The set readings for the Festival of Pentecost, which we celebrated last month, describe gatherings of Jews and others in Jerusalem before and after the crucifixion of Jesus, and his resurrection and ascension, and on Pentecost Christians from across the world will have gathered to celebrate the descent of the Holy Spirit upon those first disciples and apostles and believers, and their subsequent empowerment, as well as the continuing gifts and work of the Spirit in our lives today.

Last month I was at a Deanery gathering of clergy, Readers and Pastoral Workers and we had a guest speaker – a very dynamic and enthusiastic worker with Warrington Youth for Christ, Kim Wellens, who is also the organizer for the Church at the Creamfields Festival in August of each year. Kim works across High Schools in Warrington, and further afield, and she spoke very positively and enthusiastically about the growing trend nationally amongst Gen Z young people (18-24 year olds) expressing an interest in the Christian faith and especially in the person of Jesus. Kim wanted especially to encourage all of us, and especially those in parishes where young people were rarely seen, and to commend all of us in the work we were doing and the seeds we were sowing through our different services, events and activities – and to be always thinking, praying and reflecting on what we were doing, and the ways in which we were being led by the Holy Spirit. It was quite a talk, and there was a real sense and feeling of hope and expectation within the meeting, in spite of some misgivings and pessimism.

Later in the month I and others from the Deanery and Diocese attended a meeting of the Diocesan Synod, held at the beautiful Church of St Michael and All Angels in the centre of Runcorn, and there was much discussion about the Diocesan strategy “Together in Christ, Sharing Hope ” and about things that were being done in different parishes across the Diocese. In small groups we were asked to think and talk about a question set before us:

“What is working in your context (parish, school, chaplaincy....) that is  helping us to grow or to bless the 1.5million?” Needless to say, there was a lot to think and talk about, and the Diocesan team will, I hope, be busy pulling a lot of strands together so that we can all learn from each other. Amongst many things discussed were the presence of the Church at the Creamfields Festival and the Royal Cheshire County Show, as well as the Flourish projects in local CofE Aided Schools and Forest Church.

On a related note, and as part of the period of prayer between the Festivals of Ascension and Pentecost, known as “Thy Kingdom Come”, it was very interesting to read of the results of a survey commissioned for this period, where 2,000 people were asked to choose from multiple-choice options the source of famous phrases that most people would recognize.

Amongst other phrases were:

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times” 38%

“Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few” 61%

“To be or not to be” 73%

“May the force be with you” 79%

And the phrase recognised correctly by the most people in the survey, 80.3%, was.......”Give us this day our daily bread.....” from the Lord’s Prayer (I’ll leave you to decide on the other answers!)

Interestingly 89% of the people surveyed said they had recited the Lord’s Prayer at some stage recently, including a large number of people who claimed to have no religion or faith.

Over half the people surveyed said they used the Lord’s Prayer in their daily prayer, and that the line they found most meaningful was “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us”. The Archbishop of York commented on the survey: “In a world of shifting cultures and changing circumstances, the Lord’s Prayer remains a steady guide – perhaps never  more so than now.”

We should not be surprised – God’s Spirit is with us always, and we are sent into the world to show God’s love and care for each and every one of us, through word and deed and prayer – and we may never know whose lives have been touched by God through us – but God knows.

And so, as we look forward to summer fairs and fetes, and especially to our own Flower Festival in the middle of the month, when we will be celebrating all the many and different joys of a rural parish, let us give thanks to God for all His blessings, and let us renew our commitment to being “together in Christ, sharing hope”.

The Revd Alec Brown.