Seeker

It's Christmas Day and today's #AdventWord2018 is #celebrate. Yes, today is a day to celebrate. The reason for celebration is the birth of Jesus. Christians celebrate because the message of the angels to the shepherds is of good news of great joy to all people. Christians celebrate because we believe that in Jesus, God gave himself to the world, not in overwhelming power or extraordinary ways, but in the vulnerability and weakness of a baby. And that greatest of gifts is the gift of love, something to be shared and celebrated. Yea, Lord, we greet thee, born this happy morning,- Jesu, to thee be glory give'n; word of the Father, now in flesh appearing; O come, let us adore him, O come, let us adore him, O come, let us adore him, Christ the Lord. If, for whatever reason, you feel you have no reason to celebrate today, may you know peace and discover before too long a reason to be joyful. Image Credit: Pixabay, CC License

An older woman is full of joy as she greets her younger cousin. They are both pregnant and may both the subject of malicious gossip.  Elizabeth is too old to be pregnant. She has been married to Zechariah a long time and no babies have come from their marriage. Women deemed 'barren' were scorned - hard enough in itself. or was the problem with the husband? If Zechariah had failed to impregnant her after so many years, did the village gossips of Ein Karem wonder if Elizabeth's much belated pregnancy was by a younger man? Elizabeth's young cousin Mary is scarcely old enough to be pregnant. Have Mary's parents sent her far away to the hill country of Judea on the pretext of helping old Elizabeth, but really to shield her from disgrace in Nazareth before her condition began to show? Mary is pregnant and the father is not her fiance Joseph. Who would believe her story of being visited by an angel and conceiving a child by the Holy Spirit of God? ...

Image Credit: Flickr, CC License When you think about what an 'important commission' might be what comes to mind? A significant role, project or task given to you by someone in authority as a privilege or for generous payment? Something which takes priority over other things on your to to list? What stood out for me when I saw Stephen Cherry's poem 'Important Commission' and heard it read by Bex Lewis this morning were these words: "Let me enjoy each moment as it passes   and hold me back when I begin   to try to do, or say, or achieve too much." The 18th century French priest Jean Pierre de Caussade wrote of how the present moment is a 'sacrament'. Relaxing in the holy moment of the present is the way to encounter God. Many spiritual writers refer to 'the grace of the present moment'. Jesus taught that the kingdom of heaven is 'here'. The trouble is I'm often too caught up with what happened yesterday or worried a...

Who are the "two women on the very edge of things"? They could be almost any two - most women in the world are on the edge, powerless or unnoticed. But my title is from Malcolm Guite's sonnet 'The Visitation' published in his collection 'Sounding the Seasons' . The two women in that sonnet are Mary the mother of Jesus and Elizabeth the mother of John the Baptist. 31 May is a day to celebrate the visit that the young pregnant Mary made to her much older and more pregnant cousin Elizabeth. You can read the story in Luke 1: 39-56 . I love the sculpture shown in my photograph taken in the courtyard of the Church of the Visitation at Ein Karem in Israel. Sometimes art conveys more than words can. This is not just an old story of long ago. The miraculous pregnancies of Mary and Elizabeth may be unique but so much of their experience is a universal story. It is repeated many times the world over when old and young women without power support and help ...

God of compassion, whose Son Jesus Christ, the child of Mary, shared the life of a home in Nazareth, and on the cross drew the whole human family to himself: strengthen us in our daily living that in joy and in sorrow we may know the power of your presence to bind together and to heal; through Jesus Christ you Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. Collect for Mothering Sunday: Common Worship  Image: Eurico Zimbres: Wikimedia Commons

A Prayer For the Feast of the Epiphany Lord God, the bright splendour whom the nations seek; may we who with the wise men have been drawn by your light discern the glory of your presence in your Son, the Word made flesh, Jesus Christ our Lord. (Common Worship Post Communion Prayer for The Epiphany) 6 January is the Feast of the Epiphany, the start of the Epiphany season . Today's focus is the wise men who brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh to the infant Jesus. Their story is in Matthew 2: 1-12 . Matthew tells us that when these mysterious seekers with their toddler-unfriendly gifts found the house where Jesus was, they were "overwhelmed with joy" .  Christine Sine in 'Epiphany - An Invitation to Follow Jesus' suggests moving into the season of Epiphany  "with joy and gratitude, savouring each moment God gives us as a precious gift." Has anyone any simple suggestions of ways to do that?  For previous posts on the Epi...

I enjoyed every minute of the Royal Wedding that I watched on TV yesterday. I was disappointed that it was the 1928 version of the Marriage Service that was used. Although it did seem to work in the context of that particular wedding and it is legal and beautiful, I really hope it's not going to lead to many more requests for this by couples planning C.of E. weddings. What's wrong with modern language? I thought the choice of Bible reading was particularly apt and I note wih approval that it was read from the New Revised Standard Version and not the King James Bible and very well read too. Richard Chartres sermon has to be one of the best wedding sermons I've heard. I could go on - the whole event was a feast for the eyes, the ears and the spirit. Everyone seemed to play their part as we've come to expect of great British pageants of this sort. But at the centre was a man and woman making a life-long commitment to each other before God (and a truly enormous congrega...

To day, Easter Monday, is a Bank Holiday in the UK. It's my first day off from posting daily on a Biblical reading through Lent and Holy Week. So just for joy, here is something different. Thanks to Penelope I recently discoved the beautiful video below. The pictures are stunning. Brother David Steindl-Rast, a Benedictine monk, gives encouragement to open your eyes to really look at what's around you and be grateful for today. Enjoy!

Psalm 34 is a song of praise for deliverance from trouble, attributed to David at the time when he was on the run from King Saul and feared for his life. David (later King David) spoke from experience when he said, "The Lord is near to the broken hearted,   and saves the crushed in spirit." Psalm 34: 18 But when someone is feeling broken hearted and crushed, it can be a very lonely experience, which is why I chose this photo. It can feel that no-one cares, least of all God. It takes an act of faith in the midst of trouble to say with the psalmist, "I will bless the Lord at all times;   his praise shall continually be in my mouth." Psalm 34.1 When my husband and I were married, one of the hymns we chose for our wedding was a metrical version of Psalm 34. The hymn begins, "Through all the changing scenes of life   in trouble and in joy     the praises of my God shall still   my heart and tongue employ." This expr...

Having a quiet chuckle, remembering the baby I baptized this morning. He is a sociable 6-month old boy, who when carried to the font, decided to entertain the congregation by demonstrating his new skill of putting his lips together and 'blowing raspberries'. For him, it was an expression of pure joy, enhanced by the delighted reaction of his siblings and cousins. I managed to complete the 'Prayer over the Water' with due reverence while the infant candidate continued to make his loud and 'joyful noise to the Lord'. It's best for me to avoid catching anyone's eye at such moments. A priest who giggles while administering a sacrament may cause offence. I'm laughing now at the way that baby reminded me of the joy of new life in Christ. That joy sometimes seems to well up when I'm least expecting it, like today. The youngest 'raspberry blower' can teach us not to take ourselves too seriously and remind us to delight in God. I...