I am humbled by the power of the Holy Spirit - she really knows what she's doing! Last night we had a candle lit pilgrimage in the cathedral...and it was just us Canterbury Scholars. It was dark and quiet and beautiful and holy. I was a little disappointed at first because I had previously asked if I could stay in the cathedral after the vigil to do some reading. Ed said that he would lock me in and come back to get me, but was later told that he couldn't do that. But that's ok, because one of the women from Africa wanted to have a private conversation with me. We had both been in the laundry room the night before, and she later told me that she came back to talk but I had already gone.
The vigil was quite moving. Toward the end we moved from the Chapel of Martyrs in Our Own Time (seen below)
to Trinity Chapel, which is at the top of the cathedral. This is where the shrine to Thomas Becket was before Henry had it destroyed. Now it is open space, with a single candle sitting on the floor.
We encircled it and offered prayers, each in our own native language. Of course this moved me to tears! As we walked back to the Lodge after our vigil, my friend from Africa grabbed me and hugged me, thanking me for my tears. We ended up sitting in her room for over an hour, sharing very personal stories. And as we talked, we came to recognize the deep bonds of affection that have been established between us forever. We know we will see each other again one day - and all this was far better than me sitting in Canterbury alone for my own private reading! If I had stayed in the cathedral, I would have missed our conversation. Like I say - the Holy Spirit really knows what she's doing!
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