April showers

Spring flowers

According to the Met Office, spring began either on March 1 or March 20. Days are getting longer and, thanks to British Summer Time, evenings are now lighter. The moving forward of the clocks at the weekend brought with it the usual debate surrounding the pros and cons of the annual change from Greenwich Mean Time. This year the leisure industry weighed in suggesting that theme parks and other attractions would benefit from year round BST. Scottish farmers were not impressed.

This curious debate seemed sharper this year set as it is against the growing tension between the Prime Minister and the First minister of Scotland. As the formal process of Britain's withdrawal from the European Union gets underway no doubt other long submerged differences will resurface much as the BST question does each year. We watch and wait.

Living side by side with those of varied backgrounds and beliefs was no easier two thousand years ago than it is today.  The Roman Empire was resented by the Jewish religious elite and the general population alike. Roman governors were fearful of uprisings in the Province of Judea and acted swiftly to suppress potential ringleaders. Judea's king was concerned only with clinging to his position which was at best precarious.

Jesus posed a threat to both the religious leaders and the civil authorities of his day. His ability to draw together and inspire ordinary people was a problem for the Romans. His unwillingness to conform to the expectations of the Pharisees and Priests was alarming. He was executed by the Roman state at the instigation of Jewish religious leaders because he had the potential to upset the status quo.

Then, as now, fear and uncertain times bring out the worst in us all.

The week that was

Wednesday 22nd March was anything but just another day for a group of Bridgwater children. With great excitement students and staff at St John and St Francis school set off for London to visit the Houses of Parliament. Having been in school for an assembly just after they left the news of an incident at Westminster sparked immediate concern. I spent the rest of the day checking the school website and watching news coverage. It was a relief the next morning to hear that the children had arrived back late in the evening.

The attack on Westminster came on the day after the death of Martin McGuinness had been announced. McGuinness' funeral took place yesterday as the investigation into Wednesday's attack gathered speed. Tributes to the one time IRA commander who became Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland noted both his contribution to the peace process and his violent past.  A reminder that the willingness of some individuals to kill and destroy in the name of a cause is no new phenomenon.

The sad fact is that much of the hate and violence in our world is rooted in a distorted religious perspective. From the Crusades to the present day activities of the so called Islamic State religious conflict has been a depressing fact. Wherever there are strongly held beliefs it seems there are always those who will use force to make their point.

Wednesday's terror attack shocked the nation. Ordinary people found themselves caught up in a situation beyond their control. Many offered all they could in the way of support to those around them. The emergency services handled devastating injuries with professionalism and compassion.

Finding themselves locked down in the House of Commons the children of St John and St Francis School sang hymns while their parents joined staff at the school to wait for news. As they waited food, drink and support were offered by the Salvation Army. Here at least hate and fear did not win the day.

The saint and the shamrock

May the road rise up to meet you
May the wind be always at your back
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
the rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again,
may God hold you in the palm of his hand.
Ancient Irish Blessing

All things Irish have been to the fore these past few days. St Patrick's Day celebrations on Friday included parades both on the Emerald Isle and across the globe. Patrick is apparently one of the most popular saints worldwide. This may have something to do with the fact that St Patrick's Day usually falls in Lent. Since the early 17th century his Feast Day has been an opportunity to take a welcome break from the Lenten fast. Twenty first century publicans and chefs owe a debt of gratitude to this fifth century saint.

Patrick was an Englishman. At the age of sixteen he was captured by Irish raiders and taken to Ireland where he stayed for six years tending sheep.  During those years his Christian faith grew and when he finally got home he trained to become a priest. He eventually returned to Ireland as a missionary and died there in 461AD. According to tradition, Patrick used the shamrock to explain the doctrine of the Trinity to the pagan Irish.

Shamrocks are still much in evidence on St Patrick's Day as since the eighteenth century the shamrock has been become something of a national symbol. Saturday saw Ireland deny England a Grand Slam victory in the Six Nations tournament. Rugby fans will no doubt know the logo of the Irish Rugby Football Union - a shamrock and a rugby ball. Ireland's national team draws players from both Ulster and Eire; where other symbols are controversial the shamrock is an emblem that all can accept.

Did Patrick really use the shamrock to explain the mystery of the Trinity? We'll never know but the unifying nature of this national symbol in sport, where tribalism is so often the order of the day, is an interesting footnote to his story.

Compassionate generosity

Japonica, Somerset

A glorious morning here in the south west. The sun is shining, garden trees and shrubs are flowering. Spring, with the promise of new life, is here. From where I sit it is easy to speak of the glory of creation and the generosity of God in surrounding us with such beauty.

Not so for the 16 million people in danger of starvation in East Africa. Their experience of drought and famine is closer to the wilderness experience of Jesus that we recall during Lent. As women boil up leaves in the hope of providing their children with something to fill their stomachs I am reminded of the devil's suggestion that Jesus turn stones to bread to feed himself.

Yesterday the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) launched an appeal for funds to help reduce the scale and the severity of the crisis affecting four countries - South Sudan, Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia. The enormity of this crisis is hard to comprehend; the task of meeting the need seems as impossible as turning stones into bread.

The encouraging news is that response to the appeal has been swift and generous. The Queen has made a personal donation, the government pledged £5 million matching funding and by this morning £12 million had been donated. Feeding the world is beyond the capacity of any single individual but the compassion of millions can make a difference in the most desperate of situations. Donations to the DEC East Africa Appeal can be made online or at any High Street bank.

Jesus challenged the people of his time to show compassion and generosity to anyone in need. Expanding the traditional understanding of the neighbour beyond the natural boundaries of place or race, he asked his followers to show kindness beyond the accepted minimum requirements. In our time, globalisation challenges us to extend our thinking still further. A crisis thousands of miles away is our problem as much as theirs; our response a part of our response to the generosity of God towards us.

Hidden Figures

Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson worked for NASA in the early 1960s. The recent film Hidden Figures tells the story of their contribution to American success in the Space Race. The film, based on a book of the same name by Margot Lee Shetterly, is an inspiring account of the obstacles faced by these three African-American women in a workplace dominated by white male culture and expectations.

Katherine, Dorothy and Mary were not human rights activists. They were three talented women who had to fight for the right to use their abilities not just to earn a living but also to contribute to their society. Breaking down the barriers that prevent individuals from achieving their potential is not only a matter of fairness, justice and equality. When ideology or prejudice stands in the way of those who simply want to do what they were put here to do everyone loses.

Jesus had little time for the structures and systems of his day. His ministry was characterised by actions and teaching that sought to release individuals, not institutions, to be and do what God intended. Ethnicity and gender were unimportant - a Samaritan (Arab)woman and a Roman (Italian) soldier were no less worthy of his time than members of his own Jewish community. And the religious elite were roundly condemned when their traditions or interpretations of the faith created barriers of any kind.

Hidden Figures is an inspiring film. It is sad to realise that although much has changed in western societies since the 1960s the barriers are still in place. Even sadder is the recognition that the Christian Church is one of the places where inequality remains a fact of life for many. Too often inherited doctrine and church tradition stand in the way of those who want to do what they believe God put them here to do. And we all lose as a result.

Daffodils and St David

National Museum of Wales, Cardiff

Ash Wednesday fell on St David's Day, 1st March, this year. Daffodils were much in evidence in Cardiff both in the city gardens and on the lapels of shop staff. St David was a monk who founded several monasteries. Those who joined him lived a life of austerity and spent their days in hard physical work. Arriving in Cardiff on the day there seemed little to link the Welsh capital with the country's patron saint beyond the two shopping centres that bear his name. I found myself wondering what the man known for his simplicity of life, humility and wisdom would have made of twenty-first century consumerism.

Cardiff is also home to the Doctor Who Experience, a tourist attraction in the regenerated Cardiff Bay area. Visitors take a trip on the Tardis with the Doctor, encountering both Daleks and Weeping Angels, before enjoying an exhibition of costumes and other Who paraphernalia. Love it or hate it, the television series has been a part of British life for over half a century.

The Doctor himself is a curious character. Unpredictable, conflicted, heroic and with a fondness for planet earth, he challenges and often destroys those who threaten the well being of her inhabitants. Death and destruction are inevitable as the Doctor and his companions encounter Cybermen, Daleks and other murderous races intent on domination.

During this first week of Lent Christians recall Jesus' wilderness encounter with evil personified. Tempted to abuse his power for domination rather than redemption, Jesus turned away from the devil and embarked on the road to Calvary. No power struggles, no war, no forced surrender of the enemy. Just one man, God incarnate, who would change the world by dying on a cross.