London Itinerary: Sunday, 11 May 2008

9:00a The Hyde Park Ward meets at 64 Exhibition Rd. in South Kensington. I never really had the benefit of a mission when people get to see that "the church is the same, everywhere you go." I'll be a bit disappointed if I go, and it is the same. How can it be the same? People are different, everywhere you go. The doctrine, I'm sure, stays the same, but it just doesn't feel the exact same to everyone. People have different needs, different pieces of the church that comfort and inspire. So, I want to see that part--the part that these people in this particular ward carry in their hearts.

12:00p The Dickens House Museum opens. Even though Dickens was a man of his time (he had a mistress for years), I consider him a deeply moral and spiritual man. So, we go to look at his London house on Sunday. Apparently his house is filled with literary allusions--windows, objects, rooms that appear in the books he wrote or finished while living in St. Pancras (I want to type "St. Pancreas"). One of my favorite books is A Christmas Carol, and though he didn't write that one here, I have to stop by and look at the life of such a famous and favored author.

3:00p Two hours until the British Library closes--just enough time to catch all the good stuff. They have a line of noteworthy items on display: the Magna Carta (1 of 4 created), a Gutenberg Bible, Jane Austen's writings, Shakespeare's First Folio, and musical manuscripts by Handel. History is all about artifacts, for me. To look over a letter and think about who touched it. To walk around in a house and imagine who's feet walked the halls. So, the perfect activity for this Sunday afternoon: a few hours of quiet contemplation and consideration.


7:30p Where did I hear about them? I can't remember. I think I was just browsing different versions of "I Vow to Thee, My Country" on iTunes one day years ago, and I came across a boys choir called Libera. Now, unlike the usual boys choir, this one is made up of a collection of kiddies from South London that might otherwise be without opportunity. It's not like they're destitute, but they do live in an urban area and could be filling their time with less than legal and productive activities (sounds extremely dramatic and presumptuous of me to talk as though I assume that most of them would be involved in such things if they weren't involved in this choir). Tonight, they're performing at the South Bank Center, and I'm eager to hear them perform live. Check out a little sample of their music.