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Parish Magazine Clergy Letters 2009
Rector's Magazine Letter - December 2009
Dear friends,Last month we held one service in church where there was standing room only. It was the annual Remembrance Sunday Service when we come together, as a village, to remember the fallen in the two world wars of the last century. But the larger congregations, found this year in many churches throughout our country, would suggest that something else was going on. Perhaps our country's military involvement in Afghanistan is presenting us with questions which make our remembering more significant. No longer are our thoughts just about what happened “then” but we are searching for meaning in what is happening “now”.
The challenging words of T.S Eliot come to mind, “We had the experience but we missed the meaning”
Undoubtedly as our society prepares for Christmas yet again, there will be all kinds of new experiences on offer to us. We are confronted by endless advertisements for the latest in Christmas decorations, the very trendiest gifts, or this year's most fashionable food and drink. Many of us will join with others for some good celebratory experiences. And somewhere in it all, whether it be in the end of term school play, or on a postage stamp, we will remember the story of the nativity.
But the season of Advent gives us a chance to ponder on the meaning of this great feast as well as prepare to savour the experiences of the Christmas season and retell the “Christmas” story. We are reminded that even in the increasing cold and darkness as autumn moves to winter, there is new life coming. As St John says in his prologue which we read in our midnight service, “The Life-light blazed out of the darkness and the darkness couldn't put it out” . Our Christian story is one of expectation , hospitality and hope. He will come to us. We welcome Him. Perhaps such great good news can only really be expressed in poetry, as our Archbishop, Rowan, does here:
ADVENT CALENDAR
| He will come like last leaf's fall One night when the November wind has flayed the trees to bone, and earth wakes choking on the mould, the soft shroud's folding. |
He will come like dark One evening when the bursting red December sun draws up the sheet and penny-masks its eye to yield the star-snowed fields of sky. |
|
| He will come like frost. One morning when the stinking earth opens on mist, to find itself arrested in the net of alien, sword set beauty. |
He will come, will come, will come like crying in the night, like blood, like breaking, as the earth writhes to toss him free. He will come like child. |
|
May you and your families know the peace of the one who burst into our world as a child so long ago.
Happy Christmas and much love
Gill
Back to TopReader's Magazine Letter - November 2009
Dear Staplehurst,1 Corinthians 1:4-5
I always thank God for you because of His grace given you in Christ Jesus. For in Him you have been enriched in every way - in all your speaking and in all your knowledge.
This has been a very exciting year for me. In July I was privileged to be able to go to Borneo with World Challenge and a group from my school, Tonbridge Grammar. This gave the opportunity for the 8 girls to experience a totally different way of life. Although the coastal towns we visited were moderately developed, we then went by a small plane to Bario which is right on the border between Indonesian Kalimantan and Malaysian Sarawak. In this town all the roads were mud tracks and shops were simple wooden shacks at the side of the road. Our hostess apologised for the lack of variety in vegetables and the absence of pineapples because it was not the right season and any luxuries would therefore have to be brought in by plane at great expense. In our world where all foods are available all year this was a very new perspective on life for my students. However they were the most adaptable and adventurous group who happily took on the challenge of building a shelter in the school grounds in four and a half days, having only one cold shower for up to thirty people, and trying new foods like local fern and wild civet cat.
That was my last visit as a teacher as I retired from full time teaching at the end of the academic year. Many people are concerned about the prospect of retirement: not only does it result in a significant reduction in income but also means that you are thrown back on your own resources to fill your time. In the Old Testament the span allotted to mankind is three score years and ten, 70; yet we are told that babies born today may confidently expect to live to 100. Whatever the government may decide about retirement age, that means that our young people may have a very long retirement.
Starting any new phase of life can be daunting but I must admit that i am really enjoying this experience. St. Paul told the Ephesians to “make the most of every opportunity” (5: 15-20) and that is what I intend to do. After Borneo I went up to Scotland to have a relaxing holiday, but also to look around at houses because I would love to move north of the border and try a really new life. That means that I will be selling my house and handing over some of my responsibilities here. First of all I will be resigning my role as Musical Director at church at Christmas; fortunately Sonja will be able to work with me until then and take over in the new year.
You and I will be doing the same thing: making the best of a small income to do big things - at least you have the chance to increase your income as newcomers contribute to the church. I shall be making the most of the resources I have to build a new life and like Paul will “thank God every time I remember you”: this is not goodbye, yet, but thank you for all your fellowship and encouragement in my ministry with you.
Lesley Whitwood
Back to TopRector's Magazine Letter - October 2009
Dear friends,Last month two significant anniversaries were marked in the news.
One was the 25th anniversary of the discovery of DNA profiling. The second was the 8th anniversary of the twin tower terrorist attack in New York.
It seemed a strange coincidence that our journalists and newscasters were concentrating on the significance of these two events in the same week, because the two anniversaries seem to highlight ways of looking at humanity, which are in sharp contrast.
The first event reminds us that each one of us has our very own, personal and unique DNA profile. That may enable a criminal to be caught, or a difficult paternity case to be settled. But it also reminds us that there is no one in the world quite like you, or, for that matter, quite like me! It echoes the teaching of Jesus' words and the way he lived his life. He even thought it worthwhile having a conversation with the thief on the cross next to his. Each one of us is special and plays an important part in the mosaic of creation.
The second event shows us a very different way of looking at our world. Its all about a lack of concern for individuals. Rather it's about a passionate hatred of all those of a certain race, or creed, fuelling the planning of appalling atrocities. Somehow the perpetrators lose sight of people and only see group identity. They tar all of a certain nationality or faith group with the same brush. The death of ordinary people, with no strong political or religious allegiance, in such tragedies, is apparently irrelevant. Such massacres have happened the world over, from Belfast to Bali.
So I found myself pondering whether I was more inclined to treat everyone as uniquely valuable or whether I was more inclined to lump people together. We so easily use terms like “the sick”; “the elderly”; “the youth of today” or “those churchgoers”. Yet when we take time to hear individual stories we learn about the variety of people on the hospital ward, sitting in the nursing home lounge, making a noise on the park bench, or even in the congregation at All Saints. (and some of them are really great fun and very interesting!)
It strikes me that the danger comes when we stop seeing all people as one-offs. Then we risk the stereotyping that can so easily lead to prejudice and persecution.
So let's enjoy getting to know a few more of God's rainbow people and let's check ourselves when we write people off, because we've deposited them in a category of humanity we like to despise.
With much love ..
Gill
Back to TopMagazine Letter - September 2009
Dear friends,I wonder if you would call yourself a churchgoer.
If you would, then I wonder why you go!
And if you wouldn't then I wonder why you don't go!
You see some recent research has shown that some 20% of our population used to go to church. They never made a conscious decision to stop going for a particular reason or because they lost their faith, but just drifted away. (unlike the 15% who were upset or annoyed in some way and made a clear decision to leave). Maybe the arrival of a family made going to church difficult with sleep times or fidgety toddlers and crying baby ... or maybe a house move meant a familiar building and community were miles away and new relationships in the next locality were never made. I even knew one lady who told me that she always went to church but couldn't go anymore because her church had been bombed during the war!
Whatever the reason, it seems that some of those who did go, and now don't, might really like to give it a try again and all they really need is a warm invitation to come back.
So that is precisely what you find here in this month's magazine letter.
You see all over the country churches are marking “BACK TO CHURCH SUNDAY” during September.
SO
Please do come and join us at 10am on Sunday 27th September for an informal service, much as we always worship together. There we hope you'll enjoy a warm welcome with a chance to experience our hospitality over refreshments after the service.
And, if any of our regulars have friends, neighbours or family members who might be interested, please do bring them with you on that Sunday morning. Let's have a full house and celebrate together.
With much love ..
Gill
Back to TopMagazine Letter - August 2009
Dear friends,- Rock paper scissors
- Animals starting with A, B, C.
- I Spy
What do you think connects all these games? Yes, Journeys.
As I hastily write this article, knowing that I've got the editors deadline to meet by the end of this week in the midst of preparing to embark on an exciting journey next week to Egypt with my inquisitive and very talkative young son it reminds about a journey I have just completed, or have I?
My journey started a very long time ago, when I preached my first sermon at the age of fifteen as part of a youth service in my home church in Jersey. Over 30 years later I found myself offering to serve in this Parish with the gifts and skills I have in music and leading Worship. Last September I found myself embarking on an Authorised Lay Ministers (ALM) course run by the Canterbury diocese focusing on preparing me to serve as a “Worship Leader” The ALM course is about equipping God's people in his service by:
- Representing the church in the community.
- Leading particular areas of ministry.
- Encouraging each other to develop and use their gifts.
It's been an amazing year; I can hardly believe that the course has ended and that I don't have to worry about whether I agreed to lead worship for the following week, or whether I'd completed the set written or reading homework. I will miss the friends I have made, but like most friends who have something in common we will be meeting up very soon.
I used to love long journeys with my son. The playing of “I Spy” games, the laughter - well actually, no I didn't - the arguing - the moaning - that question that comes as soon as you close the car door - “are we there yet?!” It wasn't until a DVD player appeared on the scene that I tell you - journey's to Sheffield, Poole and Bristol - silence in the back. My son was plugged into sound and all I could hear were giggles or gasps at appropriate moments during the film he happened to be watching. No more of his endless chatter, question after question, moaning, and no more “are we there yet!” Bliss!
But, now, on any long journey, my son notices nothing. He gets in the car, he watches a film, and he arrives at our destination. He misses the changing weather, the changing landscape. He misses what the journey itself has to offer. It reminds me of the story of Paul on his journey to Damascus. I don't think Paul had a DVD player for his journey. I wonder, though, if they played I Spy? Its 150 miles on horseback, they must have done something! Whatever they did there was certainly a surprise waiting for them - if you recall God spoke to Paul rather dramatically.
I'd like us to notice one thing from this incident in the bible; and that is - it is not in the destination that Saul meets God. Saul meets God on the road, on the very journey itself. In an age when we are focused on arriving as quickly as possible, or in getting the task done as rapidly as we can, it is interesting to note that, in this case, it is in the actual doing itself, while still on the road that God meets Saul. God does not sit and wait for Saul in the city; he breaks in on the journey. It's unexpected, it's not planned for, and it's quite a surprise. God is in both, but it's on the journey that he chooses to act. So,a question I ask myself “where do I expect to meet God? and how many times have I missed him on the road?” For all of us may the question on our own personal journey not be “are we there yet” but, can I see God here yet?
I wish you well on your journey.
Yours in Christ,
Sonja Drew
Back to TopRector's Letter - July 2009
Dear Friends,It's the wedding season again!
This year we have 12 marriages to celebrate at All Saints and I am being involved in a couple for friends who live away. It's part of my ministry which I particularly enjoy. One wedding is that of Helen Osler and fiancé Sandy Claridge, taking place on the first weekend in September. Most of you will remember Phil Osler, who lived in our village for many years and went to be parish priest of 3 parishes (now grown to 5) in South Devon. He will no doubt have fun, juggling the roles of “Father of the Bride” and “Officiating Priest” in that service.
The words of today's Marriage service, composed for our new liturgy which was published in the year 2000, seem really to catch our understanding of what as Christians, we believe marriage to be. I am glad that we now consider the marriage commitment to be identical for Bride and Groom. So the vows couples usually make are the same, although of course the Bride can still say “obey” if she wants to. But what perhaps we need to remember is that in the old prayer book when the Bride promised to “love, cherish and obey” her husband, the groom promised to “love, cherish and worship” his wife.
“Worshipping” seems rather a strange way of responding to one's spouse in today's world. But maybe we would do well to remember that it really means “giving someone their true worth”. It seems to me that is something we most certainly need to do, not only in our married partnerships but in all our human relationships. As I write this letter I keep reflecting on the News programme I was listening to as I woke up this morning. It included an item on Cristiano Ronaldo's transfer from Manchester United to Real Madrid for the world record breaking transfer fee of £80 million, as well as the story of a desperately hungry twelve year old girl in Zimbabwe selling her body as a prostitute for a meal. What I wonder is a human life worth and what makes these two lives apparently have such a different worth in the world we and they share?
Over the years I'm not sure the Christian church has always lived out the teaching of the one who constantly emphasized that every life is infinitely precious to God. We have perhaps been too keen to leave people feeling guilty, or that they are failures in one way or another. We have failed to give others their worth and acknowledge our own. Yet the record of Jesus's dealing with people in the gospel accounts is all about raising people up and encouraging them to see their potential as God sees it, rather than pointing a finger of blame, which humiliates and stunts people's growth.
So how about us all doing a bit of “worshipping”? I don't mean just coming to church to acknowledge God's worth. I mean responding to one another with loving encouragement and constantly looking for the good in each other, rather than focusing on each other's failings. Maybe we could start by trying to do that with our nearest and dearest. Who knows we might even manage, one day, to do it for our politicians too!
With much love ..
Gill
Back to TopRector's Letter - June 2009
Dear Friends,Last month, I spent some time with friends on their boat on the Canal du Midi, travelling from Carcassonne to Toulouse. The pace of life slowed, as we made our way gently through the locks, reading, eating, drinking and laughing a lot, as we coped with the inevitable limitations of life on board. I had quite forgotten the joys of benches turned to bunks, showers in the sitting position and temperamental toilet arrangements!
But it was all worth it as, despite the wind, we had one or two sunny days, sitting at the back of the boat watching some of the most beautiful countryside go by. We could see the grandeur of the snow capped Pyrenees on one side and the vineyards stretching off into the distance on the other side. I shall long remember the couple of occasions when we moored for the night, just tying our boat to a tree by the bank and sipping a “sundowner” on deck before going down below into the cosy cabin for supper below. It was quite idyllic.
Taking time to savour the delights of the natural world is somehow nourishing. I don't understand quite how God and evolution have interacted to create this world. Yet as a scientist and a Christian priest, I believe they have and they go on doing so. There is a long tradition that God inspired two books - a book of “words” (the Bible) and a book of “works” (Creation). They are written in very different languages. Some of us may find it easier to read one than the other. Charles Darwin, who was born 200 years ago this year, believed we should be aware of both “books”. At the beginning of his famous book, “Origin of Species”, he quoted from Francis Bacon, “Let no one think they can be too well studied in the book of God's words or in the book of God's works: rather let them endeavour an endless proficiency in both”.
It is wholly untrue that Darwin lost his faith in God because of his scientific studies. Of course Christianity in the Victorian era seemed much about an inherited and unquestioned set of beliefs. Faith was just accepted as the “done thing”. So Darwin certainly rocked the boat by taking the lid off that safe but restricting place. But, in my teens, I found studying Darwin and visiting his home at Downe, near Bromley, hugely inspiring. You see his was a faith journey and a scientific journey all about exploration and that still makes sense to me. We never know it all. Some of the things I believed about God and this world have been changed by new experiences and new understandings.
We need to remember Darwin wrote near the end of his life “I have never been an atheist in the sense of denying the existence of God.”
So maybe your summer holiday (or indeed just a few jaunts into the beautiful Wealden countryside) this year, might also be a chance to follow Darwin's questions, as well as experiencing more deeply the God (source of life, love and beauty) who created, creates and recreates.
Do have a good summer
Much love ..
Gill
Back to TopRector's Letter - April 2009
Dear Friends,As my father lay dying last month, we played a tape of well known hymns to a man whose staunch faith saw him through 98 years of generous living.
One that spoke to me loud and clear was that wonderful hymn “The day of Resurrection, earth tell it out abroad”. I reflected on the life, ebbing away in front of us, that had done just that. I thought about my own belief that death is a prelude to something much richer and fuller than this earthly life and on the wonderful message of Easter which our churches will proclaim together this month.
I believe passionately that our churches, their ministry and their buildings, still have a purpose in our world. Cardinal Cormac Murphy - O'Connor, in his recent Lenten lecture, spoke of our faith “reaching out to a culture which is deeply secularized and yet longs to hear a voice of meaning and hope”.
So what about you?
Do you think our parish church has any purpose in our village or would you be quite happy to see its ministry disappear and it become an unused and unusable building?
This year we have a £12,000 deficit predicted. Contrary to public opinion we receive no funds outside those given by those who use our church. Finding money for ministry, maintenance, and repair of wear and tear, is an ongoing worry.
If our church matters to you and your family please read on;
Always on top of the hill for you.
Looking after people of all ages, down the centuries.
Lets consider the worst.
Supposing it was not here.
Am I helping with its upkeep?
Income for maintenance is everyone's responsibility, not just the congregation's.
Now can you help financially please?
The funds for general upkeep are low.
So please give generously. Could you donate an amount each month?
Could you gift aid your donation?
HELP!
U may not go regularly to church, but you may need it one day.
R you sure it will be there?
Come for a welcome visit ------ a quiet moment of a service.
Help, please to keep it here for us
Do contact Kevin Fulcher (our Gift aid and Planned Giving Secretary) on 01580 891729 or me, if you can help.
And have a very Happy Easter
Much love ..
Gill
Back to TopRector's Letter - March 2009
Dear Friends,Being called “religious” is something I've always baulked at.
I suppose its because such a comment suggests that my sole preoccupation is taking part in all kinds of onerous, empty rituals, rather than sharing with others, as an ordinary human being, the journey of faith which gives my life meaning, purpose and joy.
You see I was one of those who laughed at the London bendy bus slogan, “There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and get on with your life”
Why? ..... Because my faith in God is precisely what helps me to stop worrying and get on with my life. I know it doesn't all depend on me, but rather on a God who ultimately keeps his promises, even though I sometimes can't see what He is doing and know I'm making an awful lot of mistakes. That was a situation well known to Jesus's first disciples.
So maybe the message for us this month, as we enter the season of Lent in the Christian calendar, is “get real” - not “get religious”. I do not believe God is calling you or me to think up some new, outlandish act of self sacrifice or religious ritual. It might make us look more pious, but it might also make us become even more stressed in what, for most of us, are already very busy lives.
I think a good discipline for all of us would be, not to deny our humanity but to focus on it this Lent. For ours is a faith based on the life of the man Jesus. He took on flesh (became incarnate) just to let us know how worthwhile we are. So what do you need to change in your daily live to live more fully, contentedly as a human being? It might indeed be reading an improving book or coming on a Lent course; but it might be getting half an hour's more sleep each night, or sitting still for 10 minutes a day doing nothing in particular, or spending regular, extra quality time with a loved one, or having one computer-free day each week or... or....
Think about it and then think about where we are all called to make a real effort to see and respond to the humanity of those we meet and those whose plight we hear about throughout our world. Recent Synod debates on Human Trafficking and Asylum Seekers plight, reminded us of how easy it is for us to fail to see injustice when we dehumanize people. Where might you give your time, or your money or your support, to those who have been dehumanized in our world? Don't forget buying from our church Traidcraft stall not only supports poor producers but funds an organization which is still a powerful voice, lobbying for people whose human needs have been ignored over the years by the rich and powerful.
Focusing on being really religious could be the death of this faith we hold dear. Focusing on being really human could bring it to life in surprising people and places.
Have a good Lent.
Much love ..
Gill
Back to TopRector's Letter - February 2009
Dear Friends,It was good to spend a few days in “chilly” Amsterdam for my post Christmas break this year. Keeping warm meant rather too much eating and drinking (as my increased waistline reminds me!) but it also meant we spent time visiting museums, as well admiring the beautiful buildings which line the canals. One particular visit which fascinated me, was to the “Our Lord in the Attic” 17th century canal house, attached to two smaller houses behind it. The combined upper storeys of the three houses conceal a stunning secret Catholic church, which was originally built in 1663. Catholic masses were officially forbidden from 1578 but the protestant governors of Amsterdam turned a blind eye, provided the churches were not recognizable from outside.
I reflected on how people have suffered down the ages for being Christians of “the wrong sort” and on how fortunate we are that today such prohibitions are a thing of the past. Indeed, in places like Staplehurst, there is a real collegial working between all the Christian congregations, as well as our Roman Catholic friends who have to worship outside the village since the closure of the Convent. The four ministers who live here, meet about every six weeks for a lunch together and there is a thriving “Churches Together” group which organizes what we do together.
We may not share the same doctrinal positions on every subject. We do not always use the same language to talk about our faith. We don't express our worship in quite the same way. That worship, let's remember, can range from Clive (our free church pastor) dancing for joy as he praises God, to the solemn swinging of the thurible, filling the air with smoke from burning incense, as “All Saints” celebrates a High Mass service. (incidentally do come to our Candlemas service at 8pm on 2nd Feb if you've never experienced that before and would like to do so).
Perhaps we get on best together, when we work across our doctrinal divides to try to help others. We try to do that in this village. That is why many of us are quite excited about the debt counselling service which is being set up in Staplehurst. Trained staff will be involved and it is being funded by the churches. We hope many people will be able to use this confidential service when they feel they are losing a hold on their financial affairs and need help in unravelling the entanglements in which they find themselves.
I am very conscious, as I go to the General Synod meeting in London this month, that there will be major conflict there again. Trying to hold together groups with very different views on whether women can be Bishops or not, seems almost impossible. It's so easy to regard those who disagree with us on some doctrinal point as on “the other side.” The house in Amsterdam reminded me again of the need for us to work together with all who are trying to follow the Christian way, breaking down the barriers of suspicion and enmity. May we never forget that we serve a common master, renowned for his gentleness, humility and love for all, whose constant prayer was that his followers should be united in his service.
Much love ..
Gill
Back to TopCurate's Letter - January 2009
Dear friends,It feels surreal to be talking about 2009 while the memories of 2008 are still fresh on our minds. Were we not cheering team GB just a few weeks ago at the Beijing Olympics? Don't we all remember Ingrid Betancourt walking out of that Colombian jungle after a lengthy captivity? Aren't we all still floating on that cloud of hope that carried that “skinny black guy with a funny name” to the White House?
The beginning of the year is, in some ways, a paradoxical and often confusing time. Our heads are still full of the sounds of Christmas carols and our stomachs still bearing the marks of an end of year celebrated in style, but it feels that we already have to set our sights on what comes next. It's as if we were caught up between two realities that could prove, at times, difficult to reconcile.
As we stand at the threshold of this New Year, I recall a metaphor used by one of my lecturers at university in Brussels. I still hear him telling us that life is a journey in which we all progress walking backward, facing the past and unable to see the future. However, some people, the prophets, are handed rear view mirrors that offer them an insight into tomorrow. I unfortunately have no such mirror that would allow me to peep into the future.
The report given to us by our prophets about the year to come does not sound awfully exciting or positive. But I believe that prophets are not only those who forecast doom and gloom. They are those men and women who have the ability of instilling a real sense of hope and purpose even when everything seems to conspire against it.
Hope stood at the heart of the wind of change that helped transforming America for good. An entire nation stepped into the footsteps of a man who believed that fear could not be the best answer to uncertainty, but rather offered hope as the alternative. In much of what Barack Obama says, echoes the teachings of another inspirational man who, 2000 years ago, sat up on a mountainside and taught those listening not to live their lives under the rule of fear, but rather set their hopes on the God who assures us that our lives are precious to him and that he will not forsake us. This hope is not a flight from the hardship of reality, but rather an invitation to embrace life in its fullness with the knowledge that, through thick and thin, God will stand by our side.
Words like credit crunch and recession are now an integral part of our language, not just as mere figures of speech, but a painful reality, crippling countless lives. Many of us might look at 2009 with dread and uncertainty and we all wonder whether we'll be able to hold on to that vital job, be able to repay the mortgage or merely afford the increasingly taxing cost of life amidst this recital of gloom, let us, hear again the encouraging words of Jesus: do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? (Matthew 6:25-27)
So, let us be a people defined by hope; hope that redeems our fears and transforms our dreams, hope that causes us to stand together, to stand for one another, hope that carries us on the journey. A new year has started. It comes with its train of expectations and fears, dreams and challenges. I pray that 2009 may be to us all a memorable year for all the good reasons we can each think of, but above all, because we would all have experienced that “there has never been anything false about hope”.
Happy New Year,
Lusa
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