Message from the Pastoral Care and Eldership Team (PaCET) for Sunday Meeting 14th July 2024

Dear Friends,

My family was recently involved in creating a wedding from the ground up, literally. The barn had to be built, the bales stacked for seating, the hay in the field cut and paths mowed, a huge tree replaced the altar, the backdrop was the South Downs.

It could not have taken place without all of us working, communicating, loving each other and calling upon God. In other words we had to relate.

This leans in towards the words of the Creation (John 1:1) ‘In the Beginning was the Word’. As we understand it the Gospel according to John was written in Greek and the word ‘logos’ can be translated to mean ‘word’ but logos can have several meanings including ‘relationship’. Imagine a religion based on ‘In the beginning was relationship, and the relationship was with God and the relationship was God’.

I’m new to Quaker worship but I hope this is something we aspire to in our thoughtful, reflective style of worship and relationships, whatever form God takes in our understanding. Spirituality is only meaningful when it relates to peoples real lives and it is only in relationship that we thrive.

Maggie Landells

on behalf of the Pastoral Care and Eldership Team (David Hitchin, Chris Lawson, Tim Pitt-Payne, Caroline Pybus, Theresa Samms and Nancy Wall)