Introduction

Winter, Spring, Summer, and now – to complete the series of seasonal liturgical resources begun in 2016 – Autumn. Phew! I’ve defined each season by the month that contains the solstice or equinox and the month either side of it.

Autumn is a liturgical resource book that covers the months of August, September and October. It includes prayers, responses, stories, poems, liturgies, songs, reflections, scripts and monologues for the Christian seasons of Transfiguration, Ordinary Time and Harvest, as well as Angels’ and Saints’ days, World Day of Communion, Creation Time and All Hallows’ Eve. There are also poems for autumn, reflections on autumn leaves and fruits and autumn blessings.

The resources are written by members, associate members and friends of the Iona Community and others.

Thank you to all the contributors for their rich and imaginative material that I have been privileged to edit over the past five years. I have enjoyed a mailbox full of surprises and delights.

A huge thank you to the Wild Goose Publications team, particularly to Sandra Kramer and Neil Paynter, whose advice, wisdom, questioning e-mails and attention to detail I continue to value greatly.

A blessing, God. A blessing on ordinary time. A blessing on the commonplace. A blessing on the common life.

A blessing. A wondering. A hope, a sadness and a joy.

Ruth Burgess (lingering in summer as the earth turns towards autumn 2021)