All the way to London for a carol service!!

 

It seems a little ironic that we found ourselves sitting in St Gabriel, Aldersbrook, Wanstead for a Carol service on Sunday evening. It seems like a long way to go for such a service.

Well our London family have moved church and Emily has been part of the childrens choir. While we couldn't make the Christingle we were able to head to London promptly on Sunday so we could be there for the service and see her sing in the choir. 

The Church is a traditional Anglo-Catholic parish that clearly has a tradition of a choir helping to lead worship. So it was a delight to sit in a fairly full church to share in a candle lit service of carols readings and poetry for Christmas. There were lots of families present which was good to see.


The parish priest seems like a very gentle individual who is clearly seeking to engage with the wider community. He's tried a pop up church for families with small children to messy church etc. It is good to know that people are willing to try these things and take a risk. 

The choir was good and so were the musicians. It was a delight to have a poem from the late Benjamin Zephaniah 'We Refugees'. Not only did the poem serve as a reminder that Mary and Joseph and the infant Jesus went to Egypt as refugees, but the truth all of us came from somewhere, so how dare our government play the racist card for their own political ends? 

And yes it was good to be there for our granddaughter.



Being able to attend another christian church with a different tradition reveals how rich Christ's community is. I recently attended my local Iona Community Family Group and in conversation reflected how sad it was to be living in a place where ecumenically things are a bit poor. Someone commented that "the Ecumenical tide has gone out". Well all I can Hope and pray for is that it will come back in again. For surely now more than ever before as Christians of all traditions struggle to survive we need to pool our resources to be more effective. We need to show to a divided world how in Christ we are One and can hold very diverse tensions without coming to blows. 


Jesus you invite people to follow you,
to join your company.
We don't get to choose 
who you choose.
So help us accept others
as you accept them.
To see them 
as you see them.
To love them 
as you love them.
And to be surprised
that they might not be Christians
and yet
we might become One.                      (c) Mark Goodhand 19th December 2023




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