Sermon - Easter Sunday : Eyes which see life anew

The False Mirror by René Magritte, 1929

It was a great privilege to be invited to preach for the Pascal Triduum at St George’s Bloomsbury in April 2023. The first time I have preached at all three services and the first time I have spoken in front of so many people at once. I drew on my experience visiting the Holy Land last year and based each sermon loosely around part of a prayer attributed to St Teresa of Avila ‘Christ has no body now on earth but yours’ and the theme of connection, disconnection and reconnection. On Thursday the focus was ‘Feet which walk to do good’ and connections to the embodied love of Jesus through the symbolic washing of feet and the sharing of the Last Supper. On Friday the focus was ‘Hands which bless the world’ and our disconnection from the embodied love of Jesus when he died on the cross. On Sunday the focus was ‘Eyes which see life anew’ and our re-connection to the love of Jesus through Mary Magdalene’s vision in the garden at dawn. The sermon on Sunday drew each reflection together to encourage us to choose to live life as pilgrims – not tourists. To embody the love of God we have now received through the Spirit of the risen Christ.

A sermon given at the Choral Eucharist on Easter Sunday, April 9th 2023 at St George’s Bloomsbury. A version of this sermon was also given at the Easter Vigil at St Stephen Walbrook on Saturday April 8th 2023 (Year A) based on John 20.1-18. A recording of this sermon and the gospel reading (and the fantastic Nessun Dorma style acclamation that preceded it!) can be watched below:

Sermon - Good Friday : Hands which bless the world

Renato Guttuso, Mano del Crocifisso 

It was a great privilege to be invited to preach for the Pascal Triduum at St George’s Bloomsbury in April 2023. The first time I have preached at all three services and the first time I have spoken in front of so many people at once. I drew on my experience visiting the Holy Land last year and based each sermon loosely around part of a prayer attributed to St Teresa of Avila ‘Christ has no body now on earth but yours’ and the theme of connection, disconnection and reconnection. On Thursday the focus was ‘Feet which walk to do good’ and connections to the embodied love of Jesus through the symbolic washing of feet and the sharing of the Last Supper. On Friday the focus was ‘Hands which bless the world’ and our disconnection from the embodied love of Jesus when he died on the cross. On Sunday the focus was ‘Eyes which see life anew’ and our re-connection to the love of Jesus through Mary Magdalene’s vision in the garden at dawn. The sermon on Sunday drew each reflection together to encourage us to choose to live life as pilgrims – not tourists. To embody the love of God we have now received through the Spirit of the risen Christ.

A sermon given at the Good Friday Liturgy on Friday April 7th 2023 at St George’s Bloomsbury. (Year A) based on John 18.1-end of 19.

Prayers of Intercession – Business Harvest Festival

The Sunshine Roof, Cyril Power 1934

Prayers written for the Business Harvest Festival at St Stephen Walbrook on Thursday 7th October 2021

Prayers of Intercession - Christ has no hands now but yours

Study of the Hands of an Apostle, Albrecht Dürer 1508

Prayers written for the Business Harvest Festival at St Stephen Walbrook on Thursday 15th October 2020 which is also the Feast of St Teresa of Avila. The prayers are based on a famous prayer by St Teresa ‘Christ has body but yours’, as well as the readings for the service; Deuteronomy 8.7-18 and Luke 12.16-30. 

Start:Stop-Thy Kingdom Come

Searching for God - Almighty Hands by Nic Fiddian Green at Southwark Cathedral

Good morning and thank you for joining us for Start:Stop. This reflection will last around ten minutes - please feel free to come and go as your schedule dictates.

Between Ascension Day and Pentecost the Archbishops of Canterbury and York have invited Christians around the world to join together to pray that more people may come to know Jesus. In our reading this morning we hear the teaching of Jesus concerning prayer. If you’d like to follow along it’s on page six of the New Testament.

Start:Stop-Checkmating God

Start:Stop offers busy commuters the chance to start their day by stopping to reflect for ten minutes. Reflections begin each quarter hour from 7.45am until 9.00am. Thank you to everyone who joined me today at St Stephen Walbrook. My reflection is below.

Thank you for joining us for Start:Stop. This reflection will last around ten minutes and you are welcome to come and go as your schedule dictates. During Lent our reflections are inspired by Dr Jane Williams book The Merciful Humility of God. Today we look back to the Feast of the Annunciation, which was celebrated yesterday, with the help of St Teresa of Avila, who among other things is the patron saint of chess. We begin with a short bible reading which can be found on page 211 of the New Testament section of the bibles.

Start:Stop-Revealing the Underground Stream

Forgotten Streams by Crista Igelsias

Thank you for joining us for Start:Stop. This reflection will last around ten minutes and you are welcome to come and go as your schedule dictates. We begin with a short bible reading which can be found on page 37 of the New Testament.

Start:Stop-Into your hands I commend my spirit

The Isenheim Altarpiece by Matthias Grünewald

Thank you for joining us for Start:Stop. This reflection will last around ten minutes, followed by a period of silence and prayer. The prayer response is on the sheet which you can pick up on the table at the entrance to the church.  Please come and go as your schedule dictates. We begin with a short bible reading, which can be found on page 95 in the New Testament section of the Bible.