here. Jonny Baker has some good images here.
We were privileged to have the sculptures installed at our summer Feast and they will see be around for the next Feast on Thursday 28th October, probably one of the last chances to see them.
At our gathering last Thursday we celebrated communion together and were able to be in the Cathedral. It would have been a missed opportunity not to include some of the pieces to enhance our worship and so we chose a number of sculptures to help us journey through the Eucharist together. It was a powerful time together. Here is a flavour of our journey:



Gathering
This piece is called ‘You and Me’. A reminder of the dynamic of gathering as church. God calls us to be with one another and yet as church our hearts, minds & souls are simultaneously angled towards God, who is Other.







Penitence & Confession
This piece is called Calvary. It is powerful and shocking and is a stark reminder of the reality of the cross, the anguish that ultimately connects creation to the Creator. A place of grace; sins forgiven and fresh mercy.








Scripture
This installation is called ‘The Fast Supper’ and depicts some of the consumer stuff we often crave in life: it dovetailed with one of our readings nicely.





Peace & Eucharist
We moved into a small chapel to share the Peace and the bread and wine.


Dismissal
We returned to ‘You and Me’, reminding us that we have shared bread and wine; the body and blood of Jesus. This sacrament takes on mystery as we are called to go and be the body and blood of Jesus in the world. We go as community, whose lives are angled towards God in love and service. We go in the peace and presence of the Holy Spirit.

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