Pembrey Parish Churches, St. Illtyd and Llandyry

From the Vicar

Palm Sunday, April 5th 2020. ‘All Glory, Laud and Honour’ we have sung in the past, in procession, having Blessed the new palm crosses. Not so easy in recent years. A more ‘senior’ congregation found it difficult to walk, read and sing at the same time! Needs demand accommodation, so palm crosses were Blessed in church for distribution. This year our church buildings are locked.

Traditionally the Palm Sunday Liturgy falls into two parts, emphasising a change of mood. Done with dignity, liturgy can be very powerful. The first half, the Palm Sunday Gospel and Blessing of palm crosses focuses on Jesus’ ‘triumphal’ arrival in Jerusalem. The second half on the Passion Narrative ( in the sense of His suffering). The joyful ‘All Glory, Laud and Honour’ changes to the mood of impending gloom; ‘When I survey the wondrous Cross’. All within the compass of one hour.

A short time-span, as it was for Jesus himself. One week that would bring about a huge mood-swing amongst the people of Jerusalem. It underlines how fickle we can be. Drawn in by a sense of mass-hysteria it’s easy to be swept away by the emotional energy of large gatherings and lose sight of what is actually going on. Think of Germany in 1939. A gifted orator was able to energise an entire nation, but not for good. I wonder what Jesus was thinking as he inched his way through that crowd? Did they really grasp what he was about? Did they expect him to lead them in taking up arms against the occupying forces of the Roman Empire? Even some of his closest followers frequently failed to grasp His message. And now? Only a short journey really, but saturated with misunderstandings. The Gospel writers do not tell us what He was thinking; how could they? But we get the sense that He is determined to live out His understanding of His vocation; the self-understanding he’d struggled with in that wilderness experience some years previously. The battle between the human ego and His transparant openness to the will of God.

For those of you who have visited Jerusalem, you’ll know it’s only a short journey by foot from the Garden of Gethsemane to the Redeemer Church, the traditional place of crucifixion, originally ‘outside the city walls’. A short journey from the Hosannas of the crowds to the chilling cry for blood, from the same people. How quickly a mood can change. How quickly admirers can become enemies. How quickly life can come in such close proximity to the reality of death.

It’s probably only a relatively short walk for most from a hospital car park to a CoVid19 isolation and treatment ward. That place where the living, those who are fulfilling their vocations, must come into close proximity with the possible reality of death. A fine line separates the two. Some doctors and members of their teams have already died. Jesus had told his followers that if they visited the sick, they did it to and for Him. In better days we frequently heard criticism of our Health Service, but the reality is that highly skilled and dedicated individuals do the best they can, using their passion ( that word again) to bring healing and wholeness in sometimes difficult circumstances; lack of past funding by Governments being one of them. In exercising their vocations at this time they too risk that short walk between life and death if they do not have the equipment to protect themselves. I do not suggest that we ‘divinise’ them, but they too are worthy of our ‘Hosannas’. God works through them, irrespective of ethnicity, creed, gender or any other factor. The root meaning of ‘salvation’ is ‘to break free from all that restricts or oppresses’. Surely, through the wholeness they try to bring they are deserving of our praises at this time. ‘Whatever you do for the least of my brothers and sisters you do for Me’. Blessed indeed are they who come ‘in the Name of the Lord’. And, hopefully, when this crisis is resolved we shall look at our world differently and recognise our part in its exploitation and ask for tougher food and hygiene regulations throughout the world.

Prayers for our Times

Just a short journey, Lord. Hopeful and joyous.
But you knew didn’t you? You understood, You could see.
You understood the human heart;
How easy it is swayed by the tempting whispers
That promise an easy way out, but fail to deliver in the end.
But you still did it. Knowing how it may possibly end
You steadfastly carried on.
Grant us the Grace of perseverance at this time,
That we may discover a new freedom and
New way of looking at our world. AMEN

We offer our prayers for all who continue to work
Or serve others in any way. For all medical staff and support agencies;
For those who help in our communities as Volunteers;
Teachers who keep hub schools open and for
All who continue to keep essential services running.
Bless all who work for the well-being of others
Through small acts of kindness and guide us through
This particular journey that we may, at its end,
Offer worthy praise to you. AMEN.