Friday 4 August 2017

August/September Newsletter



Rector’s Reflection
“What you are is a gift from God, what you become is your gift to God”
Hans Urs von Balthasar
We all remember the parable of the talents (Matthew25:14 -30) where the servants are given the ‘talents’ according to their ability and entrusted with them with varying results.
This is an amazing parable and it speaks deeply to us all. For as the 20th Century Swiss theologian Hans Urs von Balthasar puts it we are all born with our own special gifts, freely given, but it is what we do with them with our lives that really counts. What we become, how we use our lives is in other words, our gift to God.

As human beings we are formed by what we do in our lives, to ourselves and to others, it is the actions we take, the decisions we make that ultimately are what we become, and what we do over the years slowly creates the person, body and soul.

What we do in our lives really matters, the innocent child can become a saint or a monster, it all depends on so many factors, some we can influence, some we cannot. But we can all choose, we can choose the path of faith, hope and love or we can walk away. When we choose to follow that path, when we choose to use the gifts we have been given in service to our creator we return fully to God the gift we have been given.

The gift of life is a special one, precious and unique to each individual born on the earth, I am currently thinking a lot about new life and how we celebrate the birth of future generations as I prepare to Baptize Granddaughters Elizabeth Rose in September and Millie Skye after Iain and Charlotte’s Wedding in December, I always end my baptismal sermons with these words, which I hope offer encouragement for who and what they will become.

“May you shine as a beacon of hope and love to your life’s end”

I pray that we all can shine as lights in our world today as we give thanks for the gift of life and offer all we have become to each other and to our loving, life affirming God.





Trinity Sunday 2020

An excellent semon today from our Ordinand -in -Training Rachael. The Southwark Trinity – After Rublev by Meg Roe (megroe.com) ...