Kensington Parish News - Summer 2014 Jun. 2014 | Page 18

CONFIRMATION CONFIRMATION CLASS OF 2014 On Thursday 22nd May 33 candidates were confirmed into the Eucharistic fellowship of Christ’s church by Bishop Paul Williams. Here Ioana Bozan tells us how her pregnancy brought her back to the Church and led her to be confirmed. Meanwhile St Mary Abbots stalwart, Alison Steele explains why she decided to join the group on the course by Ioana Bozan H aving been baptised a couple of decades ago, I spent many years as a teenager exploring various sides of spiritual life, including philosophy, history of religion and sacred practices. My favourite writer back then, Mircea Eliade, happened to also be a bright philosopher and historian and with him I embarked on 4 years of beautiful discoveries in high school. Quite abruptly after high school though, the fast pace of modern life caught up with me. That is until 2012. Pregnancy is a wonderful time in somebody’s life. A great time to breathe and go back to basics, an intense time for profound prayer, an essential time 18 | 2014 Spring to thank for the gift of life. St Mary Abbots, with its warm hospitality and openness, started to be then my regular retreat. The evening prayers started being a magic time for reflection, meditation and spiritual comfort. Thereafter, in 2014, with its great new beginnings, felt so right for confirmation. We commenced in February a graceful passage through the Christian meanings, with many delightful conversations and spiritual wonders. Our guides could not have been better or kinder. Over cakes and dinner, every Tuesday night we embarked on different passages in the life of Christ and meanings. Again and again, so reassuringly to listen and observe our Vicars; they addressed our queries profoundly, and frequently from many different perspectives. Every person and every need is individual. I am a Greek Orthodox by parents’ choice and explorer by nature, so I have encountered a number of priests from various orders, monks, nuns and Roman Catholic practicants. And after years and much consideration, St Mary Abbots is by far the closest, most human, relevant and reflective of our society’s huge diversity and backgrounds. A place where I feel at ease and I can call home, a beautiful institution, allowing us to sail gracefully on our unique spiritual journeys and come to rescue or support whenever needed. Empathic and down to earth, Jenny, Julia and Fr Gillean offered so much more than standard preaching; throughout the confirmation classes they guided us generously and with a fabulous sense of humour and then encouraged us to find the answers within ourselves. And every so often when words felt redundant, they greeted us with a hug. Each Tuesday evening, things fell into place, we rediscovered so many other meanings in bible readings and stories, we got to know Spring 2014 | 19