Seeker

Whatever you think about today's one-day strike of public sector employees in the UK , you'll probably agree that a useful person in a dispute is a good mediator - who brings people together, gets to know the issues and those involved well enough to help them find common ground, listen to one another and  negotiate.  Today is St Andrew's Day. The apostle Andrew, one of the first disciples Jesus chose, is remembered for bringing people together. Specifically, the gospels record that Andrew told his brother Peter about Jesus (John 1: 35 - 42) brought a boy with a few loaves and fishes to Jesus (John 6: 1 - 15) told Jesus about foreigners wanting to meet Jesus (John 12: 20 - 26) Andrew didn't do anything extraordinary, just what all Christians are called to do. He passed on to others what he had seen, heard and experienced of Jesus. He brought people to Jesus and he told Jesus about people who wanted to meet him. In the end, tradition has it that it cost Andrew hi...

Commons Wikimedia: Unidentified Argiope This handsome creature is Argiope, a spider who spins silver webs starting with a diagonal cruciform shape, against which it aligns its legs. It is sometimes known as the St Andrew's Cross spider. Tomorrow is St Andrew's Day - more of that tomorrow. There are some odd superstitions associated with the eve of St Andrew's Day, mostly connected with finding a mate. I don't believe any of them, but it's fun to speculate how these traditions started. ARE YOU A SINGLE WOMAN? Do you want to marry?   Then today is the time to listen out for barking dogs and note where they are. Why? Because your future husband will come from that direction - so they say . NOT HEARING ANY BARKING DOGS?  Never mind. Ask St Andrew's help. Sleep naked tonight and your future husband will visit your dreams - so they say . TOO COLD TO SLEEP NAKED IN NOVEMBER? Then wrap up warm and sit up to midnight. At midnight look for a sign tha...

I don't usually post sermons, but if you are recently bereaved what follows may be of help. Here is  (more or less) the short address I gave yesterday, Advent Sunday afternoon, at a "service of thanksgiving and remembrance for loved ones". It immediately followed a time of quiet prayer. The Bible reading was Psalm 130 .  Whether our bereavement is recent or longer ago,  learning to live with the death of someone we love is hard and often very lonely.  In this ‘time to remember’ I invite you to do 3 things:  look back look up look forward. Look back to remember . Memory is such a precious gift. For some, the person you love, but see no longer, has left you with wonderful memories to cherish. You are grateful for who they were, the love they gave you. Some may also have painful, hurtful memories. But each person we remember today left their mark on our lives. So we honor them, by acknowledging honestly what they were and still are to us. The mem...