The feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary is celebrated December 8. The feast day, which dates back to the Middle Ages, reflects the belief that Mary was never tainted by original sin. The first explicit statement of the doctrine is found in a work by Anselm of Canterbury (c.1033–1109): “[I]t would be neither reasonable nor right for the ... evils of Adam to be transmitted to the man conceived from the Virgin.” But the doctrine remained controversial. Thomas Aquinas was opposed to it, but interestingly, two of the early Reformers warmly embraced the doctrine. Martin Luther (1483–1546) affirmed: “Not only was Mary the mother of him who is born [in Bethlehem], but of him who, before the world, was eternally born of the Father, from a Mother in time and at the same time man and God.” And in a sermon preached on the feast of the Immaculate Conception he declared: “It is a sweet and pious belief that the infusion of Mary's soul was effected without original sin; so that in the very infusion of her soul she was also purified from original sin and adorned with God's gifts, receiving a pure soul infused by God; thus from the first moment she began to live she was free from all sin.” Even the Swiss reformer Ulrich Zwingli (1484–1531)—a generation before John Calvin moved to Geneva—wrote: “I esteem immensely the Mother of God, the ever chaste, immaculate Virgin Mary.” Finally, in 1854, Pope Pius IX declared the doctrine to be infallible dogma: “We declare, pronounce, and define that the doctrine which holds that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instance of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by Almighty God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the human race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin, is a doctrine revealed by God and therefore to be believed firmly and constantly by all the faithful.” Today, the feast of the Immaculate Conception is celebrated by Roman Catholics and high-church Anglicans and Lutherans, and also in the Old Catholic Church and Liberal Catholic Church. The feast is not celebrated in the Eastern Orthodox Churches, which dismiss the notion of original sin and therefore see no reason for Mary to be spared. The Immaculate Conception is not to be confused with the virgin birth of Christ. Whatever your thoughts are on this, just contemplate for one moment your own encounter with God, and how that changed you life however fleeting this may have been. Then consider saying “Yes” to God and having the Christ live within you for 9 months, and then being with you close by for his life. What do you think now? [Primary source: John F. Nash, "Mary: Adept, Queen, Mother, Priestess" (2020). Fr Andrew
Thinking about the birds of the air at Christmas Father Andrew has told me that he often hears a blackbird singing away from the top of a tree as he walks to and from the church. The blackbird is one of our more tuneful birds and has a strong liquid voice. The male is very smart with a glossy black plumage and distinctive yellow beak and a yellow orbit around the eye. The female is more muted in colour being a soft brown on top and a mottled breast. This is quite the norm for birds as it is the female that normally broods the eggs and so her plumage needs to be camouflaged so that predators do not spot her or the nest. There are a few exceptions to this rule but none that we are likely to see around here. The Latin name is Turdus merula and that can be translated to Thrush blackbird and the second part of its Latin name is commonly used in Scotland in the form of Merl or blackbird. The blackbird is a member of a large family of true thrushes that are spread round the world. If you watch blackbirds in your garden you soon realise they are very territorial and will see off intruding birds of their own species. In the English Christmas carol "The Twelve Days of Christmas", the line commonly sung today as "four calling birds" is believed to have originally been written in the 18th century as "four colly birds", an archaism meaning "black as coal" that was a popular English nickname for the common blackbird. In our neighbourhood we sometimes see song thrushes, but alas much more infrequently than in days gone by. These delicate thrushes eat snails and are sometimes seen hammering the snail against a rock to break off the shell. Their bigger resident cousin is the mistle thrush and again this is now quite a rare sight in our gardens. The mistle thrush is sometimes called the storm cock and can sing even in wet stormy weather from the tops of trees. It is also a very aggressive bird and will defend a particularly choice tree full of berries from other blackbirds or thrushes. I have noted this behaviour on a number of occasions and it is interesting to watch. At this time of year these thrushes are joined by two more species from northern Europe. The first of these is the redwing and this looks somewhat like the song thrush but has a prominent red patch under its wings and from this feature it takes its name. Redwings travel in big flocks and may descend on your garden and start to eat the cotoneaster berries which they consume most eagerly. The biggest winter visitor is the fieldfare, which is sometimes locally called the feld. These birds are quite grey on the neck and rump and again travel in flocks and also raid gardens for the cotoneaster berries. Both the redwing and fieldfare do breed in the UK but in very, very small numbers. The final thrush species we sometimes see in these parts is the ring ouzel also known as the mountain blackbird. This is distinguished by a white collar patch across the breast although the female, which is similar to the female blackbird, has a very pale patch that is barely visible. We are only likely to see these on migration as they fly back from the northern parts towards the Mediterranean, where it winters. The name ouzel used to be applied to the blackbird in olden times . I have seen ring ouzels as near as Burbage Common and a few years ago Vicky and I went to see a couple that spent a few days in a horse pasture feeding up before continuing their journey south. Well, happily, on my long walk around Stanford Reservoir this week I saw all these thrushes except the ring ouzel, which is now happily settled in warmer climes down south. Even the peoples of the Old Testament knew that the birds migrated at different times of the year and we can note this in Jeremiah. Jeremiah 8:7 “Even the stork in the sky Knows her seasons; And the turtledove and the swift and the thrush Observe the time of their migration; But My people do not know The ordinance of the Lord. As Father Andrew has often observed the thrushes can have a very sweet song and their music lifts our spirits. As we near Christmas let us think of John the Baptist crying out in the wilderness and rejoicing in the coming of the Messiah . How sweet was his voice and the message it proclaimed and let us ponder on that the next time we stand and listen to the sweet liquid song of the blackbird or the song thrush. To be continued, Don Peacock
Thoughts for Today From the real world, sublime and challenging The voyage to the Azores and Ponta Delgada Some might think that six days of sailing across the Atlantic to the Azores would seem like a long time. After 59 days of travel this was not the case. The daily itinerary, as ever, was full of diversion and interest, entertainment and many sporting opportunities. We will try to give an insight into what the days had in store. Thursday 5<sup>th</sup> March we had woken to a news update on a virus called Covid 19. This informed our Morning Prayers at 9am, high up in the Observatory at the top of the ship on Deck 9. Over 30 of us participated, concluding our services on the “Harvest of Maturity’. From our cabin on Deck 3, Jane and I would avoid the lifts to complete the stairs as part of our daily exercise. This day included a specialist illustrated talk in the main theatre titled: ‘Sugar and Slavery’, tracing the influence of the ports of Bristol, London and Liverpool in the late 18<sup>th</sup> century - business worth over £1.2 million before the 1807 abolition. A meeting with the resident onboard Choir Mistress and our talented Balmoral Orchestra pianist from the Philipines followed. His virtuosity and calmness was full of grace and so inspiring. The afternoon ‘Build a Boat’ competition for the crew took place in the swimming pool to test seaworthiness, and was won by a couple from the Boiler Room team. The evening entertainment was provided by Magician Phil Hancock, who dramatically finished his set by disappearing into an adult size yellow balloon. In a later conversation he told me he had developed the trick for a performance at the London Palladium – extraordinary health and safety issues! As usual the Captain gave us our daily briefing at 12 noon. We were 600 miles from any land, 1000 miles from Ponta Delgada with 15,000 feet of sea below us. I joined the Table Tennis team of 12 for the daily afternoon competition. We really got to know each other very well over the10 weeks, and my left-handedness was identified early on. Saturday tended to be a final preparation day for the Sunday Services of Holy Communion, Interdenominational service and the Staff Mass below decks. We started the day with breakfast on one of the upper deck restaurants in the sunshine and gentle breeze. Jane was able to enjoy a morning session of Bridge. In the afternoon there was a party to raise money for the St Elmer’s Hospice, Ipswich close to the national headquarters of Fred Olsen. Fund raising on board during the whole trip raised over £6,000 for a Children’s orphanage in the Philipines, India and other designated U.K charities. On Sunday 8<sup>th</sup> of March I celebrated the 9am Communion with just the communion host given (without intincture) as part of the early stages of precautions due to Coronavirus. This was to prepare fellow travellers for what was to come. As always, precautions with handwashing were first priorities for crew and passengers alike anyway. 190 attended the services that day and the theme was ‘Abraham and Jesus – the gift of faith’. Crew Mass was always much appreciated, and was normally held in the afternoon between duties. Being away from home for months informed the liturgy, and the prayers shared for family and fellow crew. It was apt that we held the service in the Crew Mess where meals were shared. The television screens and pool table were stilled in reverence. Afternoon teas were served at 3.30pm every day, when the chefs shared their patisserie talents. These, and the other feeding interludes, were walked off around the deck when we enjoyed the ever-constant horizons, stunning sunsets and on the following Monday night a rare blue moon. Three laps around the deck was one mile. The fresh sea air was shared with more seabirds as we neared land. These days went by so swiftly. We were aware that this feast of a journey was coming to its final stage, so names and e mail addresses were being exchanged and good memories shared. This Sunday evening was a celebration of all things British, with the Entertainments Team on full throttle and slightly patriotic outfits. The Evening dining had all things British including Chicken Tikka Masala as well as Beef Wellington. On Tuesday 10<sup>th</sup> March we were 2,000 miles on from St Kitts and Nevis. The mileage of this trip was beyond belief. It was the eve of our arrival at the Azores and Ponta Delgada, meaning ‘Thin Cape’. It is located along volcanic islands, and in 1450 was just a small fishing village. Today, its population is 68,000 (17,000 in the city itself) covers 89 square miles and is well known for its export of tropical fruits. In the centre of the islands at Setes Citades are two side by side large lakes - water filled craters. One lake appears blue, from the reflection of the sky, and the other appears green due to the surrounding vegetation. That evening we arrived in the lovely port of Ponta Delgada, and the next morning Jane and I explored the town and its diverse market. The highlights were the large pineapples and profusion of freesias. At St.Sebastian’s Cathedral we delivered the Coventry Litany of Reconciliation to Paolo, the welcomer. Built in 1533, it is at first sight an unadorned building, but in every century it has had new phases of Portugese architecture added, which on closer inspection can be clearly seen. The sail-away Communion was at 5.15pm as we sailed for Spanish La Coruna and the final part of our voyage. During the service we asked for the blessing of God upon a South American stole, given to me as a gift during the voyage. That night the clocks went forward for another hour to herald catching up the rest of Europe. We were asking ourselves would we be allowed into Spain? Blessings, Jane and Edward
Saint Andrew On November 30<sup>th</sup> we celebrate St Andrew’s Day and I have no doubt that our brothers and sisters over the border will celebrate that day with great enthusiasm, because St Andrew is the patron saint of Scotland (as well as several other countries as well). I also have no doubt that our Rector will also lift a glass to the Saint after who he is named – one of the most worthy and faithful disciples of Christ. In the Gospel of Matthew Jesus is walking by the Lake of Galilee and sees two men fishing and asks them to leave their net and follow him. These were Simon Peter and Andrew. The Gospel of Luke also mentions Andrew as Peter’s brother. In the Gospel of Mark we read the same story. The Gospel of John tells another, and in my view, a more powerful story. For here Andrew is named as being a disciple of John the Baptist and when John points out Jesus walking by and calls him the Lamb of God, Andrew immediately leaves John and goes, with another man, to join Jesus. The name Andrew means manly or strong and the disciple Andrew certainly lived up to that name. Although not mentioned in Acts, the Christian tradition is that Andrew went through Turkey and Greece preaching and was eventually martyred in Patras. The story is that he was sentenced to be crucified but did now want to be honoured by being crucified on the same shaped cross as Jesus and asked to be crucified on a cross with two beans crossing diagonally. This is known as a saltire cross and this form has been adopted on the Scottish flag as a whites diagonal cross on a blue background. St Regulus, who was a monk at Patras, received a vision and was told to gather up Andrew’s bones and hide them. Many of the relics were then taken to Constantinople. However, Regulus also had another vision to take some bones to the ends of the earth and wherever he was cast up he was to build a shrine for them. He eventually was cast up on the coast of Fife in Scotland and there built his chapel and built a shrine for Andrew’s bones. This is one of several stories about the transfer of the relics to Scotland but it is certain that in 908 AD the only Bishopric in Scotland was transferred to St Andrew’s and this rapidly became a great pilgrimage site. So St Andrew became established as the patron saint of the Scots and quite properly so. Some more relics of St Andrew came to Scotland in more modern times. In 1879 the Archbishop of Amalfi in Italy (where the bones had been brought in 1453 after the fall of Constantinople) sent to Edinburgh what was believed to be the shoulder-blade of St Andrew. This was followed by a most generous gesture made in 1969 when Pope Paul VI gave part of the skull of the saint - to Cardinal Gordon Gray, at that time Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh. "Peter greets his brother Andrew," where the words of the Pope to the Archbishop. The relics of the Apostle are today displayed at St Andrew's altar in the Metropolitan Cathedral of St Mary in Edinburgh. St Andrew evokes many images but the one that we should , perhaps, all hold dear is of a simple fisherman following John and then Jesus and attempting to bring back the Jewish people into a true worship of God and then after the death and resurrection of God to go on and preach the Gospel among the Gentiles and wild barbarians in very violent lands. Don Peacock
