The Revd Writes… The word sin derives from an Old English word, ‘syn’ meaning, violation of divine law, an offence against God, or moral wrongdoing. It is an overtly religious term with deeper origins within the Hebrew understanding of ‘Khata’ meaning to fail to reach the goal or miss the mark. From these building blocks later theologians, and others, developed an understanding that sin is complicated and impacts on all areas of life, both personal, my own behaviour, and corporate, done with others, including institutions. Psychology also helps us understand that quite a lot of our behavioural patterns, bad and good, are inherited from our parents and grandparents, thus making more complex what was already difficult to unpick even more complex. It is fair to say that sin is out of fashion, even within religious contexts, and many would now go along with the idea that so long as what I do does not harm anyone else then I can do what I like. What I do as an individual and what we do together, however, is intrinsically entwined with how we relate both to ourselves and others. ‘Sin’ and ‘relationship’ go together like fish and chips. It isn’t easy to imagine one without the other – at least if we are honest. And that’s the point. Believing that I, or we, can act out a negative behaviour that has no detrimental effect on either myself or others is at best delusional and at worst perverse. Sin and Relationships are peas in a pod. A negative impact has a negative consequence. Sin hurts. The recent scandal within the post office whereby a computer system was seen to be infallible caused huge grievous damage to many innocent sub-postmasters because ‘relationship’ was forgotten. The result saw corporate sin committed on a staggering scale. If only more attention had been paid to the voices of those to whom the employer related, rather than the profit margin, then the post office would be in a much better position than it is today. Sin hurts. It hurts relationships. The joy of Easter is that sin and relationship are put in their proper place. The pain of the cross is not denied as sin attempts to triumph. The place of good relationship with God, with our brothers and sisters who make up the worldwide human family, and with the whole of creation, is restored, envisioning who we are at our best and what we can be in the future. The trick is not to deny sin when you see it however unfashionable that might be. Easter reminds me that what I do impacts upon me, and you. It also reminds you that what you do impacts upon you, and me. This is honest. Nothing delusional or perverse here. And in being honest, hope is born. Recognising sin when you see it means you can ‘sin bin’ it and move on knowing the right thing to do. God bless sub-postmasters and all those who so courageously blow the whistle on sin. Happy Easter! Mark
The Revd Writes… Just before Christmas we had our old dog put to sleep. At sixteen-and-a-half (Jack Russell Terriers are the longest-lived breed of dog.) she’d had a long and happy life, much-loved by all the Baileys. At nine weeks old, a friend sold her to me for £25. I can honestly say that it is probably the best £25 I have ever spent. Lily was worth every penny. She quickly became a best friend to all of us, particularly to my two children. She was always there for them when they needed a cuddle or just someone to chat to who would understand – often when parents didn’t. She never refused to take the Vicar for a walk and absorbed huge amounts of information about the Church and the World, helping to put things into context by chasing a butterfly or tennis ball. The last year saw the slow creep of physical and mental frailty. I’ve not had to manage a dog suffering from dementia before - staring into space and endlessly wandering around in circles. Added to this, deafness, loss of sight and voice, a growing weakness in her back legs and the ‘accidents’ of double incontinence, increasingly difficult to manage. The decision to put Lily to sleep was taken carefully, involving all family members. Having collectively agreed in principle that this was the right thing to do to spare our old dog further loss of quality of life, the question then remained as to timing. We needed some space as individuals, and as a family, in which to come to terms with what we had agreed to do before taking the dog to the vet for the last time. We needed some time too in which to say our last goodbyes. Each of us did this in our own way with extra cuddles, a slow walk around the garden, more biscuit treats. Eventually, we reached a place where we all knew we had each come to terms with what needed to happen. We all understood that having Lily euthanised was the kindest thing that we could do for her. And so, it came to pass. On more than one occasion I have been faced with someone who has reached the evening of their years and whose sole wish is to close their eyes and not wake up to face yet another day, languishing in physical discomfort with their world reduced to the confines of an armchair. This can sometimes be a difficult conversation to have. But not always. There are times when it is simply waiting for the body to give up, long after the individual themselves has come to terms with the inevitable. Traditionally, the Christian standpoint has been to acknowledge that all life is a gift from God and that only God has the right to take this gift away. Yet, recent decades have helped us to understand more clearly what it is to die well. The importance, where possible, for the individual to honour the agency that God has given to us in making decisions and choices that holds that in the end all is harvest. Assisted dying, where that is helping someone of their own free will to die well, is a debate that is not going to go away, and one in which we all need to engage with compassion. As someone recently said to me, “Vicar, you wouldn’t let this happen to a dog.” God Bless Mark
I am writing to say Thank You to you for all the support and help that you give in enabling the work and ministry of our churches to flourish. Thank you for your time, for your commitment and your money. This past year has not always been easy as the cost-of-living crisis and high mortgage interest rates have impacted the standard of living of many people. As a grassroots organisation, our churches are entirely dependent upon the shared pool of resources that we bring and share together. Thank You for your continued generosity. It is this offering of ourselves that is the hallmark of Christian discipleship, a manifestation of God’s love with which we are blessed and through which, by God’s grace, we bless each other. The result means that there has been much to celebrate over these past six months.Work with our two Church Schools at Ardeley and Benington has continued to flourish. Both schools now use their local church not just as a place for worship and special services but equally as a learning environment. Our churches make for great classrooms in which to learn about RE topics, art and history. It is both a privilege and a pleasure for me to deliver these lessons and to watch as young minds engage and learn to appreciate for themselves the ecclesiastical gems in their midst. Looking ahead, Ardeley School is preparing for a SIAMS Inspection (Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools) in 2024. This is the Church’s equivalent of an OFSTED inspection with a special focus on a school’s Christian vision and values. It has been good to be part of a SIAMS prep group, working with staff to review how our vision and values impact all areas of the life of the School.Much work has also been undertaken by our Fabric Committee at St Lawrence’s, Ardeley. Working with our architect, Helen Axworthy of R H Partnership, we have pulled together the details for a major restoration project, cleaning and preserving much of the stained glass and replacing eroded stonework. This will be the largest project within the Benefice in 2024 amounting to a £100 000 spend. We are hugely grateful to the late Janet Naylor for remembering St Lawrence’s in her will and enabling this work to take place. This project will commence in March and will hopefully, be completed by the end of June. A big Thank You to Jackie Haywood, Churchwarden, for taking on the role of ‘keeping an eye’ as this project evolves.Janet’s gift is a reminder of how important it can be to remember your Church in your will. Even a small gift can make a significant impact in helping to preserve the ancient fabric of the Church, ensuring that it will continue to be here for future generations to use and enjoy. A very special legacy by which to be remembered and for which the present generation will be truly grateful.The restoration works to the Chapel at St Peter’s, Benington has progressed significantly with the added delight of the discovery of new fragments of medieval wall paintings. Rewiring of electrics at the west end of the Chapel has seen a much-needed tidy-up though more still needs to be done in this regard. This project will continue in 2024 and we look forward to the design and introduction of some new oak cabinets. A particular Thank You to Mandy Greengrass, our erstwhile Verger, for expertly re-jigging the Chapel space whilst work continues.Over the Christmas period, significant amounts of fund-raising took place across all of our Churches. Teams of volunteers rallied around the Ardeley Christmas Mingle, Christmas Tree Festival at St Mary’s, Walkern, Christmas drinks at Cottered and the sale of specially commissioned cards at Benington. Christmas time is an important time in helping to raise money for payment of Parish Share (the amount we are obliged to pay to the Diocese to fund the vicar post) and help to balance the books. A huge Thank You to everyone who poured time and effort into these activities - on top of preparing to celebrate Christmas with friends and family at home and away. Where would we be without you?Alongside my work as a parish priest, I have worked for many years in the field of mental health. During the COVID pandemic, I began writing meditative blogs via Facebook and have, since September, begun to do so again. This is an attempt to reach out to those within our own communities who struggle with mental health issues and to those who are caring for them. To date, the blogs have been welcomed by a good number of folks who find them helpful and so, I will be continuing to write them. They appear on a Friday on alternate weeks. If you find them helpful, you might like to mention them to others. Anyone struggling with a mental health issue is more than welcome to become part of any of our church families. ‘Belonging’ and being part of a loving, accepting group of people is an important part of the Church’s healing ministry.From the middle of July until the beginning of November I shall be on sabbatical, researching and writing. Planning for this absence is already underway and I am grateful to Canon Mike Leverton and others who have said that they are more than willing to help plug gaps in our Rota of Services. Another big Thank You to our retired clergy and others who will be enabling this priest to step back from the coalface for a little while.If you think the Church can be of any help to you, don’t hesitate to be in touch!God Bless, MarkMdbailey066@gmail.com 01763 281052Follow our Churches on Facebook for the latest news and details of events!Photograph: Bishop Richard, Bishop of Bedford (Chair Diocesan Board of Education), Mrs Barbara Young (Headteacher Ardeley St Lawrence Church of England Primary School) and Revd Mark Bailey (Priest-in-Charge). Bishop Richard visited Ardeley School earlier last year.
Free Concert Admission.Retiring Collection in aid of the Church. Come for the day and visit the Lordship Gardens and have lunch, tea and homemade cakes in the Village Hall.
