On the day that we celebrated the pouring out of the Holy Spirit on ‘Parthians, Medes, Elamites’ and the rest, it was a joy to share our diocesan worship with Egyptian Copts, Kenyan Anglicans, Danish Lutherans and the ecumenical Church of Pakistan! There’s something about being a part of a global family – and one that transcends our denominational differences – that brings immense encouragement whenever we encounter it. It is indeed both ‘good’ and ‘pleasant’ when brothers and sisters dwell together in unity (Psalm 133:1). It’s not just been our diocesan worship either. As I’ve tuned into a number of our parish services, I’ve been heartened to see contributions from other local churches and from mission partners around the world. In a couple I’ve come across, the local Anglican and Baptist churches have teamed up for a morning service; in a good many more, mission partners have contributed to the prayers or the preaching; and the current crisis has begun to strengthen our relationships in other ways too, as participants in a regional ecumenical Zoom meeting were reflecting on last week. In one of our towns, for example, all the church leaders now meet for prayer daily; in others the community effort is being spearheaded by a coalition of local churches. It’s good, it’s pleasant, but what a powerful witness too to a nation that is tuning into our online offerings in remarkable numbers: that the churches are not so much competitors in a religious marketplace as brothers and sisters in Christ. Working towards such unity can be hard work on occasions, of course, and challenge our innate tendency to rivalry and competitiveness, but it’s also infinitely worthwhile: ‘for there the Lord bestows his blessing, even life for evermore’.Every BlessingBishop Andrew
We are pleased to be able to welcome you into St Mary and All Saints Church.The church is now open for private prayer between 9am and 4pm.If you enter the building, please follow these safety guidelines:+Please use the hand sanitizer provided on your way in and way out.+Please ensure that you remain at least two metres away from anyone else.+Please do not touch anything.+Please only sit on the clearly designated pews.+Please feel free to pray!Remember that this situation will not last forever, only God's love lasts forever, so come on in and share His love, receive it freely because it is given freely and in abundance.Reverend Ian Maslin St Mary and All Saints, Dunsfold01483 200048, 14 June, 2020
In a week in which we’ve been celebrating the coming of the Holy Spirit to ‘Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia…’ (and so the list goes on), the issue of race has temporarily displaced Covid-19 at the top of the headlines. The brutal killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis has unleashed a wave of protests in the USA, to which the President’s response has only added fuel to the fire; and two powerful three-word phrases, ‘Black Lives Matter’ and ‘I Can’t Breathe’ have expressed the outrage felt by many both tragically and eloquently. Back here in the UK, Covid-19 itself is having a disproportionate impact on our black and Asian (BAME) communities too, in a way that raises uncomfortable questions about the continuing inequalities in our own society; and while there’s been some progress made in our major institutions (the Church included) it’s often been painfully patchy and slow. Quite what the post-Covid world will look like remains a very open question: but it would be good to pray and work towards the development of a fairer society. For any of our BAME brothers and sisters who are struggling with all that has been happening this week, please be assured of our support: we kneel with you. And please feel free to speak with Folo Olokose (our BAME Champion), Rev Bev Hunt, your Archdeacon or one of the bishops if you would value that too. A Prayer: God of Love, you see and share in the hurt and injustice of our world. We pray for change, for justice and equality between men and women, old and young, irrespective of colour and socio-economic status. Help us to work together for unity and fairness, for the sake of the Christ who died for us all, Amen. Blessings,Bishop Andrew
