Seeker

For those of us who try to observe the Christian season of Lent (the 6 weeks before Easter), Lent 2020 has taken a shape we may not have expected. Because of the corona virus Covid-19, in common with many other parts of the world, we are in 'lockdown' - some of us more severely than others. If you are usually a 'church going' Christian and planned to give something up for Lent, you probably had not expected to be compelled to give up 'going to church' in your habitual way. A meme by Daniel Eugene Crocker on the Facebook Page Episcopal Church Memes , made me smile recently. Against a plain black background it read, "This is the Lentiest Lent I have ever Lented." I put 'going to church' in inverted commas, because the church is primarily a community of believers. That community, the body of Christ, remains in communion together through abiding in Christ, even for those who have no access to modern electronic forms of communication. I am gr...

On this day 20 March in 687 AD St Cuthbert died in his hermit  cell on Inner Farne Island. So today is St Cuthbert's Day in honour of one of the most popular saints of Britain. I think he might have had much to teach us about making the best use of physical isolation from others. In his youth Cuthbert cared for sheep, either as a shepherd boy, or as a guard for the flock. That surely must have involved a lot of solitary time. Later, having had a vision as a child that made him decide to dedicate his life to God, he became a monk. Eventually he became Abbott of Lindisfarne and then a Bishop. As a bishop he travelled and preached as he walked over the rough hills of his diocese. In between those journeys he spent time as a hermit on Farne Island - chosen self-isolation in order to deepen his relationship with God and so be more useful to those who needed his spiritual guidance.  For Cuthbert, to be human was to live in dependence on God, aware of his constant presence. You...

In the light of the spread of Coronavirus - Covid19 we are being reminded of the importance of frequent and thorough hand-washing with soap and water. We are also being told by health advisors and others that it needs to be done for more than a cursory couple of seconds. Some suggest singing the song 'Happy Birthday' twice to ensure a minumum of 20 seconds. I have found that even done silently this feels rather silly, especially if I'm not celebrating anyone's birthday at the time. As I believe that regular prayer is as important as regular hand-washing, this Lent I have decided to use a set prayer while I wash my hands. The Lord's Prayer takes about 20 seconds to say and longer in a sung version. So praying the Lord's Prayer is what I'm now practising while washing my hands with hot water and soap, or while using 60% alcohol hand-sanitiser. It's already feeling a lot less silly than singing happy birthday. How about you? Do you have an alternati...