The Chronicle, Autumn 2018

19 ST EDWARD’S CHRONICLE

Rev Ernest Lennon What do you do at Teddies? The outfit kind of gives it away. I’m the Chaplain. I look after the spiritual life of the School and help with pastoral support. My job is to show how God fits in at Teddies and to get to know everyone - to listen to what’s going on in their lives and help them make sense of it all. I’m here to talk over what’s on your mind, help with a problem or work through the deep and meaningful questions. I even hear confessions. What role does Chapel play in school life? Chapel points to God as the meaning of our lives. It’s a place of Christian worship but I think the tradition we celebrate has seeds of meaning for people from many different backgrounds. It’s where we wrestle with the scriptures and where we’re challenged to think really hard about the things we say and do and how we empathise with others. And whatever our faith – or lack of it – we can be blessed, inspired and enlivened. So I think Chapel is essential – it allows us to open ourselves to God and to how I studied theology in Oxford and it’s great to be back. I love biking down to Blackwell’s or over to Cowley Road which is a lot more hipster since I lived there. You’ll probably find me in my free time sitting in a coffee shop somewhere with a book. It’s a great city for books and coffee. And there’s so much music and art to explore. There are so many great restaurants too and I’m hoping they might still do ‘lates’ at the Ultimate Picture Palace. What book would you take to a desert island? That’s easy. Finnegan’s Wake . I’m a Joyce fan and I’ve always wanted to master this text. But the last page skips back to the first – so I don’t know if it can ever be finished… It should keep me going for a while. he is transforming the world. What do you most enjoy about Oxford?