Traditionally in Advent, we begin with the prophets and then reflect on the message of John the Baptist before ending Advent thinking about Mary, called by God to be the mother of God’s Son. The reading for the first Sunday this year is from Isaiah – chapter 64...

Reflection on today’s Reading – Matthew 25: 31-46 This passage is normally known as the “sheep and the goats” but this is just a simple analogy – at night the shepherd would separate out the sheep from the goats in his mixed flock. The vivid image is simply to tell us...

A Reflection on the Gospel reading for this Sunday – Matthew 25: 14-30 The Parable of the Talents  - Warning – spoiler alerts A Talent is a big amount of money so this parable is better called “the Parable of the Servants who were given big bags of gold”. And it...

Remembering... Last Sunday we remembered the saints (All Saints Day) and then Monday was All Soul’s Day when traditionally we remember those who have died. This weekend and through to the 11th, we remember those servicemen and women who have died in war. Yesterday...

Sunday’s Readings – Revelation 7: 9-17 and Matthew 5: 1-12 The reading from Revelation is one of those points in the story where – as it were - the camera pans up away from all that is happening on earth, and the reader sees with John this vast crowd, without number,...

Sermon – Oct 25th 2020 – Bible Sunday and the Sunday of the APCM Today is Bible Sunday, it is the last Sunday of Trinity in our church’ year. It is our Annual Meeting – albeit six months later than planned. Our Gospel reading speaks of imminent happenings; it is a...

Reflection on Bible Sunday Today is traditionally (now) Bible Sunday, though traditionally it used to be in Advent! Traditions do change. One big book with two sections. 39 documents in the “Old” section and 27 in the “New”. Those documents are a wonderful variety –...

Reflection on this Sundays readings –  Luke 10: 1-9 Today we remember St Luke – the writer of the gospel and of Acts, a doctor and a companion of St Paul. Jesus – in the reading – talks about a plentiful harvest but few labourers. We remembered our Harvest last week,...

Reflection on Sunday's Reading A wedding banquet with a difference!  Matthew 22: 1-14 The reading this week is a parable which takes us into different dimensions. We begin with a King who wants people to celebrate with him at a banquet, and he has paid out for it –...

Reflection on Sunday's Reading This is a parable which has caused quite some trouble over the years. Some have read it as an anti-semitic text and some have claimed that it does show God’s judgement on the Jews. First Jesus was Jewish – Jewish born and Jewish brought...

Things are not right at the moment – not right at all for human flourishing. For most of us, this is a new and unnerving experience especially with the ‘news’ that there are many more months to go, though many of us suspected this some time ago. We want things to be...

Normally this is Harvest but in this strange world of 2020, it is the preparation for the Annual Meetings. These should have happened by the end of May, but they have been delayed. We will be holding our Annual Parish Meeting – for the election of Church Wardens – and...

Friday September 11th - Today is “9/11” – two numbers together that mean so much – though it is now nearly 20 years ago that the awful event happened. So many died and so many had their lives changed for ever, whether from wounds, from dust inhalation leading to...

“I lift my eyes to the hills: From where does my help come?” “Our help comes from the Lord, who has made heaven and earth.” (Psalm 121 v 1) September 6th will mark exactly a year since I was licensed as Team Rector. Little did I know, or any of us know, what the...

A Bank Holiday weekend should be a time for get-togethers, time-out, celebrating, and for me, the August Bank Holiday marks the end of summer and the beginning of autumn; I always think you can sense the shift in atmosphere and see it in the light and in the trees....

A microscopic virus plays havoc with the world – it keeps us apart and there is the fear of contagion. Countries are not safe to travel to or from. Various versions of vaccines are being developed but which are the good ones? And also in the news, along with...

This week will have been dominated for many families by the A level results – and the anxiety and then either relief or frustration / disappointment / anger. For others, this would have been a week of holidays away somewhere, a family celebration or gathering, and the...

Holidays are special and looked forward to, and August is holiday time – but for many not in the same way this year. Holidays: we associate holidays with going away and maybe beaches or travel. The roots of the word are – of course – Holy Day – and they were the...