Newsletter: April, 2007

The First Easter Morning

“Supposing him to be the gardener…” (John 20:15)
It was an easy mistake to make. Garden, gardener! Early morning, before the fierce sun made manual work impossible, was the time to be tidying up, sweeping the paths. Who else would be there at that hour, among the dead? Mary was there to get away, as much as anything. So much had happened, so fast. The supper, the arrest, the hasty trial, the rush to execution, so much fear and grief in such a short time. And then the confusion of finding the tomb empty, and Peter and John no use, having a look, going away again, no efforts to find him.

She knew he wasn’t there, but still she stayed. It was quiet, and empty. After all the noise, the rush, the emotion, now there was nothing, nothing but the still air, the dark space in the cave, and, away in a corner, the gardener doing whatever gardeners do.

He had rescued her. She had been ill, despised, an outcast, a woman with no friends, stared and pointed at in the street, living on the edge. He had drawn her into his circle of friends, his new community, where people who were nothing gained infinite worth. Under his gaze she had blossomed. She had learned of the new world where God reigned, where all the rules and regulations that had so oppressed her were overturned, where the poor were rich and the humble exalted, where the sick found healing and the tormented found peace, where even death could be challenged. But then they had come for him, as the powerful do for those who stand up to them. And now he had gone, leaving behind this empty space, this nothingness. There was no going back. He had loved her, and, once you have been loved, the world is different forever. She had a job to do, she knew. There was his mother to console. There were his friends to support while they decided what to do now. And then there was a future to find, a way of hanging on to it all. The new world of God’s reign was too precious to lose.

The gardener was nearer now, disturbing her peace. Suddenly she was angry, that someone had taken the body away, denying her a last look, a quiet goodbye. Roman soldiers perhaps? The religious authorities? Misguided disciples? The gardener might know.

But then there was the voice. “Mary,” he said. The voice that had called her home into his family, calling her again. Even through her tears, she knew him. Not the gardener, then. She should have known, of course. How could she have believed for one moment that death could defeat him? Had he not shown them that love was stronger than death? How could she not have seen? How could she not have felt, in the quiet, in the emptiness, creation holding its breath waiting for his reappearing?

It was an easy mistake to make. Garden, gardener. A stupid mistake, perhaps. Or perhaps not. Because the garden was changed now. No longer the patch of scrubland carved from the dusty city. Now there was a new creation, and the garden was that garden from long ago, when the new human beings enjoyed the fresh dawn of the world where fruit fell from the trees and God walked in the evening cool. In the cool of this dawn God walked again, the world’s gardener, coaxing from the dust of death the growth of fresh new life.

Like Eve, she had to leave Eden. She would have loved to stay, enjoying his company all to herself. But there was a whole world out there that didn’t know that Eden had returned. Most would not believe her, but some would. They would take the message of the new creation until the seeds of Eden were planted all around the world. Mary’s story helps us to see the resurrection of Jesus through one person’s eyes, someone to whom Jesus had been immensely significant, who grieved his loss desperately, and who had the courage to believe the resurrection message and act on it, taking the news of death’s defeat to the traumatised and sceptical disciples. Through Mary we too receive the news. Death no longer has the last word. The seeds of Eden are here too. There is new life, eternal life, for those who are willing to take it. Love has proved stronger than hate, life stronger than death. Today the gate of Eden is open, and all may go in.

FROM THE VICAR
April 8th brings us to Easter 2007. This is the most important feast of the Christian year, when the people of God gather to celebrate the central mystery of their faith: that God became man in Christ and died for us to take away our sins. And that he rose again, triumphant over death. By doing this, he opened the way for believers to enter the kingdom of heaven. This is an oft repeated story and yet its truth is as fresh and alive today as ever it was. Nor is it a truth that will only be revealed at the end of our lives. Christ’s transforming power can change us for the better now, but taking away the old burden of sin and guilt and making us a new creation, one that is pure and acceptable in the sight of God. So we have much to celebrate, and with it the challenge to bring before God the failures in our lives, in the faith that he can transform us in ways we cannot imagine to be stronger believers, disciples and witnesses in this life and children of God in the next.
Mark Ewbank

NEWS IN BRIEF
Congratulations to Robert Pitt, who was our organist for 5 years until fairly recently, on being appointed Assistant Director of the British School of Archaelology in Athens. His appointment starts on 1st July and will run for four years. We wish him well.

ELECTORAL ROLL
The Parish Electoral Roll (nothing to do with the Register of Electors for voting) is required to be updated every six years. However General Synod has decided to bring it forward to this year instead of 2008. Anyone wishing to be included on the new roll will be able to obtain an application form from Church on Saturday afternoons or after services during the period from Sunday 25th February to Sunday 1st April allowing sufficient time for the new Roll to be available for inspection before the annual meeting on Sunday 22nd April after the 9.30am service. The application form is also available for downloading from the Guildford Diocese website.

WORLD FAIR TRADE DAY
World Fair Trade Day is a celebration of Fair Trade internationally, with events organised worldwide. On and around the second Saturday of May every year, International Fair Trade Association (IFAT) member organisations based in 70 countries, along with Fair Trade shops and networks, host events including Fair Trade breakfasts, talks, music concerts, fashion shows and much more, to promote Fair Trade and campaign for justice in trade. Fair Trade products from marginalised communities in the majority world, including coffee and tea, clothes, jewellery and beautiful handicrafts will be showcased on this day. Many events continue throughout the month of May.

World Fair Trade Day started as a European movement of over 2,000 World Shops (Fair Trade shops), working together through NEWS! Movements to celebrate the same day and campaign for Fair Trade. "World Fair Trade Day" was initiated by Safia Minney, founder of People Tree, and adopted by IFAT and its members at the 2001 Full Meeting, to promote stronger global awareness of Fair Trade, and this day has been raising its profile ever since.

SATURDAY AFTERNOONS
As you may know, we keep St Jude’s Church open for visitors each Saturday afternoon between 2.00 and 4.00pm. To do this safely and adequately requires at least 3 people at all times. To keep this running, we must have a rota of people who would take a turn — obviously the more offers we have, the less often each one would have to do. If you can help with this, say, once every two months, please contact the Churchwardens (telephone numbers are shown above) or by email to saturdays@stjudeschurch.info. Your help would be appreciated.

FROM THE REGISTERS
Holy Baptism:
(4th March) Felix William Jackson.

FORTHCOMING EVENTS

BISHOPSGATE W.I.
Bishopsgate W.I. will be holding a Coffee Morning on Thursday 12th April 10.00am –11.30am at the Jur-gens Centre, Harvest Road (next to the Roman Catholic Church). There will be cakes, handicrafts, bric-a-brac and a raffle. All are welcome.

ANNUAL MEETINGS
The Annual Vestry Meeting (where the Churchwardens are elected) and The Annual Parochial Church Meeting will take place at approximately 11.00am (after the 9.30am service) on Sunday 22nd April.

This is the occasion when the accounts and the annual report are presented, members of the PCC are elected and everyone has an opportunity to review the events of the previous year and look forward to the forthcoming items. It also gives us time to say thank you to all those who worked so hard during the preceding year. Please join us for this important meeting.

COFFEE MORNING
There will be a Coffee Morning on Saturday 7th April 10.00am–12noon in Englefield Green Methodist Church porch

All welcome

CALENDAR FOR APRIL 2007