I got to meet up with more people from COTA today (wednesday)and this is really helping me to get more of an idea of what COTA is and how it is seeking to discover how to be church.

This morning I met up with Jana in what has become my favourite coffee shop here, and I learned a lot about how she found COTA. It was again a privilege to be able to hear someones story.  I also learned loads about how COTA is funded as she is the treasurer too. There is a desire for the community to become self sufficient, mainly from within COTA itself, but with lots of students or those just starting work most people here do not have a lot of income. I was surprised, though, to hear that between a third and half of all funding comes as regular monthly giving from the COTA community. I think that is pretty impressive and gives a solid foundation to move from.

This afternoon I sat in on the staff meeting and gained more insight into what goes on. I was able to reflect on the services that I have experienced and could share that, from my perspective as a newcomer, they were excellent. I felt very much at ease, knew what to do and was able to use the experiences to engage meaningfully with God. the ambience of the services, in particular, has been something that I think has been very helpful in allowing people to rest and worship in the grace of God. Nothing has been forced or hurried, but instead we have gently moved through the liturgy and music together, meeting with God on the way.

I’m just off to officiate at Vespers in the abbey. I like the opportunity to do this as it is a service that I really love to be part of.

So today I have experienced more of how COTA ‘ticks’. Tomorrow I have 2 or 3 more interviews and then I will start to re-listen to them and look for common insights and connections – buit before that I will need to spend some time praying and thinking on the lectionary passages for this weekend so that I can write a homily to give on Sunday night.

Monday was another really interesting day.

I explored another neighbourhood, Wallingford, a little as I needed to find a post ofice to send home the obligatory postcards. On my walk there i passed the Episcopal Bookstore so decided to have a nosey on my way back. It srprise3d me in that it had a much better stock tan my local bookshop – even a supply of stoles…. although I was able to contain myself and not buy any ;-). There was even a section with Archbishop Rowan’s books which caused a smile as I couldn’t even find one in the bookshop at home! A purchased a couple of things to bring home.

I met up with Steve Ridgway for lunch. Steve works with Open Doors and I was connected with him through Al, another Open Doors worker, who I was ordained deacon with in September 2008. Al and I kind of connected and have stayed in touch as we were both interested in each others roles following ordination – him in the middle east and me in the pubs! Steve and I had a good time talking about our roles and the settings we were in and how God had led us to where we were. Steve has not long got back from a trip to Gaza, supporting the church which is under serious persecution. We had an interesting chat together. Steve also bought lunch – so even better!

Later in the day I met up with Lacey, who is the Music Director at COTA. I have been really impressed by the quality, creativity and authenticity of the worship I have experienced. (that sounds like a line for an essay…) COTA as a whole is brilliant at involving people. It is a church where people are actively encouraged to become participators and welcomers rather than remain consumers and welcomed. There is more than that as well though. I am seeing more and more than people within COTA really believe in and have a passion for what they do here. People like Lacey are very talented and that passion for worshiping God in an accessible and real way is quite contagious for others, who then want to join in as well.

I later met up with Kristian;was another great chat which reinforced what I am hearing over and over again. COTA is a church that welcomes, is deliberate in its mission to Fremont, and is serious about involving as many people as possible.

As I reflect on the last few days I think I am seeing that COTA is not just a church of young people guided by the ‘more mature’. COTA is a church of young decision makers and, in essence, COTA develops in the way that these decision makers take it, with the guidance of Karen and others. I wonder if actually what I am seeing here is a pretty good outworking and understanding of the priesthood of all believers?

This afternoon and this evening I have spent time with different parts of the COTA community and I am learning more and more that they, as a group, love each other and enjoy the company of each other.

At 3.00pm I joined the Liturgy Guild. This is a group of people that plan the liturgy for the services. COTA develops seasonal liturgy to reflect the liturgical seasons. Today we were looking at the lectionary readings for Lent and trying to develop the liturgy and practice that COTA will use in the services throughout lent. This was a small but creative group as they sought to find ideas that would help people to connect with God in a significant way and so leave the service changed in some way becasee of an authentic encounter with God.

In remember Karen saying a while ago people wanted the liturgy to change each week. After working with them the practice is now agreed to be seasonal. We are currently in Epiphany and the liturgy and practices for the services reflect that. I like the idea of liturgy and practice for the season. In the Church of England we already follow that practice in the daily offices, but I like the creative ‘write your own’ and ‘curate the service’ approach which I think as a community we can pursue when we start to become more established.

I’ve just realised the excitement this afternoon brought shows me that I love liturgy. I think it is a way we can easily connect with God and express our love in a language that means something. The word, if you don’t know, means ‘work of the people’ and it is pretty impressive how COTA creates this so that it really is the work of the people. The trust from Karen towards this group is amazing too.

After the guild meeting we had COTA Eucharist at 5.00pm. Another creative service. I am not a fan of music in worship. I know its been said by many before, but I do find myself increasingly more frustrated with the songs that people sing in lots of churches. They are not just ‘I love Jesus like my girlfriend’ type songs … but I think it is the shallowness and bizarre theology of some that give me concern.

Despite my aversion to music in worship I find Lacey’s curation of the woship in COTA to be sensitive, stunning and challenging. We sing words and chants that mean something and that allow us to become aware that we are in the presence of God. I am meeting with Lacey tomorrow and look forward to hearing from her about her story and why she leads in this way.

The service tonight was fantastic. It was simple yet profound in a way that allowed us space with God. The structure, or ordo, that COTA uses is great and the ‘open space’ section after the homily, where people can reflect ina  variety of ways from using icons to watching video, acknowledges that we are not all one and the same.

COTA is going through an interesting time and the last meeting of the day was after the Eucharist when I joined the group that are making plans for a morning service. COTA is in good shape, it is in the community in various ways and now looking to move from 1 to 2 services on a Sunday at the abbey. I enjoyed being part of the discussions and hearing peopels ideas and dreams of getting this service of the ground.

It’s been a packed and really good day, and I am strting to learn more and more about the COTA community, particularly as options for interaction with people with COTA seem to be increasing.