[2] Weeks at the centres often follow a programme related to the concerns of the Iona Community, and people are invited to come and share the life[citation needed].
A regular feature for guests staying in our centre on Iona is a pilgrimage around the island which includes meditations on discipleship; when the pilgrims reach the disused marble quarry or the machair, the common ground where the crofters once grazed sheep, for example, they stop for reflection on work and faithfulness.
People come for reflection and inspiration, and to explore issues of importance – the environment, poverty, migration, equality – in the context of a Christian community and in a beautiful, rugged landscape.
"[5] Amongst the most widely known song and liturgical material from the Iona Community is the experimental worship developed by the Wild Goose Resource Group, based in Glasgow.
The Group exists to encourage, enable and equip the shaping and creation of new forms of worship that are relevant, contextual and participatory.
[11] In the 1980s and 1990s, the Wild Goose Worship Group was influential in introducing songs from other cultures (particularly those from South Africa) to the repertoire of churches in the UK and elsewhere.
[12][13][14][15][16][17] Collections of Wild Goose Resource Group songs and texts have been published internationally, including translations into Swedish,[18] Norwegian,[19] Finnish, Japanese, Dutch, West Frisian, Danish and German.
[36] Alison Phipps, first UNESCO Chair in Refugee Integration through Languages and the Arts and at Glasgow University is a member.
The community's publishing group, Wild Goose Publications, produces books on social justice, political and peace issues, holistic spirituality, healing, and innovative approaches to worship, including music (books, tapes, CDs), short drama scripts and material for personal reflection and group discussion.