March 2010 Parish Magazine

The March 2010 edition of our Parish Magazine is now available. This month's Vicar's Letter focuses on Charles Darwin:

The journey of the young Charles Darwin aboard the Beagle during the years 1831-36, is one of the best known and most neatly mythologised episodes in the history of science. During this voyage of the Beagle, he reflected upon the various cultures, peoples, politics that he encountered as well as science. As a seasoned naturalist and weary of travel he sailed home a changed man.

As a young intellectual he had a yearning to engage in profitable discussion and debate. To seek to understand mankind and the world in which he lived. He had grown up as a scholar and an Anglican, and earlier had considered taking orders. However, although he believed in God, he was unable to accept the opening chapters of the biblical narrative as being true. For him there was an impenetrable gulf. He truly believed in free speech and sought to encourage Christians to think through their faith in an intelligent way, rather than merely accept what the ‘bible’ stated. Much of those early chapters of Genesis, seen as ‘mythological’ seek to describe the incomprehensible. Indeed within most civilizations there is a form of Creation narrative.

Darwin saw his quest not to discredit Christians but to encourage them to think through their faith in order to give an intelligent answer to those who question. Evolution and Creation are not different ways of interpreting the phenomena of ‘beginnings’, rather two aspects of a process of creating life. Whilst our ancestors were primitive wanderers, humanity was created as a different species from the animal kingdom.

I have no problem with seeing Darwin’s theory fitting into the creation narrative as recorded in scripture. And I do not believe that Darwin intended his thoughts to encourage atheism, rather to be a catalyst for discussion and to rejoice in the rich diversity of our life.

And in the end we believe in a God who cares and sustains life in all its richness.

Lent 1

Parish Eucharist at 10.00am tomorrow (Sunday 21st Feb). First Sunday in Lent.

Imposition of Ashes

Last year's palm crosses are burnt to create ash for this year's Ash Wednesday service to enable the Imposition of Ashes. This is when your forehead is marked with the sign of the cross in ash.

Ash Wednesday - 17th February 2010

Ash Wednesday - Parish Eucharist at 10.00am with the Imposition of Ashes for those who wish to receive them. Join us to mark the start of the Lent season.

Shrove Tuesday

Shrove Tuesday today - why not try the pancake receipe in the February edition of our Parish Magazine?

Palms for Lent

Palm Crosses - Don't forget to bring them back so that we can burn them ready for Ash Wednesday.