At the beginning of September, a group from Southwark Cathedral travelled to the island of Iona for Astonished by Love, a retreat led by the Dean, Mark Oakley. Guided by poetry, worship and the island’s natural beauty, the group explored the love of God, creation, justice and one another. Claire Pidancet and Fiona Andrews reflect on their journey and the moments that encouraged them to live and love more intentionally.

What a (Re)treat!

Astonished by Love: With poetry as our guide

The retreat led by the Dean Mark Oakley on Iona at the beginning of September had it all.

It started as a pilgrimage, requiring two trains, one wobbly ferry, a long winding bus journey and another very shaky ferry to get there from London. On arrival, though, we were greeted by the splendid view of the ancient stones of the Iona Abbey and the very warm welcome by the staff of the St. Columba Hotel. Thanks to the great organisation of Pat Bennett, we were sustained throughout the week by the rhythm of the worship at the Iona Abbey, the wisdom of Mark’s talks, as well as the delicious food coming fresh from the hotel garden. The natural beauty of the island definitely contributed to our reflection on the love of creation; we enjoyed long walks to St. Columba’s Bay, various gorgeous and unspoilt beaches and climbed to the top of Dun I. The Hebridean weather was of course a constant companion, ranging from strong wind and rain to sunshine and a perfect moderate breeze on the last day.

But the real treat was Mark’s reflections about Love, which he shared alongside poems by George Herbert, Edwin Muir, T.S Eliot, Mary Oliver, Carol Ann Duffy, Emily Dickinson, Maya Angelou, Ernesto Cardenal and so many others. Love is so difficult to describe, yet so central to the Christian faith as the key commandment from Jesus. These poets, while never fully grasping it, offer glimpses of what Love is in fleeting, epiphanic moments, as we were reminded that “short poems either give a hug or open a window”. Mark led us through a path exploring the Love of God, the Love of Creation, the Love of Love, and the Love of Justice, and we concluded our retreat encouraged to be more intentional with our ways of life, including our relationships and the ways we relate to God, Creation, ourselves, and our neighbours.

While four days cannot be summarised in a couple of sentences, maybe what stood out was that the love of a neighbour starts with a “I see you”: when “I see you” as a fellow human being without burdening you with various labels, my own shadow and filters, and “you see me”, we can - paraphrasing Owen Sheers - swim the distance between us.