"The first time I heard the phrase 'Hail Mary' was on the rugby pitch."

The first time I heard the phrase ‘Hail Mary’ was on the rugby pitch. A Hail Mary is a rugby pass that is so high that the person receiving the ball could not watch out for oncoming players, they therefore would have time to pray that they did not get clobbered in the oncoming tackle.

By the time I was a teenager I had learned that Hail Mary was an important prayer.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you.
Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners,
Now and at the hour of our death. Amen

What I’ve always found so touching about this prayer is that I’m asking Mary to pray for me. But who was this woman who I am asking to pray for me? Within the great tradition of the Orthodox Church, Mary is known as the Theotokos, mother of God, but to understand what that means we must reflect on the biblical texts.

Within the biblical traditions we are told that Mary grew up in Nazareth, a small village in Galilee. It was there in that out of the way part of the Roman Empire that the Angel of the Lord, Gabriel, appeared to this astonishing young woman. In that moment; that amazingly brave young woman said:

Here I am, the servant of the Lord: let it be with me according to your word.

In this moment alone we see two of Mary’s great qualities: humility and courage. This is the kind of person that I have asked to pray for me.

Rowan Williams writes

“What we call holy in the world - a person, a place, a set of words or pictures – is so because the completely foreign is brought together with the familiar and the everyday.”

No one embodies this more than Mary, who literally makes a home for the Creator of all things in her own body and in her own house - the strangest reality we can conceive.

In her own body and in her own house.

Mary is the one that bore Jesus and the one that nurtured him through those early years of his life. The church believes that Jesus is both fully divine and human; therefore He must have taken after Mary, in her looks, her actions. Both would have spoken Aramaic with the same local accent. Jesus, we know had many gifts, but maybe the gifts of love, integrity and courage were influenced by his mother Mary?

And then there are two stories where we see how close mother and son were. In John’s Gospel, at the wedding feast of Cana there is the story of water being turned into wine; it is Mary, who tells the servants to listen to Jesus and it is Mary who gently pushes her son into beginning his ministry.

Then at the darkest moment of Jesus ministry, in the shadow of the cross, Mary is to be found. At the foot of the cross when others have run away Mary is still holding on and believing.

On this important day in the church’s calendar and in this most beautiful church dedicated to Mary, let us not forget her important role in the Christian story. And as we make our pilgrimage through life, let us be humble enough to ask others to pray for us and I would say do not be afraid to ask our Lord’s mother Mary to pray for you too.

Sermon preached on the Festival of the Blessed Virgin Mary at St Mary’s Church, Shrewsbury.

Fr Mark Chadwick

How do we know God?

If you are following this blog then there is a  chance that you already believe in God. Our belief in God can grow in many ways. Maybe you have been bought up in a family of faith that attends Church; or perhaps in school assemblies God is talked about in ways that you can respect and be inspired by. Sometimes we meet people or have friends whose Christian lives are witness to a God that we can no longer just ignore. 

When we talk about believing in something, we talk about that 'something' being true and real. It exists and we know it exists. Believing in God is like that; but it is also so much more. When we believe in God, we know he exists but we also put our trust in him. We trust him and have faith that he will enter into a loving relationship with each of us, care for us and guide us.

God can reveal himself to us in a number of ways:

The Bible. The bible is a collection of books written over a long period of time by many authors. They all had been inspired by God to record the history of God's relationship with mankind; how he has revealed himself to the world over many generations. The Bible also tells us about the life and teaching of Jesus and how he came into the world to save us. The Bible is a living text, as we read it we grow into relationship with God, the creator of all things.

Creation. God is often powerfully present in the world he has created. When we stand in awe and wonder looking at a beautiful sunset, or the stunning view from an aeroplane or mountain top. When we notice the amazing dexterity of animals and birds; the beauty of flowers and insects. When the storms are raging or the history of time is revealed in the rocks; when we gaze at the night sky of stars and planets. All of these moments can have a lasting impression on us and can make the presence of God more real.

Life Experiences. Our relationship with God can grow through our experiences and our conscience. As we gain experiences in life our conscience will respond. We will know what is right and wrong, which course of action to take or which things we should avoid. Through reading the Bible and engaging with the teachings of the Church we can come to know where god might be leading us; where God is present in our lives. Our conscience may sometimes try to explain some of life's events and timings as coincidences; but it may be that God is guiding and speaking to us through them. Over time God changes us and we become more aware of his presence around us.

Prayer is spending time with God, speaking and listening. Christians put their trust in a God of relationship, a God that loves them and cares for them. Prayer helps us draw closer to God, we want to love God; the source of our greatest happiness. When we pray we can use words or just sit quietly. Making ourselves available to God is time that cannot be wasted, it is God's time and therefore eternal.

Christians believe in a God of relationship, a God that we can come to know and who wants to know us and care for us. Our desire for God is part of being human, it is natural. So look around, see God in the world around you and in the experiences of your life. Pick up a Bible and read Mark's Gospel (the shortest one!) and spend some time each day with God in prayer.

Heavenly Father,
I offer you this day.
The work I do, the people I meet,
the pleasures and the problems.
That in everything, I may know
the love of our Lord Jesus Christ
and be truly thankful.

Amen

Click here for information on our season of 'Faith Confirmed'.

Are you envious because I am generous?

Are you envious because I am generous?
So the last will be first and the first will be last.”

Matthew 20:16



It is always a sad moment when we fail to see a gift being offered. It’s almost as if we believe it’s too good to be true as in that old expression, “There’s no such thing as a free lunch.”

One of the greatest gifts of all is the gift of gentleness known sometimes as kindness, tenderness or softness of action. Sadly this gift can be seen by some as weakness, they fail to see the value in this beautiful gift.

C. JoyBell C. writes

“Predators prey on gentleness, peace, calmness, sweetness and any positivity that they sniff out as weakness.”

In a world where power and authority are highly prized I suppose it is not surprising that a gift like gentleness can be overlooked. And therefore it can be very difficult to understand God as gentle as loving. Somehow, the God of wrath, the God of anger, the kind of God that acts like a regimental sergeant major of a bygone era, person who shouts, screams and puts us down, is the image of God that people cling to.

But in the gospel today Matthew challenges our understanding of God. He reminds us of our inability to see a gift of love so freely given. Matthew does not hold back:

“Are you envious because I am generous? So the last will be first and the first will be last.”

He reminds us that God’s generosity, gentleness, and love is so great that we find it hard to conceive.

The rules that we live under in this world are not the same as God’s kingdom. Here in today’s reading I am reminded that maybe I am not the first? Maybe I have not worked the hardest? Maybe I am not the most important? Yet God sees through all of that, and is able to show love, gentleness and kindness; ways that my world fails to understand.

Charles Gore, Bishop of Oxford and founding father of the Community of the Resurrection, said:

“The gospel is a radical text. The problem is we have heard it so often we have watered it down.”

Bearing this in mind, one of the aims for the seasons of Harvest, Kingdom and Advent is to look at ways to confirm our faith.

To re-examine, to open our eyes to see, to investigate what it is we believe:

What is your faith based on? The Ten Commandments, scripture, the creeds?

What do you value about your faith?

Why do you go to church?

We need time to reflect on our faith to ask ourselves what is the cornerstone of our belief.

Why is my faith so important to me? How does this faith help me on my journey of life? How does it aid me in this complex world.

To help reflect on these questions we are running a course confirming faith. It is there to help those who wish to be confirmed, although is also a course that all of us here can engage with. It has been designed so that people of all ages and time schedules can take part: online, or day/ evening meetings.

Even if you simply order the book and read it at your own leisure I believe it will be worth it.

Please do reflect and pray about this journey. I ask you to pray for people to come forward to be confirmed.

And I pray that you will all take up this challenge and in doing so, come to a new understanding of what your faith means to you. Thus we can really embrace the seasons of Harvest, Kingdom and Advent, that we may shine out God’s love for us and rediscover the joy of all these seasons and, eventually, Christmas.

Fr Mark Chadwick
September 2017


This sermon is one of a series given as part of our Faith Confirmed programme. A series of talks, classes, sermons and groups for Harvest, Advent and Christmas 2017-18

For details on the Faith Confirmed book written by Peter Jackson and Chris Wright, click the link.

Faith Confirmed - Preparing for Confirmation

Our Faith Confirmed season at St Chad's will run upto the Confirmation service, to be held on Sunday 17th December, and beyond into the New Year. During this time we will be using a wonderful book written by Peter Jackson and Chris Wright, 'Faith Confirmed - Preparing for Confirmation'.

 Copies of the book will be available to those who are attending the Confirmation Classes. It will also be useful to get a copy if you would like to revisit elements of the Christian Faith that you are unsure about, or feel you would like to spend time reflecting on.

Introduction from ‘Faith Confirmed’ by Peter Jackson and Chris Wright

'When we confirm something we say yes. At confirmation we say yes to Jesus’ call to follow him on our journey through life. We confirm our faith in him. Parents and godparents will usually have said yes for us when we were babies and unable to speak for ourselves at baptism, but confirmation give us the chance to say yes.

We have all had the experience of betting lost. This can happen because we have either no map or an inadequate one, or because our direction finder isn’t working properly. Confirming our faith in Jesus is like deciding to travel through life with a really accurate map or effective direction finder. This book aims to help you become familiar with the main feature of the ‘Christian map’.

On the contents page you will find its landmarks. Some of these will be familiar to you and others new. Although it will make sense if you read the book on your own, we hope you will share it with others. Just as planning a journey is more fun when you discuss it with others, so Christianity makes more sense when it’s experience and lived with other people. We hope also that you will refer back to this guide after your confirmation. On long journeys, we have to keep on checking our directions. To carry the ‘journey’ picture a bit further: why not see confirmation as a time to take stock of where you have come from and seek God’s help in preparing for what lies ahead?'

If you would like a copy to read at home the details are:

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: SPCK Publishing; 2 edition (1 Jan. 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0281064237
• ISBN-13: 978-0281064236

The book is available as a paperback from the  publisher and also in digital format and costs £9.99. Illuminate Bookshop in Shrewsbury will also be able to order you a copy.

Come! Follow Christ in the footsteps of St Chad

For details on our 'Faith Confirmed'  series of talks, classes, sermons and groups for Harvest, Advent and Christmas 2017-18 click here.

Faith Confirmed

A series of talks, classes, sermons and groups for Harvest, Advent and Christmas 2017-18

Come! Follow Christ in the footsteps of St Chad 

You are invited to join us on a pilgrimage of spiritual discovery.  Faith Confirmed is open to all and can be accessed by all to meet the needs of people of all ages living in a busy and demanding world.  Therefore, the parishes of St Chad and St Alkmund will offer everyone the opportunity to engage by: online resources, evening meetings, morning gatherings, classes, and printed material.

Come! Confirm your faith

Fr Mark Chadwick

Special Sermons at Evensong  - 6pm Sundays 

1 October        Fr Mark Chadwick       Reflecting on our Faith

22 October      Fr Leonard Parry-Jones   Prayer

5 November    Fr Alan Fell                       Sacraments  

19 November  Fr David Crowhurst           Music in Worship

Each service will be followed by a time for a reflection with the preacher and Fr Mark.

Morning Gatherings

after 10.30am Eucharist at St Alkmund’s, Thursdays

12 October

9 November

23 November

30 November

7 December

Spiritual Direction

Every Friday after the Eucharist, 9am – 10am

An opportunity to talk confidentially about your faith and prayer life.

Evening Sessions

3 Fishes, Fish Street (opposite St Alkmund’s) 8.30pm Thursdays

5 October

19 October

2 November – after the All Souls service

16 November

7 December

After school classes – time tbc to suit those attending

Tuesday 3 October –

Tuesday 17 October

Tuesday 7 November

Tuesday 21 November

Wednesday 6 December

Confirmation candidates are required to attend the following

Requiem Mass                                 12 November 6pm

Eucharist for Christ the King             26 November 10am

Advent Carol Service                          3 December 7pm

Liturgical Workshop            Tuesday 12 December 6pm-8pm

Christingle workshop          Saturday 16 December

Confirmation Service       Sunday 17 December 10am (Bishop Mark of Shrewsbury)

Online Resources

www.stchadschurchshrewsbury.com/confirmation

Sermons will be recorded and/or transcribed and available on our website.

Articles will be added to our blog (access via the webpage above), with opportunity to comment and question.

Printed Resources

Faith Confirmed, Preparing for Confirmation.  Peter Jackson and Chris Wright.  SPCK 2013. 

Items added to the blog will also be printed for those without internet access.

Fr Mark will be available after the Sunday 10am services at St Chad’s and St Alkmund’s for private conversations and also by email:

vicar@stchadschurchshrewsbury.com

The Feast of St Peter and St Paul

On June 29th we celebrate the Feast Day of St Peter and St Paul. Both were instrumental in growing and sustaining the early Church. At the time an unlikely pair for our Lord to choose; one an uneducated fisherman and the other a murderous fanatic of the law. 

Simon son of Jonah, called by God to become Peter, the rock on which the Church was to be built and the keeper of the keys of the kingdom of heaven. 

Saul of Tarsus, a persecutor of the early Church, converted by Christ on the road to Damascus and later baptised into the Christian community as Paul. He was to travel on great journeys of faith across the Mediterranean world proclaiming the Gospel to the gentiles. 

Both died as Martyrs in Rome, paying the ultimate price of their faith. 

Almighty God,

whose blessed apostles Peter and Paul
glorified you in their death as in their life:
grant that your Church,
inspired by their teaching and example,
and made one by your Spirit,
may ever stand firm upon the one foundation,
Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. 

Amen.

Common Worship Collect

Study Group - Week Six

Brexiteer’s Paradise

It’s a strange thing about islands; they are often seem a challenge to visit, but throughout history their dividing waters have tempted travellers, their separation from a greater land-mass clearly intimating that something especially precious and rare is to be found after the journey has been made to reach them.

At the end of the last Ice Age, human beings began to venture northwards as the ice receded.  About nine-and-a-half thousand B.C., what is now the North Sea was continuous land, joining our land-mass with that of Northern Europe. Groups came first to explore and hunt. Then they went back for their families and settled here. In the time that followed we became detached from the mainland and our island existence began.

Yet the seas when they arrived were not a major barrier. Celts came, Romans came, Saxons came, and Normans. We know that from an early date there was significant trade with the Mediterranean world and beyond. The monastery of Jarrow-Wearmouth, the home of the Venerable Bede, had collected from around the then known world the largest group of early manuscripts outside the Vatican, many in Greek. We might have become an island, but we were by no means isolated.

Trade and travel were strong in the Middle Ages and by then we had a small but significant Jewish population, migrant through eastern Europe. The widening of our ethnic range and our cultural contacts accelerated, though, as we became an increasingly-seafaring nation, with trade across the world, colonies and the naval strength to protect and extend such ventures.

By the nineteenth-century London had received many new arrivals. Huguenots from France had come long before, following the St.Barthlomew’s Day Massacre, bringing silk-weaving skills and the silk worms and mulberry trees necessary to sustain their trade. One such original tree still stands in Bethnal Green.

Near to London Docks it would have been impossible to miss the Chinese small traders and the distinctively-dressed Lascars. Spitalfields became the sanctuary for several waves of Jews taking refuge from the pogroms of Russia and Eastern Europe long before Hitler was born. Almost as a cosmopolitan symbol, a shop selling foreign wild animals was opened in the East End by a German named Jamrach. You could buy a tiger there, or a gigantic snake.

If we move forward to our own times, the great influx after WWII was from the West Indies, followed then by large numbers of emigrants from the Indian sub-continent. It was then with our membership of the EU, utilising its rule of free movement, that Europeans began to come here in large numbers, drawn by a higher standard of living, better security, and the knowledge that the British working population had become very discriminating about the kind of work it wished to do.

Then, last year, a referendum took place, the result of which is set to change a great deal. It appears that we shall once more have borders, our own national regulations governed by British law, and the capacity to legislate for taxation and duties independently of any other nation.

It seems clear that few believed the vote would reveal such a widespread desire to leave the EU. In the days following the voting sociologists, politicians, economists and journalists attempted to research the pattern of what had happened. The task proved difficult, but most  enquirers believed that the desire to re-establish sovereignty and the controlling of immigration were very high on the list of Brexiteers’ hopes.

Although there are calls from opposition parties for constant accountability during the present process of negotiation, in reality those outside Westminster and Whitehall are unlikely to play a large part in what happens. Most people see the future outcome in respect of trade, and in connection with our relationship with the EU and the nations of the EU, as a matter for pragmatic assessment as long as essential matters of sovereignty are upheld.

What, though, about our view of ‘the stranger’, the immigrant, the migrant worker? Our Lord talked willingly to the Samaritan woman at the well and told the story of the Good Samaritan. Jews and Samaritans normally did not speak to each other. St Paul sees division between people as the result of sin and inner separation from God and his truth. Thus unity, including a new kind of unity for those who have previously been either Jew or Gentile, is a priority in his thought.

Yet what the New Testament has to say about ‘the other’ is always expressed in terms of faith and a moral perspective born of faith. There is very little hint that ‘the stranger’ can be integrated on a purely secular basis. Yet it is also axiomatic that Christian people should always act in love and in hope and in the knowledge that fresh blood and diversity has in many respects through the centuries served us well in these islands.

If we look at history with broad vision, it becomes clear that, in various ways, grouping gives way to separation and then to new grouping again. We are now at a moment in Europe and North America when withdrawal from the greater unit, reversion to our own rules and a concern with identity and self-protection are all in the ascendant. Isolation is not a high human ideal; xenophobia, racial discrimination, persecution and ethnic cleansing much less so. We only have to observe what has been happening in some parts of Africa or the Middle East to see what horrors come with rejection of ‘the other’.

As we proceed we clearly need to have a share in the generosity of God; yet Jerusalem cannot be built with nothing but worldly stones. Perhaps, rather than tormenting our minds and consciences this is one of those relatively unusual situations where our primary duty to pray as against act becomes a particularly powerful priority.

Fr Alan