Start:Stop - Nation shall speak peace unto nation

You can listen to an audio recording of this reflection at this link. Hello and thank you for joining us for Start:Stop here at St Stephen Walbrook, when we start the day by stopping to reflect for ten minutes. Please come and go as your schedule dictates.

This month marks one hundred years since the foundation of the British Broadcasting Company (as it then was). Known for its mission to “inform, educate and entertain,” the official motto of the Corporation, found in its now rarely seen coat of arms, is actually “Nation shall speak peace unto Nation”. The text is thought to be based on a passage from the book of Micah:

Prayers of Intercession - Becoming Messengers

St John the Baptist by Georges Maurice Cloud

Prayers of Intercession written for the Sung Eucharist at St George’s Bloomsbury on Sunday 5th December 2021 (Year C, Advent 2) based on readings from Luke 1.68-79 (Benedictus), Philippians 1.3-11 and Luke 3.1-6.

BOOK REVIEW : On Priesthood by Stephen Cottrell

On Priesthood is written by Stephen Cottrell who became Archbishop of York this week

Stephen Cottrell was confirmed as the 98th Archbishop of York this week. His latest book “On Priesthood” was published earlier this year; one of many he has written, of which (I am embarrassed to say!) I remember reading very few (except the vivid Lent Book “The Nail”) nor do I remember hearing Stephen Cottrell speak in public. While reading “On Priesthood” I became aware that I was not only interested in his take on the priestly life but also in glimpses in the book of the character of the man himself, who now occupies one of the most important leadership positions in the Church of England (although as the Archbishop states throughout this book - the word ‘leader’ in the context of the church does not have any scriptural foundation).

Start:Stop-The Perfect Messenger

Alberto Giacometti, Pointing Man (detail)

Hello and welcome to this week’s Start:Stop reflection from St Stephen Walbrook, my name is Phillip Dawson. Reminding us that change is a natural part of God’s creation, Midsummer’s Day falls this week in the northern hemisphere, the point at which the days start to decrease and the nights start to increase in length. Six months before Christmas, Midsummer’s Day also marks the Feast of the Nativity of John the Baptist. Jesus himself said of John that “among those born of women there has arisen no one greater”. So it should come as no surprise that alongside that of Jesus and the Blessed Virgin Mary, John the Baptist is the only saint whose birth is celebrated in the calendar of the church.

Our bible reading this week describes the birth and naming of John the Baptist and is from the first chapter of the Gospel of Luke.