Once you have discovered yourself as an Ecumenical Companion of Sophia, you may wonder what comes next. Certainly, a good place to start is by taking up the three Sophian core practices on a daily basis. I would also encourage you to find or continue taking part in a “Sophia-friendly” church, meeting week by week with other disciples of Jesus who are seeking authentic spiritual growth, mutually supportive relationships, and justice for the earth and the poor. But you may also find that you desire to grow in a specifically Sophian spirituality with a small circle of others. If this is the case, consider starting up a “Grove of Sophia” in your household.
A Sophian Grove is basically a small group of people who meet together once a month for a full moon ceremony. As relationships deepen within your Grove, you may wish to start doing other things together, such as having social events, organizing actions for peace, justice, and the integrity of creation, and finding ways to become a supportive community for each other and for others. In some ways, a Grove of Sophia is a cross between a Christian base community and a pagan coven (sometimes I think of it as a “Christian coven”!)
If you are feeling called to initiate and lead a Grove of Sophia, you may want to do some research on small group dynamics, and think carefully about how to foster a sense of shared leadership and empowerment for all who are part of the Grove. Feel free to contact me ( Shawn at greenpriest@hotmail.ca ) if you need some advice on any of this!
And even if you don’t need advice, contact me anyways! I would love to hear about other Sophian groves which spring up in response to the Gospel of Sophia. In the future, I can imagine a network of Groves emerging, acting as yeast in the church and the world to help create a more Sophia-centred, earth-friendly Christian spirituality for our time.
My Mom lives off the grid in a very very ummm rustic way (no solar panels,no well, just a shack and land she rewilded and cleaned up) as way to show the Bishop and others that this is how Jesus would live. She is very cool and I bet you two would get along great!
A question I have is, “Where did the name Sophia” come from?
Hi there … great question! “Sophia” is a Greek name, which means Wisdom. In the Bible, in the book of proverbs, and also in the Wisdom of Solomon, we hear about “Lady Wisdom”, or Sophia. For me, Sophia is another name for the Holy Spirit.