Week of Prayer in Daily Life - Day 2 - Drawing Jesus and Zacchaeus

After reflecting on Isaiah Chapter 43 yesterday, and particularly on the phrase which stood out first (“I have called you by name, you are mine”), Miriam suggested that I look at the story of Jesus and Zacchaeus from the Gospel of Luke Chapter 19; Zacchaeus also felt called by Jesus. 

Week of Prayer in Daily Life - Day 1 - Reflecting on Isaiah 43.1-4

I have signed up to be part of the first Week of Prayer in Daily Life, organised by the Adult Learning Team at St Paul’s Cathedral. On Sunday we gathered at the London Centre for Spirituality and met our Spiritual Director for the week. We each have a set time to see them every day, for a thirty minute session. I have chosen a time before work, but after work slots were also available. One of the purposes of the week is to introduce people to different types of prayer and to give the opportunity to speak to a Spiritual Director to help explore our prayer life more fully. 

A prayer for Mothering Sunday

We pray for all mothers.

For mothers here today,

For mothers far away,

For mothers with children and those with none,

For mothers and children who are alone,

For mothers feeling blessed,

For mothers feeling stressed,

For mothers giving birth,

For the fruits of mother earth,

For mothers to whom we have much to say,

For mothers who will die today, 

For mothers feeling homely,

For mothers who are lonely,

For mothers who are giving,

For mothers who are grieving,

For mothers who are tired,

For mothers who have inspired, 

For mothers taken for granted,

For all the faithful departed,

For my mother and for yours,

We give thanks to you, O Lord.


Phillip Dawson, Mothering Sunday 2018

The Suffrage movement in Southgate

In recent discussions with friends and family on the subject of Brexit, someone quoted Churchill’s famous line: “The best argument against democracy is a five minute talk with the average voter” Less than a lifetime ago the ‘average voter’ looked very different. 

BOOK REVIEW : Christianity Rediscovered by Fr Vincent Donovan

Fr Vincent Donovan's decision to get up close and personal with the Maasai and the Gospel proved revelatory for both sides - hence the title of the book, which goes on to tell the story of his fifteen years as a missionary in East Africa. 

Prayers inspired by Psalm 22

Let me not mock, like the passers by.
Instead of “Save thyself”, Give myself.

Because a Low Life is Good News.

Lead me to shine your light

on those besieged by shadow.

Because you feed the hungry with good things.

Let me stop and listen, each day, to you.

Especially the bad and busy days.

Because you are the Alpha and the Omega. Your place is everywhere.

Thanks be to God!

BOOK REVIEW : Friday's Child - a collection of poems for Good Friday by Brian Mountford

After leaving Christ Church Southgate in 1986, Reverend Brian Mountford became Vicar of the University Church in Oxford - the country’s most visited parish church. He retired in 2016 after thirty years of ministry there and is currently Acting Chaplain of Corpus Christi College.

Becoming Forgetful in Lent : Discipleship in Light of Dementia

“Discipleship in Light of Dementia” was an appropriate subtitle for Reverend Rob Merchant’s Lent Lecture to the Bank Churches Group at St Mary le Bow tonight. “Becoming Forgetful in Lent” focused not only on the discipleship of those suffering from dementia and their immediate families, but the response of the whole church community as part of the Body of Christ.

Mercy and "Moral Imagination"

I have been singing a lot about mercy - most recently as part of the quartet in Allegri’s Miserere, a setting of Psalm 51, on Ash Wednesday. In the Prayer of Humble Access before receiving the  Eucharist, we say:

“But thou art the same Lord, whose property is always to have mercy.”

But what is mercy? 

Hypapante (The Meeting of the Lord)

The Thursday lunchtime Choral Eucharist at St Stephen Walbrook follows the lectionary for the preceding Sunday, so today we celebrated Candlemas. During his sermon, Reverend Stephen Baxter explained that in the Orthodox church this feast is also known as Hypapante – or The Meeting of the Lord.

Becoming a Digital Disciple - Presentation to Barnet Deanery Synod

I was invited by Reverend James Mustard, the Area Dean of Barnet to address the Barnet Deanery Synod (Diocese of St Albans) and show examples of how we use social media at Christ Church Southgate. It was wonderful to meet everyone and receive such a warm welcome from Fr Chris Ferris the Rector of Chipping Barnet. It was also fortunate that I was speaking alongside Dean Pusey, Youth Officer for the Diocese of St Albans, who was able to cover in detail all the things that relate to safeguarding etc online.

Here is a copy of my powerpoint presentation as a powerpoint file and as a pdf file.
Here you can download a copy of my notes to each slide.