From the Vicarage

Who is your King ?

In the present lectionary, which gives us the names of our Sundays as well as the Bible readings for each one, the first Sunday of this month is called the Fourth Sunday before Advent. As this falls on November 5th, however, many people will be thinking of it chiefly as Guy Fawkes Day or Bonfire Night! The Gunpowder Plot was just over 400 years ago and was an attempt to destroy Parliament and overthrow King James I. For many years this murderous rebellion and the cruel reprisals which followed it were commemorated in a spirit of defiance, so we must be glad that the British sense of satire eventually turned Guy into a harmless figure of fun.

Sunday November 12th is Remembrance Sunday. The events of the World Wars and the other armed conflicts in the twentieth century are still too recent for us to feel anything except sorrow, and relief that they are over. Even now our country is sadly embroiled in fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq, even if our aims are to bring better governments to these peoples. As we remember those who have died in war we must also consider how we can avoid confrontations in the future and learn to promote peace and goodwill.

November 26th, the Sunday before Advent, is called Christ the King.
This is a day set apart to remember where our real peace and leadership lies. It is a day for reflecting on the total authority which Christ has been given over heaven and earth, and on the way in which some of that authority has been delegated to us in the freedom which we have been given. If we turn to God and claim Jesus as our Captain and our King he will lead us in his work of establishing his Kingdom on earth - the Kingdom of peace, truth and love. Without Jesus and the help of his Holy Spirit our best efforts are likely to end in anarchy or chaos, as we meet head on against others going their own way. But march under the banner of Christ, clothed in his armour of light, wearing the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness, the girdle of truth and the shoes of the Gospel of Peace, and carrying the shield of faith and the sword of the Spirit, and you will be doing your part in bringing about the fulfilment of the prayer ‘Your Kingdom come, on earth as it is in heaven.’

With every blessing,

Ann

The above is the lead article from the parish magazine for November 2006.
If you wish to receive the full magazine it is available for a subscription of £3 per year from Mrs Mavis Bradley on 01322 338654 or email parishmag at sladegreen dot org

Index of the previous magazine articles