“to be Christian then, is to know that we are part of a people, a people expressed in different nations & cultures yet which transcends all boundaries of race & language. The People of God is a community within the broader community of a nation, serving a nation helping to shape that nation’s self-understanding, while respecting the role played by other religious & cultural institutions. But if the Church has a particular role to play at times of crisis [covid] it is precisely to remind the people of its soul, of its need to respect the common good. This is what Jesus did; He came to strengthen & deepen the bonds of belonging..of the people to God & to each other. That is why the one who matters most in the Kingdom of God is whoever makes himself least, serving others, & especially the poor. This is why a Christian will always defend individual rights & freedoms but can never be an individualist. A Christian will love & serve her country with patriotic feeling, but cannot be merely a nationalist. The firm centre of Christianity is the essential proclamation, the kerygma. It means that God loved me & gave himself up for me. The death & resurrection of Jesus Christ, His love on the Cross, are what calls us to be missionary disciples, inviting us to recognise each other as brothers & sisters of the larger human family, & especially of those who feel themselves orphans. As the Beatitudes show us, the principle of salvation is fulfilled in the compassion we demonstrate. That is why the Church must always be known for its closeness to the peoples of this earth in their struggle for dignity & freedom. In each culture where it is present, the Church must see people’s sorrows & its hopes, & especially those of the poorest, as its own. The Church walks as part of the people, serving it, not trying to organise it in paternalistic fashion, because a people organises itself. The Church’s role is played out in the service of the Lord & the peoples of the earth where she is sent, not by imposing or dominating but, as Christ does, in the washing of feet. This is the time in this crisis to restore an ethics of fraternity & solidarity, regenerating bonds of trust & belonging. For what saves us is not an idea but an encounter. Only the face of another is capable of awakening the best of ourselves. In serving people, we save ourselves. As a people we have a shared destination. [Galilee]. The pandemic has reminded us that no one is saved alone. Solidarity is not the sharing of crumbs from the table, but to make space at the table for everyone. The diginity of the people calls for communion, for the sharing & multiplying of goods, & for the participation of all for the sake of all" [Let us Dream ; Pope Francis]
After 85 coming to our three Easter Masses last weekend, we returned to lower numbers of 43, as many of our beloved Herdwicks returned to the Fells. Remember they will always belong among us, & they do great work out there, telling of all they have seen & heard over Christmas & over Easter in our sheepfold. As more & more of you receive their second vaccination we hope, once you build up fuller immunity & confidence, you will feel safe & encouraged to come back to our meal of a lifetime. Please pray for Ray Lane who has been poorly, & for John Wilkie’s Mum Anne aged 99 who is gradually fading in a Care Home in Scarborough. On Wednesday we remembered Andrew Cornforth’s first anniversary, with prayers for him with the groundstaff on his beloved first X1 cricket square at 2pm before I went to Kirkbymoorside for prayers with his wife Debbie & their children Ethan & Elsa at his graveside. Please keep them in your prayers. This coming week I lead a Hospitality retreat on-line “Art & Spirituality” from Mon evg to Thurs lunchtime, opening three paintings; Geburt Christi with the disconsolate Joseph in this Year of Joseph, the Incredulity of Thomas, & Supper at Emmaus, as the stranger breaks bread with two other disciples, like Joseph & Thomas, who walked out & away, only to find the surprise of a lifetime & a homecoming. Next Saturday 24 April Ryedale Christian Council hold their keynote Conference Day on Climate Change entitled “what on Earth can we do?” with an impressive list of national speakers & facilitators; 915am to 415pm; on line..to book www.rccconf.org
Our Parish continues to provide food through the Food Initiative at a cost of £200 a month. [£3,000 since the pandemic began]. I hope those in our own Village who may be struggling to provide food for their children in this ongoing & increasing crisis in health & in the economy, will be warmly encouraged to benefit from our Food Initiative, where it is possible to approach Ray & Deb in the Village Shop, & quietly ask for a bag of food essentials which will be delivered to your door. This has been working well since the lockdown began, & it could be more of us in the Village will find themselves in ever deeper need of help, & we would encourage them to ask..it isn’t charity, it is basic good bread & butter Christian discipleship which, at such times of crisis, is asked of us in our plenty. Across the Village there is deep appreciation for the good natured & generous service given by Ray & Deb throughout the crisis, who regularly go the extra mile for us. Food donations to Middlesbrough Food Bank via cash in envelope to Parish House or direct via info@middlesbrough.foodbank.org.uk Please remember the sterling work of our own SVP group in the Parish, who are there, willing & able to help anyone in any form of difficulty, or those who would value a phone call now & again in the midst of the lockdown. Do please Contact Mary Borrett mbsvp21@gmail.com. With my love & prayers Fr Bede