All posts by mark

LCC Christian staff group

Are you interested in meeting with other Christians at LCC to discuss the Bible, enjoy some fellowship and pray for UAL and other issues which concern you? If you are, you may be interested in this new LCC Christian staff group. There will be an inaugural social in LCC on Thursday 19th June at 12 noon until 1pm. Light refreshments – including gluten free biscuits, water and juice will be provided. But please feel free to bring along your own lunch.

Andrea Milns will be sharing some ideas she has for some bi monthly meetings and will bring along a few bible study materials and Christian magazines. Please let her know if you have any questions and if you would like to attend.

Andrea Milns

KCL Chaplaincy trip to Lindisfarne

16 June 2025 08:00 to 20 June 2025 18:00

UAL staff and students are invited to join our colleagues in KCL Chaplaincy on a 4-day trip to the beautiful island of Lindisfarne in Northumberland.

“A wonderful way to end the academic year. As a tidal island, we hope to walk the last mile of the journey like pilgrims of old (+ a taxi for those who can’t). We’ll stay in a retreat centre, Marygate House, which offers shared rooms for either 2 or 3 people; tour the Lindisfarne Priory; hear the story of the island; and walk plenty. Despite the island’s small size, there’s even a pub or two!”

Cost: £280 + Travel (approx. £110 with student railcard)

To sign up, or if you have any questions, please email: or contact the UAL chaplains

Pancakes in the Parade Ground

Tuesday 4 March is Shrove Tuesday, aka Pancake Day, aka Mardi Gras, the festival before Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. UAL Chaplaincy will be serving freshly cooked pancakes from 3 pm until the batter runs out, so come and get em while they last!

Three Dimensions of a Complete Life: An Evening of Music and Reflection

St Paul’s Cathedral
Tuesday 11 March 2025
6:30pm – 8:00pm

“Join us as we commemorate and honour the life and principles embodied by Dr Martin Luther King Jr, in an open environment for people of all faiths and none.

This evening offers a moment to encounter the value of courageous selfless service to humanity, for the cause of peace and a higher aim for the beloved community. Through music, poetry and silent meditation, we will enter a space of fellowship and sacred communion.

This inclusive service will feature spoken word, scripture, music, prayer and silence and has been prepared by creatives Christine Checinska and Rajnii Eddins, in collaboration with the Cathedral. The service closes our season of events to mark the 60th anniversary of Dr Martin Luther King Jr preaching at St Paul’s Cathedral, and will include performances from Gospel Singer Patrice Campbell, Cellist Kate Shortt and Pianist Vaughan Larmond.”

Free tickets available on Eventbrite

Holocaust Memorial Day 2025



image credit: Girl with yellow star, 1942/3, ink on paper, Marianne Grant Holocaust Artworks Collection © The family of Marianne Grant

27 January 2025 is the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz concentration camp. Of the 1.3 million people sent to Auschwitz by the fascist Nazi regime, 1.1 million were murdered. The number of victims includes 960,000 Jews (865,000 of whom were gassed on arrival), 74,000 non-Jewish Poles, 21,000 Romani, 15,000 Soviet prisoners of war, and up to 15,000 others, including   Black peopledisabled people,  queer people,  religious minorities,   as well as political opponents. Those not gassed were murdered via starvation, exhaustion, disease, individual executions, or beatings. Others were killed during medical experiments.

One of the few who survived was young art student  Marianne Grant (née Mariana Hermannová, aka ‘Mausi’) who was sent to work in the children’s block, looking after those who had been separated from their parents. Using what materials she could find, she taught the children art. Having spotted her talent, an officer asked her to make hand painted story books for his children, and later took her to paint a young Roma woman as a present for his wife. After Marianne fell ill with pleurisy, and no medicine was provided, he brought Marianne additional bread and butter for her, likely saving her life. News of Marianne’s artistic talent spread in the camp, and she was later summoned to Nazi physician Joseph Mengele, who ordered her to draw the family trees of his victims and the markings on the bodies of twins subjected to his experiments.

After the war Marianne moved to the UK, where she finished her art education at Glasgow School of Art. Marianne’s work is now held in the permanent collection of Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum

You can read more about Marianne’s work and Holocaust Memorial Day at hmd.org.uk

(and in case you were wondering how the above drawing survived, here is the story: paper was precious and Marianne used this single sheet to make three separate head and figure studies. The head of a man on the other side of the paper…

… bears a close resemblance to Marianne’s friend Petr Erben (1921–2017) and the female head to Marianne herself. Petr arrived in Theresienstadt concentration camp-ghetto on 30 September 1942. There he became a youth leader like Marianne. It was with Petr that Marianne entrusted her drawings when she followed her mother on the cattle trucks to Auschwitz-Birkenau in December 1943. He ensured that they were kept safe with another friend when he was deported to Auschwitz on 28 September 1944 so that Marianne was later reunited with them in Prague.)

UAL Faith Advisor Harrie Cedar presents:

Wednesdays 9.30-10am
22 January 2025  to 26 March 2025 
The Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) comprises the Torah (also known as the Five Books of Moses) the Nevim (Prophets) and Khetuvim (Writings such as Psalms and Ecclesiastes). This session will look at the weekly portion of the Torah, to find its deeper meaning for us, now, followed by a brief meditation to enhance our practice. No previous knowledge needed. All welcome.
Online via  ZOOM
Meeting ID: 723 2855 8988
Passcode: 814 203

Open Call: Cloud of Witnesses

Exhibition dates

Tuesday 4th March to Sunday 27th April 2025

Deadline for online submissions

11:59pm on Monday 11th November 2024

Background

Racial justice and inter-faith integrity are the central inspiration for this exhibition. Working ecumenically and wanting to reach out to all faiths, St John’s Waterloo and the Catholic Bishops’ Conference, advised by Art and Christianity, are seeking to create an exhibition which raises awareness, understanding and mutual respect of our collective witness in the UK.

Criteria

Artworks must respond to the title Cloud of Witnesses: Images of faith and divinity today. Artworks must be two dimensional and either representative of, or alluding to, persons or deities from any religion and from any era. Artworks should invite or encourage an exploration of images of faith and divinity, while provoking the viewer to think differently about how these have traditionally been portrayed.

Format and size

We welcome submissions in both 2D art and photography formats. All artwork should be original and presented finished to be hung on a wall in the exhibition, framed or unframed. We will not accept any other media including video and performance art, or AI generated images.

The maximum size is 24 inches x 40 inches x 4 inches (60.96cm x 101.6cm x 10.16cm). It must be ready to hang and not exceed a weight of 20kg. The exhibition space has railings, steel cables and hooks and hanging will be the responsibility of the organisers.

Artist’s profile

Artists must be resident in the United Kingdom and aged 18 years or over as of 31st December 2024. Artists will need to send:
• A title and short description of their artwork in up to 200 words.
• A short artist’s biography in up to 150 words.
• The size of their artwork in either inches or centimetres with up to five photos of their artwork.
• Only one artwork can be submitted per person.

Prizes

1st prize of £1,000
2nd prize of £750
3rd prize of £500.

Further details:
stjohnswaterloo.org/arts/cloud-of-witnesses-open-call/