Reflection
Tomorrow is St Patrick’s Day, although some will be celebrating today, (17th March) even more so after they retained the Rugby Six Nations title!
The reason is simple enough, it is because ‘liturgically’ the Church does not celebrate any Saint on a Sunday. Last year, St George’s Day fell on Sunday 23rd and was transferred to Monday 24th. It’s good to know that Sunday remains focussed on Jesus.
St Patrick’s story in
essence is simply told.
Patrick was born in Britain of a Romanized family. When he was 16 years old, Irish raiders tore him from the villa of his father, Calpurnius, a deacon and minor local official, and carried Patrick into slavery in Ireland. He spent six bleak years there as a herdsman, during which time he turned with fervour to his faith. Upon dreaming that the ship in which he was to escape was ready, he fled his enslaver and found passage to Britain. There he came near to starvation and suffered a second brief captivity before he was reunited with his family. Thereafter he may have paid a short visit to the Continent.
The best-known passage in
the Confessio tells of a dream, after his return to Britain, in which one
Victoricus delivered him a letter headed “The Voice of the Irish.” As Patrick
read it, he seemed to hear a certain company of Irish beseeching him to walk
once more among them. “Deeply moved,” he says, “I could read no more.”
Nevertheless, because of the shortcomings of his education, he was reluctant
for a long time to respond to the call. Even on the eve of his re-embarkation
for Ireland, he was beset by doubts of his fitness for the task.
As I hear this story, I am
reminded of the story from Prison Fellowship in one of their recent missives about Henry…
Henry was a
learner on the first Sycamore Tree course that our Volunteer, Brian,
facilitated. Henry also spent a lot of time in the prison chapel and became a
Christian while serving his sentence and was baptised. Brian would often check
in on Henry when visiting the prison. But then, one day, Henry was released.
And Brian was left wondering and praying about his life on the outside.
A few years later, Brian was
volunteering in a category A prison for the very first time. On his arrival,
the Managing Chaplain smiled and said, ‘There’s someone in the chapel who would
like to meet you.’ Brian wondered who this might be.
He walked in and there was Henry. He ran over
and excitedly greeted Brian! But now Brian’s mind was racing. What on earth has
happened for Henry to be in a category A prison? If he had been recalled here,
he must have done something seriously wrong. He said, ‘Henry, what’s happened?
Why are you back in prison?’
Henry
laughed. ‘I’m not here as a prisoner. I am now a Group Facilitator, helping to
run Sycamore Tree. The course had such a big impact on me that I
wanted to help others to be transformed, too! I can never thank the Sycamore
Tree team enough. They helped turn my life around.’
And I
reminded of the founder of Prison Fellowship, Chuck Colson.
There are
others of course, who having gone through the prison system, return to offer
ministry. Like Simon Edwards and ‘Walk Ministries’ in Stoke. They
offer a fantastic range of programmes and facilities to help men transition out
of prison life and into society.
I think
this says something about incarnational ministry.
Have we trials and temptations?
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged—
Take it to the Lord in prayer.
Can we find a friend so faithful,
Who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness;
Take it to the Lord in prayer.
This Sunday coming is Palm
Sunday and once more we will begin the journey that leads inexorably to the
cross on Good Friday.
Then what next?
Well, for most Christians it
will be Easter or Resurrection Sunday. But what about Holy Saturday. (The day
before Easter Sunday is not Easter Saturday, you can’t have Easter anything before
Easter Day!)
I long for the Church to sit for
a while, incarnationally, with all the pain and suffering and hurt across the
world, and yes, in our prisons. Especially the recent tragedy in HMP Exeter of
a young man from Launceston taking his life following violent altercations with
his cell mate.
(Consider what Jesus’ disciples
were feeling and experiencing on this ‘in-between day, all hope gone, all
dreams dashed. Utterly and completely bereft, so much so that Peter returns to
what he knows and what he left before he began the walk with Jesus, what else
to do indeed!)
And then, having sat in that
place of dark and despair to slowly allow the wonder of resurrection arise
bringing fresh hope of new creation, the dawning of a new day.
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