By Rev. Dr Katherine Rainger, Senior Chaplain

But ask the animals, and they will teach you,
or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you;
or speak to the earth, and it will teach you,
or let the fish in the sea inform you.
Which of all these does not know
that the hand of the Lord has done this?
In his hand is the life of every creature
and the breath of all mankind.

- Job 12: 7-10

I live close enough to All Saints Anglican Church, Ainslie that I can hear the bells when they ring on Sunday mornings. Often, I’m still making my way to church when I hear their call. If I attend the 10:00 am service, I can hear the bells heralding the 8:00 am service in my living room. It is a reminder of the call to worship and prayer that has shaped communities for centuries and continues today.

The Irish poet David Whyte was recently interviewed by Sarah Kanowski on ABC Radio's Conversations. I was particularly taken by his story of an Irish monk from the Middle Ages who heard the bells ringing in the chapel. The monk thought to himself, “That is the most beautiful sound in the world, the call to silence, prayer and intimacy with God.” At the same time, the monk heard a blackbird cry in the garden, and he thought, “That is also the most beautiful sound in the world.” The monk was caught up in a moment of transcendence as he encountered the call of God in the bell and the birdsong.

In a moment of synchronicity, poet David Whyte’s wife came up behind him in his study one Easter morning. She rang Tibetan bells and David says, “The sound went straight through me.” At that exact moment, a red-winged blackbird called from the garden. He penned the following poem in response.

The Bell and the Blackbird

The sound of a bell
still reverberating,
or a blackbird calling
from a corner of the field,
asking you to wake
into this life,
or inviting you deeper
into the one that waits.

Either way
takes courage,
either way wants you
to be nothing
but that self that
is no self at all,
wants you to walk
to the place
where you find
you already know
how to give
every last thing
away.

The approach
that is also
the meeting
itself,
without any
meeting
at all.

That radiance
you have always
carried with you
as you walk
both alone
and completely
accompanied
in friendship
by every corner
of the world
crying
Allelujah.

Click here to watch David reading the poem.

Yesterday, at the Principal’s Commissioning service, we affirmed the call that our Principal Mr Christopher Bradbury has answered in joining the Radford community. It was a significant occasion as we prayed that he might have the wisdom and insight needed to live into his calling.

I wonder where is there a sense of calling in your life? What is it you hear? What do you notice? Which moments offer a glimpse of the transcendent as we embrace the randomness, joy and sadness that comes with being human together?