Coffee with Caiaphas - The Chester Mystery Plays 2023

The Mystery Plays tapestry quilt by B.J.Elvgren, displayed in Chester Cathedral

I once met a nun who felt called to a cloistered life after being captivated by the musical Godspell as a teenager. I confess that I too find dramatic representations of the Passion of Christ encountered outside of the liturgy of the church to be particularly powerful. One of the most arresting such experiences has been watching the Mystery Plays. 

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.

Sermon – Behold your mother

In Memory of My Mother, 1969 - Minas Avetisyan (Armenia)
Image of the artists parents at the foot of the cross

A sermon preached at the Sung Eucharist at St George’s Bloomsbury on Sunday 27th March 2022 and St Stephen Walbrook on Thursday 30th March 2022 (Year C, Mothering Sunday) based on readings from Exodus 2.10-10 and John 19.25b-27.

Sermon in a nutshell

Today the church marks Mothering Sunday. The gospel reading takes us to the foot of the cross where Jesus brings together his mother Mary and his Beloved Disciple, introducing them to each other as mother and son; affirming our understanding of ‘Mothering’ as transcending the bounds of biology. Jesus draws the whole human family to himself. His words remind us that mothering is not a one way relationship - or even a two way one; our relationships are sanctified and made complete through our relationship with Him. Standing in the shadow of the cross we see that mothering also involves the pain of letting go but the eternal presence of Christ our Mother brings reconciliation and peace. Today we give thanks for all who mother us.

Start:Stop - Raising the bar

The Creation of Animals - Paul Nash, 1924

Hello and welcome to this week’s Start:Stop reflection, helping you start your day by stopping to reflect for ten minutes. Through Lent we have been exploring the first chapter of the Book of Genesis, using as our guide the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Lent Book “Saying Yes to Life.” Our reading this morning describes the sixth day of creation:

BOOK REVIEW : Barabbas by Pär Lagerkvist

Barabbas, a novel by the Swedish Author Pär Lagerkvist written in 1950, tells the story of the man held captive at the same time as Jesus but released by Pontius Pilate at the Passover feast - thus avoiding crucifixion.

Start:Stop-Father, forgive

Craigie Aitchison - Pink Crucifixion 2004 - Methodist Modern Art Collection

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 two verses from scripture, which can be found on page 95 of the New Testament section of the pew bibles.

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. 

Crucified Stormtrooper : Wounds that Abide

Art Below’s Stations of the Cross exhibition at St Stephen Walbrook comprises fourteen different works on the theme of Crucifixion. Ryan Callanan’s ‘Crucified Stormtrooper’ has, if press reports can be believed, proved challenging for some of my fellow parishioners, one of whom is reported on the pages of the Daily Telegraph describing the piece as “a bit silly.” The paper claims that the image of a life size body strapped to a cross placed in the church in a central location was too distracting during our services in Lent.