Gossamer Threads to Catch the Soul:Spiritual Reflections for the Church Year

By Judith Krum

Gossamer Threads to Catch the Soul: Reflections for the Church Year marks Judith Krum's initial contribution to the growing canon of meditations and reflections on scriptural passages, prayers and collects from The Book of Common Prayer of the Episcopal Church. Taking inspiration from everyday life and from the lives of saints and sinners, Gossamer Threads is a slim, readable book illustrating the links between real life and real faith. The collection begins with Advent's watching and waiting and preparing to be ready for the coming of the Christ. The meditations then move to Epiphany, Lent, Eastertide, and Pentecost, reflecting on many familiar Biblical passages, hymns, and prayers. The included pictures are from the author's personal collection of travel and family photographs and will be useful to the reader as places to stop and consider the material just read, just like benches along a path.The interplay of light and darkness, of grownups and children, of flora and fauna, of contemporary culture and Anglican tradition gives this collection joy and wonder not often found in a collection of typical Biblical meditations. Rather, the reader will be asked "Can you Hear Me Now?" and 'What is your Bar Code?" The hospitality of Hell's Angels is shown as the kindness of angels we haven't met yet. Light shining in the darkness is a flashlight under the covers, and the dignity of every human being is shown by Dr. Seuss' Horton who hears a 'Who.' Raggedy Ann gets a new heart on Ash Wednesday, and the 'armor of God' is transformed by dress-up clothes.Gossamer Threads also uncovers the author's deep faith and strong connection to the liturgy, prayers, and hymns of the Episcopal Church. Through pieces like "A Call to Servanthood" and "The Scent of Hyacinths," the reader can understand how faith and practice join to echo Isaiah's response of "Here I am, Send Me." The stories of Flora of Beaulieu and the Abbess Hilda of Whitby bring historical perspective to the great cloud of witnesses found in this volume. In describing ways that faith is expanded in real life, the author describes details such as her grandmother's black cotton stockings, her little sister's constant chorus of "are we there yet?" and her niece's tottering on platform heels. In "God is in the Details," Matthew's parable of the mustard seed is the jumping off place for finding God in the details of life, the jig saw puzzle pieces, the quilt pieces, the bits of glass in a stained glass window, the smallest and deepest details. The title takes inspiration from Walt Whitman's poem "A Noiseless, Patient Spider" in which the spider, like the soul, casts out gossamer threads hoping to attach to something permanent. This volume, indeed, encourages the reader to find those gossamer threads in the ordinary hours of every day and in a heritage of faith that continues to sustain contemporary lives.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1456335979
• ISBN13: 9781456335977
• Release Date: December 2010
• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• Length: 90 Pages
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.5" x 0.2" x 5.5"