News from the Pews

Hello my brothers and sisters in Christ.

Over the next few weeks, the Church will be celebrating two important festivals - Harvest and Dedication festivals.

Harvest thanksgiving celebration is an important time in the lives of Christians and the Church. Its origins are usually traced to the adaptation in 1843 of Lammas Day by the Revd R. S. Hawker. It was first recognised officially in the Church of England in 1862. It is a time when we give thanks to God for all his blessings and for our beautiful Church. For what the Earth has given us and what our human hands have made. For the fruit of the vine and the work of human hands. Giving thanks for all the poor farmers and farm workers of the world. Giving thanks for all the food we collected for those in our community who have less than us and above all, I think it is a time when God is asking each of us how fruitful we have been this year...

As Christians, have we been bearing fruits of the same type, quality and substance in Jesus... "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control" (Galatians 5:22-23).

The Dedication Festival is the time when we celebrate the anniversary of the opening of St Andrew's Church for worship. During the month of October when we celebrate the Dedication Festival, it is perfectly appropriate to look around this building and see how it expresses our purpose here. Lecterns are traditionally in the shape of an eagle, the symbol of St John the Evangelist and the bird that soars highest and sees furthest, representing the reach of the Word of God over all the Earth. We give thanks to God's gift of His word through scripture.

We give thanks for the power of the Holy Spirit, the gift of the risen Jesus himself, meeting us in the sacrament at the altar.  The building we are dedicating is where we worship God but the Temple, the Body of Christ, is built from living stones of all of us who have been baptised. Built on Christ as the cornerstone, we become living stones of this spiritual Temple. In response to Christ’s offer of himself for our sakes, through our baptism we are brought into the mystery of this union with Christ and we offer ourselves, our souls and bodies, to be a living sacrifice, as we say every Sunday in the post communion prayer.

We are quite a traditional Church in the English Catholic tradition. Giveaways are things like having two candles on the altar, not six as in a Roman Catholic Church. We have a safe in the wall at the altar called an Ambry where a few consecrated wafers from the Parish Eucharist are reserved, which means they are kept for the communion of the sick, and a lamp is always lit to indicate that Christ is present in the sacrament. That is the sign of a Church in the Catholic tradition.

The great Pipe Organ and the Lectern Bible are traditional things to find in an Anglican Church. How we worship, how we furnish and decorate our Church, are important signs of our identity as a Christian community with a particular shared history and connection to traditions that we value. 

Over the past few weeks, I have been thinking and praying about our mission in the community and the role God is calling each one of us to play and asking God to help us make the right decision as to the best way to improve our Church, to make it a place of worship that is welcoming and fit for purpose for future generations to come. It is important that everyone contributes to the decision-making process. I would like you to pray about this asking God the role He is asking you to play and how you can contribute to the ministry of this Church.

But of course, a beautiful Church, rich liturgy and heavenly music would only add up to a concert if the heart of worship is missing.  We are not spectators at a performance but living stones who are part of the Temple of Christ’s Body.  If worship is an exchange of gifts, it requires participation and not simply observation.

When we offer God our souls and bodies to be a living sacrifice, then we may find God takes us at our word.  We shouldn’t say these words and then walk out the door for another week being forgetful of God, living as if our faith made no difference to our lives.  As we look forward to celebrating and dedicating our Church and ourselves this month let us pray to God to give us grace to take out from our beloved building, an openness to God in every part of our lives, so that the exchange of gifts we celebrate here may transform us, and through us God’s world and his people.

Let us also pray that together, we can work to make our Church a place where many generations to come will feel comfortable and welcome, a place to nurture and inspire children and young people, a place where communities can live happily side by side and where people can grow old together, with security and hope that will support them to the end of their lives. Amen.

God’s blessing and Grace always

Reverend Olasupo Ogunyinka.