Latest Vicar's Letter

The Jewish and Christian Scriptures both begin with God creating the world and all that is. As each new thing is created- moon and stars, sea and sea creatures, plants and animals- God sees that it is good. Finally God creates human beings to care for his good creation. When I asked a class of Year 5 and year 6 pupils if they thought that people had done a good job in caring for the creation not one of them put their hand up. And they were able to point to many reasons why that was what they thought. They cited wars, pollution, deforestation, and cruelty to animals as some reasons for their answers. And when we talked about how human beings sometimes treat one another, they felt that often things are not as they should be. Their analysis of the state of the world is not new. It is however a situation in which God has offered us hope.

Christians believe that hope lies in the person of Jesus. The Gospel writers record the life and work of Jesus, Son of God. All of them show Jesus healing the sick, performing miracles and teaching about the Kingdom of God (also called the Kingdom of Heaven). All four Gospel writers record in great detail the events of the final days of Jesus’ life: his triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, the Last Supper with his disciples and his arrest, trial and crucifixion. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John all write of Jesus’ burial in a new tomb in the rock, owned by Joseph of Arimathea. On the eve of the Sabbath Jesus is dead, and laid in the tomb. On Saturday, Sabbath day, everyone rests according to the Law, so it is not until Sunday morning that the women take the spices they have prepared and go to the tomb to anoint Jesus’ body. Luke refers to this group as ‘the women’. The three other gospel writers name them as Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James. There is no doubt that it was the women who were the first to discover the empty tomb.

Mary Magdalene is sometimes called ‘the apostle to the apostles’. What this means is that she was the very first person who carried the good news of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. She ran to share it with the disciples. But she was not believed. Her words seemed ‘like nonsense’ to the disciples. Was this because it seemed so far fetched? Or was it because she was a woman? There may also have been a feeling amongst the 11 (because by this time Judas was gone) that they were Jesus’ closest friends. Wouldn’t he have appeared to them first? But they all, with the possible exception of John, had abandoned Jesus when he was arrested and had denied even knowing him.

Following Jesus has never been easy. Following Jesus makes demands on us. He calls us to put him first, to change our ways and our thinking, and to adopt ‘Kingdom Values’. Being a Christian is not about ‘trying to be good’, but being God’s people in relationship with him. It is a lifelong, 24/7 commitment. Being a Christian means that we have hope for now and for the future. Hope of a fresh start, and the promise of a glorious resurrection.

With every blessing this Easter, Joy