Dromore Cathedral

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Me and the hubby both have the day off and are relaxing, I’m writing this on top of the bed (it’s the middle of the day) and he is out cutting the front garden. Summer Madness has been the climax of my church year since about 2003 and as I recline here in the peace and quiet I am mystified as to where myself and the many adults like me get the energy. The source of the energy makes a song we sing in the Cathedral drift into my mind now, I can remember bits and pieces and most of the tune. Words like, hope, strength, waiting, and praying.

Only a short week ago I joined with some 2 thousand teenage campers in the Summer Madness experience at the King’s Hall Belfast. I stood in the King’s Hall at worship, content among the forest of arms moving not with the wind but with the music. But summer Madness isn’t all serious finding God experiences, there’s still ample room for the usual teenage shenanigans. My trusty bike meant that during my security shifts I could appear out of nowhere quite quickly to find culprits red handed, just about to fire the water balloon, just about to take the pegs out of tents or just about to put the finishing wrap on the car covered in cling film and toilet roll. I think it’s about time I came clean about the eyes I have concealed in my hair. It’s just a knack parents have.

The campsite was quiet during the 2 main worship sessions each day, meaning the vast majority of young people were spending almost 4 hours each day singing God’s praises, listening to His word, praying and responding to what they had heard. It can be emotionally difficult for first timers, embarrassed by their reactions to what they hear or the reactions of their friends. Tears are common, a natural response to the release of pent up emotions or of accepting Jesus into their hearts. Even the ‘weakest’ teenager there has my admiration. I wanted to give them all one big hug and say ‘well done’ for being open about living for Jesus or just being open to what they are hearing in this world which can laugh at them. After each worship session you couldn’t see the front of the stage for young people who came forward to give their lives to Jesus or to open their hearts to the prayer team.

After the worship it was out into the noise of the campsite, the seminars, the music venues, the chill out spaces or even to get a luxurious shower. No sleep ‘till….hometime.

Both the important men in my life are glued to the box watching the world cup. So I thought that instead of moaning about the amount of time the players are on the ground, I’d get a few memories of Summer Madness 2010 at King’s Hall Belfast into print.

I’m almost restored in mind and body after the demands of Summer Madness which finished on Tuesday 6th July. Even after a few days at home I’m still taking delight in being able to wander into the shower in the morning and to become a vegetarian again. One of my favourite meals was a burger after midnight last Sunday night. Come to think of it, all my meals were my favourite as I was always hungry as my mode of transport throughout the event was my son’s bike. Inspite of my son having long legs, the saddle of his bike was so low that I spent most of the time standing on the pedals. Anyway, I digress.

For those of you who have never heard of Summer Madness, it is arguably Ireland’s largest Christian festival for young people. Dromore Cathedral’s Youth Fellowship was there led by Tom, Wendy and Julie and I was there on the security team. After a few years of volunteering on different teams, I plumped for security as I can be a ‘mummy’ to thousands of young people. My voice was almost gone by the time I got home so you can imagine how much shouting I did. All good humoured stuff and a lot of happy squealing as I met up with many of the young people whom I meet but once a year at Madness. One of my young friends will never grow in mind or body and I thank God each year I see the child’s face smiling at me as we go into worship.

The weather was much better than it has been this past few years and I even had to use sunscreen. However, last Sunday saw the Dromore Cathedral’s youth taking turns at sitting on their food tent to stop it blowing away. Tom, Wendy and Julie worked hard to make a little home from home in the Paddock sub-camp and ‘Dromore Cathedral’ was as ever a popular place to stop late into the evening. Tom’s youngest scooted happily around in his little red SNYF sweatshirt and I think he was better travelled than I. Each time I saw him I shouted “Hi boy!” and was rewarded by a squeal of laughter as he bolted off in the opposite direction.

That’s all I have for now, but I hope this has whet your appetite enough to come back in a couple of days to hear a bit more.

A call has come from some members of the community to join an open air prayer time at the Square on Thursday 1st July at 9.00 pm. If you’re free why not come along?

Due to technical difficulties with operating wordpress we sometimes lose our home page link to the news sheet downloads. Click on the following link to find all recent news sheets and magazines online: http://cathedral.dromore.anglican.org/category/downloads/

Thanks

Dromore Cathedral’s branch of the Mothers’ Union was founded in 1930. This year marks its 80th anniversary.

To celebrate the event we invite parishioners, friends and former members to join with the current branch members at a celebration in the Cathedral and a tea afterwards in the Cathedral Hall. Mrs Liz Miller will be our speaker at the Service.

Sunday 9th May 2010 at 3.00 pm. There is no other evening service on this day.

On Sunday 2nd May Dromore’s town square was host to a cross community worship service. The service was part of Dromore’s Civic week activities which are organised by Dromore in Action.

This is the second year of such a service and Dromore In Action hope that it becomes an annual event. Last year’s service was organised by Dromore Cathedral, but although successful, it was essential that this year’s baton would pass to another Christian faith group. The 2010 event was organised by Pastor Sheila Smyth of Fresh Oil Ministries Dromore and hosted very successfully by Fresh Oil Ministries. The event was yet again a collaboration between Christian faiths in the town.

Intermittent heavy rain didn’t appear to dampen the enthusiasm of the assembled crowd (not a bad size given the day) who were treated to a programme of ‘old’ and ‘new’ worship songs. The programme included drama from Dromore’s Youth for Christ (DYFC), with those in the front row audience no doubt feeling part of the action. Although it was cold and wet, one of DYFCs interns from Pennsylvania USA managed a violin solo, (apologies from the author if it was a fiddle, or if they are one and the same!) her fingers no doubt warmed by the love of Jesus in her heart. Individual singers from our Christian community demonstrated the gifts God has bestowed on the youth of Dromore.

Pastor Sheila Smyth led Fresh Oil Ministries large singing circle with the strains of the banjo lending a bit of an American ‘blue-grass’ feel to some of the musical pieces.

Karen Bowden, Dromore Cathedral’s new worship leader, along with husband Jeremy, led some of Dromore Cathedral’s Praise singers in old and rousing favourites “What a friend we have in Jesus” and ‘I stand amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene”.

Dromore In Action thanked Sheila for all the effort which went into her organisation of the event. Planning for next year’s event will start early in 2011 and Dromore In Action would welcome ideas from potential organisers and participants.

Christ himself gathered his flock around him in the open air so, although out of the ordinary for Dromore, it was just as our Lord himself would have done. We pray it was pleasing to Him.

The Christian Aid Soup Lunch, planned for Wednesday 14th April, has had to be cancelled due to illness in the team. We apologise for this short notice. Please inform anyone you know [who normally attends and who may not read this web page] that this is so. Thank you.

We wish Carol and the team well.

I’ve reached the end of my time of blogging with not as many entries as I’d have liked, it’s been a busy time. It’s been my first Lent and Easter as a Lay Reader and this last week I’m thankful I’ve had the time to immerse myself in following Jesus during his last days.

I hope that this Easter brings a fresh perspective to your day to day life and that you can journey on with those first believers as they pieced together the stories of Christ’s resurrection and then started to have the courage to spread the Good News. Unlike them, you don’t have to hide in catacombs and fear a knock on the door, so come along to our services over the next few weeks to re-live the story of the birth of Christ’s church.

‘Till the next time. God bless. Lynn

At last night’s Good Friday evening service we heard the old old story, one we’d heard many times before and we know it’s one which doesn’t end with a grave. We heard of Jesus who died on the cross for our sins, as a true Passover lamb who was offered for us and has taken away the sin of the world. We looked as with fresh eyes though an pictured ourselves at the foot of the cross, as the crowd Jesus looked down over as he hung in agony. On this day of emptiness between Crucifixion and Resurrection, come again with me now to the foot of that cross. “It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, for the sun stopped shining.” (Luke 23v 44).
This darkness would probably have enforced a quietness, the animals and birds would think it night and would be in their bedtime routine, or going home to roost. Darkness had been over the earth at creation, and here is was again. Another new beginning. Darkness. Silence Shh!

You are at the foot of the cross, Jesus is hanging there looking over the crowd. Think of yourself as there. Or think of all the people we’ve heard of and put ourselves in their place. Who were the people Jesus saw? What did they see, what did they hear, what did they say, what did they do, what did they think? What would be happening in the lives of the people around the cross either by proximity or by the part they played in Jesus hanging on the cross? The men who guarded Jesus who had mocked and beat him, The council of elders and chief priests and teachers of the law, Pilate, Herod, the soldiers, the people, Simon of Cyrene, the daughters of Jerusalem, the women who mourned, the criminals crucified with Jesus, Joseph of Arimathea, the many women we read of in Matthew’s account (Mathew 27:55) including Mary Magdalene, and of course Jesus mother Mary and the disciple he loved John (John 19:32).

Since the time when Jesus had been nailed to the cross, since the lamb of God had been lifted high, the people would have been sitting waiting for Jesus to die. If any of you have ever sat by a bedside, you’ll know how that goes. You seem to be able to carry out conversations with everyone, but you still hear the breathing, of the one who is near death. You go back over the stories, happy times, sad times….

So you’re close enough to the cross you’d see and hear what was happening. Shh! Listen ! Jesus is speaking! “Father forgive them they know not what they do” (Luke 23 v34). Jesus was in agony and yet he still pleaded the case with God for his tormentors.

“This day you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:34) Even on the cross he promised salvation the person who hung beside him.

Shh! Listen, Jesus is speaking to us. Jesus spoke to the crowd and he left us such an example of how to care for each other and particularly our family. But what is Jesus doing? Caring for others even in his suffering. The Gospel account of John (John 19 v 25) tells us that “Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother…and the disciple whom he loved standing near by..”and he leaves his mother in John’s charge as she now and no one to care for her.

You look around you. What now? There were about three hours silence before we hear Jesus again in Marks account (Mark 15:34) “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me”.
If you were at the cross and didn’t know your scripture you’d be thinking Jesus was in despair. But not so, these are the first words of Psalm 22. This was an urgent appeal to God as Jesus knew he would be temporarily separated from God.

Shhh! He’s lifting his head slightly. And then we hear the words “It is finished “ (John 19:30) and finally “ Father into your hands I commit my spirit”.

The first and last recorded words of Jesus speak of God as his father. As you sit in your sorrow at the cross, you’d maybe cast your mind back to a story you heard from Mary mother of Jesus. (Luke 2:49) Jesus had become lost and was found in the temple courts and told Mary “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house.” Now you come to think of it, this is the first time you hear of Jesus being aware he is God’s son.

That would finally be it and you would probably sit a moment or two, as long as it was allowed, before the soldiers came to move you along, the soldiers are frightened of what the Jesus followers would do. And so you move off into the distance, maybe to stand with another crowd. (Luke 23:49) ”But all those who knew him, including the women who followed him from Galilee stood at a distance, watching these things.” Jesus is apparently dead. What now? Well I suppose he’d been telling you for a long time this was going to happen, but you didn’t really believe it. He told you about three times he was going to die (Luke 9:22) “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected …and must be killed and on the third day raised to life.” And again (Luke 9:44) “The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men.” And again (Luke 18:31) .. “everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled.”

Ok, but it seems so pointless, tell me again why was Jesus dying? Nicodemus knew, Jesus told him. John 3:15 “so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.” Hmm, he’s said that before, he’s going to die, but three days later he’ll rise again. Do I sit here three days?

Let’s pretend we’re not at the cross that we’re Romans and soldiers complicit in Jesus death. We believe in omens, so the darkness covering the earth on the day we’ve convicted and sentenced to death someone claiming to be “The Son of Man” makes us a bit nervous.

Did you put yourself in the sandals of the disciples? Very notable by their absence in this paining were Jesus disciples. Judas was dead by his own hand, and the other disciples were in hiding. In that silence and darkness would Peter have still been full of grief at having denied Jesus or was he thinking of all that Jesus had said to him. Think of Luke 22v32 “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” Jesus didn’t need Simon in his weakness at the crucifixion he had plenty of mourners. He needed Simon be a powerful leader to spread the gospel after Jesus had died.

Without the drugged wine which was offered, there would have been tremendous pain at crucifixion, say some screaming of innocence, cursing the people who’d put you there but not Jesus. As Jesus looked down from the cross he heard the sneers and the mocking (Luke 23 v 35 & 36). “he saved others let him save himself.” “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.”
But you hear Jesus speak only of forgiveness and salvation. What would you be thinking at the foot of the cross now? Do I sit here three days? What would Jesus want? Having lived Jesus crucifixion for a few minutes here respond as he would wish. Don’t know yet what that is? This piece of scripture just condenses for you what you must do as you leave the foot of the cross. It is this – John 3:16-21. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life.”

Believe in him. And have everlasting life. And it won’t be life as you know if now. No aches, pains, or worries. Jesus died on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins. No more burnt offerings. We have been justified – found not guilty. We have been redeemed – set free from slavery to sin.

Of everything the crowd heard and saw as Jesus hung on the cross, I doubt they’d have heard one very significant detail. The temple curtain being torn in two. (Luke 24 v42) and Mark’s account (Mark 15v38) tells us this huge curtain was torn from top to bottom. The holiest of holy places in the temple was accessible to all. Never more would you be denied access to God. You can approach the altar freely. So how are you going to respond to God’s precious gift of his only son? You nudge someone in the crowd beside you. What did Jesus tell us?

Be dressed and ready for service and keep your lamps burning. (Luke 12v 35)

Unless you repent you will perish. (Luke 13 v 3)

But the story isn’t over. Come back on Sunday and take bread with us. His body given for you. Do this in remembrance of him. (Luke 22 v19). Have you enjoyed God’s special gift without doing something in return?