Dear all,

 

It was a good night on Friday evening. Thank you to everyone who made it possible. Mercifully It didn't rain and about 60 people joined me and Alex for a BBQ and a drink. Commiserations to the person who won the cucumber in the raffle (don't ask) and nearly £500 was raised for the cause.

 

After the parables of the Good Samaritan and Martha and Mary emphasising the need to both listen and act we now come on to the Lord's prayer in the more unfamiliar and truncated (original?) Lukan version and then a very strange parable indeed if taken at face value. You could look at this parable and conclude that normally God is too busy to listen to your prayers, except if you carry on and on and annoy him so much he'll reluctantly listen to you just so as he can get some rest from your relentless moaning. Well I suppose that could be what it means but more plausibly I guess it is reminding us to be tenacious and persevering in our prayer life whether we perceive any results or not. Don't give up praying for what you desire because if you look at prayer as a relationship between God and humanity, prayer is about communication and telling God your woes and joys, and sharing your deepest needs and desires with God is part and parcel of a healthy relationship no matter what results from it. Of course we add this to last week's lesson of Mary and Martha where listening and making space to listen in our private prayers and simply enjoying being with God without words is also part and parcel of a healthy prayer relationship.

 

This is a trailer for something that is coming up later in the year. An exciting series of workshops that will be seeking to equip and give confidence to our people to read, lead intercessions, lead worship and generally enrich our worship experience. Our Deanery is launching this venture in cooperation with Darlington Deanery. The venue will be Gainford church and the dates and programme will be as follows. All start at 7pm. There are five modules. If you think you would benefit, you don't have to come to them all - you can choose just one or two if you like but because the modules build on each other we would prefer that you could sign up for them all if possible - and we ask you must register so we know exactly who and how many are coming. I am attaching the flyer to this email but you should be getting them in your churches soon anyway (One date change in November). Wings for worship has a "flying" theme and the five modules are as follows; They will be practical and participatory

 

Monday 11th October - preparing for take off

Monday 1st November - Getting airborne (Note this is changed from a previous given date of the 8th November)

Monday 10th January - Being the co-pilot

Monday 7th February - Flying solo

Monday 7th March - Breaking the sound barrier.

 

If you would like to register please do so via St.Andrew's church office, Haughton Green, Darlington DL1 2DD; phone 01325 468142 or email  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

 

 Coming up Tonight.......

 

Don't forget the Dedication service for the re-ordered church at St. Mary's Barnard Castle tonight which starts at 7pm. A good chance for the Deanery to come together and not talk about money but celebrate moving forwards!

 

The Lighter side! More puns courtesy of Nancy in Romania.

 

 

Last week the Vatican issued more edicts. Amongst them they said that ordaining women as priests is a "Crime against the faith". No, I'm not making this up - they really did! By using such shocking  language they deliberately equated women's ordination with paedophilia as a "serious crime" against Christianity in the official Roman Catholic world view. I don't know whether to laugh or cry. The statement is appalling and offensive and deserves a robust response. This happened just after the Church of England voted to make women Bishops so we are left in no doubt our church is one of the main targets (Targets also include the internal RC movement for the ordination of women). 

 

Now let us just take a minute to let the enormity of what they have said to sink in. The Roman Catholic church usually chooses its words with great care so let's think about them. Ordained women are a crime against the faith they said, which means a crime against Jesus, a crime against God. So, all of us who support the ordination of women and who are grateful recipients of women's ministry, never mind the women themselves are now partners in crime against the Christian faith according to the Vatican. 

This extreme right wing Pope who is dismantling every advance made by catholicism since the sixties is now dismantling ecumenism as well.  

 

Quite apart from the fact that in the eyes of sane non religious people - like my Dad who phoned me on Friday about it - it makes all Christians look like medieval loony tunes - I also know many catholics themselves who will be mightily upset by this offensive statement. This, by the way, comes hot on the heels of the calculated undermining of our church when the Pope decided he wanted to make it easier for disgruntled Anglican male clergy to go over to Rome without once ever even approaching our church about it and treating our Archbishop with utter contempt. 

 

In terms of attracting men to the priesthood, the Roman Catholic church is dying on its feet. In Fact: Only about half of all catholic parishes in the whole world now have a priest. It is discredited through its institutionalised child abuse, authoritarianism, and outmoded clerical celibacy. Few nowadays want to train to be a Roman Catholic priest. Their seminaries are nearly empty. The crisis is so acute I think the reason for the uncalled for tone and savage language is partly a desperate ploy to act as leverage on Anglo-catholic priests in the CoE (who by their very nature are sympathetic to Rome) to prise them away from the CoE and go over quickly and fill some of their gaps. 

 

When you understand the psychology and faith map of some of those who are making these statements {content now all deleted}, you then better understand how some people, including apparently the Roman Catholic church hierarchy can call the ordination of a woman a "serious crime" against the faith. I for one will fight their unwholesome and tawdry views every step of the way. I hope and trust that you will too. Be proud of what the CoE is doing - not defensive. Sometimes you just have to make a stand even if it makes you feel uncomfortable or it loses you some friends.  The Church of England, in ordaining women is doing what is good, just, right and Christian and enriches our church. 

 

The Prayer for Today was written by that great reforming Bishop and tireless campaigner for justice and equality Lord Harries former Bishop of Oxford

 

 

Peace and love

 

Martin