Seventh Station: Jesus appears to the disciples “Look at my hands and feet: see that it is I myself. Touch me and see: for a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” Luke 24:39“From ghoulies and ghosties and long legged beasties and things that go bump in the night, Good Lord deliver us” So says the old Scottish prayer, and so perhaps say a good many of us, for we can easily feel uncomfortable and frightened by talks of spirits and ghosts and other strange things that we do not understand. Then there are the science fiction programmes on television that have sent many a child diving for shelter behind the sofa, or requesting the comfortingly solid presence of an adult. And as we read today, the disciples were not made differently from us. When they saw Jesus appear among them, standing before them, very much alive, and they had seen him die only days before, they were terrified. It must have been very confusing.In our gospel reading they stood gathered around the two disciples from Emmaus who had walked and talked with the risen Christ, who had failed to recognise him in the failing light; but who had known him instantly in the breaking of the bread. But all of them, when he came and stood amongst them, took fright. They thought he was a ghost. The Greeks saw reality in terms of concepts, of universal truths, but to Jews, reality was particular and concrete. And so the resurrection was particular and concrete, not just a concept. Jesus really did come and stand with his disciples, risen from the dead. Thomas famously had need to touch in order to believe, and Christ understood that need. “A ghost” he said,” does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have” and, for final confirmation of his physical reality, he asked for some food. They gave him a piece of fish and watched him eat it.There is humour in Jesus’ words and actions, verses 40-41, “And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. There is an old saying “Seeing is believing”, but for the disciples seeing was not enough, they had to have that physical experience. While in their joy they were disbelieving and still wondering, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” The way Jesus teases them is part of what helps them to accept that it is really him, really alive.Even today amid all the evidence of the coronavirus, there are sceptics who do not believe that it really exists, because it cannot be physically seen or touched.The sense of Christ’s reality, this absolute certainty that he had risen from the dead and was with them again, came before the strengthening and deepening understanding which was the gift of the Holy Spirit. Unless they were sure, how could they preach with conviction? The faith of those who came after them, would be based on that certainty.When Christ is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is. It reminds us too of who we are – we are people of God, with all the promises of inheritance that come with that status. As believers we are not just acquaintances, not just friends, but members of God’s universal family. It is an awesome thought to understand that people may see Christ in us, because of our status as people of God, because of our relationship with God. We have our part to play in the ever-extending family of God, in helping people to see that they too can be people of God, they too can find eternal life through Jesus. Let us be encouraged and awed as we contemplate some of the tremendous implications that come from a living faith in Christ.Risen Christ, through that stone, those cloths, that garden, those wounds, that meal, you made real your resurrection. Make real your resurrection in us, and may we live that resurrection now and always. AmenPauline Cummins
Thought for the day 29th April- Memories, MemoriesSt Cuthbert’s Way.I would imagine that most of us have watched more TV programs these last few weeks than we were normally accustomed to doing. Only the other day I was deciding what to watch and came across an episode of Tony Robinson’s walks through history and I was so glad that I did. In this episode Tony was following the St Cuthbert’s Way linking Melrose with Holy Island. St Cuthbert was first based at Melrose in an early Christian community having been trained in the island of Iona in the early Celtic Christian tradition. Along the way Tony recounted the story of how St Cuthbert and a young companion were walking between centres and the young man complained of being hungry. St Cuthbert assured him that God would provide and sure enough an eagle came down and caught a salmon and the dropped it at their feet. St Cuthbert drew out his knife and cut the fish in two and gave one half back to the eagle. Tony was informed that it could well have been an osprey and indeed that brought back my first memory. Some fifty years ago I was on holiday in Northumberland and was driving on a road alongside the River North Tyne when suddenly a bird came flying towards me carrying a big fish. It was my first osprey and it also reminded me of our Church outing to Rutland Water where we saw many ospreys and were fortunate to see one catching and then carrying a fish away.Further on Tony walked past the Eildon Hills near the Scottish/ English borders and then crossed into England into the College Valley. Some ten years back I went to stay in the College Valley to see some old friends, Martin and Eildon Scott. Yes Eildon a very unusual name but I gather her parents were locals and must have named her after those hills. While I was with them for just one night I told them that I had been to the College Valley many years before to try and find the Hen Hole. This is a remarkable feature and is in fact a very deep cleft in the hills, so deep in fact that the winter’s snow can sometimes still linger at the bottom until mid-summer. Martin kindly offered to show me exactly where it was and we bounced down a private road on the estate and finally took to the moor. I was sure we would get bogged down but he knew his country very well and took me to within a stone’s throw of the Hen Hole and at long last my search was ended. As Tony Robinson walked on he came to St Cuthbert’s Cave, where a large group of us went during our pilgrimage to Holy Island a couple of year’s ago. I immediately recognised the cave as having been on one episode of Vera but the real reason we were there was to commemorate the travels of St Cuthbert’s body after the monks fled Holy Island following the Viking raids. When the island became to dangerous for them to stay any longer they decided to leave but not without the body of St Cuthbert who had become so venerated that they could not contemplate leaving his body behind. We were due to take communion at the cave but then a difficulty arose because the wafers had been left behind. I think St Cuthbert must have been watching over us because I had brought a very nice bread roll from breakfast and this made a very satisfactory substitute and in my view a worthy tribute to St Cuthbert.Moving on Tony eventually crossed the sands at low tide and reached Holy Island, another place that is very special to me. The sense of history and spiritual intensity is almost tangible. The ruins that we see today are not the old Abbey that St Cuthbert would have known but a later priory. However, excavations are now underway to reveal the foundations of the old Abbey and no doubt many interesting artefacts will eventually come to light.Tony was told of the great debate between the Celtic (or more properly a sub-set of the Celtic Church the Ionian church) and Roman churches and how this was eventually settled at the Council of Whitby in favour of the Roman Church. Some of the Ionian monks departed from Northumbria at this point but Cuthbert fully accepted the decision and was a great mediator and stayed on Lindisfarne (Holy Island) to continue to build and strengthen the church from this wonderful base.So Tony Robinson’s journey was nearly at an end but he did make one further expedition to go to the Farne Islands where St Cuthbert went to retreat from the world. He established a little cell on the Inner Farne and it was there that he died in 687 AD. I have been a bird watcher for many years and when I went to the Farnes for the first and only time at the age of 18 I was amazed at the number of sea-birds. These days the only human residents are wardens from the National Trust who look after the Islands. The warden on the program told Tony that they had cleared a cellar there they found a fresh water spring. This was the only one on the island and in his opinion this was likely the same spring that Cuthbert had used during his stay on the island.What a fascinating program and one that brought back so many memories including my visit with the Church not so long ago.Don Peacock
Reflections for Today 28th April 2020From the real world sublime and challengingFear in FunchalOn our return from 70 days at sea with Chaplaincy duties on the ‘Balmoral’,Fred Olsen ship (on the 16th of March) Jane and I had some time to reflect on a number of fears as we entered lock down.We approached Madeira in the middle of January.There we were informed that there was an opportunity to sledge in the sunshine from the high point of Funchal for two miles down the tarmac road towards the centre of town. It sounded quite crazy. On arrival in Funchal we went to the top of the Mountain by cable car and assessed the actual context of sunny tarmac sledging. As it turned out it was exhilarating and eradicated the fear of the unknown. On our travels around South America we saw so many communities where fear of poverty, global warming and the fight to preserve the natural world were seen. One of the major fears was the fear of the lack of water supplies in Bonaire and the driest desert in the world where we walked in Arica,Chile. We followed the news on our ship about the growing threat of Coronavirus from World News networks when we had connectivity. Fear of the unknown can be the greatest fear. Our hearts go out to those working on the front line, in whatever capacity, in these unknown future times. We pray for all those who are researching this particular strain of Coronavirus and seeking out an antidote. The more is found out the more fear will be addressed and dissipated.The Thursday night clap for all our carers paid and unpaid volunteers in the community is inspirational. Those who work in the NHS in hospitals and the wider community and all our utilities appreciate it. They have always had an enormous commitment to the work whatever the uncertainties and challenges. None of them know what they are going to face each day. That also goes for those who serve the residents in the Nursing Homes, Hospices and Care Homes and in the home setting.Perfect love casts out all fear and we are seeing so much of that in the smallest acts of kindness wherever we are. They count. I am reminded of the hymn ‘….the love of my Lord is the essence…’ which describes the love that saw the terrified, fearful disciples in lock down after the death of Jesus through their terror and uncertainty to renewed hope.With blessings, Edward and JaneNext stop Brazil…….
Thought for the day 25th April 2020Walking in my ShoesDuring this period of enforced lock-down we have all tackled lists of projects that we had never got around to, or even thought of!At the prompting of Joyce and my children I am part way through writing the story of my journey through life.One episode that I have brought back to mind is of being invited to participate in a Duke of Edinburgh Study Conference in the 1970’s. These conferences grouped people from three different occupations (Civil Servants,, Trade Unionists and Business leaders) and sent them to different parts of the UK to study local social and economic issues. I well remember the Plenary gathering in Birmingham, chaired by the then CEO of Chloride Group, Sir Michael Edwards, who was about to take on the running of British Leyland (but which had not been announced). In the round of self-introductions one guy stood up introduced himself by name, occupation, which was Trade Union convener at British Leyland, Longbridge., and blithely said ‘for those that don’t know – that’s the plant where the workers sign in using the Visitors Book’. I can still see Sir Michael’s stony-faced stare!My particular Group was dispatched to East Anglia, where we studied issues of economic stress caused by the decline of the Ports and the socio-economic issues of low-paid work in the agricultural industries. At each visit individuals were tasked with looking at the issues of the day from a particular point of view. We were there for 2 weeks and the amazing thing was to witness the change in attitudes as the course went on. By the end of the tour it was difficult to distinguish who was from which background.That experience has stayed with me and I often wonder how our opinions would alter if we paused and deliberately thought about ‘how the world would look if we were in someone else’s shoes.’ It can be a sobering experience, and is particularly prescient in the current crisis when, apart from the obvious sacrifices being made by front-line workers, people in all walks of life have to confront unique challenges.Mike DaviesWhy don’t you listen to Gladys Knight and the pips sing the song?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wx9ZqNuDNzw
