Saint Michael’s Church
Serving God and Bishop’s Stortford
Clergy Letter For May 2009
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CLERGY LETTER FOR MAY 2009 |
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The Revd Toby Marchand writes....
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As I write we are coming to the end of Easter week. I want to thank the many people who helped to make Easter such a joyous and memorable time for us. The church looked beautiful, as it always does at Festival times, with arrangements of flowers in every possible place. We do not take for granted the skill and dedication of our flower arrangers and I want to thank them all through the pages of this Magazine, as I did in church on Easter Day, for the time and the care they put in to making our surroundings so conducive to worship at the Easter Festival. I want to include in that too the makers of the Easter Garden. Thank you, men, for giving us again a fitting visual aid for the children and for us all. It was a joy to bless it on Easter morning with the children gathered round, and to be reminded of the central events of that first Easter morning. But now we are in the season between Easter and Pentecost. It will carry us through the whole of this month of May. It is a lovely season. It is a time for us to recall the forty days after the resurrection when the disciples of Jesus were granted appearances of the risen Jesus. They were often momentary but they were life-changing. They established in the minds and hearts of those who had followed him from Galilee to Jerusalem that the hideous events of the crucifixion were not the last word. Far from it. This was a time of re-building for them, a time of preparation before the momentous events of Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit upon them were to propel them into all the world with the good news of Jesus’ resurrection. Let us never forget that the Christian faith is founded on the Resurrection of Jesus. If that had not occurred, no amount of listening to the teaching of Jesus or attempting to fashion one’s life according to his would have availed for 2,000 years. “If Christ be not raised from the dead, then are we of all people most to be pitied” said St Paul. (1 Corinthians 15.17-19). The month of May will give us opportunities to explore the meaning of the resurrection. Some of us will spend the first weekend of the month away together at Ditchingham, Norfolk, sharing time and activities based around the theme of Stepping Stones. We shall see how there are steps on our Christian journey that will lead us onward to a deeper commitment to Christ and his way. Later in the month we shall celebrate the moment of Jesus’ ascension (May 21st) when the days of the appearances came to an end and he was seen no more on earth. Far from being discouraged the disciples returned to Jerusalem with great joy and “were continually in the Temple blessing God” (Luke 24.52.) The latest in our series of Alpha course will begin on 26th May and will run for ten weeks. Here is a golden opportunity for those who want to explore the basics of our faith to do so in an atmosphere of friendship and encouragement. If you are considering joining don’t hesitate. Come along to the course and see how it can help you. You will find details on page 3 of this Magazine. The month will end with the celebration of Pentecost on May 31st. There will be opportunities to join with the other churches of the town in Pentecost Praise, and to take part in a continuous week of prayer for Christian unity. But the celebration of Pentecost this year will also be a moment of change for us as we say farewell after four years to Darryl and Lisa Jordan and Catherine. As announced on Easter Day Darryl is to take up a post at Christchurch Priory in Dorset in June. We shall end our morning celebration of Pentecost in church with a Bring and Share lunch to give us an opportunity to say goodbye to them. For now please keep them in your prayers and enjoy the month of May. Toby Marchand |
Office Address:
Saint Michael’s Church
Windhill
Bishops Stortford
Hertfordshire
CM23 2ND