Purple magnolia

A sermon preached by the Rev’d Natasha Woodward at the Church of All Saints’, Orpington 6.30pm Evensong, Sunday 21 June 2009, 2 after Trinity Readings: Jeremiah 10.1-16; Romans 11.25-end Veronica Guerin was the Irish journalist who worked in the 90s to expose drug criminals, and was murdered by them as a consequence. A film about her was on tv this week, all the more moving when you realise that these events took place so recently that her young son in the film is now a young man. It becomes apparent in the film that this was not a woman who knew no fear – fear of the personal consequences of trying to expose major criminals – she did know fear, but she was more fearful of the consequences of letting the drug trade go on unhindered. Of course her motivations in chasing after her story must have been mixed, and the film depicts her drive as being in part about her desire to prove herself as a journalist. But part of her motivation was also her compassion, especially for the children

A sermon preached by the Rev’d Natasha Woodward at the Church of All Saints, Foots Cray, and the Church of Unity, Orpington Sunday 28 June 2009, St Peter Readings: Acts 12.1-11; 1 Peter 2.19-end; Matt 16.13-19 Petertide. A time for ordinations. Because Peter was the first minister – the first priest – let’s say. Yesterday I was lucky enough to be able to share in the ordination of a dozen or so new priests at Rochester cathedral. I was also naturally thinking back to my own ordination as priest 2 years ago, and as deacon a year before that – and thinking about just how much water has gone under the bridge since then, in a short 3 years – I just can’t believe how much I have experienced, and how much I have grown. I wonder how Peter felt at the start of his own ministry, when he looked back at his 3 years of ‘training’ if you like, when he accompanied Jesus. I imagine it might have been hard for him to even remember what it was like before he met Jesus – what was it like not to k