Author: Lucy Llewellyn

We are in the middle of Holy Week, recalling the events of Jesus’ final days in Jerusalem – from the entry into that city riding on the donkey on Palm Sunday, to events and confrontations in the Temple, to the washing of the disciples’ feet and sharing of a Last Supper in the Upper Room, to the prayers, betrayal and arrest in Gethsemane, to the trial, mockery and torture of Good Friday, to the sealed tomb – and then, the empty tomb of Easter morning. It is a poignant and uncomfortable journey. But as was said in a Lent Discussion Group: “You can’t have Easter without Good Friday!” It is through enduring the defeat that we emerge to the victory. Whether you can join us for the significant services of this week, or attend local services of other traditions, perhaps you might prayer the Easter Prayer, recently offered by Canonmills Church in Edinburgh.

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Dear Friends,

We are all familiar with Paddington, the little bear who arrived in London from his home in Peru with a luggage label attached saying, “Please look after this bear”. Michael Bond, the former BBC cameraman who created Paddington said he was inspired by the memory of children being evacuated from British cities during World War 2 and going to live with complete strangers in the countryside or even overseas, many of them with a label tied to them with their name and other details.

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Under the watchful gaze of former ministers, the production line for Mothering Sunday daffodils was in full swing last weekend.

Friends,

I wandered lonely as a cloud, is perhaps one of English poetry’s most famous first lines; starting point for William Wordsworth’s recollection of stumbling upon a wondrous sight by the lake shore.

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There are plenty references to dancing in the scriptures. From the Psalmist’s injunction in Psalm 149: “Let them praise his name with dancing and make music to him with timbrel and harp”, to King David dancing before the Ark of the Covenant as it was installed in Jerusalem. In the Gospels Jesus alludes to the playful dancing of children and the celebratory dancing at the return of the prodigal son. Not everyone was/is convinced, perhaps mindful of its dangers – think daughter of Herodias’ display, before an immoral king, leading to the death of John the Baptist.

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Dear Friends,

Imagine that you were writing the constitution for a newly independent country – what would your priorities be? How would you shape the common life of the community? What laws would you pass?

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Friends,

Having been out of London for a week, when I returned, I was struck by the blossom that has appeared in streets and parks. Though as I write the rain is lashing down, it is also noticeable that the mornings are lighter and the afternoons lengthening. The seasons are on the move.

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Dear Friends,

What is Lent? Until comparatively recently it was not common to follow the Christian year in Presbyterian or Reformed churches. Within living memory Christmas was not a public holiday in Scotland. Of course, we can blame Oliver Cromwell for that – the Puritans banned the celebration of Christmas but after the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 the rest of the UK reverted to celebrating Christmas while the Scots carried on celebrating New Year. That continued until after the Second World War, but I suspect that as more churches and ministers follow the lectionary, the three-year table of Bible readings for Sunday worship, the pattern of the Christian year has become more familiar to all of us.

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Dear Friends,

Our gospel lesson this week is from Mark 9: 2-9 and is St. Mark’s account of the Transfiguration, describing the occasion when Jesus invited three of his closest disciples, Peter, James and John, to climb a high mountain with him. The disciples are dazzled by Jesus’ altered appearance. In contrast to the voice that spoke to Jesus at his baptism, this time a voice speaks directly to the disciples and tells them to “listen to him!”. This was a moment of profound significance for the disciples when they had a glimpse of the divinity of Christ but when it was over all of them headed back down the mountain and Jesus went on to heal a sick child (Mark 9:14-29).

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