Viewing all items in Resource Category: Looking at God

In the Nicene Creed we say ‘We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.’ In the gospel accounts of the resurrection there is a lot of looking and seeing. Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Salome went early to the tomb. They saw the stone...

This Easter marks the 150th birthday of this much-loved hymn, sung each year by millions of Christians worldwide.  It all began on a little pump organ in the living room of a college professor in Pennsylvania, back in 1874. Robert Lowry was professor of literature at Bucknell University, and pastor of a nearby church. He...

Are you a pet-lover? Many people own a dog, a cat or a budgie, but most of us don’t own a donkey!  Yet in Bible times, donkeys were essential to daily life. They did everything from helping to grind corn, to ploughing, to carrying people, to transporting their belongings.  Despite their small frame, donkeys are...

“He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement that bought us peace was upon Him and by His stripes we are healed.” Isaiah 53:4-6 Coventry Cathedral uses as its emblem the Coventry Passion Cross – three nails together forming the Cross of Christ.  Here is my reflection on the...

On the moors near to where I used to live in West Yorkshire, there were a couple of large stones with crosses marked on them. Many people thought that they were boundary or marker stones, and in so far as they marked the way towards the oldest church in that area they were. To be more exact,...

These books are concerned with Israel’s wandering in the desert, on their journey from slavery in Egypt to the promised land of Canaan. Leviticus focuses on the regulations about worship, ceremonial cleanness, moral laws and holy days. The key theme is that of holiness, as every detail of our lives is affected by the presence...

 It is perhaps a well-polished truth, but one well worth remembering again: when it comes to salvation, “We were justified by faith alone, through grace alone, but we are not sanctified by faith alone”. In other words, we are made acceptable to God only through the death and resurrection of Jesus, who dealt with our...

‘Lenten Valentines’ What’s the Big Idea? An Introduction to the Books of the Bible: Exodus What’s so special about Jesus? Reflecting Faith:  Memorial Stones Life on a spin What is the point of temptation? ** Editor:  Canon Paul Hardingham considers the subject of ‘real love’. If you are struggling for a Minister’s Letter this month,...

This month both Ash Wednesday and Valentine’s Day fall on the same day! The link between the two can be summed up in terms of the nature of real love! Lent, beginning on Ash Wednesday, focuses on learning to love God more, as we give Him space in our lives. This is what Jesus found...

This month we are looking at Exodus, the second book of the Old Testament. Its name means departure, reminding us that Israel’s flight out of slavery in Egypt is the major focus of the book. Exodus is a book of two halves! The first part (chapters 1-19 & 32-34) is the story of an oppressed...

The gospels record that people were astounded by many of the things that Jesus said. Even His enemies, intent on trapping Him, admitted: “No one ever spoke the way this man does.” (John 7:46) Furthermore, “the crowds were amazed at His teaching, because He taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers...

Last month we began to look at the outside of the church building. When you last visited a churchyard with very old memorials, what did you notice? The oldest stones probably just had the name of the person, date of death and perhaps their age. But the slightly more recent stones may well have included...