During the Middle Ages it became custom in some areas to elicit laughter from the congregation on Easter Day in order to express the joy of Christ’s triumph over death. Priests would tell jokes and amusing stories from the pulpit to get the congregation to laugh. There was even a technical, liturgical term for this—risus…

From Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday Christians remember the events of that week in Jerusalem, when Jesus walked towards his death on the cross, followed by the stupendous news of the resurrection. We hear about these events nearly every Sunday through our Communion liturgy, but during Holy Week we focus on the details and try…

At the heart of the Diocesan Mission Action Plan is the idea described among theologians by the Latin phrase mission Dei—the mission of God. Rather than being centred on us and what we do, such an approach asks how we together can participate in God’s mission in this world. Mission is NOT first what we…

This week our family has been isolating due to testing positive to COVID-19. While that isolation period would end for most of us in time to return to church services this Sunday, some parishioners are concerned about having such recent COVID cases in church. We therefore are not at church this Sunday. We hope that…

Last year the Diocese of Christchurch adopted a new Mission Action Plan, which would shape its actions in the coming years. It seeks to encourage the Diocese as a whole—and parishes and individuals—to actively participate in God’s work by turning toward the world with love and proclaiming the Good News.  The goal is to regenerate…

Recently I went through some of the old files in my office. That’s when I came across the work of the 2050 Group. This group met in 2010 and looked at ways to make St Paul’s sustainable and ready to engage with the community to 2050 and beyond. The group took a long-term view of…

At the last Synod the Diocesan Ministry Units Statute 2021 was passed. This means that AGMs will proceed somewhat differently from how they might have been conducted in previous years. According to that Statute, the business of that meeting should include:a. confirmation of the minutes of any prior meetings;b. receipt and adoption of the accounts…

There is an old photo on the wall of a room in my parents’ house. It shows a small village with a prominent church in a valley that is surrounded by forested slopes. The dedication at the back indicates that the small village is called “Middlevale”, which is half-way up the valley to the next…

Since the beginning of the year, we have a new regular group in our Lounge — Youth Space. Previously the group met at the Papanui Youth Development Trust Centre. Because the Youth Centre cannot have so many groups meeting there due to COVID-19 restrictions , Youth Space has found a home with St Paul’s for…

This week I went to a course on governance, which in part also focussed on running meetings. While the speaker had extensive experience on commercial boards, she now often works with charities, trusts and membership organisations. She told us that what many think are essential procedures at meetings are just tradition, not requirements. For example,…