The Worship Song...

This is something I wrote to use in our local Infant school. After our last SIAS (Statuatory Inspection of Anglican Schools) it was found that though our collective worship was good, the kids weren't able to articulate what we were actually doing when we worship. So I wrote this, sung to the tune of Sing Hosanna

We gather and greet one another,

say hello to the God who cares,

say hello to our sisters and brothers

when we join to share our songs and prayers

Praise and worship, praise and worship,

praise and worship knowing God is near.

Praise and worship, praise and worship,

happy we are gathered here.

We will listen to stories God‘s given

Saying thank you for God’s good word

Open hearts, open minds, sharing vision

We will think about what we have heard

Praise and worship, praise and worship,

praise and worship knowing God is near.

Praise and worship, praise and worship,

happy we are gathered here.

We will pray for our world and our lives here

Saying thank you for the all that’s good

We will ask for God’s help with the hard things

God will help us live the way we should.

Praise and worship, praise and worship,

praise and worship knowing God is near.

Praise and worship, praise and worship,

happy we are gathered here.

We go on with our teaching and learning

thinking always of God met here,

ekep God’s love light inside always burning

in this season and throughout the year.

Praise and worship, praise and worship,

praise and worship knowing God is near.

Praise and worship, praise and worship,

happy we are gathered here.

God's Family - Our Family

I was asked by some of my parishioners to post my sermon from Mothering Sunday (which was nice of them) - so here it is. 

As we meet today we celebrate 3 things – we celebrate what we know as Mothering Sunday, we celebrate the baptisms of Isabel & Elanor and we celebrate our Eucharist – the communion feast of bread and wine.

Those of you who have been hard at work giving something up for Lent, chocolate, wine, unkind words, might be relieved to know that the real name for today is “Refreshment Sunday”. It’s a chance for refreshment in the thoughtful and perhaps challenging season of Lent – and a chance perhaps to indulge in the things you've been fasting from.  So you can have sin free chocolate today. You can toast Isabel & Eleanor’s celebration without guilt – but if you want to use unkind words I’d be glad if you could wait till you get home from church and just shout at the telly.

We've heard two bible readings this morning – stories which can break your heart – about Moses mother giving her child away to save him from death – and about Jesus on the cross giving his mother into the care of a friend. Sad readings perhaps – but also readings which tell us something about what it means to be family, what it means to love.

These stories can be really helpful to us today as we all, Shelly & Matt as parents, Kay, Charlene & Simon [needs correction - some godparents missing] as godparents, and all of us as the community who will support these girls as they grow, make promises which we want to keep, we long to keep, but which we might sometimes fall short of because we are human.

Our first reading from Exodus tells us that complex families are not the invention of the late 20^th century.  Moses ends up with a mother who he knows as his nurse maid, a birth family who watch him from afar, he is saved by a woman who should be his enemy – but shows compassion and mercy and love  - not just saving him but bringing him up in a role of great importance, great privilege.  There is great heartbreak in this short story – but there is also life and love, flourishing despite all circumstances which should have squashed them.  Sacrifices are made, sacrifices which we might look at and say "such sacrifices are beyond my strength".  I remind you today of the challenges that each parent here has already faced.  I ask you to listen carefully when we pray the prayer over the water in a few moments which reminds us of the time after time after time that God has offered his strength and love to his people when things seemed impossible. As we assert that Isabel & Eleanor are not alone but have God with them – remember that you have too.

The second reading we heard is about Mary – Jesus mother, as she stands at the foot of his cross – witnessing something no parent ever wants to see in their lifetime. And what Jesus tells us from the cross as he speaks to his beloved disciple John saying ‘this is your mother – this is your son’ is that what God is calling on all of us to be to eachother is as loving parents. We need to know that the best love and care we can experience in our families is the goal that we are reaching for in how we treat all our brothers and sisters  - the people we meet every day. It is our goal when we promise as a whole community to encourage Isabel & Eleanor as they learn and grow, to pray, to know God.

Today we celebrate the gift of motherhood, of parental care, knowing that our real lives and real relationships are often complicated and difficult. For some of you today is a day of celebration – for some a day of mourning good things past – for some a day of regret and misgivings for relationships which haven’t worked or don’t work as we’d like them to.

But we are not alone – Moses family, Jesus family – neither simple.  Jesus had a step-father Joseph, a good man who accepted him in the most difficult circumstances.  He had many half-brothers and sisters who he grew up with who loved him but were hurt, confused and rejected at times when he taught that his other brothers and sisters in this world were just as important to him as they were. And he had a mother – who knew her child was special, the most special child who all Israel had been waiting for, but who had been told that an arrow would pierce her heart before his story was at an end.

When I think of Mary at the cross I am always transported back to watching The Passion of the Christ – the Mel Gibson film – to the moment when Jesus, carrying his cross to Calgary, staggers and falls under its weight. His mother, watching, sees in her mind’s eye the little boy running in the yard of his step-father the carpenter’s house, stumbling and falling – and she rushes to comfort him, to lift him up, to rub his knees and make everything better with her love.

The purpose of this morning’s short gospel reading is to show the other side of that coin - that even in the midst of the hardest times – God’s love is there for Mary and for each of us. Jesus is making provision for his mother – thinking of her and her needs despite what is happening into him.  In what he does on the cross he makes provision for all our needs and offers us love which has no boundaries, no exceptions.

Today we celebrate with Isabel & Eleanor and family as they take the next step in their journey in God’s church, our mother church.  We might perhaps think about God our parent creator – how God, so often referred to as father though of course without gender, can also be thought of as mother – and how this might help us better understand the God who loves us and gives us life.  And we remember that through the waters of baptism, and sharing in the feast of bread and wine at God’s table in our Eucharist, we know that whatever the good or bad of our earthly family, we are brothers and sisters all in Christ’s body, part of the family which God has created, and which in Jesus he gave his life to show love for. Amen.

Wrong kind of progress

I knew when I decided to vote againt the proposed reorganisation scheme for the Dioceses of Wakefield, Bradford and Ripon & Leeds that I would instantly be branded as backward thinking, anti-change, pro-status quo, deluded  - and those are just the kinder things which have been bandied about since Saturday's vote.  As I have this blog though I thought I'd take the opportunity to explain how a forward-thinking, pro-change, shaking up the status quo and clear sighted person might have found themselves voting as I did.

I did not vote 'no' as a sign of support for my Bishop.  In fact the idea that people might have suspected me of toadying to the senior team could almost have been enough to make me vote 'yes'. Neither was I bullied or intimidated by anyone on the senior staff of my Diocese, depite the assertion on social media of those who should know better that this has been the case. I intend to work in this area for many years to come. I am fully invested in the mission of the church in this place in every way.

Our Diocese needs change. We need a sense of our identity, of belonging to a Diocese which is engaged in mission not in managing decline. We need structures to change, smarter working, we need the structures of our church to acknowledge and support the reality of ministry and mission for clergy in our present and future.

We need strong local leadership, archdeacons and Bishops who know the people they are dealing with, both lay and clergy, and who have the time to be both strategic and pastoral in their approach.

We need streamlined administration which is creatively and flexibly managed and outsourced when necessary. We also need administration with strong local knowledge, and a deep understanding of the true priorities of the church.

We need to show by action not just words that we are mission focused, and we need to back up our clergy when they try to do this, not simply pile on more expectation of administrative and organisational tasks.

There are those I think who would tell me I have just voted against a scheme that could deliver this.  The point is none of the talking, none of the mountain of paperwork, none of the canvassing and preaching was able to convince me that the proposed scheme could deliver any of this.  There wasn't even sufficient of a whiff of this for me to trust that God's will might be at work and to take a leap of faith.  The only thing it could guarantee was years in which all senior and support staff were engaged in little other than re-organisation - inward looking, fretting about committee structures. It couldn't even guarantee me the local area Bishop's so much touted, let alone the central funding for them (much left to the discretion of future Diocesan Bishop and Church Commissioners kindness). 

After all the time and effort the scheme simply wasn't good enough, and I was not prepared to vote for change for it's own sake.

My longing for change, and my deep desire to find God's will in all this remains.  I am ready to be part of the progress and change my Diocese needs. I am looking forward. Perhaps as I look forward what I will see is the Archbishop of York telling me that this scheme is the only scheme. We will see.

Still quite cross.....

Lots of very good blogging been going on all over the place about what happened at the Church of England's Synod on Tuesday of this week.  I'm going to make the terrible assumption that if you're reading this you know about all that.  That you know how angry and sad it has made many people.

It made me feel angry and sad too. I was shocked by the impact as it happens.

However I continue to be cross - not just because of what happened, but because of many people's ill considered reaction to it.  You know how if you repeat something often enough is like you can make it true? Well the things I am hearing repeated are that this is a crushing blow for women, a tragedy, proof our skills and talents are undervalued by the Church, young women are turning from vocation to ordained ministry in droves because they don't want to be part of a church that doesn't value them.

OK - here goes.
1) Exactly the same number of people (of the same traditions) in the church are opposed to women's ministry today as were on Monday. The vote does not represent a sea change in theology. The Church has not turned on 'us'.
2) the vast majority of the C of E both in Diocesan Synods and at General Synod voted in favour - they appreciate and affirm the priestly ministry of all God's people and that of generations to come.
3) What has been highlighted is both the apathy of those who assumed this would go through without them having to stand for Synod to ensure that, and the flaws of a voting system which allows a vocal minority to carry the day.
4) What was rejected was a piece of legislation - not an individual or a group of people. Many of us were unsure about the legislation if we're honest, we were just sick of going on about it and wanted it sorted sooner rather than later. Perhaps there was insufficient of the discernment of God's will in that position!

This is not a tragedy - there was tragedy for the generations of women who felt God's call and were told they were mad or bad because of it. For my generation there is perhaps 7 years more patience required.  The priestly ministry of women has been affirmed overwhelmingly during this process - and if you look back at where we started, before the Diocesan votes, you may remember we didn't really expect to have come this far this fast. 42 out of 44 was a joyous surprise and still a great place to be working from as we try to listen and work harder.

If you know young women who are challenged by this to turn away from the Church - please don't say "Yes you're right, the Church is terrible" - because that's not true.  It's flawed, but it's trying - that's the Church I value and that I committed myself to at ordination.

Just can't get it out of my head....

Some of you may be familiar with the brilliant resources produced by Fr Simon Rundell, he who has brought the ministry of Blessed to Greenbelt for the last two years.  Simon is both high as high (further up the candle than me anyway) and fresh as fresh (expressions that is), leading to a wonderful synergy of digital media and ancient ritual.  One of the useful things I found in his book Creative Ideas for Sacramental Worship with Children is a nursery rhyme mass setting.  Inspired by this I ended up trying to write a sung creed today to use at one of my services. It wasn't easy - but this is the result. I know it has holes in, but most shortened creeds do. Still thought it was worth sharing - sung to the tune of Frere Jaques.

God our Father, God our Mother

We believe, we believe

who created all things, who created all things

Earth and sea, stars and me.

Christ our Saviour, Christ our Saviour

We believe, we believe

Lived and died and risen, lived and died and risen

You and me, set us free.

Holy Spirit, Holy Spirit

We believe, we believe

Moving here among us, moving here among us

God right here, near as near.

Three in one, three in one

One in three, one in three

God revealing all things, God revealing all things

Dancing free, trinity.

Must stop talking to that bloke

Been chatting to Rev Changing Worship again - about a) much modern worship music being thematically monochrome (Oh God, you are so great and amazing) b) there being a particular lack of recent songs with a social justice theme or the space to lament c) there being a need for clearer theology (we'd kind of like N.T.Wright to revisit each of his books and re-edit them as poetic song lyrics).

With this lurking in the recesses of my mind I sat down on the end of my kitchen table, lit a candle and started to read Morning Prayer for today.  Got as far as the Jeremiah reading (9.23,24) then had to go get a pen and paper.  I don't claim brilliance - or wisdom as the words say - and it certainly doesn't meet all the challenging criteria mentioned above - but if anyone wants to use it to write a nice worship song - you're welcome to.


Tho I'm not strong or mighty
I invoke God's strength in me
So i can break the chains that bind
set captive pris'ners free.
Tho I can't boast of wisdom
I've a longing to be wise
a desire that the scales will fall
show jaded human eyes


Love, justice, righteousness
so I can act and move
to know and grow and show delight
God's living presence prove.


Our riches are of this world.
Weak, we covet, judge and lust.
With words we sing of loving
tho our actions breed distrust.
God help us work for common good
our selfish thoughts replace
with one heart, one soul, one common goal
your Kingdom we embrace


Love, justice, righteousness
so we can act and move
to know and grow and show delight
Your living presence prove.

Response to prayer.

At my church's Taize service last night we were reflecting on Celtic Saints. The service is a combination of traditional Taize music, silence and prayer, along with a series of multi-sensory prayer stations.  Last night's mini-pilgrimage round prayer stations of the saints included a reflection on Caedmon's inspiration - gifts of song inspired by God's Word which the tale tells came to him in dreams.
The prayer station asked people to think about their own creative response to the Word - to seek out a passage of scripture and if inspiration struck to record their response with pen and paper. I was worried that this might be a bit too think-y and time consuming for a prayer station - but it seemed to work. I found myself looking at John 20.15 in the Jerusalem translation of the Bible - "Woman, why are you weeping? I'm here." - this is what spewed onto the page.

"Woman - why are you weeping? I'm here - I love you."


I weep for my weakness.
I weep for my confusion and blankness.
I weep for pain and disappointment, anger and bitterness.


I weep for you, for what you mean to me.
For my selfishness that my need is always first in heart and mind.


I weep with suppressed joy
praise, adoration, desire.


I am weeping.  I am here -  I love you.