The month of June hails the traditional beginning of the holiday period with people looking for seaside resorts either here at home or in parts of Europe around the coasts of Spain, Portugal or even further afield.  The world is no longer such a big place and very little of it remains unexplored.

I discovered from my diary that every day of June has special significance in one way or another.  We celebrate, or some do the days of ‘Global parents’ (1st) World Bicycle Day (3rd), National Cheese Day (4th), National Best Friends day (8th), World Blood Donors Day (14th), Father’s Day, International Sushi, and Picnic Day (18th); we even have Global Beatles Day (25th) – the world has gone mad!

In the church we celebrate Trinity Sunday (4th), a time of reflection on the three persons, yet one God who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  We give thanks for Corpus Christ, the body of Christ on the 8th, giving thanks for him feeding in the Sacraments and heling us in our lives.  But we never lose track of the saints who gave their lives for the faith.  John Fisher, an English academic and Chancellor of the University of Cambridge who refused to succumb to the wishes of Henry VIII and was executed for his faith, and Thomas More who suffered a similar fate for the same reasons (June 22), the Birth of St. John the Baptist (June 24) the Solemnity of Saint Peter and St Paul (June 29), a day when many are made deacons and others ordained priests.

But amidst all of this the world continues in chaos with bombs and rockets exploding in the peaceful cities of the Ukraine with the Russian leader seemingly focussed on nothing else but the destruction of that state.  There seems to be no end in sight and people, in this conflict, and elsewhere, continue to die unnecessarily.  Our economy spirals out of control and money just does not go as far as it once did.  Yet, despite all of this, there remains hope, hope that good will come, hope that people will be free to live and love without fear, and hope that things will change for the better.

God is with us and on the first Sunday in June, as we celebrate the Undivided Trinity, we can give thanks that, in God, who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, that there is real hope through him – for without him there is surely none!

Have a lovely summer and remember that you are loved, always.

May God bless you all.

Reverend Fr. Ronald Croft

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The month of May sees the continuation of the Sundays following Easter but it is a month punctuated by Saints as well as a major feast, but this year we celebrate another event of significance to our own country.

On Saturday the 6th May we will share in the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla at the service held in Westminster Abbey.  It will be splendid though different from that of the late Queen Elizabeth II.  In 1953 her Coronation was televised, though in Black and White, and the Abbey was filled with 8000 guests.  At home many gathered around their television sets though there were very few sets at that time.  We all went to our neighbour’s house eager to see the service.  The TV was so small that it had a magnifying glass in front of the screen but we were there and we saw it all.  Everyone was spellbound by the beauty and splendour of the occasion.

The King has decided on a smaller event with only 2000 fortunate guests invited to attend.  Though the vast majority of the service remains as it was for the late Queen, the King has strived to make the service more inclusive and more reflective of the diverse nation that it has now become.

I certainly hope that you will all enjoy this historic event and offer support to the King and Queen as they take up this great responsibility of service at a time of difficulties in this world and nation.

As we approach the end of May, having celebrated a number of saints and their contribution to the world of faith, we come to Pentecost Sunday, a day we give thanks for the coming of the Holy Spirit.  It is God’s spirit that will guide us, and Guide the King, in our lives and lead us to follow in Christ’s footsteps, helping and praying for one another with the prayers of the saints to strengthen us.

In the week that follows Pentecost we pray for and pray with a woman whose life was changed with the simple word ‘yes’.  The Blessed Virgin Mary heard the word of God from the Archangel on that faithful day that changed the world and it was through her humility that we all have a future, a future Christ has promised to all who come to him.  We pray especially for her on 29th May (Mary, Mother of the Church) and on the 31st May as we think particularly of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

May is traditionally called the ‘Month of Mary’, the Queen of heaven.  She is generous and so we ask her to pray for King Charles III and Queen Camilla on their special day as this nation welcomes their new monarch and mark the next stage in our lives.

May God bless you all.

Reverend Fr. Ronald Croft