Clergy Notes — Michaelmas, September 29, 2024

This past Wednesday, the clergy of our Diocese gathered around the topic of missional change in the church, especially in relation to the presence of newcomers to our neighbourhoods from other parts of the world. This topic is always relevant in a place like ours, and will continue to be ever more relevant as the church of our forebears looks less and less like the one we are seeing today.

It is also a difficult topic because we tend to perceive change of any kind as a threat. Our brains and bodies are wired to maintain homeostasis so it is understandable that we may – consciously or unconsciously – perceive change as a disruption to our peace, even if we believe it is good. For example, if you have ever been on a diet, you may recognize the feeling: a perceived loss of all things familiar and loved, replaced by things you know are good for you, but are perhaps not as appetizing!

And yet, growth only happens through change, both in our bodies and in our lives… as well as in the church. And – despite our perceptions – change in the church is not a diet; it is not the loss of all that is familiar and good, so much as the addition of good things to complement the things that are worth celebrating and keeping.

What might happen if we were to trust God to hold and guide us through the changes we face in our time; to richly provide us with good things, just as God has always done? Of course we will feel some discomfort, but there can also be joy and hope, knowing we are becoming who God has envisioned us to be, in our own time and place.

Our parish has already experienced great changes over the past few years, and is on the brink of undergoing a great many more changes over the next couple of years. I hope you are able to notice and celebrate the many ways in which we as a community have exercised both flexibility and resilience in the face of those changes, and that it may give you confidence that God is indeed active and present here, and will continue to hold and guide the parish and people of St. James’ for many years – hopefully many generations! – to come.

Please keep the parish of St. James’ and its leadership in your prayers as we prepare for the changes ahead. May we know the joy and peace of Christ which abides with us always, as we continue to be God’s holy church in this time and place.

Mother Amanda

Click here to find the Liturgy at Home for Sunday, September 29, 2024.

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Clergy Notes — 18th Sunday after Pentecost, September 22, 2024

Today’s Reflection is “The Prayer of a Seventeenth Century Nun”.

I have tried to discover more about it – maybe the author, the details of her religious order or her location. But I have not been able to. And perhaps that is appropriate. She wants to remain anonymous!

When my attention was drawn to this by a friend a few years ago, it gave me a quiet chuckle. I love how real and practical it is. And it also makes me realize how little human nature changes over the ages.

It is, at its heart, a gentle warning about some of the things to be aware of as we age. Three of them really resonate with me.

First, I know that I often speak too much. My nickname as a child was “radio” – with my mother and grandmother telling me that they were always trying to find my “off switch”. Now I feel that I have a great deal to share with others from my seventy one years’ experience of life on earth, forty two of them in Holy Orders. Like this nun, I am always tempted to help people with their problems, conflicts and challenges. I remind myself that no-one appreciates constructive criticism as much as the one who is giving it!! My former spiritual director said that he never gives advice – because the wise person does not need it and the fool will never take it.

Secondly, I have come to realize that the question, “How are you?” is merely a conversation opener. It is not a request for an immediate, detailed account of my aches and pains, doctor’s appointments and sleep problems.

Finally, after reading this prayer, I now make an effort to tell people when they have said or done something that is kind or helpful. “You really have a gift for putting people at their ease”, “I admire your capacity to keep calm even under pressure”, or “The success of this project is due, in no small part, to your leadership”. And to add a heart-felt and not perfunctory Thank You.

So there you have it – the meditation of a twenty-first century priest on the prayer of a seventeenth century nun!

Father Neil Gray

Download the Liturgy at Home booklet for Sunday, September 22, 2024.

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