Cross of Nails

Storm Fredericke arrived and though she didn't bring much in the way of snow and then not a great deal of rain, she had a good pair of lungs. It looked very unpleasant outside and I wasn't about to go out.

However, just after lunch I had an appointment for my massage in Ottobeuren and was forced to move from my desk and stop the mass of 1950's back.blipping I had managed to post in the morning.

A large part of the 6km trip is through the forest and I kept looking ahead to see any sign of something falling. All OK though.

Had the massage which as always was great and then drove the few hundred meters to the market square and walked up to the Basilica.

I had promised to do something for RedFlash, which I was very pleased to do as not only was her "motive", or better wish, wonderful but it was an overdue visit for my own purposes on two counts.

As the Basilica was empty as I went in, I quickly took some video footage, something I had always wanted to do. Sadly my equipment and my competence aren't up to it but I tried. Thought it strange the Christmas trees were still in place and lit but saw later that they have, elsewhere in the abbey, their Christmas crib display on show until 2nd February.

Then lit three candles on a side wing which has three altars. On another altar, I wrote something in a book and thought I might take a closer look at the third - no reason, something just drew me. And there I saw a cross, (see extra photo) a little unusual being made of long old joiners nails. Alongside it a sign which I then read, The cross is one of the "Cross of Nails"  which originates from Coventry Cathedral after it was destroyed by German bombing on 14th November 1940.

In the days following the bombing a number of symbols appeared. Two beams from the roof had fallen to the floor in the sign of the cross, someone had made a cross out of three medieval roof nails and someone had scratched into a standing wall "Father Forgive". The provost of Coventry made the promise not to seek revenge after the war but to seek reconciliation and forgiveness.

This was the spur for an ecumenical idea to spread this idea of hope and friendship in the post-war years. While it has spread to over 40 countries, the largest partnerships are with German churches,  Ottobeuren joined the group in 1964 and this altar is dedicated to the Coventry Cross of Nails.

That experience lifted me and I strode out and into the long corridors of the abbey in search of a monk and found one fairly quickly. I handed him the 2017 annual book from my senior school, issued each year about the current goings on and news about us "Old Gregorians" as the society of old boys from the Benedictine monk run Somerset school are known. Ottobeuren is one of a whole host of Benedictine abbeys in Bavaria.

He seemed quite pleased and we had a short chat. So that was good too.

Set off back home and shortly after I entered the forest section, saw the blue lights! First, our village's fire engine, a large sawn-off tree at the side of the road and hidden behind the fire engine was a car with the windscreen & front looking the worse for wear and two police cars. I have no idea of what happened, didn't slow down more than was safe and proper and certainly didn't try grabbing a snapshot.

In recent years the cases of mobile phone gaffers trying to get gory photos and often hindering rescue efforts have been the subject of some heavy criticism. In a recent incident, a fireman tending to a very serious autobahn accident turned his fire hose on watching/photographing gaffers and this was widely reported. But then came the threat of charging him with assault, on the basis that only the police are allowed to stop this. Naturally, there was public outrage and the matter was dropped,

Just one kilometre home to be greeted by Angie with a sigh of relief. She didn't know I was doing more than having the half hour massage and thus when the village siren went off, the fire engine passed the house, closely followed by two police cars, she feared I might have been hit by a fallen tree.

Bavaria, in general, has been quite badly hit and I suspect other parts of Germany even worse. I need to catch up on the news.

So have a safe night all you Blipers and by the way, on the note I wrote on the altar, I wrote it not only in the name of RedFlash but all Blipers. So maybe one day in a few centuries someone searching the Ottobeuren archives may just puzzle over the meaning of "Blip". I hope our photo records are still kept somewhere.