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When the plinth became a pulpit

by
07 October 2009

Antony Gormley’s fourth-plinth project in Trafalgar Square has given many people a platform — literally. Ed Beavan talked to some of them

latform ministry: above: the Church Army evangelist Sister Alison Wooding sports a Make Jesus Famous placard in Trafalgar Square CHURCH ARMY

latform ministry: above: the Church Army evangelist Sister Alison Wooding sports a Make Jesus Famous placard in Trafalgar Square CHURCH ARMY

THE north side of Trafalgar Square in central London has had two new attractions in recent months. First, the completion of the seemingly never-ending building project at St Martin-in-the-Fields. Second, an art installation that has a much shorter lifespan (and is a bit cheaper).

The setting is the seven-metre-high column in the north-west corner of the square. It was designed by Sir Charles Barry, and built in 1841 to display an equestrian statue — but then the money ran out.

The setting is the seven-metre-high column in the north-west corner of the square. It was designed by Sir Charles Barry, and built in 1841 to display an equestrian statue — but then the money ran out.

Since 6 July this year, a different “human statue” has been lifted up on to the platform by a JCB, every hour on the hour, throughout the day and night, whatever the weather. There they have the opportunity to “take ownership” of the plinth, whether by a demonstration or performance, or just through quiet contemplation.

The “plinthers”, as they have become known, form part of the One and Other installation devised by Antony Gormley, famous for the Angel of the North near Newcastle, and the iron figures on the beach at Crosby, near Liverpool. A number of Christians have taken part in the project, which is being broadcast live on the internet until it finishes next Wednesday, at the end of 100 days.

FR ED HONE, a Roman Catholic Redemptorist priest from Edinburgh, took to the plinth on 1 August. He wore his habit, and had a rosary attached to his belt, which he used to pray the Jesus Prayer for people after receiving intercessory requests from across the globe before his hour on the plinth.

Fr Hone, who is now studying for a doctorate in theology and religion at Durham University, described his hour on the column as “a really interesting experience.

Fr Hone, who is now studying for a doctorate in theology and religion at Durham University, described his hour on the column as “a really interesting experience.

“I got email requests from people all over the world, and they were coming in thick and fast as I was up there. There were requests from Canada, the United States, Argentina, Australia, Singapore, the Philippines, the UK, and Ireland.

“The beads helped me keep focused, and I spoke to the camera so people could hear who I was praying for. A few people down on the ground gave me a hard time. One person yelled: ‘Where was your God at Auschwitz, or the Tsunami?’, to which I replied: ‘Dying’, and ‘Drowning’.

“Another woman said: ‘It’s all a waste of time,’ but then asked for prayer for a friend; so there was a mixture of hostility with questioning.

“I felt I was giving a witness to my faith and my ministry: doing something practical, and reaching out beyond my world and my Church, and allowing the public to have their needs voiced. They could pray directly to God, but I believe this feeling of solidarity gave a boost to people.”

“I felt I was giving a witness to my faith and my ministry: doing something practical, and reaching out beyond my world and my Church, and allowing the public to have their needs voiced. They could pray directly to God, but I believe this feeling of solidarity gave a boost to people.”

Despite the heavy rain during his hour on plinth, and the daunting experience of being “quite high up in one of the most famous public spaces in the world”, Fr Hone enjoyed the experience.

“I think it’s been successful in terms of Gormley’s work, which has already focused on the human form; on its relationship to the environment and how people react to it, such as the Angel of the North, which people lean on. “With the plinth project, there is always some kind of reaction from the crowd, and the person alters the built environment in some way.”

He also used his time as a plinther to pray for the canonisation of the Venerable Margaret Sinclair, a factory worker who became a nun and cared for Edinburgh slum-dwellers in the early 20th century.

SISTER Alison Wooding, a Church Army evangelist on the Manor Estate in Sheffield, and Minister-in-Charge of St Swithun’s, Sheffield Manor, took to the plinth in the second week during the early hours of a Saturday.

Sister Wooding wanted to model prayer, and was partly inspired by religious ascetics who had done “wacky things for God”, such as the Desert Fathers and Simon Stylites, the fifth-century hermit who spent much of his life on top of a pillar.

Kneeling as she prayed, she found it “a profound experience. Trafalgar Square is a busy place normally, but a real peace seemed to descend around the place. I was aware some people wanted to be entertained: someone shouted ‘Do something!’

“But I’ve had emails from people who were there, who were watching, who felt the stillness descend, and were affected by the peace of it. I’d like to think my being still on the plinth caused other people to be still.”

“But I’ve had emails from people who were there, who were watching, who felt the stillness descend, and were affected by the peace of it. I’d like to think my being still on the plinth caused other people to be still.”

Sister Wooding, who will be ordained deacon in the Church of England next year, also prayed for Church Army evangelists, and, using her mobile phone, took prayer requests from the public. Her experience was not one of running away from the world, she said, but followed Jesus’s example of spending time with the Father. It was also a reminder of how we need to take time out from our busy lives to pray.

THE Revd Ken Chalmers, a Methodist minister from Castle Cary, in Somerset, offered spiritual nourish­ment to people in Trafalgar Square during his slot on 28 July.

He led a communion service while on top of the plinth, preaching a sermon and leading prayers. A colleague presided at communion at the base of the pillar.

Communion was distributed to Mr Chalmers’s supporters, and to mem­bers of the public who had gathered to support him. He found the experience to be a way of “connecting with God, connecting with one another, and connecting with the whole of humankind through the sacrifice of Christ.

“It was a way of saying: ‘Here is sacred space you don’t have to register for, but, if you are honestly seeking, come and share with us, and meet with God in this way.’”

Mr Chalmers wanted to share a theology of hospitality, welcome, and invitation, and said that the project tied in with the Church’s being a “Church without walls, which is very much part of its DNA”. It was “nerve-racking” at first to be on top of the plinth, but, after the first responsive prayer, he felt a great deal more at ease.

ROBERT LONG, a Salvation Army hostel-manager at Salisbury House, in St Helen’s, near Liverpool, took to the plinth on 15 July.

Mr Long is a fan of Antony Gormley’s artwork, and highlighted the work of the Salvation Army and the issue of homelessness by getting into a sleeping bag on the plinth, to demonstrate rough sleeping. He then constructed a “Wendy house” made of cardboard boxes, which represented Salisbury House hostel. On one side it had a picture of a normal home, to represent the aim of getting home-less people back into independent living.

He also showed books to the crowd, and kicked a football around to sym­bolise the Salvation Army’s education and sporting programmes. There was a large crowd in the Square, Mr Long said, because, during his slot, a large screen was broadcasting an opera, live, from the Royal Opera House.

“It was great to be able to banter with people, and highlight the work of the Salvation Army. I’m proud of our staff and of the people who come to us and change their lives — they are the modern heroes of the day. It was an incredible experience to be on the plinth.”

THE Revd Alison Fuller, Rector of St Columba’s-by-the-Castle, Edinburgh, is scared of heights. When she was lowered on to the plinth during the early hours of last Sunday, 4 October, she ate Fairtrade chocolate to calm her nerves.

She, too, read out prayers and took prayer requests by text, as well as reading stories and poems. She also sang hymns.

She was raising money for three charities: her parish church, the Society of St Francis, which works with asylum-seekers, and Waverley Care Edinburgh, which helps people with HIV/AIDS.

“It was a profound experience. It was a little bit scary, and there was quite a bit of heckling, and I was very pleased to see the man with the crane by the end.

OTHER plinthers included Peter Davies, a Quaker from Bridgend, in Wales, who read from Advices and Queries, a collection of Quaker insights; and Barbara Camps, a parish clerk in Pinchbeck, South Lincolnshire, who spent her hour promoting her village church, St Mary’s, which is raising funds for new kitchen facilities (See Diary).

www.fourthplinth.co.uk

www.oneandother.co.uk

From Redruth to London

CHILDREN from the ecumenical young people’s group Searchlight, which includes the five Anglican churches in the Redruth benefice in Cornwall, had their chance to shine during their time at the plinth in July.

Led from the plinth by Aaron Barker, a 17-year-old keyboard player, the 20-strong choir (which included the Team Vicar of Redruth, the Revd Peter Fellows) gathered on nearby steps and sang a selection of songs from musicals, including Les Misérables and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and their 2008 production Deep Blue SOS, a musical about a Cornish fisherman.

The group were selected from 20,000 applicants, after Aaron’s sister Tegan-Rose, aged 12, a group member, put their name forward.

Jill Tolputt, who helps with the group and was part of the choir during their hour between 6 and 7 a.m. in Trafalgar Square, said that the children really enjoyed the experience.

The group were selected from 20,000 applicants, after Aaron’s sister Tegan-Rose, aged 12, a group member, put their name forward.

Jill Tolputt, who helps with the group and was part of the choir during their hour between 6 and 7 a.m. in Trafalgar Square, said that the children really enjoyed the experience.

“We were singing ‘Trelawney’ and some people were rubbing their eyes as they walked through. They might have thought we were Cornish revolutionaries!”

The group took a collection during their hour for the Royal National Mission to Deep Sea Fishermen.

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