Seeker

O Lord Jesus, because, being full of foolishness, we often sin and have to ask pardon, help us to forgive as we would be forgiven; neither mentioning old offences committed against us, nor dwelling upon them in thought, nor being influenced by them in heart; but loving our sisters and brothers freely, as you freely loved us. For your name's sake. Amen. Adapted by me from a prayer by Christina Rossetti (1830 - 1894) Image Credit: Pixaby, CCO License, Public Domain

  I know little about Irish saints. I've only recently discovered that the republic of Ireland now honours St Brigid along with St Patrick as the country's 2 patron saints. Today is St Brigid's feast day. Starting next year, in Brigid's honour there will be a public holiday on the Monday nearest to 1 February, giving her equal status (as far as public holidays go) with St Patrick whose feast day has been a public holiday there for a long time. In the Church of England she is commemorated today as Brigid, Abbess of Kildare, who died about 525 A.D. I've chosen a cross of reed straw to illustrate this post. It's a cross associated with St Brigid because of the legend about her sitting with a dying pagan lord, possibly her father. As she sat in vigil by the bedside she picked up some rushes from the floor and wove them into a cross while explaining the meaning of the cross of Jesus Christ to the dying man. The story goes that the man died peacefully having converted...

  Happy 8th day of Christmas. (No, Christmas isn't over yet.) And Happy New Year. 2021 is behind us and 2022 has begun. What will this year bring? Some things seem reasonably predictable, but I am not going to list what I think those might be. More things about 2022 are really unknown. Life has a habit of surprising us with the unexpected, both good and bad. The unpredictable and the unknown can make us anxious. I feel both hopeful and anxious about what this year will bring for me and the people I love and indeed the world in general. In the UK it's nearing the end of this first day of January and it is dark. A friend posted a quote on Facebook today from King George VI's 1939 Christmas broadcast. It was part of the preamble written by Minnie Louise Haskins to her 1908 poem called 'God knows'. That preamble is sometimes known as 'The Gate of the Year' and is usually only quoted in part. It has been an encouragement and inspiration to me since I first heard...