Vicars Letter 23rd May 2025

Rev Guy Benton

 

Kia ora All Saints

I was struck this week at the depth of several conversations I have been having with people about the hunger and thirst for deep, lasting discipleship. Deconstruction has been a buzzword for the last several years; with the rise of influencers on the internet and big-name personalities that have documented their "Deconstruction" journey, there have been a sleuth of books about what is "deconstruction", and how it's been around since the dawn of time, think Adam and Eve int he garden with the serpent, questioning Gods truth to them. Overwhelmingly, one of the key antidotes to something or someone breaking apart your faith, and it reinforced over and over again, is our ability to learn, memorize, and understand scripture in our own lives and the lives of our community.

It's with such heart that I notice the rise in groups choosing to dive deep into the bible together, whether young adult groups, elderly groups, and all in between. Church, the word of the lord, is pressed upon us; it's in these places that we hear God's truths to us, identify freedom, liberation, and unity with Christ, we see how God has never given up on us. It's from this place that we can rebut the questions the evil one throws at us in an attempt not to remodel our theological house but to rip the whole thing down.

I recently read through a book called "The Deconstruction of Christianity," which I highly recommend if you are interested in or have people in your life wrestling with breaking down to nothing their faith in God.

It's from this place that I am in awe of our journey deeper into prayer together as a parish, through the Lord's Prayer, as we see a team of people set up our prayer vigil, as we look to the coming of the spirit at Pentecost, and as we pray for and support a team of people here at All Saints to set up, run and disciple through the 24/7 Prayer course coming soon.

Come, Lord Jesus.

I would love to highlight a few key dates on your calendar.

We have our Matariki Working bee coming up very soon on Friday, 20th June. We will be working around the grounds both inside and out; we will have a significant focus on the outside but will have enough jobs inside for those less mobile.

Please book Parish Camp for the weekend of Sept 26-28 into your calendar. Book your leave at work or from your rest home social club, and get your sleeping bags and your Bibles ready! It's going to be loads of fun.

Love in Christ