Heading home tomorrow!

Hi all,

It's my last night in St. A., and I'm feeling ever so slightly nostalgic and wanted to write a little bit about the semester as a whole now that it's coming to a close. People keep asking me if I'm sad to leave Scotland, and truthfully, the answer is no. I was ready to come here in January, and now I'm ready to go home. It's time. I've done what I came here to do, and while it may not have surpassed my wildest dreams, it certainly lived up to my expectations. As far as study groups go, I'm quite happy with my choice!

I can definitely say that the highlight of the semester has been my two real classes (sorry, Theology of the Musical--you're not a real class). How is it that classes outrank all the traveling I did on my list of highlights? Well, two reasons: Georgia Frank and Kelly Iverson. They are amazing professors, and I loved both classes and am still slightly in shock about how much I learned from them. Georgia's class on heresy is one of my all-time favorites, partly because the subject is right up my alley (religious dissent! People not getting along! Figuring out ways to make them get along! Yeah, I'm a geek...) and partly because there were some great discussions. Georgia's great at leading discussions, and we had a really good mix of people with differing viewpoints who (mostly...) were willing to express them. Way to go, Gnostic Gnation 2010! Some of the issues raised may have kept me awake at night, but that's the sign of a good class--that the material is challenging enough and interesting enough that I can't stop think about it long after class is over.

Kelly's class was also amazing, in a totally different way. I haven't done any work with the New Testament since freshman year, so taking a class on the Gospel of Matthew here was enlightening, to say the least. Kelly's a brilliant lecturer, and every Tuesday he would lead us through some complicated theory to arrive a one of those "Ah ha!" moments where you realize something you never would even have thought to look for, but it's so simple and brilliant you can't believe you almost missed it. I still have a lot of catching up to do in terms of early Christian studies, but after this semester I have a much better appreciation for how complex the field is, and also why it matters. I'll admit, I've never been very history-oriented when it comes to religion. I care about what's happening right here, right now, and how we can shape it to be better. But the history of Christianity that I studied in both classes this semester DOES matter, and it matters a lot. It's like reading a text in translation if you ignore the earliest years of a religion--you completely miss the most important things because you're looking at the things someone else has highlighted for you. And we all know how much I hate reading things in translation when I have access to the original! It's definitely given me a different perspective on my field, and lots to think about as grad school application time rolls around....

So yes, my classes and the things I've learned from them--and the way they've changed my thinking--are the things I am most grateful for this semester. But I will say that I'm also grateful for all the beautiful places I got to see! I didn't make it everywhere I wanted to go, but I did see some extraordinary places that I wouldn't have seen had I gone abroad to France or somewhere else in mainland Europe. The Scottish highlands are AMAZING--I could spend weeks or months and never get tired of mountains, mists, and lochs. And castles. And coos. And I'm really happy I made it to Dublin, for the sole reason that I happened to be talked into going into the Chester Beatty Library, that amazing collection of religious manuscripts, where I realized yet again how important the study of religion is to me. I'm officially obsessed! And, of course, my epic spring break adventure, though not quite what I expected, was still an incredible opportunity, and hopefully just a preview of far more European adventures to come!

So, before I sit on my suitcase and wrestle it into submission, I wanted to share one last quintessential St. Andrews experience. Tonight (and last Thursday) I went to the Compline service at St. Leonard's Chapel, and enjoyed it so much. The chapel dates back to the 1400's, and it's just a small, rectangular stone room with pews facing each other across the aisle and an organ and altar. For Compline, the evening service, it's lit by candles--so cool! The service starts at 10pm, so it's barely dark by that point, but it's still beautiful. The university choir sings for it, so there's actually (relatively) good music, and the organ makes it that much better. But the liturgy of the service itself is what I really love about it. All the psalms, readings, and prayers are about preparing for the night and sleep. But there's a crescendo to it too--at first the verses are about the physical night, but the metaphors gradually build up until night corresponds to death, and it ends with a line surrendering to God's protection in this night and forevermore. Somehow, it take every uncertainty about tonight and tomorrow and lets each one go. It's an absolutely beautiful ritual, and I would attend every night if I could. It's the perfect way to end the day, and I think a perfect way to end this trip.

I'll keep updating my blog until I get through spring break. Fair warning though, it may take all summer! My next update will come while sitting on the couch, trying to keep the corgi's nose out of my plate of bacon. :) Can't wait to be home!

A bientot, tout le monde, and thanks for reading!

~L


Link to Compline liturgy, if you're interested (my favorite parts are near the end, after the Lord's Prayer) http://www.oremus.org/liturgy/ireland/compline.html