Dear Friends in Christ,August can be a strange month. For many it’s a time of holidays-especially those having to fit in their vacations with schools. Yet on the flip side it’s also when students get their exam results, with all the attendant worry and excitement that goes with it. It brings us this coming last Bank Holiday until Christmas. I always remember hating to see all the ‘back to school’ signs in the supermarkets reminding me that my lovely 6 week break was coming to an end!! Mind you-I’m sure a fair few parents also count those days down with anticipation! We also notice the nights starting to get dark again and the first hints of autumn.Change-good and bad-is a fundamental part of life. No matter how hard we may fight it, we can’t avoid it. The future is something that can excite or terrify us, the past often becomes distorted through nostalgia. I now seem to view the 1980s as the best period ever simply because I was young then with hair and lots of energy. We have to be so careful that this nostalgia doesn’t blur our vision of the present and dictate how we look at the future.In our Gospel reading this Sunday the disciples argue about which of them would be regarded as the greatest. They’re projecting to a future they don’t understand rather than being present in that moment with Jesus. He in turn challenges their views on authority but also promises them thrones to judge alongside him-a somewhat contradictory message but one that we can unpack.Ultimately, we can learn from them to not be defined only by our past and how that might shape our future, but to be in the present moments that’s where our life is happening now, and to not do so means we may miss the bad, but we also miss so much that’s good.AmenThis Sunday 24th August Bartholomew the Apostle8.00am Holy Communion - All Saints10.00am. Holy Communion - St. Marys10.30am Café Church - All SaintsThe Week AheadWednesday 27th August Morning Celtic Prayer 9.00am - All Saints ChurchAA Meetings 7.30pm - St. Marys ChurchThursday 28th August Holy Communion 10.00am - St. Marys ChurchFriday 29th AugustLiving after Loss 11.00am. St. Marys ChurchSaturday 30th AugustSaturday Lunches 12noon to 1.30pm. St. Marys Church.Next Sunday 31 August Eleventh Sunday after Trinity8.00am. BCP Holy Communion - All SaintsNo service at St. Marys10.30am. Benefice Holy Communion - All SaintsMay the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all, evermore. Amen.Blessings,Fr Kester de Oliveira
Dear All Saints and St Mary’sThis Sunday’s reading from the Letter to the Hebrews completes the story of the Old Testament heroes of faith. Last week we heard of Abraham’s faith and how he trusted in God’s promise. This week, having skipped over the epistle’s recounting of the stories of Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, and Moses, we have a whistle stop tour of the rest of the Old Testament. The fortunes of these people varied. Some were great kings, warriors, and judges. Some were saved from lions or enemy soldiers. Others, however, suffered mocking, poverty, imprisonment, or execution. However, all of them, through good and bad, kept their faith in God.The letter then goes on to encourage its readers to follow the example of all those heroes that they had heard about. Whether things are going well or badly, we should persevere in the way that Jesus has set before us. We look to him, who is our example and our leader. He endured the cross, never giving up his faith in his Father or his love for all people.We have a couple of opportunities to think more about this on Sunday:10.00 am St Mary’s Holy Communion10:30 am All Saints Holy CommunionWe have our usual midweek services. Next Sunday follows our usual fourth Sunday format. This gives the following services for the coming week:Wednesday 20th August 9:00 am All Saints Celtic morning PrayerThursday 21st August 10:00 am St Mary’s Holy CommunionSunday 24th August8:00 am All Saints Holy Communion (said)10:00 am St Mary’s Holy Communion10:30 am All Saints Café ChurchIn addition, the bible book club will be looking at Nehemiah in St Mary’s parish rooms on Wednesday 20th August at 2:00 pm.So let us pray that the faith described by the letter to the Hebrews may be seen in us:Lord God,your Son left the riches of heavenand became poor for our sake:when we prosper save us from pride,when we are needy save us from despair,that we may trust in you alone,through Jesus Christ our Lord.Yours in ChristMark
