Vicar's Letter
|
Dear friends:
Dear friends This is my first letter of 2012 so I wish you all a happy New Year and hope that you managed to celebrate Christmas with a sense of God’s glowing (and growing) presence in your hearts. At St. Andrew’s we had some truly wonderful moments throughout Advent, begun by the great ‘set piece’ of the Advent Carol Service, which touched many people, and continuing all the way to the simple joy of The Nativity on Christmas Eve, which was a pleasure to behold. It is never about statistics but during the month of December the average weekly congreg-ation numbered 312 adults. This includes special services, many of them drawing upon the musical talent in St. Andrew’s, and I want to pay tribute to Rosemary and Larry Robson and the Choir who work so hard during the great festivals like Christmas. We also owe a debt of gratitude to Alan and Jenny Minchin and to David Challis who made the building feel very special with candlelight and one or two well placed spotlights, and to those who arranged the tree and the flowers. We even managed to include a glorious wedding on the Friday after Christmas Day, which saw our own Kate Whittaker marry Simon Bent in a church that was packed not just with family but many friends from the congregation. The joy of the season was palpable and we sent Kate and Simon out to begin their marriage in true Shottery style – by lifting the roof off ! Reflecting on all that happened during Advent, some of it prayerful, some of it exuberant, much of it mystical and exciting as we made ourselves ready for the arrival of the Saviour of the world in a manger, I can only say that serving as a priest in today’s church has never felt better or more fulfilling. It makes me ask myself whether I am in some sort of state of denial because the general atmosphere ‘out there’ is so relentlessly grim ? All around us we hear of imminent collapse, whether of the economy or of our society or of the very earth itself on which we depend for survival. In the writing of this last sentence I was ‘cold called’ by a credit agency, telling me that with the difficult times we all face today they would like to offer me a loan. But first they would need some details : my salary, existing credit card balances, store card debts, car loan payments, mortgage payments and any other salient facts that might affect the decision to grant me the credit I so obviously require ! If all this seemed a bit intrusive I need not worry because they are governed by the Financial Services Authority. Here then another reminder that much of our society operates on the basis that there are few boundaries which need to be respected, including cold calling individuals about ‘surveys’ which turn out to be nothing but yet another marketing ploy. So is it denial when Christians attend a service of worship or gather to pray or meet to read God’s word and find that their hearts are ‘strangely warmed’ when all around seems fixated on a general sense of social and economic collapse ? Is joy and lively worship appropriate at all in such a climate ? Certainly we are reminded that we should grieve with those who are sad (see Romans 12.15) and many are sad in these days of austerity. In days gone by and long ago God’s people in exile could only sit down by the waters of Babylon and weep (see Ps.137). The Church today may well need to engage with songs of lament in order to connect with the experience of people going through a difficult time. And yet, those who follow Jesus and who are able to allow the Holy Spirit some sway over their lives will know that there are times of exuberant praise which are unbounded. It is not that the individual Christian makes herself feel joy by some act of mental ability but that God himself, dwelling in the deepest part of the soul, gives this joy to her. Praise and worship of God is itself of God or it quickly goes flat. Think of the natural ‘bubbles’ in an authentic Champagne and that is a good image of how joy can arise for those who love God. If God himself makes his Church joyful who are we to deny the impulse even when the times are not propitious ? February does not have the great “highs” of the Christmas season and on Wednesday 22nd Lent begins with the traditional Ash Wednesday Eucharist at 7.30pm. I hope many will make it a priority to come and worship on that day. Please note that the regular Tuesday evening service will not take place in that week. This year February has 29 days and so Dr. Kate Distin has produced a prayer diary for all 29 churches in Fosse Deanery, each one having a day dedicated to special prayer. Shottery’s day is Thursday 9th February and Kate Distin will join us for our 10am Eucharist and for the coffee time which follows; everyone is invited but especially PCC members if they are available. There will be great times to celebrate in 2012, the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and the London Olympic Games among them, and many things here in St. Andrew’s. Let’s get the Champagne ordered even if we promise not to drink it during Lent ! Your vicar James
|
|
The Vicar’s Letter