<h3>From the Rectory</h3>We know all about the rhythms of the seasons as we move from winter into spring, but following the rhythms of the liturgy, the church has moved on from the birth stories of Jesus in Christmas and Epiphany towards the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus in Lent and Easter.Sitting in the turning point between Epiphany and Lent is Candlemas (one of my favourite services of the year). The presentation of Christ in the Temple, to give Candlemas its full title occurs in the northern hemisphere on 2nd February. It is a turning point in the year, falling as it does halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. Timed to supersede the pagan festival of Imbolc, it is when the first signs of spring are just becoming evident, when days are getting perceptibly longer, and the darkest nights of winter are falling away.Candlemas bells (or snowdrops) pop up all over our churchyards and garden borders. They are such beautiful, delicate flowers and lift the spirits as the first sign of spring. I recently heard the legend of the snowdrop: According to legend, when Adam and Eve were ejected from the Garden of Eden, as they trudged out into the snow, holding hands and shivering with cold and despair, an angel took pity on them. Breathing gently on the falling snowflakes, the angel transformed them into snowdrops, whispering to Eve that these fragile flowers, the first to bloom in the cold depths of winter, would be a reminder of brighter days to come, and a reassurance that it would not be winter for ever. How reassuring is that!As we read the papers and watch the news, I hear so often such statements as ‘it’s frightening, isn’t it?’, ‘I don’t know what is happening to our world’. The simple beauty of the snowdrop, flowering in what we regard as the depth of winter cold and darkness, gives us a glimpse of hope and a celebration of light before the dark purple of Lent takes up the rhythm of the seasons.So, let us give thanks to God for all the beauty of His creation and do our part to nurture and sustain it.Look out for what is happening in our churches over the Lent and Easter period, and come and join us.
As I write this it is cold outside but, the sun is shining brightly and it is so easy to forget the grey, damp, rainy days we’ve been experiencing for so long recently and which make us feel so downhearted and miserable. We are coming up to the season of Lent in the Christian calendar, the time when we remember Jesus spending a fairly long period of time alone in the desert region. Whilst not subject to the vagaries of the British weather, Jesus had his own weather problems in that desert - scorching hot days and freezing cold nights. And, no supermarket or convenience store to pop into for a bottle of water or a hot coffee or a snack bar!Paul and I have visited that desert area and know for ourselves what the conditions are like (and we had water and snacks with us plus extra warm clothing). There are the occasional caves for shelter but the shifting sand and the wind which blows the sand around make orientation very difficult, not to mention the scorching sun relentless every day and no factor 50! Imagine being out there alone for a day let alone a few weeks. No wonder Jesus was famished and probably dehydrated and victim of hallucinations at the end of it.But, that period alone with God was just what Jesus needed before he really began his public ministry - time out! And it is just the same for us. We may not literally be in a desert but it can feel as if we are alone, in a desert, that everything is conspiring against us to make life difficult. It is at times like these that we ask God to draw close to us; to revive us, to support us and give us the strength to carry on.Yes, we do have to acknowledge our own faults and failings (other people are not usually the source of many of our problems) but God is a very forgiving God if we admit we are sorry for our wrongdoings, ask for His forgiveness and be determined to do our best not to make the same mistakes again.That is Lent! And, what follows Lent? - the joy of Easter, and that’s another story.May God bless you this Lent.
From the RectorIt has been a pretty tremendous year, 2024, hasn’t it? We have had the ongoing conflicts in Russia and Ukraine and between Israel and Gaza, Lebanon, Iran and the Palestinians crowding our media, several severe natural disasters, not to mention an acrimonious general election and, as I write this, an upcoming presidential election in the USA. On a personal level, Paul and my decision to accept the offer to return to Amelcote benefice as your rector again and various family and friend events have all combined to make 2024 quite an intense year.We are fast approaching the seasons of Advent and Christmas, the time when we lead up to the climax – the overwhelming love of God for his world in sending his Son, Jesus, to show us the way back to God. Advent, one of the 2 penitential seasons in the church’s year, is a time of examining ourselves and just how far we fall short of God’s desire for us to live in and care for this wonderful world that He has made us stewards of; in short how we have not followed Jesus’ command to love God with all our heart and our neighbour as ourselves. It is also a time of anticipation of expectation for God coming into our world – as a baby born in Bethlehem 2000ish years ago and also a time when, as the hymn says “the earth will be filled with the glory of God” when Christ returns to earth.The Biblical book of Daniel, often quoted in the Advent season, is a book that bears inspection today. Yes, we are talking different time, different economic and social structures and autocratic, almost tyrannical rulers; however the sentiments are the same and so powerful. Take, for example, the reflection on Daniel chapter 5. This reading is Belshazzar’s feast and one reflection on it reads “we know something about the transition of power between the Babylonians and the Persians, and there are good historical reasons why it happened, but our writer is not interested in them. This book wants to show us, above all, that God controls everything and everyone. If there is a regime change, then God is behind it and God has his reasons. Its readers are encouraged to believe this, even when it is not easy to see, and know that ultimately they can feel safe in God’s world”. Words indeed for us to mull over and reflect on as we approach Advent and Christmas.One phrase often used to describe Jesus is “prince of peace”, in other words the epitome of love, tolerance and harmony. Let us take this opportunity to listen again to the story of God’s working out of his purpose for humanity and pledge ourselves to listen to and follow the Prince of Peace, not just at this time but each and every day.Come and join us as we celebrate Advent and Christmas in our benefice churches; you can check what is happening and where in the church porches or in our local village magazines. May God indeed grant each and everyone of us a happy and peaceful Christmas and 2025.
