Dear Sisters and BrothersI hope that this continues to find you well, I know that a growing number of the St. Luke’s family have contracted Covid19, some mildly but a few have had it quite severely. We are praying for those that we are aware of, as well as NHS staff and other key workers at our regular morning prayer each day.Our support groups are active and sharing concerns for prayer, however please email prayers@saintlukeschurch.org.uk with any requests to be prayed for during this service.I would like to thank you for the kind words of encouragement you have shared with me concerning our Sunday services. Jacob, Kate, Sophie and I are on a steep learning curve and your reflections and feedback is most welcome. It is wonderful that we have such a talented team able to ensure that a service is streamed each week. The time that our technical team need to put in to producing a stream is large and so the decision was taken not to live stream our service but to stream ‘as live’. I hope this will not impact the way you receive the service - it does mean that we are able to include many more from the St. Luke’s family in the service (by way of prayers, readings, talk and music).This Sunday is Palm Sunday - the beginning of Holy Week. I invite you to have a palm (whether real or made by the family) or greenery to hand from your garden or the park (if from the park not a big branch!!!) or your window box - these will be blessed during our service. I will also bless a number of palm crosses as I know that for some of us these are important - they will be available in church when next we are able to gather.As with all our streamed services, this week you will be invited to join in our communion - please do have some bread (or equivalent) with you as well as wine (or juice) and eat these as we do in church. The words will be on screen please do join me in saying these if you would like to.You will see from this link that our services this Holy Week will be different than in previous years.Maundy ThursdayI suggest that on Thursday as you have your evening meal you read one of the accounts of the last supper (perhaps Luke 22:14-20). At 9.00pm I will host a Zoom meeting where we can spend time together as Jesus did with his disciples (Luke 22:39 onwards) - we will read from John’s Gospel and the Psalms with some poems on the quarter hour until midnight.Good FridayA small group have been creating this Lent - though their art will not be in church they will display their work virtually on our website. I will also host a Zoom reading of the Passion from 2-3 pm.Easter SundayWe will join together via the regular stream to celebrate together Easter at 11am.As we walk this week with Jesus May we all come closer to him and to each other. Every blessingJohn
My dear sisters and brothersI hope that this letter finds you well. I know many of you will be anxious for yourselves and those that you love - I also know that you are keen to support others in your neighbourhood. Thank you for all that you are doing and have done to support the most vulnerable.The times we are living in are changing rapidly, we at St. Luke's are trying to ensure that we respond in the most appropriate and creative way whilst encouraging the well being of all connected with our community.We are closing your church building to public worship. This is following instructions from both Government and our Bishops. We will, however continue to shine light and love and hope and enable St. Luke's to continue as a community of good news. We will need to find different ways of being, we have made a start on what this new way might look like. We also know that this will evolve as something won't work and you will come back to me with far better ways of being!Our plans today are:To suspend all services of public worship with immediate effect. We will be live streaming a simplified service on YouTube at 11.00 on Sunday morning; https://www.saintlukeschurch.org.uk/livestream (Use this link to tune in, set a reminder or watch on catchup. Liturgy and Lyrics will be included) To begin a service of morning prayer at 9.30 every day (not Sundays) - we would invite you to email your prayer requests to prayers@saintlukeschurch.org.uk and these will be prayed for at this time. For the time being the church will be open at this time and therefore an opportunity for you to come and light a candle - we will need to monitor this and ask that we maintain social distancing etc. We know that we want to support our neighbours and church family, we have therefore divided up the electoral roll (our only database of members) into smaller groups and will be asking a member of that group to coordinate that local response. ensuring that everyone is contacted, perhaps setting up a WhatsApp group to aid local communication. Martin, the Churchwardens and I will communicate with those coordinators and contact others as appropriate. I know that not all our family are on the Electoral Roll - if this is you please do send your contact details to Tina admin@saintlukeschurch.org.uk with your permission for us to contact you in this way. We would encourage you to give to Foodbanks, contact those nearby (especially those you know are in high risk categories) to see what we can do practically, to be a people of prayer, especially joining us in spirit (if not in person) at our 9.30 time of prayer.We will have more updates - please do read these as they come, we will try to keep them as concise as we can. These plans, as I said will continue to evolve, please be prepared for more church emails than just the regular once a week!I know that this community has been a beacon for many of you in the past, I know that you will ensure that it continues to be so in the present difficulties.Much loveJohn
In January 2020, St Luke’s was delighted to welcome its new vicar, John MacKenzie. We decided it was time to learn more about him…Have you always been a person of faith?I grew up in the Catholic church and served as an altar boy. As a young adult, I grew disillusioned and angry about things like the damaging policy concerning birth control, and the infallibility of the Pope, so I left the church – except for turning up at midnight mass, worse for wear after the pub! I was still somewhat spiritual – on and off! – but I’d fallen out of love with the church. However, when my wife Sophie and I were preparing for our wedding at an Anglican church in London, we got to know the vicar and his family, and became part of the community. I started exploring my faith again.How did you go from banker to vicar? I worked in investment banking for 20 years. In some ways, it was a dream job – long lunches and a big expense account! My clients included members of the Chelsea FC team, which I’ve supported since birth, and I got to spend time at the club. However, after I was mugged at knifepoint in London, Sophie and I moved to Surrey and joined a more evangelical church. I began studying the Bible in my spare time. In Revelation, I read that “our deeds will follow us”. It was as if God was asking me: what are your deeds – making rich people richer? I was feeling the call to ordination, but if I’d known the process ahead, it might have put me off! The selection panel felt I needed a broader experience of the church before proceeding. Initially I was angry, but it was the best thing to happen to me. I was reintroduced to a more liberal, catholic spirituality. The breadth and love and wholeness opened my eyes, my heart, my soul. It was a transformative time, leading me towards becoming the person God intended me to be. I was ordained in 2004.Tell us about your most recent church…I became vicar of a church in Ashford, Kent, in 2007 and went on a wonderful journey with the people there. The congregation was down to about 50, mostly older people. However, they had the will to see change and become a hub for the local area. I got involved in schools work, eventually becoming chair of governors at three schools. Joining eight local churches into one big parish allowed us to offer more services for children and young families, such as parent-and-toddler groups and after-school clubs. We partnered with the local council and various organisations for expertise and funding. We pulled out the pews to make room for a café and kitchen, providing daily lunches to counter loneliness and isolation. We joined a night shelter scheme, started a food bank, ran a debt service and offered children meals during school breaks to counter ‘holiday hunger’. It was a huge project, costing around £850,000. I liked being part of a church that was active and engaging with the community – something that means as much to the people who don’t attend church as it does to the congregation. However, as a consequence, our numbers grew to around 180. So why did you decide to leave Kent and join us here in Islington? Ashford Town Parish was wonderful to be part of, but I was no longer functioning as a parish priest. By this point, I was Team Rector and Area Dean, with responsibility for 850 parishioners. Pastoral work had been replaced by endless meetings, and I’d lost my links with local schools. Business meetings wasn’t what God called me to do! It didn’t feed my soul. A friend who knew I had itchy feet called to tell me about the vacancy at St Luke’s while I was on holiday on the Northumberland coast, and as I was buffeted by the wind, it felt like the winds of change. After exploring the St Luke’s website and watching the video of what members love about the church, I could see shared values of inclusion and God’s love for all. I felt excited – St Luke’s felt like somewhere my skills could be used. What’s your vision for St Luke’s? Well, it’s not about my vision, it’s about our vision, something we share as a church, so we can move together as one. I see a desire in St Luke’s for deeper roots in the community and to be good news for the area. I’m interested in creating a greater presence at the St Francis end of the parish, tapping into the need for health, wellbeing and social services, possibly involving a community nurse. We may also look at expanding resources for young families, showing that the doors of the church are open to all. For now, though, I’m getting to know you all! I’m blown away by the quality of the music, and I love the way St Luke’s uses language, and how different voices are heard during services and talks. What are your spiritual influences and (important question now you’re a St Luker!) are you a Greenbelter?We’ve been to Greenbelt a few times and loved it – although Sophie’s not a fan of camping! – and we hope to be there this year. I’ve got a lot from the writings of Richard Rohr; and also those of Jean Vanier, who set up the L’Arche communities for people with special needs, so the recent revelations about his sexual abuse of staff has broken my heart, and I’m trying to work out how I now relate to his writing. Introduce us to the other residents of the vicarage… There’s Sophie, of course. She’s a lecturer in speech and language therapy, and we met when she was a student, observing a speech therapy group I was part of – with strict instructions not to fraternise with the participants! We’ve been married nearly 29 years. We’re joined by our son Jacob, 22, who recently graduated in philosophy and theology at Oxford, and his girlfriend Kate, a recent sociology graduate. And not forgetting Darcey the tabby cat, a former stray, and Socrates the guinea pig, who lives in the utility room (sadly, his companion Plato is no longer with us). Where will we find you on your days off? Probably at the Odeon – I love switching off for a couple of hours to enjoy a good movie. I’m a lifelong Chelsea supporter – we used to watch matches from the family enclosure, and Jacob had a Chelsea kit at three months old, but we watch it on TV these days. I also enjoy following cricket and hockey, I like a good beer, and Sophie and I love to dance, Strictly-style.Finally, is it true you’re interested in the Enneagram (the subject of many a coffee-time chat at St Luke’s), and what type are you?The more we find out who we are, the better we relate to others, and I think tools of self-discovery like the Enneagram and Myers-Briggs help that in process. I’m a type 7 – an optimist who enjoys life and good times!QUICK FIRE:Windsurfing or walk in the woods? Walk in the woodsLark or night owl? Night owl – although I’m waking up early at the moment. Tea or coffee? Coffee, black, no sugar.Winter or summer? Spring and autumn! Spring for new life, and autumn for the colours. Favourite band/artist? Bowie – I enjoyed his work throughout every reinvention. Favourite holiday? A trip to LA, Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon for my 40th. Favourite book? The Brothers Karamazov or Lord Of The Rings.What animal would you like to be? An eagle, soaring free and riding the winds.Interview: Cath FrancisPhoto: Stefano Cagnoni
St Luke’s is one of twenty Christian organisations in the UK which have agreed to disinvest from fossil fuels as part of the Epiphany Declaration for Fossil Free Churches.The declaration was created in November by the Christian campaign group Operation Noah as part of its campaign Bright Now. It encouraged churches across the denominations to combat climate change by disinvesting on the feast of the Epiphany, which fell last Monday, January 6th.“This is a powerful action that your church can take to respond to the climate emergency and highlight the need for urgent action,” the organisers said. “Even if your church doesn’t currently hold any fossil-fuel investments — for instance, if it only has a bank account — it can make a powerful statement by pledging not to invest in fossil fuels in the future.”See the full report in this week’s Church Times: https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2020/10-january/news/uk/christian-organisations-disinvest-from-fossil-fuels
