If you had asked the Israelites, thousands of years ago, how God spoke to them, their answer would have been very different from ours. Outside of the Garden of Eden, God spoke through fire, and flood and wind, through earthquakes, plagues and calamities: think of Noah’s flood, the terrible plagues which indicated Gods’ wrath in…Continue reading Sermon for Trinity 1 (Pentecost 2) 2022
Category: Year C
Triniy Sunday Intercessions
Intercession O God, You who are All in All; to whom we bring our prayers, hear us! For the Church, Christ’s continuing body in this world that it might continue to proclaim Your truth whilst continuing to seek its unity in You. Forgive our divisions, heal our arrogance, Mend our failure to own our diversity…Continue reading Triniy Sunday Intercessions
Sermon for Trinity Sunday
Who is to be trusted these days? There seems to be a lot of pretense and we end up feeling we’ve had the wool pulled over our eyes. Who will give us basic respect and dignity? Who will listen to us – really listen – without pretense, or the glazing over of the eyes? Who…Continue reading Sermon for Trinity Sunday
Risen, ascended Christ, we give thanks that your work is done, that you have shown us all we need to know about God, That you have carried humanity to the heart of heaven, into God’s presence. We pray that your church will be a place of joy, proclaiming with confidence the love of God for…Continue reading
It’s five months since Christmas – where does the time go? Then, we celebrated the incarnation – God came to dwell with humanity – perhaps the most widely celebrated Chrsitian festival. If Christmas were to be a bookend, today, we put the second one in place at the other end of the row – the…Continue reading
There is something about trees which grips my imagination – I hope you share my enthusiasm. I think it all began for me with a programme by David Bellamy when I was a teenager. It was all about what you might call the ‘engineering’ of trees – how much pressure it takes for water to…Continue reading
Intercessions for Easter 6
God of creation, we thank you for today’s beautiful images of the heavenly city. We pray that, in the world you have made, there will be, once again, streams and rivers as bright as crystal. We pray that our forests and jungles with thrive, that magnificent trees will be left to grow. We pray for…Continue reading Intercessions for Easter 6
Intercessions for Easter 4
Jesus, Good Shepherd of your sheep, we pray for the church, your flock, that we may hear your voice calling us to love, compassion, forgiveness and service, that we will follow you in the ways of simplicity, kindness and humility. When we go astray, lured by power, hatred or bitterness, call us over the noises…Continue reading Intercessions for Easter 4
Sermon for Easter 4
I’ve just been away on holiday. I suppose any holiday in the English Lake District will inevitably involve encounters with sheep. I saw plenty of the beautiful Herdwick sheep which are such a feature of the Lake District fells, and there were lots of lambs. One day I stopped at a smallholding where there were…Continue reading Sermon for Easter 4
Intercessions for Easter 2
God of love, your Son, Jesus, still carries his scars even in his risen and glorified body. Give us the courage, with Thomas, to look on your scars, and on the scars of the world, not averting our eyes, but ready to face suffering. Give us hope and faith that a better world can grow…Continue reading Intercessions for Easter 2