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Its all in the touch
Its all in the touch
by John Birch
A prayer about the Christian life.. 'It's all in the touch, the touch of love, the touch of healing, the touch of compassion, the touch of reassurance..........' Extract: It's all in the touch the touch of love the touch of healing the touch of compassion the touch of reassuran…
Be strong and very courageous
Be strong and very courageous
by Sally Coleman
A poem reflecting on our need for God's strength. Be strong and very courageous Be strong and very courageous you say… …some mornings it takes all my strength Just to get out of bed! Be strong and very courageous …. …is it courageous just to place one Foot in front of the other, …
Lectionary Reflections - Year B - Proper 2 Year B
Lectionary Reflections - Year B - Proper 2 Year B
by SPCK - Jane Williams
Proper 2 2 Kings 5.1–14 1 Corinthians 9.24–27 Mark 1.40–45 Mark’s Gospel is almost certainly the oldest of the four Gospels. Matthew and Luke seem to know it and depend upon it for some of their information, though they do also have independent sources of their own. It is possibl…
Psalms for Everyone Part 2 - On Raising the Ceiling of Our Hope
Psalms for Everyone Part 2 - On Raising the Ceiling of Our Hope
by SPCK - John Goldingay
Teach Me Psalm 119: 49-72 I’m grading student papers, and one effect that has on me (alongside making me want to commit suicide) is to make me puzzle over what it is that enables people to learn. There are people who have read the Scriptures with fresh eyes, seen things they had …
How can we look, and not be moved
How can we look, and not be moved
by Andrew Pratt
1 How can we look, and not be moved by lives that end and eyes that plead, where parents cry while families part amid their last despairing need. 2 Once we were distanced from the ones that suffered while we stood to stare. God give the gift of empathy that we might offer more th…
Hymn: What does it mean to love our God
Hymn: What does it mean to love our God
by Andrew Pratt
What does it mean to love our God,to see the Christ in those around, to seek God's heaven on this earth, while all around is shaking ground? How can we face the present time of chaos that we meet and find, while Jesus says we need to love with all our soul, our strength and mind?…
I have a dream that on a day
I have a dream that on a day
by Andrew Pratt
I have a dream that on a day not very long from now, that war-like weapons will be banned, by grace, God show us how. I have a dream that love will hear another's crying need, that justice will demand we act in spite of race or creed. Verses 2-3 follow Tune: KINGSFOLD Andrew Pr…
The prophet saw a plumb line simply hanging
The prophet saw a plumb line simply hanging
by Andrew Pratt
The prophet saw a plumb line simply hanging to sign God's love amid the sons of men, then, with the women, everyone is singing that God will never turn away again. Yet Amos blew the whistle on God's people, a prophet in a time of greed and need, self-righteousness as high as any …
52 Reflections on Faith - God and the world: Separate or together
52 Reflections on Faith - God and the world: Separate or together
by BRF - Stephen W. Need
God and the world:Separate or together? William Blake’s best-known painting is probably The Ancient of Days. Originally done in 1794 as the frontispiece for one of his illustrated books, it’s now in the British Museum. Often reproduced as a popular art poster in recent decades, t…
52 Reflections on Faith - Growth and renewal: good soil
52 Reflections on Faith - Growth and renewal: good soil
by BRF - Stephen W. Need
Growth and renewal: Good soil: It’s amazing how things grow, isn’t it? The story is told of a young couple who bought a house with a large garden, including a lawn and an apple tree at the front. They decided they needed to ‘clear the garden’ and, in the process, chopped down the…
52 Reflections on Faith - Trinity Sunday: The circle of life
52 Reflections on Faith - Trinity Sunday: The circle of life
by BRF - Stephen W. Need
Trinity Sunday:The circle of life Probably the most popular icon of the Holy Trinity these days is the one by the Russian iconographer Andrei Rublev, which is displayed in the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow. Reproduced widely, it has become very well known in recent years outside th…
52 Reflections on Faith - Mary, mother of Jesus: pointing to God
52 Reflections on Faith - Mary, mother of Jesus: pointing to God
by BRF - Stephen W. Need
Mary, mother of Jesus: pointing to God Michelangelo’s Pietà is one of the most beautiful and famous pieces of art in the world. It stands just inside St Peter’s Basilica in Rome. In glorious white marble, sculpted in the 15th century when the artist was only 24, the statue depict…
52 Reflections on Faith - The body of Christ: respecting difference
52 Reflections on Faith - The body of Christ: respecting difference
by BRF - Stephen W. Need
The body of Christ: respecting difference On a recent visit to the concert hall at Snape Maltings in Suffolk, I became particularly aware of the need to respect differences. The concert hall at Snape is widely known as the music centre founded by the composer Benjamin Britten (19…
For All Your Troubled Friends Most Deeply Caring
For All Your Troubled Friends Most Deeply Caring
by Norman J Goreham (1931-2021)
This hymn starts from the Gospel narrative of the foot washing and then proceeds to praise all (including deacons!) who engage in a ministry of costly service. They stand in the great tradition of many on the Scripture page who were "helpers".
52 Reflections on Faith - Jesus and the Poor