Prayers of Intercession - Christ the King

Christ in Glory in the Tetramorph, Graham Sutherland, 1962

Prayers of Intercession written for the Eucharist celebrating Christ the King held at St Stephen Walbrook on Thursday 26th November based on readings from Ephesians 1.15-end and Matthew 25.31-end.

Let us pray to Almighty God, that we might see in ourselves and in others the image of his Son, our Servant King.  

Start:Stop - Making it out of lockdown

Henry Moore inspects the altar at St Stephen Walbrook

You can listen to an audio recording of this Start:Stop reflection at this link.

On Monday the Prime Minister announced that places of worship will be able to reopen across the country from Thursday 3rd December, provided that social distancing restrictions remain in place. This means that we should be able to gather around our altar once again to receive the Eucharist. 

There is a wonderful black and white photograph of the church taken towards the end of its reordering, showing Henry Moore inspecting the altar he sculpted. Standing with one hand on the flat surface, the artist is leaning down towards the side of the altar, looking intently at it as if in conversation with the stone itself. The image reminds me of “The Makers” a poem by Dorothy Sayers, in which a stone speaks to an architect and craftsman, revealing the interconnectedness of our lives and reminding us of the ultimate source of life; the Lord, our Maker.

Lessons in Lockdown - Making it through

Jesus the Carpenter, 1963, St Paul's Goodmayes - photography by Jonathan Evens

A 'Daily Devotion' for St Stephen's Rochester Row.

“The Makers” is a wonderful poem by Dorothy Sayers, used as a dedication to her scripts for ‘The Man Born to be King’ - a series of radio plays on the life of Christ, first broadcast by the BBC in December 1941. The poem reveals the interconnectedness of the creative process and reminds us of the ultimate source of our creative spirit – the Lord, our Maker.

Morning Prayer - Christ the King

Christ in Majesty by John Piper (photo by Patrick Comerford)

It was a great pleasure to lead Morning Prayer today for the online community of St Augustine's College of Theology. Our New Testament lesson tells of the triumphal entry of Jesus through the gates of Jerusalem. I thought I would say Morning Prayer while walking from Admiralty Arch along The Mall to Buckingham Palace. 

You can follow an order of service at this link and join the service by clicking on the video below.

Prayers of Intercession - Sacred Gifts

Sacred (Treasure of the Mountain) by Nicholas Roerich, 1933

Prayers of Intercession written for the Choral Eucharist at St Stephen Walbrook on Thursday 19th November based on the readings from 1 Thessalonians 5.1-11 and Matthew 25.14-30

Prayers for Hope and Healing

Christ healing the blind man, Andrei Mirnov, 2009

Prayers for healing and hope written for Morning Prayer at St Stephen Walbrook on Wednesday 18th November 2020, adapted from various sources. We pray for all affected by the coronavirus.

Prayers of Intercession - We Remember

We are making a new world. Paul Nash, 1918

Prayers written for the Service of Remembrance at St Stephen Walbrook on Wednesday 11th November 2020.

Start:Stop - The Weeping Woman

Weeping Woman, Pablo Picasso, 1937

Hello my name is Phillip Dawson, welcome to this week’s Start:Stop reflection from St Stephen Walbrook, in which we stop for a few minutes and start to reflect on a passage from scripture. 

One of the (many) anxieties I had while exploring the possibility of training for the priesthood was ‘crying on the job’. The nervousness that the upper lip will go limp just at that moment when people are looking for a sign of strength, not sadness. I’d been in the choir, or acted as verger at several funerals and found it hard to hold back the tears; unlike our vicar who always seemed to maintain his composure (during the service at least). But when the tiny coffin of a child – Gabriella – was carried through the church, I looked up and saw him wipe away a tear. Some time afterwards, I realised how senseless my anxiety had been; that one silent tear spoke to me more loudly than any words could have done; and I heard it.

Compline (Night Prayer)

It was a great privilege to lead Night Prayer this evening for the online community of St Augustine's College of Theology. Download an order of service at this link and please join in by watching the video below. 

The salt of the earth are those who weep

Chris Ofili - No Woman No Cry, 1998

A poem written on the day the church remembers Margery Kempe, mystic c1440.

Prayers of Intercession - The Blessed

Laura James, A Sermon for our Ancestors, 2006

Prayers of Intercession written for the Sung Eucharist at St Stephen Walbrook on Thursday 5th November 2020, based on the Beatitudes (Matthew 5.1-12)

Compline (Night Prayer)

It was a great privilege to lead Compline this evening for the online community of St Augustine's College of Theology. Please join the service by watching the video below and following the order of service at this link.