Paul Hardingham continues his new series.
What’s the Big Idea? An Introduction to the Books of the Old Testament:
1 and 2 Samuel.
1 and 2 Samuel was originally a single work, which focuses on Samuel, Saul and David, around 1,000 BC, mid-way between Abraham and Jesus. It was Samuel who established the monarchy in Israel after the period of the judges. He was commanded by God to give the people a king, although their request is seen as a rejection of God’s rule over Israel (8:7).
The people simply wanted to be like other nations, however their king was still subject to God’s law and the word of the prophet. Although Samuel anointed Saul, he soon showed an unwillingness to submit to these requirements, leading to his rejection as king (15:23). God chose David as Saul’s successor, and 1 Samuel depicts David’s years of waiting until the right time arrived to claim the throne.
2 Samuel depicts David’s rule, in which the nation prospers and its enemies are defeated. The promise of the perfect king is fulfilled in Jesus Himself, as David’s descendant. The second half of the book depicts the darker side of David’s reign, describing his weaknesses and failures, including his adultery with Bathsheba and the rebellion of his son Absalom.
Nevertheless, David remained a man after God’s own heart: ‘The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.’ (1 Samuel 16:7). The characters in this book are not always great examples of faith, however, ‘They do not show us how we should live but how in fact we do live, authenticating the reality of our daily experience as the stuff that God uses to work his purposes of salvation in us and in the world.’ (Eugene Peterson).
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Prospect of winter energy bills causing anxiety for millions, says Archbishop of York
Millions are looking ahead to this winter with ‘fear and anxiety’ about the cost of heating their homes, the Archbishop of York has said as he backed the recent launch of a campaign to provide a network of warm spaces for people who struggle to pay their energy bills.
Archbishop Stephen Cottrell is encouraging churches to consider getting involved in the Warm Welcome campaign, a network of venues from community centres to churches providing warm spaces over the winter for people struggling to heat their homes
.
Archbishop Stephen said: “Sadly, what began as a cost-of-living crisis has simply become the new normal for many.
“Millions of people will look ahead to this winter with fear and anxiety, wondering how they are going to cope with high living costs. That is why I am proud to endorse the Warm Welcome campaign this winter.
“But a warm welcome isn’t only about the temperature. It is about kindness and community, giving people the chance to be seen and known, to belong and to be part of something. It is about celebrating the God-given value and dignity of every single person, finding hope and community together. But of course, none of that will happen if people are cold.”
The Warm Welcome campaign is led by a coalition of over 50 charitable organisations who joined together in response to the cost of living crisis to provide emergency support to communities struggling to pay for rising food costs and to heat their homes.
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The mysterious ways of mistletoe
Mistletoe has long been used as part of our Christmas decorations. It is not your usual kind of plant.
Instead, it is hemiparasitic, meaning that although its leaves enable it to feed itself through photosynthesis, its roots invade the host tree or shrub to extract water and other nutrients
.
Mistletoe loves living in apple, lime, hawthorn, poplar or oak trees. You may spot it high up, as a large globe, on the bare trees in winter. There is one spectacular example in Windsor Great Park, clearly visible from the path on the opposite side of the Thames
.
Mistletoe’s berries are almost translucent, fleshy and sticky. They form in the forks of mistletoe’s many branches. While they are toxic to humans, they are attractive to birds, who wipe the remaining seeds off their beaks onto the nearest branch, which of course helps the plant to spread.
For some reason, Romans thought mistletoe represented Peace, Love and Understanding. Perhaps that is how it got into our Christmas celebrations? The earliest documentary evidence for kissing under mistletoe dates from the 16th century, but we don’t know who got kissed first.
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Doctor Livingstone, I presume?
It was 150 years ago, on 10th November 1871, that Welsh journalist and explorer Henry Morton Stanley located the missing missionary Dr David Livingstone near Lake Tanganyika, in present-day Tanzania. He may or may not have greeted him with the words: “Doctor Livingstone, I presume?”
Stanley’s real name was John Rowlands. He was born in Denbigh to an unmarried 18-year-old who abandoned him. He ended up in a workhouse until he was 15, then went to America, where he changed his name and became an American citizen. When he found Livingstone, he was working for the New York Herald.
Known for his strength of will, Stanley also had an African name – Bula Matari – Breaker of Rocks. Much of his life was spent in Central Africa, and his reputation was mixed: he was said by some to be violent toward Africans, but by others to have treated them well. His feats as an explorer were impressive: he played a big part in locating the true source of both the Nile and the Congo, and he helped open up the Congo on behalf of King Leopold of Belgium.
Though not overtly religious, he felt he was engaged in a “sacred task”. He was re-naturalised a British subject in 1892, following his marriage.
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All in the month of March
It was:
300 years ago, on 8th March 1723 that Sir Christopher Wren, English architect, died. Best known for designing St Paul’s Cathedral.
125 years ago, on 16th March 1898 that Aubrey Beardsley, British illustrator, died. His black ink drawings, influenced by Japanese woodcuts, contributed to the development of Art Nouveau.
100 years ago, on 4th March 1923 that Patrick Moore, the amateur astronomer, TV presenter, writer and musician was born. Best known for presenting the TV astronomy show The Sky at Night for over 50 years. (Died 2012)
80 years ago, on 13th March 1943 that the final liquidation of Krakow Ghetto in Poland took place. 8,000 Jews were transported to Plaszow labour camp, 2000 more were simply killed in the streets, and the rest were sent to Auschwitz.
70 years ago, on 19th March 1953 that the Academy Awards ceremony (the Oscars) were televised for the first time.
Also 70 years ago, on 26th March 1953 that Dr Jonas Salk announced that he had completed the first small-scale test of a polio vaccine. Larger tests began in February 1954, and mass vaccinations began in April 1955.
65 years ago, on 2nd March 1958 that the first land crossing of Antarctica was completed by the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition, led by Vivian Fuchs. The team of 12 men travelled 2,158 miles from Shackleton Base to Scott Base (via the South Pole) in 99 days, using six vehicles.
60 years ago, on 22nd March 1963 that the British Secretary of State for War, John Profumo, made a statement in the House of Commons in which he denied there was any impropriety in his relationship with Christine Keeler, a model who was also in a sexual relationship with a drug dealer and a Soviet naval attaché. (In June he admitted he had lied, and resigned.)
50 years ago, on 8th March 1973 that the citizens of Northern Ireland voted in a referendum to remain within the United Kingdom. That same day the IRA carried out its first bombing in Britain since WWII, planting car bombs in London. One person died, 200 were injured.
40 years ago, on 6th March 1983 that Donald Maclean, British-born Soviet spy died. He was a member of the Cambridge Spy Ring.
Also 40 years ago, on 26th March 1983, that Anthony Blunt, British art historian and Soviet spy, died.
25 years ago, on 16th March 1998 that Rwanda began mass trials for the country’s 1994 genocide. There were 125,000 suspects for 500,000 murders.
20 years ago, on 1st March 2003 that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the al-Qaeda terrorist who masterminded the 9/11 attacks on the USA, was captured in Pakistan.
Also 20 years ago, on 12th March 2003 that the World Health Organisation issued a global alert about a severe form of pneumonia (now known as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome – SARS) that was affecting people in China, Hong Kong and Vietnam.
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Isherwood Hall. (The original hall)
Tables and chairs are available.
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August 2024 Magazine
As always thanks to all who have contacted us and sent us comments and articles for inclusion. Please keep in touch and send us things.
We think there is a lot of interest in the articles we have chosen and that it is ideal for you to dip in and out of and not read them all at once !!! Don't forget to read our Edna's articles.
Pauline & Bob - co-editors..
Updated 1st August 2024
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Dear Friends,
Norma
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FAREWELL HILARY
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June Diary Page
Holy Communion service each Sunday at 9.00am (Said BCP service)
Sung Eucharist each Sunday at 10.00am (Common Worship)
Holy Communion each Tuesday at 10.00am (Said BCP service)
Evensong (BCP) each Sunday at 6.30pm apart from the First Sunday in the month when there is Compline at 6.30pm
There will be NO Bible Study on Monday evenings until further notice
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A REMINDER…..
What is Festival Teesside?
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Canon Paul Hardingham considers the similarities between faith and sport.
The Euros 24
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The Rev'd Dr Jo White considers church towers.
Reflecting Faith: Church Towers.
Last month I wrote about the 612 newly built churches in towns around 1818 – 1830 that cost a total of one and a half million pounds, following the huge population move from the countryside to living in towns.
This month I wanted to think about the highest part of the church building – the tower.
This is the aspect that is most recognisable from a distance; the element that almost defines the church building.
Have you ever seen a church building without a tower? Most religions use this same structure on their buildings, so clearly there must be overlapping reasons for this. But there is not just one design even within religions.
The structures of all buildings are dependent on the materials available, the architectural knowledge, the purpose, the fashion of the day as well as the finance available.
Norfolk churches in particular have ‘special’ towers. There are around – pun intended! – 181 round church towers in England of which 126 are in Norfolk. They were built from as early as the ninth century onwards
So what was going on there?
Some argue that because of the flatness of the land these were thought to be more stable; while others think that it was because the materials available locally were small pieces of flint which cannot be easily worked or dressed but when set into mortar can create handsome and stable walls and buildings.
In many parts of the UK flint is used to face the outside of buildings but here they were used to be the foundational element so long as ‘corners’ were not required.
This month:
Have a look at a church tower near you. What shape is it? Perhaps you can get to see inside it? How is it attached to the main body of the building? Is it at one end, central etc?
What is it used for today and what do you think its original purpose was or purposes were?
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By the Revd Peter Crumpler, a Church of England priest in St Albans, Herts,
and a former communications director for the C of E.
Chaplains keep faith in football
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Canon Paul Hardingham continues a new series which will run until 2025.
What’s the Big Idea? – an Introduction to 1 and 2 Kings.
1 & 2 Kings is a single literary work telling the history of Israel’s monarchy from the end of David’s reign until the Babylonian exile following the fall of Jerusalem (586 BC). After Solomon’s reign, Israel was divided into two kingdoms: Israel to the north and Judah in the south. In the north 20 rulers reigned over 210 years until the fall of Samaria (722 BC).
In the southern kingdom there were also 20 rulers, spanning a period of 345 years.
This account is not like reading a modern history book. The author views the story through the lens of God’s relationship with His people. The welfare of Israel depended on their leaders’ trust and obedience in God, e.g. Solomon building the Temple, as well as listening to the prophets e.g. Elijah and Elisha. The kings who receive the most attention are those whose disobedience is greatest (e.g. Ahab and Manasseh) or those who truly follow God (eg. Hezekiah and Josiah).
The book ends with exile in Babylon, fulfilling God’s warning of the consequences of disobedience for both kingdoms (cf Dt 28:64–68). However, this doesn’t mean that there is no hope for the future. At the end of the book, Jehoiachin is released from prison in Babylon, and he is given a place of honour (2Ki 25:27-30). The future remains open for God to fulfill His promises to the house of David.
‘We begin to realise that if God’s sovereignty is never cancelled out by the so deeply sin-flawed leaders (‘kings’) in both our culture and our church, we can quite cheerfully exult in God’s sovereignty as it is being exercised in all the circumstantial details of the actual present.’ (E Peterson).
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MIDDLESBROUGH CENTRAL LIBRARY
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Tony Horsfall, a retreat leader and author recommends a different type of prayer….
Using rest to pray
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by the Revd Dr Roger Roberts
Do you struggle with doubt?
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4th August – Sithney, the saint who preferred mad dogs to women
You know how some men find some women’s interest in romance and clothes hard to cope with? Well, Sithney (or Sezni) should be the patron saint of all such men.
According to a Breton folk legend, Sithney was a hermit of long ago, minding his own business, when one day God told him that he was going to make him the patron saint of girls. Sithney was horrified. He foresaw a future where thousands of young women were forever plaguing him to find them good husbands and fine clothes… the thought of it appalled him. So Sithney begged God for some other job, something more peaceful, than dealing with young women. “Very well,” said God. “You can look after mad dogs, instead.”
Sithney replied cheerfully: “I’d rather have mad dogs than women, any day.” And so it was. Since that time, young women have pestered other saints to bring them husbands and fine clothes, while sick and mad dogs have been taken to drink water from the well of St Sezni, patron of Sithney, near Helston in Cornwall.
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Wayward washers
Edna Reddy
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Forget the lift. Use the stairs
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August Crossword
Across
1 and 3 Two of the disciples who witnessed the transfiguration of Jesus (Luke 9) (4,3,5)
3 See 1 Across
8 ‘Let us draw — to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith’
(Hebrews 10) (4)
9 O Simon is (anag.) (8)
11 Form of government under the direct rule of God or his agents (10)
14 How Jesus found his disciples when he returned to them after praying in
Gethsemane (Luke 22) (6)
15 In The Pilgrim’s Progress, the name of the meadow into which Christian strayed,
which led to Doubting Castle (2-4)
17 Glad sin rat (anag.) (10)
20 Spinal column (Leviticus 3) (8)
21 Valley of the Balsam Tree with a reputation of being a waterless place
(Psalm 84) (4)
22 ‘The oracle of Balaam son of Beor, the oracle of one — — sees clearly’
(Numbers 24) (5,3)
23 Adam and Eve’s third son (Genesis 4) (4)
Down
1 David’s great friend (1 Samuel 20) (8)
2 ‘The Lord... will bring me safely to his — kingdom’ (2 Timothy 4) (8)
4 ‘I, Daniel, mourned for three weeks. I ate no choice food; — — or wine touched my lips’ (Daniel 10) (2,4)
5 Seeking to vindicate (Job 32) (10)
6 Female servant (Isaiah 24) (4)
7 ‘For Christ died for — once for all’ (1 Peter 3) (4)
10 ‘Offering spiritual sacrifices — to God through Jesus Christ’ (1 Peter 2) (10)
12 Jesus said that some people had renounced this ‘because of the kingdom of heaven’ (Matthew 19) (8)
13 One of the three men thrown into the furnace (Daniel 3) (8)
16 ‘You have — of good things laid up for many years.’ (Luke 12) (6)
18 ‘There before me was a white horse! Its rider held — — , and he was given a crown’ (Revelation 6) (1,3)
19 Equipment to Charity Hospitals Overseas (1,1,1,1)
July Answers
ACROSS: 1, Sabbatical. 7, Opinion. 8, Laing. 10, Olga. 11, Galilean. 13, Sardis. 15, Severe. 17, Adultery. 18, Flea. 21, Swazi. 22, Acetate. 23, Revelation.
DOWN: 1, Sling. 2, Brim. 3, Annual. 4, Ill-timed. 5, Abilene. 6, Colossians. 9, Gennesaret. 12, Diatribe. 14, Roulade. 16, Errata. 19, Learn. 20, Levi.
Winners Peter Warren
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June Anagrams
GEOMETRICAL SHAPES
Rearrange these letters to form the names of 10 geometrical shapes. Each answer consists of one word only.
1. GILT RANE 2. GOAT PENN 3. GREAT CLEN 4. MY DRAIP 5. MORAL PEAR GALL 6. DRINCELY
7. PRUIT MAZE 8. A REAL RAD QUILT 9. LICE CRIMES 10. OX NEAGH
Compiled by Peter Warren
May Anagram Answers
CASTLES:
1. RICHMOND 2. SCARBOROUGH 3. MIDDLEHAM 4. CONISBROUGH 5. ALNWICK 6. AUCKLAND 7. LINDISFARNE
8. CHILLINGHAM 9. DUNSTANBURGH 10. PONTEFRACT 11. HELMSLEY
Winner Wyn Hirst
Send your answers with your name to the editors.
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Sudoku
May Answer
Winner
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Contacting an old friend can be nerve-wracking
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Would you recognise your GP?
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Lester Amann considers the work of King Hezekiah
Tunnels
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Chicken Chorizo and Rice
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The RSPCA celebrates 200 years
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Editor: The Revd Dr Gary Bowness continues his tongue-in-cheek letters from ‘Uncle Eustace’…
The Rectory
St James the Least of All
My dear Nephew Darren
Well, at least you tried. Filling in for another colleague who was away on holiday was kind of you; that it was somewhere with a high church tradition was adventurous of you. But just because something is worth doing, must you do it to such excess?
I can remember the first time I saw you having to use incense; you held the thurible as though you had just been presented with a dead rat. This time, however, I am told that you heated so much charcoal that the congregation thought you were going to hold a barbecue rather than burn incense.
The church warden was impressed with how quickly everyone knelt down, as you went by. If it was in more of an effort to stay clear of your thurible than to pray; well never mind, at least they were on their knees. And I am entirely on your side; you were not to know that their new fire protection system included automatic sprinklers, activated when too much smoke is detected. I am sure most of them would have dried out by Evensong.
You told me that you had not been sure what to do with the thurible when you reached the front. But swinging it so enthusiastically that the chain broke and catapulted several pounds weight of red-hot brass through one of their stained glass windows was really not the best solution. Never mind. I am sure the insurance company will be sympathetic.
But surely you knew that smells also implies bells? So why the panic when the server rang the bells in your ear beside the altar? To have promptly dropped the chalice and shouted, ‘fire!’ was surely something of an over-reaction? Especially as it meant that the verger re-started the sprinkler system. I am told that several in the congregation left church looking as if they had taken part in a mass baptism, involving full immersion whilst fully clothed.
I am told that you actually even wore full robes, rather than your customary T-shirt and jeans. Just one tip: should you ever wear them again, you might wish to wear the chasuble right side out. But that is a small point compared to the ‘hat’, as you called it. My dear nephew, wherever did you get it from? That is only worn by a bishop – and even then, the two tabs hang at the back, not over your face.
I am told that some of the congregation feared that in some frightful ‘fresh expression’ of episcopal rule, you had suddenly been handed control of the diocese. With the Church of England in its present woeful state, I suppose anything is possible.
Your loving uncle,
Eustace
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This is a rubbish campaign
Our world has an urgent rubbish problem. But Christians are uniting to take global action.
So says the charity Tearfund, as it launches a campaign to highlight the threat of the growing mountains of plastic pollution.
“Two billion people have no safe way to dispose of rubbish, and it’s people in poverty who are suffering the worst impacts of this rubbish problem,” says the charity. “They are forced to live and work among piles of waste, which is making them sick, releasing toxic fumes, flooding communities and causing up to a million deaths each year.
“But Jesus told His followers that even the smallest amount of faith can move mountains. So, we are asking you to put your faith into action and join us in demanding an end to plastic pollution.”
And just now there is a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to do just that,” explains Tearfund.
“During 2023 and now 2024, nearly 150 governments have been meeting to develop the 
first-ever global treaty on plastic pollution. But it’s not a done deal. Please add your voice to demand an end to plastic pollution and its harmful impact on people living in poverty.”
If you would like to know more and consider signing the petition, go to:
https://www.tearfund.org/campaigns/rubbish-campaign
Tearfund is part of the Renew Our World and #BreakFreeFromPlastics coalitions.
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by Tim Lenton
The D-Day Normandy Landings
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by Tim Lenton
The disappearance of George Mallory on Everest
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Do you forget where your keys or wallet are?
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by Tim Lenton
George Orwell of Nineteen Eighty-Four
Watching birds is positively good for you
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By the Revd Peter Crumpler, a Church of England priest in St Albans, Herts, and a former communications director for the C of E.
The wonderful world of Ladybird Books…
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Smile Lines
Game rules
During the local football game, the coach asked one of his young players: “Do you understand what cooperation is?” The little boy nodded yes. “Do you understand that what matters is winning together as a team?” The little boy nodded yes. “Okay,” the coach continued, “do you also understand that when the referee makes a decision, you don’t argue or curse or threaten to attack him, right?” Again, the boy nodded vigorously. “Good,” said the coach. “Now go over there and explain all that to your mother.”
Could have been worse
A very long train with two engines was making its way across America. While crossing the Western mountains, one of the engines broke down. Slowly, the train chugged on. Further along, the other engine broke down, and the train shuddered to a halt in the middle of nowhere. Not to be discouraged, the train driver announced: “Ladies and Gentlemen, I have good news and bad news. The bad news is that both engines have failed, and we will be stuck here for a couple of days until the additional engines arrive. The good news is that we are not making this announcement on a plane.”
True Story
A vicar entered a Christian bookshop to buy a popular book title. “Do you have ‘Time to Embrace’ please?” he asked. The astonished elderly lady assistant responded by slapping him across the face.
Belonging
A vicar tells the true story of how, when he was a curate, the rector of a nearby parish used to like not only to attend all the parish groups, but also to identify himself with them by belonging to them, so that he could address them as “We Scouts”, “We Rotarians,” etc. One day he went too far and began: “We mothers…”
Sounds off
A minister was complaining about the noise of traffic in the town. He told the Town Council: “Sometimes when we have something on in church, all hell is let loose.”
**
Grave warning
Road sign outside the gates of a cemetery:
Drive carefully. We don’t mind waiting for you.
**
True Story
My father had a medical condition that meant regular visits to hospital. The local funeral director was a good family friend, and had been very helpful giving dad lifts to and from the hospital.
On one occasion, a few hours before he was due to come home, the ward sister approached my father with a grin. “Your wife is on the phone,” she said. “She wants to know what time you would like the undertaker to collect you?”
**
Fearless in the line of fire
A six-year-old girl was taken by her grannie to a very ‘high’ Anglican church. Afterwards she tried to explain to her father what it had been like. “They tried to run us out – they brought in a smoke bomb and shook it at all the people in the front row. But grannie wasn’t scared one bit. We stayed until the very end.”
**
No peace
Some years ago, a parish newsletter in a Surrey village announced: “Prayers for peace this month have been cancelled, because of the new vicar coming to St Christopher’s.”
**
Move it
A South London clergyman who was appointed to another living received a letter from a firm of furniture removers. It assured him: “Dear Sir, we would like to remove you. In the last year we have removed 40 South London clergymen, to the entire satisfaction of all concerned.”
**
Yum yum
A notice outside Chichester Cathedral advertised lunchtime concerts with the encouragement that: “Sandwiches may be eaten.” Someone had scribbled underneath: “So if you are a sandwich, don’t come!”
**
Miscellaneous observations on life
Weight loss goal: To be able to clip my toenails and breathe at the same time.
On TV, people can flip a whole house in a month. Meanwhile, I’ve been ‘getting ready to vacuum’ for a week now.
We’ve got stained glass windows in our house. Stupid pigeons.
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The views expressed in this magazine are those of the contributors and do not necessarily reflect those of St Mary's, it's clergy, the Church of England
or the Editors.