Ministers letters

With Christmas already behind us, 2021 is drawing to its close. To describe it as a strange year would be an understatement. Indeed, the last two years have been unlike anything that most of us have experienced during our lifetimes.

We read to know we’re not alone’, words spoken by Anthony Hopkins in his role as C.S. Lewis in Shadowlands. Getting on for these last two years, reading has been the salvation of many. Summed up for me most succinctly thus, ‘Reading gives us someplace to go when we have to stay where we are.’ As the likelihood of yet another period of lockdown seems increasingly inevitable, these words resonate. – I know we might substitute Television or Radio for Reading; both equally valuable in their own way – Nevertheless, there is something about ‘Reading’. The author, Hannah Fielding, comments, ‘

And so, 9 Lessons & Carols is nearly upon us. The lessons themselves are already determined. But as for the carols, now that’s another matter altogether. We all have our favourites. We all have at least one carol that we just cannot stand. Well, convention has it that we start with, ‘One in Royal David’s City’, and at the Free Church we invariably end with, ‘Hark the Herald Angels sing.’ But in between?

If resources, however they might be calculated are finite, ‘levelling’ requires some to be ‘brought up’, but this can only be achieved by others being ‘brought down’.

As we move through the Advent season, we are reminded how it is that in the Old Testament we have recorded the words of the prophets foretelling the coming of the Messiah. And of course, the Christian tradition believes that such prophecies have found their fulfilment in the birth of Jesus the Christ. But there is also a less well-known prophecy which declares that before Messiah shall come, Elijah shall return.

Dear Friends, This coming weekend sees the beginning of the season of Advent which in four weeks’ time will culminate in the celebration of Christmas itself. Traditionally it is a time for waiting and watching, for watching and waiting. These

…Of course, it begs the question as to just who is deserving of ‘Celebrity’ status? …A unique persona made widely known to the public via media coverage, and whose life is publicly consumed as dramatic entertainment, and whose commercial brand is made profitable for those who exploit their popularity, and perhaps also for themselves…

…Any direct ‘living link’ with WW1 has long been broken. But there remain amongst us those who can recall Grandfathers, fathers, uncles; those who were ‘fortunate’ enough to have survived the conflict, returning home, having to readjust to civilian life. Invariably scarred for life – physically, mentally, emotionally, even spiritually – often to such an extent that the damage done proved irreparable…

How far are we prepared to go to ensure that we play our admittedly small part in the overall project. And we have to be mindful that while many of us are sufficiently well-off financially to be able to take the inevitable hit re prices etc, there will be some of us, and many others, who just won’t be able to afford to do what is being asked of them.

And it is worth reminding ourselves that people of faith – e.g., Christians – are not immune from the ravages of struggling as far as one’s Mental Health is concerned. It is often the case that extreme circumstances such as those forced on so many by the pandemic impact themselves spiritually, creating what might be termed a ‘crisis of faith’ …