PARISH MASS

The Third Sunday after Trinity

This Sunday we recall Jesus sending out his followers on their first 'solo flights'.  Of course, our Lord is always with us, but those first seventy must have felt quite vulnerable as they were sent to proclaim that the Messiah has come, the harvest time (judgement) approaches, the kingdom of God has drawn near.  Jesus' pep-talk was hardly encouraging either; 'Go on your way.  See, I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves.'

The Gospel this Sunday is not so much a complete speech but a smattering of Jesus' instructions and assurances to this first wave of missionaries.  Their journeys would be hard, and there may be privations - Jesus instructed them to 'carry no purse, no bag, no sandals' - and not all towns would receive them.  But there would also be wonders!  They returned with amazing accounts of the sicknesses they had cured and demons they had faced down in Jesus' name; they had trampled 'over all the power of the enemy'.

Our Christian life may at times seem difficult, lonely or beset by darkness. However, in the Lord's name, even the darkest powers of this world are compelled to submit to us!  We need not fear the wolves!

Every blessing, Fr Myles, Rector

Click here to download the scripture readings for this Third Sunday after Trinity and here for the pew sheet, which has information about lovely events that continue through the summer in Leigh-on-Sea.