We’ve received this update from Becky, who’s part of the 24-7 Ibiza team. They’ve been faithfully serving the Spanish island community even through the global Coronavirus pandemic…
Over the past year, many of us in our small community have been learning about breath: paying attention to our breathing and the idea of breath prayers; simple prayers that can be said in one breath.
Recently, though, we heard something that took us a bit further in our thinking. Those of us journeying with 24-7’s leadership programme learned from 24-7 Prayer Canada Director Aaron White about ‘conspiratio’ – the way in which the Early Church recognised the reality of the Spirit of God living in believers as being the very thing that holds a community together. As a demonstration of this truth, they would share breath, literally breathing into each other’s mouths!
This week we welcomed a new couple to the Ibiza, island who are joining our community for the next 3 months. As we greeted them with breakfast, prayer and communion, we took a small step into participating with this alien practice…
With the restrictions of Covid-19 (and our own personal comfort zones!) we stood in a circle, looked each other in the eye and breathed deeply, reminding ourselves and each other of the Spirit of God alive in us and forming us into community, just as Jesus prayed in John 17:
“I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.” John 17:20-23
Our breathing, in contrast to that of the early church, definitely wasn’t mouth-to-mouth(!) but still felt life giving, and community enhancing.