Dear All,
This weekend we begin one of my favourite seasons of the year, Advent, season of light, joy, and hope, a time of expectation, waiting, and watching for signs of the kingdom. This sense of waiting is mirrored by our current situation of waiting for further announcements on what we can and can’t do, waiting for the worst of the pandemic to pass, and looking for signs of life and hope for the future.
For many years for us as a family, Advent Sunday meant being in Bradford Cathedral for a beautiful candle-lit service, which started in darkness, with a single candle being brought down from the high altar to the west end of church, where more candles were lit, a prayer was said, and the choir started to sing ‘I look from afar’ by Palestrina. As the service continued, with the choir moving around the Cathedral, singing and reading in various locations, more candles being lit as they went, there was a visible enacting of one of the main themes of this season, light in the darkness. It may be that you have your own memories of special church services as Christmas approaches, very often made more evocative by beautiful music, visual images, and candles.
The writer Paula Gooder says that Advent is a season of ‘active waiting’, a state that recognises and embraces glimmers of God’s presence in the world, recalls and celebrates God’s actions in the past, and looks forward with hope and faithfulness. This is something that is particularly important to do this year, and perhaps we can all help and encourage each other with this. We can speak about our experiences, the ways in which God has been close to us, or has answered prayer, and we can focus on the things that give us genuine hope, rather than being pre-occupied by the anxiety and despair of the world around us. This is not to deny that there are plenty of reasons to grieve what has been lost this year, indeed being able to speak of our losses is vital before we can embrace new possibilities, but we can help each other to look beyond the loss with a wider perspective, with God’s perspective.
So Advent is a season in which we look forward to the future with hope. And as I write this, my last letter to you all before I return to Calverley full time, I know that at St John’s you have plenty of good reasons to look forward with hope, as Gareth is licensed next Thursday, as you begin a new chapter in your lives as a church, and as Gareth, Naomi, and the children begin a new chapter in their lives as they prepare to move to Farsley. Our God is good, and he has clearly called Gareth to be your new priest, and I give thanks.
I have enjoyed getting to know you all, both at St John’s and at Rodley, and I have enjoyed taking services for you both in person and online over the last 10-11 months, developing the ministry here in challenging times, learning new skills, thanks particularly to James who has done all the online service editing, and also to Janet and Lorna, who have been incredibly hard working and supportive Churchwardens. You are fortunate to have such a great team!
Go well, and may God bless you richly.
A Prayer for Advent
Lord of light and love,
shine your radiance upon us,
be our light in the darkness,
our hope at times of despair,
our joy when life feels dreary.
Come, bring healing, wholeness, and life into our lives this Advent.
We ask in the precious name of Jesus, Amen.
With grace and peace,
Sue McWhinney
sue@stjohnsfarsley.org.uk
07484 181699