The Wild Goose

Our logo shows a boat being tossed upon the waves of the sea, but surrounded by a Wild Goose. In Celtic tradition the Holy Spirit is symbolised by a Wild Goose. Why did they choose to have a Wild Goose rather than a dove? One reason is that a Wild Goose is uncontrollable, not domesticated, you cannot restrain it, bend it to your will or keep it where you would like it. The noise that a Wild Goose makes is a loud, raucous honk, rather than the gentle cooing of a dove. This makes it challenging, unnerving and just a little scary. If you have ever been approached by a Wild Goose for a piece of bread that you hold in your hand, you will know why!

In a similar way, does this not remind us of the Holy Spirit? Think about the story of Pentecost in the book of Acts and how the Holy Spirit came to the disciples as they waited for something to happen after Jesus’ death and resurrection. What an impression the Holy Spirit made in their lives that day and in the lives of the people in the crowd who thought that they were drunk and disorderly. It’s one thing to think of the Holy Spirit descending like a dove upon you, but imagine a large Wild Goose landing upon your head!

Our prayer is that the whole conference will be surrounded, like the little boat, with the Holy Spirit, and our prayer is that each delegate will know the leading of the Holy Spirit in their planning and journeying to meet with us. As in the prayer of the Breton Fishermen, we often feel that our boat is too small and the sea is too large, but God’s promise is that He will surround us and keep us safe.