For many, smaller churches, there will be no music to speak of today – maybe a CD to listen to, but no rousing Easter hymns to join in with. The normal joyous triumph of Easter will be somewhat muted. Even if singing was possible, many would feel no triumph: we are still bound by necessary…
We British are really good at pomp. And we tend to enjoy, on occasions such as royal weddings, the sight of the beautifully groomed horses bedecked in leather, with gold trimmings, the military in their best uniforms – silver helmets, plumes of horsehair, red jackets. All beautifully choreographed so not a foot, animal or human,…
For Holy Week there is reading for each day of the week, following the events of Holy Week, and a suggested activity for each day. Please read slowly and mindfully – leave space for God to speak to you through these passages of Scripture. The reading for Holy Saturday is from an ancient story, The…
Today is Passion Sunday – the beginning of the two most holy weeks of the Christian calendar. It is, under normal circumstances, our habit at St Oswald’s to read the Passion Gospel on this Sunday rather than on Palm Sunday. Doing so is always a powerfully moving experience – Jesus moving inevitably towards crucifixion and…
Mothering Sunday, the day of thanksgiving for our mother, the Church, as well as our earthly mothers, is a good time to reflect on the idea of ‘God our Mother’. Thirty years ago this image of God was shocking to many people – these days I think we mostly take it in our stride. But…
Exodus 20:1-17 Psalm 19 1 Corinthians 1:18-25 John 2:13-22 Do you remember the art made in the ‘60s and ‘70s made with a framework of nails on a board or frame, and thread wound around to make geometric patterns and shapes? These days it’s called ‘string art’. Or Spirograph – patterns made by cogged wheels…
Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16 Psalm 22:23-31 Romans 4:13-25 Mark 8:31-38 We know Peter for his humanity and ability to get things wrong. If anyone could put their big feet in things, that would be Peter: he argues with Jesus about who is going to wash whose feet: falls asleep at Gethsemane when he supposed to be…
Today’s Bible Readings Genesis 9:8-17 Psalm 25:1-9 1 Peter 3:18-22 Mark 1:9-15 We’ve had a rash of rainbows over the past few months – everywhere you go they’re there. They have stood for hope, even when there was very little of it about. Perhaps there is hope on the horizon now: hope for NHS and…
Today’s Readings: 2 Kings 2:1-12 Psalm 50:1-6 2 Corinthians 4:3-6 Mark 9:2-9 This week’s readings give us a ‘boost’ before the beginning of Lent on Wednesday. They all hold a common theme, but one which it’s not that easy to pin down. We could say that they are all about ‘revelation’ – about disclosures of…
2nd Sunday before Lent 2021 Our (Church of England) readings for today, Proverbs 8:1, 22-31, Colossians 1:15-20 and John 1:1-14, are about the beginning – or even, before the beginning. How can there be a ‘before the beginning’? An impossible thing which shows us that God is beyond us, beyond our comprehension, as well as…