This Sunday is the festival of Peter and Paul. Both men were apostles in the early church. Peter was called during Jesus’ ministry on earth, leaving a life of fishing and was given the ‘keys to the kingdom’. He was one of the twelve disciples who had walked with Jesus and continued to be the church’s main spokesperson. His ministry was to the Jews.Paul was called after Jesus’ death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. Originally Paul persecuted the church but after his conversion became the most prominent apostle and wrote the majority of the New Testament. His ministry as an apostle was to the known gentile world (everyone who’s not Jewish).God took Peter and Paul out of their comfort zones to minister. How might God be calling you? Where can you bring hope and good news?Revd Jassica
This Sunday’s Gospel is the famous story where Jesus meets a man who is so afflicted by mental illness and demons that he lives naked among the tombs, in an area on the banks of Lake Galilee known as Gerasene. The scene is one of unutterable hopelessness and suffering: a fellow human so horrifically afflicted, maltreated, abandoned and neglected, that he is reduced to living like a wild animal in a place of death. And yet, into all this hopelessness Jesus steps in. The scene is transformed into one of beauty and hope as he offers the man love, compassion and healing. And so, it is that Jesus steps into all the hopelessness of the world. With Jesus at our side, we need not be afraid. We can have great hope and joy as we know that our Saviour is with us, even in the darkest times and places.Revd Richard
This Sunday we celebrate the mystery of the Holy Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Quite how one plus one plus one equals one is difficult to explain but it still makes sense. The Trinity is sometimes described as a dance, or ‘perochoresis’ to use its Greek term. It describes each person of the Trinity loving, adoring and rejoicing in each other. It’s a good model for what we do in church where we should all be loving and supporting one another and building each other up to allow each of us to flourish. This Sunday we welcome Jassica, our new team vicar, who will bring her own gifts and energy to join the dance, and help create a vibrant, spirit-filled community of people in the parish of Great Yarmouth.Revd Liz
A group of puzzled disciples take leave of their master and return to the city in what becomes a story of expectant hope. They did not know what would happen next. It’s a time of waiting and a change will come upon them which transforms them from a frightened, weak and scattered people to a revolutionary mission force who will carry the good news to the end of the earth. This is the power of the Holy Spirit poured out on the Apostles.As we mark the feast of Pentecost this weekend, we are reminded that the same Spirit who stirred those puzzled disciples breathes life into us, equipping us to be Christ’s witnesses in our communities and beyond. Let us be open to that Spirit — to be renewed, emboldened, and sent out in love. “Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful people, and kindle in us the fire of your love.” May this Pentecost be a time of renewal, both personally and in our life together as the church of God and we look forward to serving Christ in the year to come.Fr Simon
This week’s Gospel comes at the end of Jesus’ Farewell Discourse in John’s Gospel (Chapters 14-17). It’s a sort of after-dinner speech – half sermon half prayer – which follows the Last Supper. For the last few weeks, it has made up our Gospel readings. It is meant to offer the Disciples hope and comfort before Jesus faces his arrest, trial and death. There is a danger, however, that it can be misunderstood as an incitement to form closed, pious and inward-looking sects of Christian believers, given its repeated encouragement that we love one another and oppose ourselves to the ways of the world. But in our passage today it is clear that this is not what Jesus wants. Instead, he wants us to use the love he has for us – which we have learned, through him, to have for one another – and to radiate that love out into the world to call others to his side.Rev Richard
We look forward in the coming weeks to welcoming Revd Jassica to join us here in Great Yarmouth. It’s a big step for her and her family as they travel to a region they know little of and to serve among people they don’t know. However, I am confident they will be made welcome.This week, our first reading seems like a small step in the grand scheme of the Acts of the Apostles but was actually a huge step in the early church’s mission. Paul receives a vision of a man pleading for help in Macedonia, and he and his companions immediately respond, crossing into new territory to preach in a new land to new people. In Philippi they encounter Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth, who becomes the first recorded convert in Europe. The faith is spreading.This passage is rich with encouragement. Following her encounter, Lydia and her household are baptised which reminds us that God often guides us in surprising ways, opening doors we might never have considered. Lydia also shows openness in listening to a new voice and a new teaching, even if she was not expecting it. Her faithful response helped sow the seeds of Christianity in a new continent.Fr Simon
This Sunday’s Gospel reading is one of the many passages of scripture which set off an instant ear worm of a well-known hymn, song or anthem that I have sung since my youth. From John 13:34, ‘A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another, as I have loved you’ instantly started me singing. Singing is such an integral part of our worship, and not just because it’s an uplifting way to worship God. We learn so much theology from the hymns that we sing and the anthems we hear. St. Augustine said ‘He who sings, prays twice’, or words to that effect and there is no doubt that singing has a powerful way of connecting us to the divine. So, next time you are in church, don’t be afraid to sing your heart out!Rev Liz
We are at the point in the year when spring is on turbo charge. Trees are bursting out in green leaf, beautiful flowers are emerging everywhere and our gardens are going into overdrive, and out in the countryside the fields are full of skipping spring lambs following their ewe mums around. In our Gospel reading, Jesus likens himself to a shepherd who is so well-known and trusted by his sheep that they know his voice and follow him. The Psalm set for this Sunday is Psalm 23 which describes God as our shepherd, who provides us with nourishment and leads us to water to drink. He protects and guides us through times of trouble and darkness, even when we walk through the valley of the shadow of death. He is our comforter and our strength.In a world where there are many strong voices calling us to follow them, often along a path which will lead to pain rather than joy, we must be ready to listen for the voice of God through Jesus, gently calling us to follow him along a path of love, righteousness and peace.Rev Liz
It was lovely to notice Morris dancers in the town on May Day: dancing in the Market Place and also outside Blackfriars Tavern. The joyful noise they make brings a smile to peoples’ faces as they find themselves caught up in the glee whilst they pass by on their daily chores. Joy is found in the ordinary.This Sunday’s Gospel draws us to the lakeshore. It’s a familiar place where the disciples, still dazed by reports of a risen Jesus, return to what they know: fishing. Here in the ordinary Jesus meets them. The miraculous catch of fish reminds them who He is. The fire on the shore, the shared breakfast, and the quiet moment with Peter — all tell us that the risen Christ is not distant or aloof. He is deeply personal. He is with us.Easter is not a one-day event but is a season, a journey, a deepening revelation. This is why the season of Easter lasts many weeks; so we can take time to fathom the mystery first witnessed by the disciples and claim that in the ordinariness of our own lives today.Father Simon
Thomas answered Jesus, ‘My Lord and My God!’” (v.28) Uniquely, it is Thomas who, of all the disciples and all the characters in John’s Gospel, finally identifies Jesus as divine. None of the other disciples has yet made this declaration, despite being visited by the risen Jesus. It’s as if Thomas had been on the cusp of this point of conviction just before Jesus was arrested and killed. Those terrible events plunged him into a greater doubt than the others. But once he meets the risen Jesus, it is from his extreme position of doubt that he is the first to reach the conviction that Jesus is Lord and God. It seems then that doubt can be constructive in matters of faith. It can create space for Jesus to enter, where we can suddenly become aware of his power to change our lives and to declare him as our Lord and our God, just as Thomas did.Revd Richard
I’m a fan of Victorian novels and Dickens is undoubtedly by favourite Victorian novelist, but my favourite novel of all time is ‘Les Miserables’ by Victor Hugo. Many people know the story from the songs of the popular musical. It is the story of a man who has reached upmost wretchedness and despair who is saved and gradually restored to fullness of life by the kind actions of a priest. Similarly, in Dickens' ‘A tale of two Cities’, there is a phrase – indeed a password - by which people are ‘recalled to life’. That is precisely what has happened and will happen again this Sunday as we remember the Easter story, whereby Jesus recalls us to life by his resurrection.Whatever despair or wretchedness we may be going through, his act of sacrifice on the cross and his rising from the tomb gives us hope, a fresh start and life in abundance.Revd Liz
The first Palm Sunday must have been a celebration of chaos, noise, colour and anticipation as Jesus enters Jerusalem to the adulation of a cheering crowd. I always think our ordered gatherings and attempts at exuberant celebration of this event must fall significantly short of the unfettered original, but try we must! The importance of the entry is that all too soon the cheering fades until we are left with the loneliness of Maundy Thursday’s watch and the reflective desolation of Good Friday before the joy arrives.Please come and join in. Mark out the services you plan to come to as together we keep this week. Think and pray about those you will invite to share in our devotions and prepare for the joy of Easter.Fr Simon
As we celebrate Mothering Sunday with flowers and simnel cake and give thanks for those who have been mothers to us, our gospel reading from John reminds us that everything associated with motherhood can bring as much pain as it does joy. Mary stands at the foot of the cross watching her son enduring an agonising death. But, even in his pain, Jesus finds a way to give Mary a new family relationship of love and support. We pray for families, that the Holy Spirit will dwell among them and nurture them also in love.Revd Liz
Our Gospel this week (Luke 13.1-9) is all about God not giving up on people when it looks like their lives are condemned failure or sin or whatever it may be. On Wednesday of last week, I had the honour of attending a private view of a new exhibition put on by The Lived Experience Collective at the Primeyarc Gallery in the Market Gates shopping centre. The artists are all formerly homeless people. And I had a chance to talk with a few of them. They are incredible people! People who have struggled with perhaps some of the most difficult problems any person can struggle with – who have been cast out on the streets and condemned – but who have managed to transform their lives with the help of those who would not give up on them.I left full of hope, the hope of the Gospel that calls all of us to repentance and new life!Rev Richard
The gospel reading today paints powerful word pictures. One is Jesus’ determination to go to Jerusalem to complete his task, even while he identifies that the people of Jerusalem will not recognise or accept him. But perhaps the greater picture today is of the hen who would shelter her chicks under her wings, ready to give her life for them. It is significant to all of us that Jesus uses the image of the hen and her chicks – the female nurturing parent.By the end of Lent we’ll come to focus on Jesus’ journey to the cross. Jesus will stand in Jerusalem and be robed in a mocking costume and stand in the courts of the powerful and why? Because of that image of sacrificial love of which he speaks in the gospel today.Father Simon
It’s not Lent yet but I am going to talk about it today because it’s important to think about Lent before it actually arrives! Many of us immediately think of fasting and giving things up for Lent which has a place but it is equally important to think about what you could take up: extra time in prayer, reflection, spiritual readings, doing good deeds, joining a Lent group, committing to an extra midweek service – all of these can help us to grow spiritually, and that is the point of Lent. One of the keys to a good and holy Lent is to plan ahead and think about what we can do.The reading for the Sunday Before Lent is always an account of the Transfiguration. This is because it gives a glimpse of glory prior to the solemnity of the season and the time when our worship becomes a little simpler and less exuberant. The glimpse of glory we see helps us take heart and look ahead to our destination and the hope that after a time of growth and effort we will be refreshed and stronger.Fr Simon
“The Lord God took the man [adam] and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it.” (v 15)The Hebrew word adam means ‘man’ or ‘human’ and is not a first name in the sense we would understand. So adam in the story is representative of ‘mankind’ or ‘humanity.’ God loves this adam, creating for him a beautiful garden, animal companions, and then another companion, called ‘woman.’ The story emphasises how close God is to adam and woman, talking and walking with them in the garden; how much this is a relationship of love. Tragically, as we all know, it becomes a sad story of deceit and disobedience. In this way, the story tries to untangle and understand the reasons why humanity often seems so far from God, both in how we act and how we feel. But the good news is that the rest of the Bible is a story of how God is always seeking to be close to and to walk with us again - something which he does definitively in the person of Jesus.Rev Richard
In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus delivers a powerful message to His followers. He speaks to a growing crowd of people, offering words that turn the world’s values upside down. The Beatitudes and Woes challenge us to think deeply about priorities, attitudes, and how we live out our faith.The Beatitudes are a reminder that God’s Kingdom often works differently from the world we see around us. Jesus blesses the poor, the hungry, the weeping, and those who are hated or excluded because of their faith in Him. These blessings show that God sees value in ways and means the world often overlooks. The humble are lifted and promised comfort, provision, and joy is to be found for those who suffer. These teachings are a perpetual yardstick for the Christian as we try to measure ourselves against the standards of the Kingdom of God and to look for signs of God’s presence in places we least expect them.Father Simon
In our Gospel reading this week, Jesus encounters the first of the disciples, Simon, James and John, who are feeling despondent at their lack of success in catching any fish. Despite their scepticism, Jesus tells them to cast their nets in deep water and they pull in a huge catch of fish. It would be easy to think that the story is one where Jesus just fulfils the desire of the disciples; their desire to make a living and to be successful. They could easily have just taken the fish and carried on with their lives. But they don’t. They drop their nets and leave everything behind to follow Jesus. Whilst God blesses us with a great many things in life, our call is to follow Jesus wherever that may take us. Sometimes it will be a comfortable ride, and sometimes it will challenge us. Sometimes we doubt our own ability to do it, as Simon Peter did, but Jesus says, ‘Don’t be afraid,’ – just have faith enough to follow, and God will provide whatever resources we need for the journey.Revd Liz
Homelessness is a big problem in Great Yarmouth. Our churches, in The Parish of Great Yarmouth, have entered into a partnership with Hope Into Action to provide much needed accommodation and support.My Challenge is to swim or dip in the North Sea for at least 2 minutes, every day in Advent – from the 1st to the 24th December. Of course, I’ll be sensible, so if conditions are dangerous I’ll jump in the bath filled with water and ice cubes instead!Click here to donate!