From the Vicar…
Dear Friends,
At this time we join with the whole Church in celebrating the saints of the Church, and in remembering the faithful departed. Yesterday was the festival of All Saints, and the parish celebrated with a Sung Mass. Today is All Souls’ Day, and at the morning Masses we remember by name the departed, our own families and friends as well as former vicars and parishioners of S. Michael’s. At Evensong tonight we continue the celebration of the saints of God.
The saints are that great company of people of every age who have chosen, and lived in, and enjoyed, the blessing of God, and who continue to do so. Because they have let the spirit of Christ be alive in them, they have shown us glimpses of what God is like. Some of them are known by name to us, but most are not. They are those who have lived quiet faithful lives in their own places and times.
As for the faithful departed, we know that those with whom we have shared our lives, who gave to us as we to them, and who have now died, are not remote from us. As we once shared bread with them from day to day, so in Christ and his Eucharist we can still share bread with them.
When Dr Edric Baker visited S. Michael’s recently, I referred to him as a contemporary saint. He has given his life to provide medical care for the poorest of the poor in Bangladesh. The NZ Cricket team has been playing in Bangladesh, and the President of the Bangladesh New Zealand Friendship Society invited the team to visit Dr Baker’s Kailakuri Health Centre to see what this remarkable Kiwi was doing. He reports, “Unfortunately the team schedule was too full for them to make a visit to Kailakuri. However they wanted to honour Edric in some way, and this they did last Friday night when Edric was asked to attend a team meeting at the Dhaka Sheraton Hotel. It is traditional that players selected for a Test Match are presented with their caps at a team ceremony the night before the match. Last Friday night, Edric was honoured by being asked to present a Test Cap to each player in the weekend’s match. The team gave Edric Taka 20,000 for use at Kailakuri. Daniel Vettori is going to mention Edric and his work for the poor in his speech at the end of the match.”
May God bless you as you seek to live as God’s friends, in the Spirit of the Risen Christ.
Peter Williams
