The Benefice of Bamburgh, Belford & Lucker

Psalm 118
1
O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; •
his mercy endures for ever.
2
Let Israel now proclaim, •
‘His mercy endures for ever.’
3
Let the house of Aaron now proclaim, •
‘His mercy endures for ever.’
14
The Lord is my strength and my song, •
and he has become my salvation.
15
Joyful shouts of salvation •
sound from the tents of the righteous:

Psalm 96
1
Sing to the Lord a new song; •
sing to the Lord, all the earth.
2
Sing to the Lord and bless his name; •
tell out his salvation from day to day.
3
Declare his glory among the nations •
and his wonders among all peoples.
4
For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised; •
he is more to be feared than all gods.
5
For all the gods of the nations are but idols; •
it is the Lord who made the heavens.
6
Honour and majesty are before him; •
power and splendour are in his sanctuary.
7
Ascribe to the Lord, you families of the peoples; •
ascribe to the Lord honour and strength.
8
Ascribe to the Lord the honour due to his name; •
bring offerings and come into his courts.
9
O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness; •
let the whole earth tremble before him.
10
Tell it out among the nations that the Lord is king. •
He has made the world so firm that it cannot be moved;
he will judge the peoples with equity.
11
Let the heavens rejoice and let the earth be glad; •
let the sea thunder and all that is in it;
12
Let the fields be joyful and all that is in them; •
let all the trees of the wood shout for joy before the Lord.
13
For he comes, he comes to judge the earth; •
with righteousness he will judge the world
and the peoples with his truth.

Christina Rossetti, poet, 1894 (Commemoration)

Biography

Christina Rossetti, the youngest member of a remarkable artistic Anglo-Italian family, was born in London in 1830. A devout Anglican from an evangelical background, Christina and her sister became greatly influenced by the Tractarians and her sister Maria eventually entered the sisterhood of All Saints’, Margaret Street.Some of Christina’s earliest work, written under the pseudonym ‘Ellen Alleyne’, was published in The Germ, the organ of the pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. Her poetry reflected her Christian faith and also a pervading sense of melancholy, both strong facets of her character. She also wrote fantasy poems and pieces for children, for example her 1862 work, Goblin Market. But this can also be interpreted as a religious allegory with themes of temptation, sin and redemption clearly apparent.She gave up the prospect of marriage for religious reasons. She broke off her engagement to James Collinson in 1850 when he became a Roman Catholic and in 1866 she turned down a proposal from James Bagot Cayley. Not surprisingly the themes of renunciation of earthly love and the habitual Victorian concern with death are also recurring themes, particularly in her later poetry. Her poetry is recognized by critics as having a high degree of technical perfection and encompasses a wide range of styles and forms. Two Christmas carols, In the bleak mid-winter and Love came down at Christmas, remain popular today and are in many hymn books. At one point she was considered as a possible successor to Tennyson as Poet Laureate.When her father’s failing health and eyesight forced him into retirement in 1853, Christina and her mother attempted to support the family by starting their own school, but it was a short-lived venture. Her brother Dante’s breakdown in 1872 and death ten years later affected her deeply. She herself suffered from chronic ill-health in later life and became something of a recluse. She developed cancer in 1891 and died three years later. Shortly before her death she published the poem ‘None other Lamb’, later put to music as a hymn:None other Lamb; none other name, None other hope in heaven or earth or sea, None other hiding-place from guilt and shame, None beside Thee. My faith burns low, my hope burns low, Only my heart’s desire cries out in me, By the deep thunder of its want and woe, Cries out to Thee. Lord, Thou art life, though I be dead, Love’s fire Thou art, however cold I be: Nor heaven have I, nor place to lay my head, Nor Home, but Thee.

Psalm 2
1
Why are the nations in tumult, •
and why do the peoples devise a vain plot?
2
The kings of the earth rise up,
and the rulers take counsel together, •
against the Lord and against his anointed:
3
‘Let us break their bonds asunder •
and cast away their cords from us.’
4
He who dwells in heaven shall laugh them to scorn; •
the Lord shall have them in derision.
5
Then shall he speak to them in his wrath •
and terrify them in his fury:
6
‘Yet have I set my king •
upon my holy hill of Zion.’
7
I will proclaim the decree of the Lord; •
he said to me: ‘You are my Son; this day have I begotten you.
8
‘Ask of me and I will give you the nations for your inheritance •
and the ends of the earth for your possession.
9
‘You shall break them with a rod of iron •
and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.’
10
Now therefore be wise, O kings; •
be prudent, you judges of the earth.
11
Serve the Lord with fear, and with trembling kiss his feet, •
lest he be angry and you perish from the way,
for his wrath is quickly kindled.
12
Happy are all they •
who take refuge in him.

Almighty God,
who enlightened your holy Church
through the inspired witness of your evangelist Saint Mark:
grant that we, being firmly grounded in the truth of the gospel,
may be faithful to its teaching both in word and deed;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

Mellitus, bishop, 624 (Commemoration)

Biography

Mellitus, born of a noble family, was first a monk, and then abbot of a monastic community at Rome. He led the second group of monks sent by Pope Gregory the Great to evangelize Britain in 601. This group was sent to support the work of Augustine of Canterbury, who had been given the responsibility for the mission to the Anglo-Saxons earlier in 597. Mellitus was consecrated by Augustine in 604/5 as the first Bishop of the East Saxons and was based in London.After an inauspicious start, Augustine’s and Mellitus’ missionary activity was modified by Gregory the Great. He instructed Mellitus to use the old Saxon temples as places of Christian worship. He was only to cleanse the temples and to remove the Saxon idols, not completely destroy them. As a result the Saxon temples became Christian places of worship, and old Saxon feast days were re-directed towards Christian celebrations. Bede reports that the Pope declared ‘If the people are allowed some worldly pleasures … they will more readily come to desire the joys of the Spirit’. This instruction to Mellitus radically altered missionary endeavour throughout the Saxon regions, and had a profound effect on the spread of the gospel.At the end of the sixth century Britain was a collection of independent Anglo-Saxon kingdoms – the Heptarchy. The southern parts of Britain were receptive to the particular form of Christianity spread by the Church of Rome. The rest of the country was more responsive to Celtic Christian influence. In spite of their similarities, political emphasis and difficult relationships led to division. Two key areas of Britain, Kent and East Anglia, proved to be a stronghold for the Roman interpretation of Christianity, yet it was with these areas that Mellitus was to encounter difficulty.In 604 Mellitus was involved in a dispute with new kings of both Kent and the East Saxons who once enthroned ceased practising Roman Christianity and reverted to paganism instead. However, they both still demanded that Mellitus perform the Eucharist for them. This was unacceptable to Mellitus, and he refused. Accordingly he was banished from their kingdoms and he fled to Gaul in 616. He returned in 619 and in the same year became the third Archbishop of Canterbury.A staunch follower of Roman Christianity, Mellitus attempted to secure the dominance of this interpretation of the faith in southern Britain, and stood against syncretism in the face of great pressure.

God of hosts,
who so kindled the flame of love
in the heart of your servant George
that he bore witness to the risen Lord
by his life and by his death:
give us the same faith and power of love
that we who rejoice in his triumphs
may come to share with him the fullness of the resurrection;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

Psalm 103
1
Bless the Lord, O my soul, •
and all that is within me bless his holy name.
2
Bless the Lord, O my soul, •
and forget not all his benefits;
3
Who forgives all your sins •
and heals all your infirmities;
4
Who redeems your life from the Pit •
and crowns you with faithful love and compassion;
5
Who satisfies you with good things, •
so that your youth is renewed like an eagle’s.
6
The Lord executes righteousness •
and judgement for all who are oppressed.
7
He made his ways known to Moses •
and his works to the children of Israel.
8
The Lord is full of compassion and mercy, •
slow to anger and of great kindness.
9
He will not always accuse us, •
neither will he keep his anger for ever.
10
He has not dealt with us according to our sins, •
nor rewarded us according to our wickedness.
11
For as the heavens are high above the earth, •
so great is his mercy upon those who fear him.
12
As far as the east is from the west, •
so far has he set our sins from us.
13
As a father has compassion on his children, •
so is the Lord merciful towards those who fear him.
14
For he knows of what we are made; •
he remembers that we are but dust.
15
Our days are but as grass; •
we flourish as a flower of the field;
16
For as soon as the wind goes over it, it is gone, •
and its place shall know it no more.
17
But the merciful goodness of the Lord is from of old
and endures for ever on those who fear him, •
and his righteousness on children’s children;
18
On those who keep his covenant •
and remember his commandments to do them.
19
The Lord has established his throne in heaven, •
and his kingdom has dominion over all.
20
Bless the Lord, you angels of his, •
you mighty ones who do his bidding
and hearken to the voice of his word.
21
Bless the Lord, all you his hosts, •
you ministers of his who do his will.
22
Bless the Lord, all you works of his,
in all places of his dominion; •
bless the Lord, O my soul.

Ephesians 3.14-end
14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father,
15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name.
16 I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit,
17 and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love.
18 I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth,
19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
20 Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine,
21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever. Amen.

Tonight, dear Lord, we pray that your blessing may rest upon all who have been joined together today in holy matrimony. We pray that their new lives together may be blessed with contentment, with joy and with the mutual support and encouragement which will give them the strength and resilience to navigate times of challenge. Fill their hearts with faithful love and tenderness towards one another, and with hope for a long and happy future together. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Wonderful quote from the much missed Rachel Held Evans. Church isn't a place for "good" people. Church is a place where we all recognise that we are broken in some way. Why not make this Sunday the day you come to church.

Almighty and merciful Lord, we remember before you this night all the souls who are recently departed into your tender and ever loving care. We pray that those who mourn may find comfort and solace in the knowledge that you hold close to you those whom we can hold no more. We ask for your blessing on all who are approaching the end of their earthly lives. Be with those who care for them, as they watch over them. We pray that you may always watch over us all, and bring us finally safe into your eternal peace and rest. Amen.

Psalm 66
1
Be joyful in God, all the earth; •
sing the glory of his name;
sing the glory of his praise.
2
Say to God, ‘How awesome are your deeds! •
Because of your great strength
your enemies shall bow before you.
3
‘All the earth shall worship you, •
sing to you, sing praise to your name.’
4
Come now and behold the works of God, •
how wonderful he is in his dealings with humankind.
5
He turned the sea into dry land;
the river they passed through on foot; •
there we rejoiced in him.
6
In his might he rules for ever;
his eyes keep watch over the nations; •
let no rebel rise up against him.

Psalm 31
1
In you, O Lord, have I taken refuge;
let me never be put to shame; •
deliver me in your righteousness.
2
Incline your ear to me; •
make haste to deliver me.
3
Be my strong rock, a fortress to save me,
for you are my rock and my stronghold; •
guide me, and lead me for your name’s sake.
4
Take me out of the net
that they have laid secretly for me, •
for you are my strength.
5
Into your hands I commend my spirit, •
for you have redeemed me, O Lord God of truth.
16
‘Make your face to shine upon your servant, •
and save me for your mercy’s sake.’

Psalm 104

1 Bless the Lord, O my soul. ♦
O Lord my God, how excellent is your greatness!

21 You appointed the moon to mark the seasons, ♦
and the sun knows the time for its setting.

22 You make darkness that it may be night, ♦
in which all the beasts of the forest creep forth.

23The lions roar for their prey ♦
and seek their food from God.

24The sun rises and they are gone ♦
to lay themselves down in their dens.

25People go forth to their work ♦
and to their labour until the evening.

26O Lord, how manifold are your works! ♦
In wisdom you have made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.

27There is the sea, spread far and wide, ♦
and there move creatures beyond number, both small and great.

28There go the ships, and there is that Leviathan ♦
which you have made to play in the deep.

29All of these look to you ♦
to give them their food in due season.

30When you give it them, they gather it; ♦
you open your hand and they are filled with good.

31When you hide your face they are troubled; ♦
when you take away their breath,
they die and return again to the dust.

32When you send forth your spirit, they are created, ♦
and you renew the face of the earth.

33May the glory of the Lord endure for ever; ♦
may the Lord rejoice in his works

Almighty Father,
who in your great mercy gladdened the disciples with the sight of the risen Lord:
give us such knowledge of his presence with us,
that we may be strengthened and sustained by his risen life
and serve you continually in righteousness and truth;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

Psalm 33
1
Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous, •
for it is good for the just to sing praises.
2
Praise the Lord with the lyre; •
on the ten-stringed harp sing his praise.
3
Sing for him a new song; •
play skilfully, with shouts of praise.
4
For the word of the Lord is true •
and all his works are sure.
5
He loves righteousness and justice; •
the earth is full of the loving-kindness of the Lord.
18
Behold, the eye of the Lord
is upon those who fear him, •
on those who wait in hope for his steadfast love,
19
To deliver their soul from death •
and to feed them in time of famine.

Psalm 27
1
The Lord is my light and my salvation;
whom then shall I fear? •
The Lord is the strength of my life;
of whom then shall I be afraid?
2
When the wicked, even my enemies and my foes,
came upon me to eat up my flesh, •
they stumbled and fell.
3
Though a host encamp against me,
my heart shall not be afraid, •
and though there rise up war against me,
yet will I put my trust in him.
4
One thing have I asked of the Lord
and that alone I seek: •
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,
5
To behold the fair beauty of the Lord •
and to seek his will in his temple.
16
I believe that I shall see the goodness of the Lord •
in the land of the living.
17
Wait for the Lord;
be strong and he shall comfort your heart; •
wait patiently for the Lord.

George Selwyn, bishop, 1878 (Commemoration)

Biography

George Augustus Selwyn was born in Hampshire and educated at Eton and St John’s College, Cambridge. He became a Fellow of the college and was ordained in 1833. He served as curacy at Windsor while a private tutor at Eton. In 1841 he was consecrated Bishop of New Zealand and took up his duties the following year. He studied the Maori language on his long sea voyage, and was able to preach in it on his arrival. In fact Selwyn never saw himself as a colonial bishop and in the ten-year war between the Maoris and the European colonists, he managed to keep the confidence of both sides, making sure that the principle of full participation by Maori Christians in church government was affirmed at the New Zealand Church’s first general synod in 1859.Selwyn laid the foundations of the Church, not only in New Zealand, but throughout the islands of Melanesia. The New Zealand diocese extended from latitude 47 degrees South to latitude 36 degrees North (a clerical error in the Letters Patent). But Selwyn made no complaint and cheerfully accepted responsibility for the vast Pacific regions of the Melanesian and Polynesian islands as well as New Zealand. From 1848 he visited the islands, first on HMS Dido, later on the mission ship Southern Cross, from which this fearless exponent of muscular Christianity often swam ashore and made personal contact with the islanders.A convinced Tractarian, Selwyn experienced difficulties in his relations with the Church Missionary Society in New Zealand. His understanding of episcopacy and mission led him to favour an alternative strategy, that rather than voluntary agencies missions should be an enterprise of the whole Church in its corporate capacity, led by bishops. This model came into increasing use by High Church missions as the century progressed. In 1852 Selwyn had noted in his diary that ‘the careful superintendence of this multitude of islands will require the services of a missionary bishop, able and willing to devote himself to this work’. Thus, in 1854, he founded the Melanesian Mission and recruited John Coleridge Patteson to lead it. By 1861 the diocese was ready for division with Selwyn relinquishing authority in Melanesia to Patteson as the new missionary bishop.In 1867, Selwyn was persuaded to become Bishop of Lichfield. It was with some reluctance that he returned to England the following year, and served at Lichfield until his death on 11 April 1878. Selwyn College was founded in his memory at Cambridge in 1881.

William Law, priest, spiritual writer, 1761 (Lesser Festival)

Biography

William Law was born at King’s Cliffe, Northamptonshire in 1686 and educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge. He was ordained deacon and became a Fellow of the college in 1711. With the accession to the throne of the Hanoverian George I in 1714 Law refused to take the Oath of Allegiance and so lost his Fellowship. He allied himself with the Nonjurors (who had split from the Church of England in 1689 for refusing to take the Oath of Allegiance to William and Mary) and was eventually ordained priest in 1728. In1727 he became a private tutor for ten years and then retired to his native King’s Cliffe. Here he involved himself in the work of schools and almshouses and other charitable works, living in great simplicity as an expression of his faith until his death in 1761. Law’s greatest contribution to English spirituality was by his writing, the titles of his books giving an indication of his concerns: Christian Perfection, The Spirit of Love, The Spirit of Prayer,A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life. This last book, published in 1728, quickly became a spiritual classic and is still in print today. Again, the title summarizes the contents: God calls Christians to complete obedience to him in a Christ-centred life. The immediate influence of the book was considerable and it profoundly influenced many – among them John Wesley, Charles Wesley (see 24 May), George Whitefield, Henry Venn – who were to be leaders of the evangelical revival. Indeed, John Wesley published extracts from the book in 1744, introducing it to a wider audience. A Serious Call is reckoned to have had more influence than any English post-Reformation spiritual work other than Pilgrim’s Progress: If we are to love our enemies, we must make our common life a visible exercise and demonstration of that love. If content and thankfulness, if the patient bearing of evil be duties to God, they are the duties of every day, and every circumstance of our life. If we are to be wise and holy as the new-born sons of God, we can no otherwise be so, but by renouncing everything that is foolish and vain in every part of our common life. If we are to be in Christ new creatures, we must show that we are so, by having new ways of living in the world. If we are to follow Christ, it must be our common way of spending every day.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Lutheran pastor, martyr, 1945 (Commemoration)
Biography

Bonhoeffer was born at Breslau in Silesia (now the Polish city of Wroclaw) in 1906. The family moved to Berlin in 1912 when his father became Professor of Psychiatry and Neurology at Berlin University. He received his theological education at the universities of Tübingen and Berlin and was greatly influenced by the work of Karl Barth. After serving (1928–9) as an assistant pastor in a German-speaking congregation in Barcelona, and a further year of study at Union Theological Seminary in New York, he became a lecturer in theology in Berlin in 1931.An outspoken opponent of Adolf Hi**er and the N***s, Bonhoeffer joined the Confessing Church, which had formed in opposition to the infiltration and takeover of the German Lutheran Church by N**i sympathizers. They sought to be the authentic voice of the gospel in Germany and to oppose attempts to force anti- Semitism on Church and society. Leaving Berlin in protest, he spent two years (1933–5) as pastor of German-speaking congregations in London. While in England he became friendly with Bishop George Bell of Chichester.Returning to Germany in 1935, Bonhoeffer became director of the Confessing Church seminary at Finkenwald in Pomerania. But this institution quickly incurred the wrath of the N**i authorities, who closed it down in 1937. Bonhoeffer was in America when war broke out in 1939, but returned to Germany, explaining, ‘I shall have no right to participate in the reconstruction of Christian life in Germany after the war if I do not share the trials of this time with my people.’ He became involved with the underground anti-N**i opposition, no small step for a Lutheran accustomed to believe in the God-given nature of the Church–State relationship. In 1942 he attempted to put the German underground in touch with the British government via Bishop Bell. But the net was closing in and he was arrested in April 1943 and imprisoned at Tegel prison in Berlin. The involvement of many of his contacts in the July 1944 plot to kill Hi**er may well have sealed his fate, and he was moved several times, finally to Flossenberg concentration camp close to the Czech border.It was as American troops were approaching the camp in April 1945 that Bonhoeffer was hanged. His writings, and especially his Letters and Papers from Prison have been an inspiration to many who have sought to make sense out of persecution and needless suffering.On New Year’s Day 1945 he wrote a poem that included the following verse:
Should it be ours to drain the cup of grievingeven to the dregs of pain at thy command,we will not falter, thankfully receivingall that is given by thy loving hand.

**********************************

Generous God, grant us the grace to be steadfast in opposing those who seek to persecute and oppress those with whom they disagree. Help us to be true to our faith, and to have the courage always to follow in your way, regardless of the cost. We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Luke 1.26-38
26 In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth,
27 to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.
28 And he came to her and said, ‘Greetings, favoured one! The Lord is with you.’
29 But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
30 The angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God.
31 And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus.
32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David.
33 He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’
34 Mary said to the angel, ‘How can this be, since I am a virgin?’
35 The angel said to her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God.
36 And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren.
37 For nothing will be impossible with God.’
38 Then Mary said, ‘Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.’ Then the angel departed from her.

Gracious God, as we lay down to sleep with a new week ahead, give us patience, kindness, tolerance and wisdom in whatever we are called upon to do in the days that lie before us. Help us to let the light of your presence in the world be visible in our lives. We ask this in the name of our Saviour, Jesus Christ, amen.

Tonight we pray for healing, for the resolution of disputes, for an end to division. We pray that we might grow in understanding, in tolerance and acceptance of difference of belief, whilst remaining faithful to our own creeds and expressions of faith. Dear Lord, enable us to live together in harmony and peace. We pray this in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. Amen.