From the Vicar

At the beginning of last month, on National Poetry Day, I attended a workshop which was held in The Old School in the Churchyard and lead by Chester Cathedral’s Poet-in-Residence Julia McGuinness. There were about 15 of us present, from across the Diocese, and the theme of the workshop was “Making words count” and we were all encouraged to wander around the Churchyard, Church and Quiet Garden and to look carefully at and think about the things we saw, and then to see if we could write about them in new and different ways. I ended up writing a poem from the perspective of one of the many former upright or “table top” headstones which were laid flat in the 1960s to form part of the new Churchyard paths’ scheme.

Thinking about the coming month though and the various celebrations and services, including of course All Saints and All Souls and Remembrance Sunday, our Poetry Day theme seems very appropriate and relevant – making words count. November’s festivals and services are amongst the most important in both Church and national calendars – from the simple yet incredibly poignant and powerful reading of names at both All Souls and Remembrance, to the short sentences and phrases on Remembrance Sunday with which we’re all so familiar, and which mean so much –

“They shall grow not old……..At the going down of the sun……..we will remember
them.”

And as for the poetry, the opening lines of poems such as John McCrae’s “In Flanders Fields” say so very much and are incredibly evocative: “In Flanders fields the poppies blow, Between the crosses, row on row……..” One of my favourite poets is Edward Thomas, who was killed on the opening day of the Battle of Arras in April, 1917 and whose poem “Roads” (written in 1916) contains this beautifully poignant verse:

“Now all roads lead to France
And heavy is the tread
Of the living; but the dead

Returning lightly dance.”

Making words count is of course an ongoing task/responsibility for all of us and not just aspiring poets. We know how important our words can be, for good or for ill, and the Bible has quite a lot to say, in different ways, on this subject.

Remembering and giving thanks for the sacrifice of so many people during past conflicts, as well as our own departed loved ones, is so important for all of us, and November affords us numerous opportunities to do this together as a worshipping community (as well as individually of course) and I look forward to welcoming everyone to the Church over the coming weeks.

May God bless us all in this coming month

The Revd Alec Brown  November 2024

 

From the Curate

Dear friends,

I don’t know if you have ever missed the boat? Have you ever got so wrapped up in things that you have missed out on something amazing? We live in a very busy, fast paced world. We are encouraged that whatever we are planning we need to hurry up. This time of year life gets busier and sometimes we forget what it is all about.

Take the year 1809. The international scene was tumultuous. Napoleon was sweeping through Austria; blood was flowing freely. Nobody then cared about babies, but the world was overlooking some terribly significant births – William Gladstone, Alfred Tennyson, Charles Darwin and Abraham Lincoln. Similarly, everyone thought taxation was the big news when Jesus was born but a young Jewish woman cradled the biggest news of all.

As we approach December 25th again, it gives us another opportunity to pause, and consider again the events of Christmas and the person whose birth we celebrate. There is someone who missed the boat on the first Christmas.

In those days, Caesar Augustus decreed that all the world (or the known Roman Empire) should be taxed. At this point, Mary and Joseph began the trip to Bethlehem. They had to go to Bethlehem because that was where Joseph came from. They had to go home to pay the tax. So they arrived in Bethlehem, with the baby about ready to be born. Can you imagine the timing of this?

You have the town of Bethlehem that is now crowded with people. Everyone is hustling and bustling, trying to get their taxes paid. Visiting families. In fact, by the time that Mary and Joseph arrive, there is no room in the inn. And this is where we meet the person who missed the boat – the innkeeper.  The Bible doesn’t tell us anything about him at all. All we know is that there was no room in the inn. Mary and Joseph were relegated to the stable, to live among the camels, donkeys, horses, and their feeding troughs. They would have used their own robes and extra blankets to shield themselves from the cold.

But let’s get back to the innkeeper. Can we really fault him? I mean, it wasn’t his fault that there was no room—he was just a business man. He did allow them to stay in the stable. And he never knew the significance of the baby inside Mary, how he wasn’t just another baby, but the actual son of God. The innkeeper was so close to the truth, yet so far away. Over 2000 years ago, a baby was born who changed the world. He was the perfect embodiment of love, both fully God and man, and he came that one night, born in a manger, because there was no room for him in the inn.

So this Christmas remember the innkeeper. He missed Christmas in the hustle and bustle of what was going on – let’s not make the same mistake. There is an unattributed poem about the inn keeper; it says:

“And how were men to know?
There was a sign they say a heavenly light
Resplendent, but I had no time for stars.”

This Christmas make time for stars.

Wishing you all a peaceful and blessed Christmas from all @ St Mary`s

Christina