How can we make sense ofour life as Christian com-munities as we continue to berestricted and constrained?There is the possibility andhope of restrictions easing,meeting with family andchurches re-opening, but this isstill a hard time. How do wekeep on going, when this hasbecome such a long and hardjourney through a sort ofwilderness?

The image of Lent as a timein the wilderness is somethingthat we try to capture in thesparse decoration and starkappearance of our churchbuildings and worship in a‘normal’ Lent. This year, thattime in the wilderness is literal:we have been kept out ofphysical gathering andworshipping together. This wil-derness has been a necessarything, our government has

assured us, as all need to besafe and prevent the spread ofthe deadly virus. But it is a timeof wilderness.

In the earliest days of thechurch men and women woulddeliberately spend time in thewilderness areas of theMediterranean fringes. Theywere often fleeing the chaosand persecution of the pagancities of the Roman Empire. Ashermits who sought simple,ascetic lives, this developedinto a monastic tradition, oftenreferred to as the ‘DesertFathers (and Mothers)’. Theymight have started by fleeingfrom chaos, but in the desertthey found ways to knowthemselves, to challenge them-selves over the pride andfoolishness that can often befound in any human communityand, most importantly, theyfound new ways to encounter

God. The wisdom and innerstrength from God they foundin the time spent in theemptiness of wilderness hasinspired generations of peoplein their exploration of God’splace in their lives.

This pandemic is not anexcuse to throw away thethings about church andcommunity that we maybedon’t get on with. Thechallenges of emerging fromlockdown and restriction andre-starting church life will becomplex challenges. And wewill make that transition. Butthis wilderness time can helpus to reflect on what really,really matters in the life of ourfaith communities. And whenthat is restored, we canappreciate and value all themore the social, communityand eucharistic life of ourchurches, even as we navigatea world changed by thisextended period of ‘pandemicLent.’

We will journey togetherthrough the weeks and monthsahead, as charges and as adiocese. And please beassured of the prayers of allyour sisters and brothers aswell as mine, as your bishop, inthe times ahead. May this Lentcome to an end and a trueEaster of restoration lie beforeus all!

Bless you: please keep safeand be gentle to yourself and toothers.

Andrew,Bishop of Brechin

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GRAPEVINENo 123 Spring 2021

THE MAGAZINE OF THE DIOCESE OF BRECHIN

Bishop Andrew writes:

It is good to write this greeting for you as Spring 2021emerges around us. At this time of year we would be workingthrough the weeks of Lent, preparing for Holy Week andEaster. That can feel a familiar place to be and some of whatwe explore each Lent is how to avoid things becoming toofamiliar. That familiarity of Lent is, of course, stripped awaythis year by the ongoing pandemic. Our pattern of worshipand discipleship has had to be online for most of 2021, withZoom and other platforms letting us remain connected: just!The church has not closed but has changed its way ofmeeting. But that is not the same and we are missing manyaspects of our common life. We are missing socialinteraction. We are missing being able to meet with others inour homes to study and to pray. We are also missing theeucharistic pattern that is vital to the life of Scottish EpiscopalChurches of all traditions. There are signs of hope ahead, asvaccination seems to be making a big difference. Buteverything remains very constrained.

‘Clapping for Carers’ caught theimagination of our fellow-citizensfor many weeks last year, but theidea in mid-January of a weekly‘clap for heroes’ did not take off(many other factors aside, the coldand dark can hardlyhave helped). But thelabel of ‘heroes’ forsome members of oursociety certainly has.Ask someone to namea ‘hero’ of the currentcrisis and they wouldlikely identify doctors,nurses, and otherhospital staff; orperhaps other workerssuch as supermarketstaff and deliverydrivers. And we can’toverlook Captain Tom.But what kind of heroare we asking thesepeople to be?

For the classical Greeks,heroes were the warriors of theirmyths and epics. Achilles, forinstance, would prove the modelfor many later heroes. The son ofa sea nymph and a king, andslayer of his enemy Hector outsidethe gates of Troy, he used hiscourage to serve his Greekpeople. For the Greeks, this washis heroism. The legend of the‘Achilles heel’ – and what insuperhero comics we have cometo know as the idea that everyhero has a fatal flaw – would only

be introduced many centuries laterby the Romans, who viewed it asa sign of the lack of true heroismshown by a figure who foughtagainst the Trojans, legendaryancestors of the Greeks.

The arrival of Christianity,however, put a spin on this modelof heroism. Could Jesus be calleda ‘hero’ in the manner of theseGreek models? The answer, givenby early Christian thinkers such asOrigen, was ‘no’. Christ was notjust a great human; he was God.And he showed his virtue notthrough war and conquest, butthrough a victory of a differentsort, through his suffering anddeath on the cross.

What kind of hero, then, are ourdoctors and nurses today? Insome rhetoric they are our brave

warriors in the battle against ourcommon enemy – but the Greekmodel is hardly a good fit for theselfless service we are seeking tocelebrate. And yet the Christianmodel carries its own dangers. For

one thing, the NewTestament agrees thatChrist suffered and diedso that we don’t have to:his is not a model to bereplicated.

And, most notably, whowe choose to call heroesdepends a great deal onhow we think of oursociety. Are those whohave faced the greatestdangers in the last yearour soldiers who we willreward with the highestprestige in society in theyears to come? Or havewe decided that our

healthcare and supermarketworkers are christlike heroes whocan face suffering and death onbehalf of us all?

There are many great deeds ofcare, compassion and servicebeing performed across the worldat the moment. Some will be toldand celebrated in years to come;others will remain encountersknown only to giver and recipient.Are these people heroes? Quitepossibly. But the basis for thislabel is what matters: who are theheroes we want for our time?

2

Heroes for our time ?

Observations on modern lifeCommon sense is not a gift. lt's a punishment because you have to deal witheveryone who doesn't have it.Save the earth. It's the only planet with chocolate.A bus station is where a bus stops. A train station is where a train stops. On mydesk I have a workstation.The journey of a thousand miles begins with a broken fan belt and a flat tyre.The darkest hour is just before dawn. So, if you're going to steal your neighbour'smilk, that's the time to do it.Don't be irreplaceable. lf you can't be replaced, you can't be promoted.A hangover is the wrath of grapes.When two egotists meet, it's an i for an i.A filing cabinet is a place where you can lose things systematically.Two choir members recently got married. They met by chants.The most welcome guest is the one who knows when to go home.

Writing probably in 1899, Hardypaints a bleak picture of thedesolate winter landscape as nightfalls, which reflects his feelings.Like many of his contemporaries,he cannot look forward to the newcentury, being disillusioned aboutthe established values and beliefsof the Victorian era. Developmentsin Science and Philosophy hadshaken religious faith; Hardy,having read Darwin,Schopenhauer and Comte at ayoung age, had long since ceasedto believe in a loving creator.

The image of the corpse andassociated words and images inthe first two stanzas illustrate notonly decay and decline in Naturebut also that of the last centuryand the anthropomorphicmetaphor links it to the humanspirit, which is fervourless with nohope of renewal: the pulse of life is

shrunken hard and dry. The use ofso-called ‘hard’ consonants (c, d,g) often alliterated and the slowpace of the ballad form areappropriate to this, while theimage of the broken lyre stringsadds to the sense of disharmony.

The mood changes in Stanza 3with the thrush’s song. Contrastingwith its poor physical state andgloomy surroundings, the birdsings with joy illimited and liftsHardy’s depression. Despite hisloss of faith, Hardy (trained as anarchitect when young) hadretained his love of churches andtheir rituals, as indicated in hischoice of words – evensong, soul,carolings and blessed. Thethrush’s song almost persuadesHardy to feel Hope, one of thethree Christian virtues, andtherefore trust in renewed lifepromised by a benign deity. Sadly,

we know that his faith was notrestored, much as he wanted it tobe.

The poem seems particularlyappropriate for us at the presenttime, as for a year we havewatched in fear as our world hasbeen devastated by a tinyorganism which seems to have nopositive use in the circle of life andwhich for a long time seemedunconquerable. It has raised manyquestions and some havestruggled to keep their faith.However, the Pandemic has ledus to reassess our values, whichcould lead to a better world;moreover, it appears that ourscientists are, after all,empowered to save us from theworst effects of the disease. Wemight therefore be moreconvinced than Hardy of someblessed Hope.

3

The Darkling Thrushby Thomas Hardy

I leant upon a coppice gate When Frost was spectre-gray,And Winter’s dregs made desolate The weakening eye of day.The tangled bine-stems scored the sky Like strings of broken lyres,And all mankind that haunted nigh Had sought their household fires.

The land’s sharp features seemed to be The Century’s corpse outleant,His crypt the cloudy canopy, The wind his death-lament.The ancient pulse of germ and birth Was shrunken hard and dry,And every spirit upon earth Seemed fervourless as I.

At once a voice arose among The bleak twigs overheadIn a full-hearted evensong Of joy illimited;An aged thrush, frail, gaunt, and small, In blast-beruffled plume,Had chosen thus to fling his soul Upon the growing gloom.

So little cause for carolings Of such ecstatic soundWas written on terrestrial things Afar or nigh around,That I could think there trembled through His happy good-night airSome blessed Hope, whereof he knew And I was unaware.

Crossword ResultRandomly drawn out for

last edition’s crypticcrossword was Mr GrantWison’s entry fromCarnoustie. Congratulationsto him.

The correct solution isprinted here.

Another crossword appearson page 10.

It has become a cliché in the last year to say thatan event or experience is ‘unprecedented’, but, ofcourse, that is precisely what the pandemic hadforced upon the arrangements for the DiocesanSynod when it met on 6 March. First, those attendingwere present on computer screens and not in ageographical location. Secondly, business wascompleted faster, as we finished by lunchtime. Thirdly,when we broke into small groups for discussion therewas no noisy interference from other nearby groupschattering. And lastly voting by electronic means wassignificantly quicker than by the counting of raisedhands. So it was not all disadvantageous.

Apart from the regular synod business there weretwo matters upon which members were asked to givetheir views: a motion concerning environmental issuesand a consultation on the manner in which ourbishops are elected.

The late Ellinah Waukoya, Bishop of Swaziland,was well-known for her work in promoting concernsfor the state of the environment and the presentdirection of climate change. The General Synod whichmet last year had passed down to Diocesan Synodsfor discussion the following motion:

“That this Synod, expressing the need for urgentaction in relation to the global climate emergency,calls on the Church in Society Committee, working inconjunction with other appropriate bodies, to bringforward a programme of actions to General Synod2021 to resource the Scottish Episcopal Church inworking towards achieving net zero carbon emissionsby 2030.”

In the small group discussions that followed a widerange of reactions were noted. It was questionedwhether a 9 year period to reach zero carbonemissions was at all achievable; on the other handsome saw a parallel with the nation’s response to theCovid-19 crisis insofar as necessity has brought abouta dramatic change of behaviour. There was someambivolence as to whether the Church should betaking a practical lead in these matters or simply begiving an ethical comment on the issue. Perhaps themost widespread concern expressed by the goupswas about buildings and the costs associated inimplementing the motion’s policy. Whilst it would besensible to produce an audit of the current situationwe are aware that our churches and halls are largerand higher than many other buildings and there isconsiderable cost in heating and maintaining them, sosome anxiety was expressed as to the expense ofinstalling alternative means and where the funding forthis would come from given the limited congregationalresources. There was some support for embarking ona theological study on matters relating to humanimpact on the environment and our individual andcommunal response to it.

The second subject up for discussion was Canon 4,Of the Election of Bishops to Vacant Sees. Since the1980s there have been a number changes to the

procedure defined in the Canon and major re-writingon two occasions. Yet experiences of the process inrecent years reveal continuing dissatisfaction. AReview Group was set up by the General Synod tosuggest a way forward; Canon Fay Lamont has beena member of this group and so presented aconsultation paper to the Diocesan Synod.

She outlined some of the background factors whichhave led to the current situation and the perceived orreal drawbacks experienced. With this in mind theReview Group had produced alternative outlineprocedures for the way forward. When the Churchthrough the General Synod had indicated which pathwas preferable the Committee on Canons wouldproduce the text of a revised canon for the usual2-year process of adoption or rejection.

The first option was for a significant revision of thepresent canon by taking account of the objectionswhich had been raised. It would maintain the basicelectoral involvement of all of a diocese’scongregations through their Diocesan Synodmembership, but this body would be convened at thetime that an election became necessary thus avoidingthe disenfranchising of some charges when personnelhad changed.

The other option is to replace the Electoral Synodwith an Electoral Council which would be a muchsmaller body. Although its membership would beweighted in favour of the diocese which had thevacancy, it would be made up of people who had skillin discerning the needs of the diocese and the gifts ofprospective candidates. With fewer people involvedconfidentialty would be easier to maintain and only theidentity of the person chosen would be made public.

Following the opportunity to discuss these optionsin small groups a secret ballot was taken of people’sinitial preferences. The result of this was 46% were infavour of option 1 and 36% for option 2, with 18%undecided. This, of course, was a staw poll andcarried no authority. Individuals and groups can voicetheir views on an online form available at: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeZ4nKIZ3N7Q4m3XztffD090jt_ya5kzkWyA33JSFGFlpz4MA/viewformResponses should be made by 31 March.

Interleaved with these discussions was the normalSynod business.

Little could be read into the statistical returns sentin by the congregations, since the curtailment ofworship had rendered comparison with any ‘normal’year impossible. With the Mission & Ministry Reportthere was a bit to say, although there again what hadbeen hoped for a year ago had been significantlyaffected by the pandemic restrictions. There had beensome developments in the three diocesan Clusters,but not as much as had been anticipated. Planningand circumstances had, however, pushed along sometransitional ministry posts and five charges are newlyengaged in this work for change with confidence.

4

Diocesan Synod 2021

Looking to the coming year there will continue to besupport for congregations and all personnel, hopingthat there will be easing of restrictions in the nearfuture to enable the momentum in developing theClusters to be recovered and ministers recruited forthose congregations which are in a state of transition.

A report was also received from the CompanionLinks Officer highlighting in particular the additionalchallenges that the pandemic had brought to bearupon plans and projects, especially in eSwatini. None-theless some of these had flourished. Gratitude wasexpressed for all that Bishop Ellinah had done andpioneered during her episcopate and her untimelydeath was mourned by many people.

Though there was not much to say reports weregiven on the diocesan youth work and communicationscenes.

After a welcome break to stretch one’s legs theSynod reconvened to consider the administrativefacet of diocesan life, notably its financial aspect. Therevised diocesan constitution had come into force andthe Diocesan Council had had several satisfactorymeetings, mostly through internet streaming by Zoom.The Diocesan Protection Officer said that thecongregations had competely fulfilled theirresponsibilities with regard to the Protection ofVulnerable Groups and it was hoped that trainingsessions would be recommenced once circumstancespermitted.

When it came to the electing of persons to variousposts within the Diocese or Province, these werealmost all satisfactorily filled.

Moving to a review the financial situation of thediocese the accounts showed that there was a totalincome of £283,798. This comes from a variety ofsources as is shown in the graphic below. Nearly halfcomes from the Quota, to which each congregationcontributes proportionate to its own income (some ofthis is then passed on to the Province as the Outgoingfigures show). Some of the income received is tied toparticular purposes either by decision of the DiocesanCouncil or the wishes of the donor.

The overall expenditure for the year amounted to£314,722. The general breakdown of this is shown innext graphic. the largest slice (over 40%) of this goesto supporting the stipends of some of the clergy andmost of this comes from restricted funds.

It is desirable that income and expenditure in thegeneral funds of the Diocese closely equate. A greatsurplus would indicate that too much Quota had beensought from congregations; a high deficit wouldsuggest we are not living within our means and costsare not being properly controlled. The followinggraphic shows that over the last few years theGeneral Fund, which excludes monies for restrictedpurposes, has in fact roughly broken even. Thisshows prudent financial management.

Two financial elements have been advantageous inthe past year. First, the investments held in theChurch’s Unit Trust Pool have increased significantlyin what has been a volatile fiscal environment and thedividend paymets have thankfully been maintained atprevious levels. Secondly, because of the impact ofthe pandemic in various departments there has beena lower expenditure than had been budgeted for. Thiswas particularly noticeable in the Provincial accountsas reported at the General Synod 2020. The result ofthis is that the Province has lowered for the next threeyears the amount of Quota it will be seeking from theDioceses.

This in turn has resulted in a reduction of £9,000 inthe total that the Diocese needs in Quotaassessments for the present year. This comes as awelcome relief to congregations whose incomes havebeen significantly affected by the currentcircumstances. So the proposed Diocesan budget for2021 (which allows for a deficit of £15,000) and thecalculations for Quota receiveable were put beforemembers of Synod who unanimously approved them.

Following relevant votes of thanks the Bishopconfirmed the Acts of Synod and everyone left theircomputer screens, ready for lunch.

5

The small seaside town ofWhitby, at the mouth of the riverEsk on the North Yorkshire coast,has its fair share of claims to famefrom literary inspiration for BramStoker's Dracula to being the portwhere Captain Cook first beganhis seafaring career on theEndeavour. Most significantlythough for the Church it was thevenue for one of the crucialmoments in the evolution of theChurch in Britain: The Synod ofWhitby.

Perched high on the cliffs,overlooking the sea, is the site ofthe old monastery, the venue forthe synod. The ruins that dominatethe headland at Whitby today areof the 13th century BenedictineAbbey that was built in its placefollowing its destruction in 867A.D. by Danish invaders.

The purpose of the synod wasto decide which method churchesin Britain should use to determinethe date of Easter and otherchurch practices such as whichclerical tonsure (the style ofhaircut used by clergy) should beused. The idea that the date ofEaster was an issue of debatemay seem odd to us in 2021, butback in the 7th century it was apoint of confusion anddisagreement. To understand theissue we need to look back intothe history of Christianity in Britainand how two traditions of the faith,both with their roots in Rome, haddeveloped in the country and howthese two traditions differed intheir method of calculating Easter.

Following the Roman departurein the late 4th century, Britain hadbroken up into a group of separatekingdoms and the following yearshad seen invasions by Angles,Saxons and Jutes who broughtwith them their customs andbeliefs. Christians had beenmarginalised and werepredominantly settled in the westof the country, with paganismbecoming the main form ofworship in England. In Ireland inthe 5th century there was

Christian mission-ary work byBishop Palladius,sent by the Popeto bring Christ-ianity to Irelandand then morenotably by StPatrick. InEngland, however,it wasn’t until thelate 6th centurywith St Augustineof Canterbury andhis mission thatChristianity began

to take root in the pagan kingdomsof Britain.

These two branches ofChristian missionary workdeveloped simultaneously and, inmany ways, along the same lines.Irish Celtic Christianity wasinfluenced by the monastictraditions of St Patrick and StColumba. The English followedthe Roman traditions brought bySt Augustine. Both werefundamentally following the samefaith, but differed in somepractices and traditions.

This is where the problem lay:two very influential Christiantraditions both celebrating Easteron different dates. Thediscussions surrounding this issuewere not new but came to a headin 664 A.D. when the King ofNorthumbria (King Oswiu), calleda meeting of both sides to decidethe matter once and for all. KingOswiu was married to EanFlaed,the daughter of King Edwin (theformer king of Northumbria) andAethelburg of Kent. She followed

the Roman tradition and KingOswiu followed the Celtic whichled to two different dates beingobserved for Easter within theKing's household. This confusionwas mirrored in the country withsome observing the Celtic dateand some the Roman date.

King Oswiu chose themonastery at Whitby, founded byAbbess Hilda, as the venue withHilda as the host. Hilda was heldin regard by both the Roman andCeltic Christians which was vitalfor all attending the meeting to feelcomfortable. Representatives fromboth sides of the debate attendedin the hope that a decision couldfinally be made that would unifythe practices of the church.

The delegates for the Romantradition were led by Agilbert, thebishop of the West Saxons,although his spokesperson wasWilfred (Abbot of Ripon) asAgilbert spoke little English.Wilfrid’s role as spokesmanenabled him to make a speechadvocating that the Romanmethod for calculating the date ofEaster should be adopted.

Bishop Cedd, who spent muchof his early life at Lindisfarneunder the guidance of themissionary Aidan, was asked tobe the translator for both sides.

The Celtic side was led byBishop Colman, a monk on Iona

6

The Synod of WhitbyAn Easter Story

Ruins of the later Benedictine Abbey

Abbess Hilda of Whitby

who became the Bishop ofLindisfarne and friend to KingOswiu.

The opening speech made byKing Oswiu set the tone for thedebate that followed. In Bede’saccount, the King acknowledgedthat both traditions ‘served oneGod’ and both ‘expected the samekingdom of heaven’ therefore itwas only right that they ought notto differ in the celebration of theheavenly mysteries. Both sideshad come together to establishwhich tradition should be followedby all.

At the King’s request BishopColman opened the debate byexplaining which tradition hefollowed and how it had beenestablished. He said the Celtictradition had been passed downthrough their elders and theirforefathers and was the samedate that John the apostle wasrecorded to have celebrated it.This calculation was based on thelunar calendar (a calculation whichhad an 84 year cycle which had

been used by Rome until the 6thcentury).

The same question was posedto Bishop Agilbert who, throughWilfred, replied the Easter Datethey held was also celebrated notonly in Rome but in most of theworld (including Italy, Gaul, Africa,Asia, Egypt and Greece). Hemade a point of noting it was onlythe ‘Picts and the Britons’ who stillopposed this date, even callingthem ‘foolish’ in doing so. TheRoman Christian method forcalculating Easter was in theirview the correct method. Thisnewer method was calculatedusing tables drawn up byDionysius Exiguus (a 6th Centurymonk and scholar) that had acycle of 19 years. The Romantradition looked to the apostlePeter in their calculation withWilfred quoting Matthew 16 ‘Thouart Peter, and upon this rock I willbuild my church, and the gates ofhell shall not prevail against it, andI will give unto thee the keys of thekingdom of Heaven’ in securing

the authority which they had.King Oswui asked Bishop

Colman if he indeed agreed withthe Roman tradition regarding theauthority of Peter in this respect,which he did. After much thoughtKing Oswiu decided (based onthis very authority) that the churchshould follow the tradition ofRome. The practices with regardto the types of monastic tonsurewere also unified.

The decision and importantruling by King Oswiu that wasmade at the synod was to be oneof the turning points in unifying thechurch both liturgically and with itsintegration with Rome. Althoughboth sides argued passionately fortheir tradition most peopleaccepted the outcome. BishopColman returned to Scotland andcontinued in his Celtic tradition.Eventually, by the 8th centuryeven Iona, the monastery foundedby St Columba, had adopted theRoman tradition of calculatingEaster and this unified Britain withthe rest of Europe.

7

When I visited Taizé in the early1990s, first as part of a pilgrimagefrom St Ninian’s, and then just withthe family, study groups wereasked to identify signs of hope. Isuspect that the question is stillasked at Taizé, where thecommunity’s proper nameindicates a dedication toreconciliation – surely one of thekeys to any realistic hope. If I wereasked about signs of hope now, Iwould certainly want to mention arecent initiative called ‘The Houseof One’.

I’m intrigued by the name,which sounds as if it might havebeen translated from German,but which appears in English onthe German language website.Does it mean the ‘house ofone-ness’? If so, why wasn’t itcalled the House of Unity? Doesit mean ‘the house of The One’?If so, why not say so? Perhapsthe name is intended to betantalisingly vague – like thearchitecture? I’ll leave somebodyelse to comment on that.

The house has been

described as a‘churchmosquagogue’, and itspurpose is to bring members ofthe three Abrahamic faithstogether, but without any pretencethat they’re ‘all doing the samething really’. The three faiths havea common ancestry, but divergentunderstandings, and that sense ofa shared but divided tradition isvital. One of the great hopes ofChristian ecumenism was thatchurches acting in unity couldbring communities together in adivided society. The vision of the

House of One is, if anything, evenmore ambitious. In the Westernworld, and as far East as Iran(further East, actually, but withfurther differences of background),communities are divided alongreligious fault-lines if not alwaysfor religious reasons. This givesreligious people a responsibility or,perhaps, a vocation, to be anactive sign of hope.

To quote the website, ‘Berlin issoon to become home tosomething truly unique. Jews,Christians, and Muslims areplanning to build a house ofworship here – one that brings asynagogue, a church, and amosque together under one roof.The three separate sections willbe linked by a communal room inthe center of the building. Thiswill serve as a meeting place,where worshippers and membersof the public can come togetherand learn more about thereligions and each other.’ For amore complete account, visit https://house-of-one.org/en

Ashley Cummins

Signs of Hope

I have been so glad during theperiods of “lockdown” to have thetelevision and radio. ForChristmas 2020, I signed up toNetflix as a gift to myself and myhousehold. The programmes andfilms have been a boost to theday, and I look forward everyweekday to my regular slot of “TheArchers” on Radio 4.

In recent months, there havebeen a number of highly chargedprogrammes on television talkingabout sensitive issues ofdiscrimination and abuse. Thesehave had an impact on me,especially having more time toreflect (as we all have) during mytime at home and in lockdown.These programmes range from“The Great”, highlighting thepower of a Royal family in Russia,to the Channel 4 series “It’s a Sin”,which deals with the treatment ofgay people and in particular thosewith HIV/Aids during the 1980s.

There have also been a numberof very personal stories aboutwomen trapped at home with theirabusers during lockdown and theincreased number of physical andpsychological assaults they havehad to bear. I was taken aback byone morning programmeconcerning a person of smallstature being attacked because ofher stature. She indicated that agroup of men – adults, notyoungsters – had started to shout“Let’s kick the dwarf in the head”.They did just that, and she endedup in hospital unconscious. Iwould hardly have believed thestory if the person had not beennarrating her own experience ofthis deplorable behaviour.

Such aggressions, particularlyagainst people with a disability,are easy for us to focus on and toactually condemn. No member ofthe Christian church or faith wouldwant to have anything to do withsuch behaviour other than todenounce it. We are, of course,dealing with the idea that this isnot the way in which we behaveand that we have created openspace for the inclusion of peoplefrom every background. I canalmost hear the shouts “We do not

do this and we do not hold anyviews which would encouragesuch behaviour, as it is simplyunacceptable to the Christianchurch”.

This may well be true, and theChristian faith has a positiverecord of fighting againstdiscrimination. However, the workthat we have to do in this areadoes not end there. There aremany academics and practitionerswho have linked this type ofbehaviour to the creation of aculture which allows the toleranceof what they call“microaggressions”. I am prettysure that most of us will haveexperienced what this means inwords and in action, both in thechurch and in the wider socialcontext.

The psychologist W. D. Suedefined a microaggression as “aterm used for a brief andcommonplace action, verbal orbehavioural or environmentalindignities, whether intentional orunintentional, to communicatehostile, derogatory or negativeattitudes towards stigmatised orculturally marginalised groups”.

While I am conscious that manyof you may not like thenomenclature “microaggressions”,it is an important aspect of ourdaily life that we as Christiansmust reflect upon if we are not toadd to the culture wheremicroaggressions of discriminationtake place. Little things can and domatter!

Our behaviour as Christiansspeaks of God – and we are allaware of the risks which Godtakes with us – however we arecalled upon to examine on a dailybasis our actions, words andbehaviours. This is part of theexercise of Christian self-examination.

Every day subtle, intentional oroften unintentional interactions orbehaviours that communicate thissort of bias – especially towardshistorically marginalised groups –are being accepted as an ordinarypart of everyday life. These ‘littlethings’ matter and contributefurther to the culture of aggression

that has developed within oursociety.

Making a colloquial commentbased on sex or race or anassumption based on sex, race orother forms of discrimination – thisis something we need to beself-aware of. Even jokes fall intothe category of microaggressions,and we must be conscious of theuse of humour in such contexts.Those who suffer thesemicroaggressions develop self-protective and self-caringmechanisms; but every one of usneeds to develop self-awarenessof when and how we add to thisculture.

The Church has to be a safespace for all, and we are calledupon to self-examine our Christianway of life and to create anawareness of the part we play inthe creation of microaggressions.This safe space which we call‘Church’ means that we have tobecome sensitive to the needs ofthose alongside whom we arejourneying as Christian Disciples,and we need to createcommunities of acceptance whereforgiveness can flourish. It is thisforgiveness which resets theculture of discrimination andopens up the potential for thegenerosity of God to be at workand flourish even within each ofus.

For us in the Church as a safespace, “little things matter”. So, letus work together and help oneanother to sensitise the world toGod’s love for all and to create asafe space for the church whereall can flourish.

Dr Joe Morrow

8

Little Things Matter

By the time that you read thisarticle, I am hopeful that nearlythree hundred portions of soup willhave been delivered in Brechin tothose who might benefit from adelivery. This project only startedto be planned about five weeksago when Stirfresh, a vegetabledistribution enterprise outside

Montrose,offered tosupply freevegetablesfor distri-bution. OurV e s t r yagreed theChurch Hallcould beused forproduction

(It has been sitting empty duringthe last year) and it’s been all gofrom there.

The local football Club Trusteesagreed to assist and the Projecthas been planned with them fromthe start. It was thought preferableto involve as many of the localgroups as possible into thescheme rather than having severalsmall projects duplicatingdistribution. Food HygieneTraining has been undertaken,Risk Assessments completed andthe local Secondary School hasassisted in collecting recipients’names and printing publicity items.

Brechin is an area of highdeprivation, and food insecurityhas become heightened duringthe pandemic. We hope to supply

a packageof freshly-preparedsoup forthose livingalone andto families,on a weeklybasis, atfirst. Therewill be threevarieties of

soups varying over a three-weekperiod. It is hoped that eventuallysome group cooking will bepossible to encourage families toproduce their own soup as we donot wish anyone to becomedependent on us.

The community has been mostgenerous by providing containers,labels and printing and the localFair Share Store has providedsome dried ingredients. An advertwas posted on Facebook and I amdelighted that so many peoplehave volunteered to help,including three cooks who arecurrently on furlough!

I am grateful to all who havegiven of their time to get thisscheme up and running,especially Cathie Calderwood,Chair of the Brechin Food Pantry,who advised us regardingEnvironmental Health issues.

I feelprivilegedto be ableto use mylove ofcooking forothers and Ihope thiswill enablethe Churchto reach outinto theCommunity in a useful way.

We have no funding at presentand are seeking the following: Ice packs for the cool bags

(These do not need to be brand-new.)

Bottles of cooking oil. Stock cubes, salt and pepper. Packs of butter.

If you would like to assist withany of the above, please text meon 07566 273983

Liz Howson,St Andrew’s Church, Brechin

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Brechin Soup Initiative A Brief Pageant ofBritish Verse

(modified!)

It appears some witty would-bepoet has gone viral with thefollowing verses. Which poemsdo you recognise?

I won’t arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,

I’ll sanitize the doorknob and make a cup of tea.

I won’t go down to the sea again; I won’t go out at all,

I’ll wander lonely as a cloud from the kitchen to the hall.

There’s a green-eyed yellow monster to the north of Katmandu

But I shan’t be seeing him just yet and nor, I think, will you.

While the dawn comes up like thunder on the road to Mandalay

I’ll make my bit of supper and eat it off a tray.

I shall not speed my bonnie boat across the sea to Skye

Or take the rolling English road from Birmingham to Rye.

About the woodland, just right now, I am not free to go

To see the Keep Out posters or the cherry hung with snow,

And no, I won’t be travelling much, within the realms of gold,

Or get me to Milford Haven. All that’s been put on hold.

Give me your hands, I shan’t request, albeit we are friends

Nor come within a mile of you, until this trial ends.

Anon.

‘The Coming’ by R S Thomas

And God held in his handA small globe. Look he said.

The son looked. Far off,As through water, he sawA scorched land of fierceColour. The light burnedThere; crusted buildings

Cast their shadows: a brightSerpent, A river

Uncoiled itself, radiantWith slime.On a bare

Hill a bare tree saddenedThe sky. many People

Held out their thin armsTo it, as though waiting

For a vanished AprilTo return to its crossed

Boughs. The son watchedThem. Let me go there, he said.

10

CLUES ACROSS:

1 First couple of childrenaways bring happiness (5)

4 Oiling an ingot in church? (9)

9 Reduce weight by breaking a thin leg (7)

11 Upset if such a bloomer is revealed (7)

12 Melody from bargees on gondola (4)

13 Fourteen pounds found in apeach (5)

14 Get rid of a blazer (4)17 Defiant criminal undoes

Britain (13)19 e.g. moist Sun Creme, etc.

(13)21 No place like it! (4)22 A turn around for Catherine

(5)23 Glance back at the castle

(4)

26 A bit of havoc adolescents cause with fruit (7)

27 Disdained to treat little Edward’s corn (7)

28 Fiery chief journalist is rash (3-6)

29 Does she catch a rope inthe bell tower? (5)

CLUES DOWN: 1 It’s heavenly when lace is

let loose (9) 2 They transmit power in

genes perhaps (7) 3 Tear around to make speed

(4) 5 Insult seven sons in Fife

(13) 6 Saintly December traveller

briefly in prison (4)

7 Where bells are rung to raise spirits (7)

8 Girl has something to say before eating (5)

10 Going nowhere in a maze (2,7,4)

15 Fabricated by one form of timber (5)

16 Nun’s customary dress (5)18 Idly sip in a way that’s

tasteless (9)19 Unusual form in a child’s

bed supplies relief (7)20 English learnt about

becoming immortal (7)21 Redhead left fireside for

moorland (5)24 Look at a brokendown cafe

(4)25 Outside forces (4)

Cryptic Prize CrosswordLooking forward to Pentecost, fourteen answers will be found in the Whitsuntide hymn, Veni Creator Spiritus(Come, Holy Ghost). Send your entries to the editor at the address on the back page by Friday, 30 July.

Name ................................................................

Address................................................................

.............................................................................

Have you ever happened to be in the right place at the right time,with certain qualifications, and suddenly realise that God is singlingyou out for a special task? If so, Matthias is a good patron saint foryou! In Acts 1 (15 – 26) the apostles had a task to do: Judas hadbetrayed Jesus and died, and so a new apostle needed to be chosen.He had to have been a follower of Christ from the Baptism to theAscension, and also a witness of the Resurrection in order to qualify.In the event, the choice fell to one of two: Joseph Barsabas andMatthias.

Lots were drawn, and Matthias was chosen.How confident he must have felt in his calling:what encouragement that would be when thegoing got rough in later years! Matthias isthought to have ministered in Cappadocia andeven Ethiopia. His emblem is usually an axe orhalberd, regarded as the instrument of hismartyrdom. His supposed relics were translatedfrom Jerusalem to Rome by the empressHelena.

15 May - Matthias the Apostle, called by lots

I’ve gradually becomedisgruntled with the church – notSt Ternan’s – but the church as anorganisation. And it started not justin this interregnum but long beforethat. We’ve seen hardly anyinnovations in our regular religiousactivities, and the alternativeservices we’ve had are, for themost part, only witnessed by ourexisting congregation. The churchauthorities seem to be completelyout of touch with non-churchgoersand we need to address theproblem of reaching out to these.

As a congregation we havedone wonderful things with ourbuildings – heating, toilets,kitchen, socialising spaces, carparking but it has all been to noavail.

The congregation continues todwindle as we die off one by one.There’s no new young bloodcoming in. And somebody shouldbe asking Why? The churchauthorities should be asking why.But I’m not convinced that they aredoing any serious marketresearch.

However, I have asked why.I’ve asked myself and if you’veread my articles in the magazineyou’ll know that my feeling is thatwhat we offer in our services islargely out-moded. It’s hardlychanged since I was a child. Andwhen I read that last GrosvenorEssay it’s obvious that ourtheologians are trapped in somekind of Victorian Space Capsuleunable to descend to earth. Thechance of serious reform beingsent down from above appears tobe negligible.

But it perhaps it wouldn’t makeany difference. I think it is probablytoo late. My family, children andgrandchildren, all baptised andbrought up going to church, justdon’t see the church as havingany relevance in their lives. If theyhave come to church on specialoccasions it has mainly been outof respect for Peggy and me. Theyreckon they live just as goodChristian lives without any need ofthe church. They may beagnostics (I don’t think they are

atheists) but their hearts are in theright place. And that was the mostimportant thing that Jesus wanted.To be kind-hearted.

Jesus didn’t try to change thereligious beliefs of the Scribes andPharisees. He, himself, preachedin the synagogue. So he wasn’tagainst synagogue worship. Whathe wanted was for the synagogueauthorities to have a change ofheart. To change the petty rulesthat surrounded the practice ofJudaism, but had no effect onmaking one become a niceperson. Just sticking to the ruleswas not good enough. Jesuswanted a change of heart not achange of fundamental beliefs.Take the case of the Romansoldier. Jesus didn’t criticise thesoldier’s religion – he just healedthe soldier’s child because thatwas the right thing to do.

He didn’t go around trying toconvert people to some newreligion. Jesus did not found thechurch. He did not prescribe howhis followers should do things.What we do in church was notprescribed by Jesus. Things likehow many candles, when not tohave flowers, what colour the altarfrontal should be, these have beendecided by the church, not byJesus. And if doing church thingsgets in the way of carrying outJesus’ commandments to loveGod and love our Neighbour thenit is an impediment and we shouldseriously think whether to retain it.Christianity must take precedenceover Churchianity.

When Churchianity becomesmore important than Christianitythen unspeakable horrors mayresult. The history books are full ofthem: The Crusades, The SpanishInquisition, Interdenominationalwarfare – Catholics vsProtestants. More recently wehave had homophobia, paedophilescandals and the diabolicaltreatment of unmarried mothers –young women’s lives wrecked atthe time when they should beexperiencing the most wonderfulevent of their lives. All these thingswere swept under the carpet to tryto protect the church’s reputation.

That kind of hypocrisy is whatturns a lot of folk off the church.

There are, we know, plenty ofnew, modern, progressivechurches with none of this awfulhistory and they are full ofenthusiastic young people.Perhaps it is time to allow ourchurch to die and become amuseum piece and let the newchurches get on with it.

It would be a tragedy if we wereto spend tens of thousands ofpounds over the next severalyears, and end up in much thesame situation because we didn’tmake any changes to what weoffer and where we offer it. That isa real danger. But if change is tohappen I think it will have to comefrom the grass roots because I amvery doubtful that the hierarchy ofour church is capable of thinkingcritically or willing to do anythingdifferent. Should we be fortunateenough to attract an ordainedminister to lead us forward in thenext few years, I do not envy hisor her task.

POSTSCRIPT: Since presentingthis pessimistic view in the Zoommeeting I received severalcomments and emails, somesuggesting that I am not alone inbelieving that some sort ofreformation or reprioritising isneeded. Some comments I havereceived make the followingobservations.1. We should be optimistic. Thefailure of Cove church was due tothe absence of a full-time priest.St. Ternan’s and St. James’ willthrive under a new appointment.2. Many churches thrive whilstoffering the same or similar formalservices as ourselves. Cansomebody find out why this is?What do they have that we lack?Is it just a full-time ministry?3. Is the church furniture in needof change? Should the question ofpews vs chairs be raised again?4. Non-churchgoers today haveprobably never been to SundaySchool, never read the Bible, haveno concept of the Trinity, etc.What can we provide for them?

Ken Tonge

11

Christianity v. Churchianity

The late Joyce Grenfell wrote awonderful song, Joyful Noise,about three lady choristers: MissClissold, Miss Truss and IvyTrembley. Their greatest delightwas to sing in an oratorio at theRoyal Albert Hall. “It may be like agasworks with a green-house roofabove it, and it may lackconvenience, butall the same welove it.” That lovehas marked thelife of the RoyalAlbert Hall whichwas opened inthe spring of1871, 150 yearsago.

After thesuccess of theGreat Exhibition,Prince Albertdreamed ofcreating a morepermanent cult-ural area inLondon to pro-mote and popularise the arts andsciences. On his death in 1861aged just 42 years, it was decidedto erect a memorial and a ‘CentralHall.’ And so the Royal Albert Hallwas built. At heart it is animpressive concert hall promotingclassical music with an annualperformance of Handel’s Messiahfrom 1876, and from 1941 the

BBC Promenade Concerts: 8weeks of concerts in the summerwelcoming musicians from all overthe world and culminating in thememorable Last Night.Composers from Wagner andVerdi to Bernstein and Brittenhave conducted and had worksperformed there.

But the Royal Albert Hall hasalso hosted an amazingly widevariety of events through its life:the Beatles in 1963, EllaFitzgerald in 1990, Adele in 2011,poetry evenings, sport (boxing,tennis and basketball), the Cirquede Soleil, Teenage Cancer Trustconcerts, and the 25th anniversary

performance of The Phantom ofthe Opera in 2011. It has provideda platform for Winston Churchill,Einstein and the Dalai Lama.Many will have poignant memoriesof seeing the annual Royal BritishLegions’ Festival of Remem-brance held every Novembersince 1923: a moving occasion

that culminateswith the showerof poppy petals.

Sadly, be-cause of therestrictions withthe pandemic, theHall’s programmeof events has hadto be limited inscope since lastyear, but thefrieze on theoutside of thebuilding remainsto inspire. Therewe see carveddeep into thestone-work a

celebration of the rich variety ofarts and sciences that includemusic, sculpture, painting,astronomy and navigation, and thewords “Thine O Lord is thegreatness and the power and theglory and the majesty” – areminder that all our creative workhere is a reflection of the wonderof God the Creator.

12

150 years of the Royal Albert Hall

The next issue of Grapevine will be coming out for 29 August 2021.

All articles, letters, comments should be with the Editor by Thursday 5 August 2021. Preferably articles should be no longer than 500 words.

The Editor of Grapevine, Beattie Lodge, Laurencekirk, Kincardineshire, AB30 1HJ(E-mail: <office@brechin.anglican.org> or <mjrturner@btinternet.com>)