The liturgical calendar has its seasons
From the Vicar
Lent
God has gifted our natural world with seasons. Summer, Autumn, Winter, Spring. It keeps our world vibrant and evolving. Plants need the change in temperature, light, and moisture to grow. We too grow with the seasons - at least my waistline certainly seems to grow in those long winter months! The liturgical calendar has its seasons too, and for the same purpose. We need that change to trigger growth. Lent is perhaps an autumnal season. It’s one of quiet, stillness, introspection and reflection. It encourages us to shed those parts of ourselves that no longer bring life. It’s a time to prune back to a simplicity of life, or a centrality of being. It is a time to look at death, knowing that life will soon spring up again.
I pray that you’ll engage with this season.
Perhaps think of these three categories to
Simplify: What can you abstain from for a season? It might be a particular food, or an app, or a luxury. In fasting we find the joy of simplicity and are called to rely on God for our needs.
Study: Join a lenten study, read some theology, return to a habit of Bible reading. In Lent we take time to search for the voice of God in these things.
Serve: Love is a verb. Support a charity, reach out to a neighbour, cook a meal for someone who needs it.
Covid
Aotearoa has been blessed. Through strong national leadership by government, the hard work of healthcare professionals, and with the care of individuals we’ve managed to keep the worst of the pandemic at bay. Now with the much more transmissible omicron variant, the virus seems much closer than it previously has been.
As a church, we must continue to show love to neighbour and care for the sanctity of life by doing our bit to slow the spread of the virus and protecting those most vulnerable to it. We are doing that in our worship by wearing masks, staying distanced, requiring vaccinations, and limiting liturgical contact points. We plan to continue to meet in person for as long as it remains sensible, but I wouldn’t be surprised if at some point we return to online services for a short season, with the speed of the virus.
In the meantime, please continue to practice good hand hygiene, and stay at home and get tested if you show any symptoms.
Building
There continue to be some delays with the work, and at this stage is seems unlikely that we will be back in for Easter. Potential workforce and supply disruptions due to covid means any completion date is tentative, but we now hope to be in before May.
Recent From the Vicar
Upcoming services
Noteworthy
Upcoming events
