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June 2010 The Rector writes: Dear Friends, In the combative atmosphere of a general election, the pundits were mostly interested in who was deemed to have won the televised debates between the leaders of the three main parties. What caught my eye was the audience’s negative reaction when one of the leaders attacked another. By contrast when one of the three intimated that there might be an opportunity to work together on finding a solution to an issue, the instant approval indicator (“known as the worm”) went up. The need for collaboration on the major issues facing our world has never been, in my view, been more pressing. Swings or blunders in the global financial markets can have a catastrophic impact on a nation’s economy, and individual lives. As cuts in the standard of living of ordinary people begin to bite in Greece, we see the anger on the streets. Undeniably, the warming up of our planet is having an increasing impact, particularly in the poorer countries. Bangladeshi farmers watching their land disintegrate and fall into the swollen river is a telling picture of its impact. Economic and ecological crisises remind us that we live in a Global Village. Yet attempts to find solutions are hindered by the pursuit of national interest. Alongside the urgent requirement for concerted action is a countervailing force. In turbulent and anxious times, people and institutions become defensive. A bellicose independence brings fragmentation. In order to defend self-interest, retreat and retrenchment result. Things begin to fall apart. In the aftermath of the Great War, William Yeats offered an apocalyptic interpretation of his times which may have some resonance with our own: - Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold; Impassioned by the Holy Spirit, the first followers of Jesus Christ spoke to the crowds. In response, the many linguistic groups gathered for the Jewish festival of Pentecost exclaimed, “In our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.” What is revealed in this narrative is that in Christ there is a unity that transcends culture and language. Explicating this truth, the writer of Colossians reached this conclusion: “He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” In conclusion, Jesus Christ is the eternal centre in which all things hold. David Team Rector of Saffron Walden
December 2009/ January 2010 letter
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