Vicar’s Letter September 2026Over the course of the summer I managed to get some reading done.I ended up reading a recent novel by an Italian author. It made for an interesting read, though I wouldn't necessarily recommend it.The main characters, a young couple, Anna and Tom, hail from a southern European city but have made their home in the grimy, hipster-cool, in-vogue, artisan and wonderfully creative city of Berlin.They are, on one level, living the dream. Cool city, great apartment with wonderful interior design, flexible jobs, great social lives. They’ve got their aesthetic, their style and so much of their lives is curated to perfection….And yet….. could it be that paradise isn’t all it was expected to be?And off the novel goes. Where the novel goes isn’t what I’m particularly interested in so much as the premise. I love Berlin, about a decade ago I had week in Berlin by myself, visiting galleries, graffiti landmarks, places used in movies and walking the streets.Berlin, would be my fantasy city to live in- having spent many of my formative years in Germany I kind of imagined in some alternative universe I’d have moved there in my early twenties.What the novel got me thinking about was ambition, dreams, possibilities, risk, reality and how wherever we live, whatever we fill our homes and diaries with, wherever and whatever we eat, ultimately none of it is guaranteed to give us greater meaning, and even beyond this, all of it will in some way inevitably bring with it disappointment.Unsurprisingly this led me to think about where purpose and meaning might be found. Even more unsurprisingly, these questions led me to contemplate Jesus. The challenge all faith traditions leave us with is a question. Where might we encounter meaning and purpose for our lives?Perhaps for you, that might be living in an arty area of Berlin, perhaps it might be something different. As we say in the Watson household, “The world is your lobster”, so keeping asking questions.Peace.Tim
July brings with it some exciting things.In Betley, to celebrate St. Margaret’s Day, we’ve got Neil “Nello” Baldwin coming along to a special Mission Praise service at 5pm on Sunday 19th July. Neil will be choosing the hymns and being interviewed about his life and faith. It promises to be a lovely service, please do come along to that. There will be a retiring collection for the Church Army, an organization close to Neil’s heart.In Madeley, we have the Extreme Tour coming back and camping in church on Thursday 9th and Friday 10th of July. There will be a variety of musical things happening, hopefully something in a pub on Thursday night and at the Madeley Centre on Friday afternoon and evening. Do keep your eyes open for further details in due course!Back at the end of June, I saw the release of a new liturgy book I’ve been helping to put together with a few people from the progressive Red Letter Christians UK movement. The book is called, Living for Jesus and Justice: Daily Prayers for Radical Christians and it’s filled with daily liturgies, occasional prayers and a waymarker / waymaker for each day of the year.Looking forwards to the first of August and St. Margaret’s will once again be hosting a little stall at the Betley Show. If you are at the show, do pop by and say “hello!”Here at All Saints', on the 17th May we launched our 20x32 vision scheme for our Children Youth and Families Ministry. We've been seeking to encourage people to commit to praying regularly for the Children's Youth and Families Ministry. We've also been asking people to explore whether they might join the CYFM team and get involved in the practical side of this ministry. Finally we've been asking whether people might be willing to explore giving financially to this crucial work in our church. To find out more, please pick up one of the 20x32 leaflets in church or speak to Rev Tim.Tim
In May I went on retreat as I try to do every year. It’s a privilege that I don’t take for granted. You don’t have to be ordained to go on retreat and I certainly encourage people to take a retreat. However, I’m aware that prioritising time for an annual retreat to pray, read the Bible, truly embrace the concept of Sabbath and take delight in God’s creation is made simpler when part of your vocation, job, calling, is about doing those things and encouraging others to do them too.Retreats are important. Sometimes we can retreat for a week, 4 days, a weekend, a day, four hours. Sometimes our retreat might be in the Pyrenes, or Lake District, or Scunthorpe, or Burslem, or the local café.Retreats are about taking the time to pause. We read in the gospels, of Jesus going up a mountain alone, or withdrawing from the disciples to pray. And throughout the centuries as disciples and apprentices of Jesus have sought to follow him more closely, they have taken time for pilgrimage, or times of retreat.The thing with being a disciple, or apprentice of Jesus, is that it’s not just about head knowledge, or heart knowledge, or the way we practically live out our faith, all three of those aspects of faith are important. Personally, I’ve found retreats help me to re-balance that dynamic, even if all balance seems to melt away when I see my email inbox on my return home!This year I stayed at Llannerchwen (www.rscjuk.org/llannerchwen) a silent retreat centre I’ve stayed in a number of times before. It’s in the midst of the Brecon Beacons and is a beautiful place if you are seeking some silence and peace.The day after I returned home I was saddened to learn of John Lloyd’s death. John was a wonderful friend and colleague who took his apprenticeship to Jesus very seriously. If you’re interested in prayer and perhaps want to begin with a regular “armchair” retreat, then I whole heartedly commend his little book, The Adventure of Prayer, free copies are available from both All Saints’ and St. Margaret’s. John will be greatly missed, but his heart for prayer lives on in the pages of his book.Take some time, pause, retreat. You won’t regret itBlessingsTim
One of my favourite times in the Christian calendar is a reasonably new invention - the Thy Kingdom Come initiative that takes place between Ascension Day and Pentecost Sunday each year. This year Thy Kingdom Come - TKC - is happening between the 14th and 24th of May. Across the parishes of Betley and Madeley there will be a number of special services and events.There is a prayer walk in each parish, there’s a Picnic Communion in Betley and Soaking Worship in Madeley. There’s a special Ascension day communion and Explorers at All Saints’. We will also be repeating our 5For5 initiative where we encourage people to pray for 5 others for 5 minutes each day, that they may encounter Jesus intheir lives and come to a living faith in him.One event I’m particularly excited for, is our planned 24/1 prayer event, where for 24 hours from 10:00am on Friday 22nd of May to 10:00am on Saturday 23rd of May people will be able to sign up to pray in our pop-up prayer gazebo at All Saints’ Madeley. The idea is that people will book a time slot to come and pray. There will be prayer prompts and all sorts of thinks to help you pray.At one church where I used to work, they regularly held 24/7 prayer weeks, with 24 hours of prayer every day for 7 days. It was a massive thing, a big commitment, but when I look back on my faith journey, those were very special and formative times. I’m looking forward to what God might do with and through this day of prayer!More information about the 24/1 prayer day will be available in the pew sheets. Watch this space!BlessingsTim
