As part of the year’s Ride + Stride, I recently completed a walk round the six churches of the Pontesbury and Stiperstones group, raising money in aid of the Shropshire Historic Churches Trust, and to support Holy Trinity, Hope and All Saints, Shelve.
Ride + Stride is a national event, the largest source of income for many Historic Churches Trusts which enables them to make financial grants to places of Christian worship. In Shropshire there are over 300 Anglican churches in regular use and many churches and chapels of other denominations. As we know, responsibility for the maintenance and repair of our churches falls upon parishes; our church buildings are not maintained or financed by the Church Commissioners, Diocese or State. So, grants from the Trust and others are vitally necessary to help with the cost of repairs.
Many churches are Listed Buildings, which means they are of architectural and historic interest. But for those of us who worship in them, or who attend at significant moments in our lives for baptisms, weddings, or funerals of loved ones, they of course mean much more. When Jacob awoke from his dream of the ladder to heaven, he said, ‘Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know’ (Genesis 28.16). For many, church buildings are places to meet with God in a special way, whether during worship together, or sitting on our own in the silence.
Visiting each of the churches in our group on foot rather than by car as I usually do, gave me the opportunity to appreciate better each within their own distinct setting and community, arriving at walking pace, often using footpaths or bridle paths which predate our modern roads, and so seeing things from a different angle.
Rowan Williams’ little book, ‘Being Disciples’ which I have been re-reading recently, speaks of the quality of expectancy, that watching and listening to what is around us, in the belief that at any moment we might see something of God. That can be true as we read the Bible, as we walk our local footpaths, as we deal with whatever tasks face us every day, and as we worship in our churches.
But Williams goes on to talk about the expectancy which we are called to when we look at one another. He admits this is not always easy: ‘Yet it can’t be said too often that the first thing … to think of when in the presence of another Christian ... is: what is God giving me though this person?’ The way our churches are organised in parishes, deaneries and denominations may seem a bit random, and we may sometimes find working together challenging, even within our own congregations, let alone more widely or when we disagree.
Yet with this kind of expectancy, we can approach each other ready to receive what Jesus has to give us, prepared to see things and people from a different angle. And sometimes, like Jacob, we will be able to say, ‘Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know.’
Rev Fran Brealey
Being Disciples: Essentials of the Christian Life, Rowan Williams 2016 is published by SPCK
You can find out more about the Shropshire Historic Churches Trust at https://shropshirehct.org.uk