Always Hope

Yesterday I took a funeral.  This is not unusual, although in our slightly smaller than average parish, we get fewer than most.  When I first came here, after being the curate in a large seaside parish which we affectionately termed "the death zone", that was quite a relief.  But after a suitable time to recover, I realised that actually I don't dislike funerals at all.  I know some of my colleagues are a little jaded with the funeral business, and sad to say some are downright snooty about taking the funerals of those who only think of coming to church feet first, while others suffer terrible angst about what to say in the sermon on such occasions.  But for me, when they work well, as it did yesterday, there's really nowhere I'd rather be. Admittedly this was an unusual one.  Not least because when someone has reached 100, there's really little left to regret, and a great deal to celebrate, as I said in the sermon.  Many funerals are much harder, ...

We celebrated Harvest tonight at Old Kea, our little church in the valley.  It's one of those places where Harvest still carries its traditional meaning, with a very local congregation and a fair few agricultural types there.  Listening to an excellent home-grown sermon from our very own churchwarden, I was struck again by the potency of Harvest to connect with people's spirituality at a deep-down level.  It just seems to mean something to people, even those who don't necessarily darken the doors very often. I know some of my fellow clergy, jaundiced by singing songs about cabbages green at too many school assemblies, don't care for Harvest too much.  If I was in an urban parish, I might feel the same.  But we shouldn't rush to spurn something which helps us to speak when people want to listen. I wonder what the new equivalent of Harvest festival might be? What would capture the hearts and minds of the emerging generations of Britons, and prompt them to give...

Sorry, but this is a story of strictly local interest only: Kea plums bid for European protected status Yes, the famous Kea Plum may soon be accredited with Protected Design of Origin status by the EU, putting it on a par with Cheddar Cheese and other such delicacies (but, scandalously, not Cornish Pasties) as something that cannot be ripped off by cheap imitations grown in Albania or Biggleswade. Why anyone would want to do this in the case of the Kea Plum is not clear, but that's not the point. This is long overdue recognition for what is presumably Kea's only indigenous species (a phrase that surely only a few parishes can use with a clear conscience). The observant will notice that Tregothnan is in fact on the other side of the river, but I understand that they do grow their plums at Coombe, thereby meeting the strict qualifying conditions. Always Hope presumes that the status, when awarded, will apply to the plums which still grow in the gardens and fields of many of the ...

Last night here at Kea I ran an introductory evening for a group of people who I'm hoping will join me in a leadership course over the coming year ( CPAS Growing Leaders ). It looks really good and I'm hoping that they will take up the opportunity. I came to the evening with some concern about how it was going to go but ended up really enjoying it - and I think I know why (apart from the great company and good response, of course). The whole dynamic of a leadership programme in the church is something which breaks down the clergy/laity mentality in church. If I was asked to list the things that I find difficult about my work, that would be near the top of the list - the idea that once you get the round collar on, you somehow become a different species to the rest of humanity (and yes, I know some people really believe that, but I don't). I admit to being slightly in two minds about this. I'm actually all in favour of having professional clergy, who are not only gift...