Sermons

Remembrance Sunday Evensong

Look, the Sovereign, the LORD of hosts, will lop the boughs with terrifying power; the tallest trees will be cut down, and the lofty will be brought low’ (Isaiah 11.33) So is there a connection between dead and dying trees and the US Presidential election? Well, the opening verse of our… Read more

Sermon by on Sunday 11th November 2012

Remembrance Sunday Eucharist

In November 1979, the U.S. embassy in Tehran was stormed by militants in retaliation for sheltering the recently deposed Shah.  Fifty American diplomats were held hostage. Six escaped.  Ben Affleck's film Argo is based on what happens next. Tony Mendez, a CIA “exfiltration”… Read more

Sermon by on Sunday 11th November 2012

Feast of St Simon & St Jude

Famous double acts often bring famous catchphrases. Laurel and Hardy: ‘Here’s another fine mess you’ve gotten me in to’; Morecombe and Wise: ‘tea Ern?’; The two Ronnies: ‘And it’s goodnight from him and its goodnight from me’. Famous double act… Read more

Sermon by on Sunday 28th October 2012

Trinity 20 - Eucharist

£3 million prize money; £100 million in stud fees. Frankel’s unbroken record of straight wins has made a fortune for a few; he’s brought delight to many. In the words of Abdullah’s racing manager: ‘He’s wonderful. The crowd’s reaction is great &nda… Read more

Sermon by on Sunday 21st October 2012

Trinity 20

What a total waste of space. That is a pretty damning verdict on any building, or worse still, person. But it begs the questions, how is something a waste of space; is space something that can be wasted? Or is that just an idea of a modern, functional mind. Space is really quite important in… Read more

Sermon by on Sunday 21st October 2012

Trinity 19

Woe to you Chorazin! Woe to you Bethsaida!...and you Capernaum. The boat engine was off, and we were yet to dance. Some fishermen were visible in another boat in the distance and the sounds of their voices were just audible over the sound of lapping water. The lake, which only a couple of hou… Read more

Sermon by on Sunday 14th October 2012

The eighteenth Sunday after Trinity

I love iced gems.  For me, they’re bound up with childhood memories; it’s the trivia that fuels social banter. Why’s a jaffa cake a cake not a biscuit? To dunk or not to dunk your digestive? Custard cream or bourbon? Seemingly inconsequential remarks touch on questions of se… Read more

Sermon by on Sunday 7th October 2012

The Seventeenth Sunday after Trinity - Eucharist

We are the Body of Christ… Bodies are funny things for human beings. We’ve all got one, they’re all pretty similar essentially, but it would seem, at least in the West, that many of us are rather dissatisfied with the one we’ve got. We have body image issues. This can… Read more

Sermon by on Sunday 30th September 2012

The Fifteenth Sunday after Trinity

Last month the New Statesman ran a piece about the so called ‘ink-stained assassins’; the political cartoonists who present zany artistic comments about domestic policy, economic crisis, international conflict and public figures. Their satire can be aggressive or light-hearted; their o… Read more

Sermon by on Sunday 16th September 2012

The Forteenth Sunday after Trinity: Baptism

Baptism: Sunday 9th September – James 2:1-10, 14-17; Mark 7:24-end A couple of weeks ago, in preparation for baptism, I asked Catherine why we light candles, she replied: we can put them on birthday cakes and when we blow them out we make a wish. She’s right of course. We’ve al… Read more

Sermon by on Sunday 9th September 2012