Dear All,

Easter is just behind us, the wonderful celebration of new life that comes from the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.  What had been dark and distressing and hopeless became by that event the grounds of hope for all, not just then but for all time.

Easter may be behind us, but it is also and always in front of us, the promised light in the darkness, an inspiration surely to retain our hope whatever is going on in the world.

And my goodness, there are horrors everywhere. On the world stage, in war – brutal and unyielding, bringing unspeakable terrors.  And nationally, a sense of widespread division, mistrust and cynicism. I don’t have the answer to these international catastrophes of war, or to our national divisions.  But I do know that we are one humanity, it is the being human that unites us, and it is vital that whatever our differences, and however they play out, we should place respect for one another’s humanness at the deep heart of what we do.  Jesus said, My peace I give you, my peace I leave with you. It is the deep peace that sees and respects the divine image in every other human.

I am sure you will agree with me that there is really an enormous amount to be thankful for in our lives.  And we must focus on this because what we focus on grows.

Let us thank God for his many blessings to us every day, even as we do what we can to lessen hardship that we see others facing.

With every blessing

Stephen