St Melangell's Church and Centre

14/06/2026

Reflection for the Second Sunday after Trinity and NEETS.

‘When Jesus saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless…’ From today’s Gospel, Matthew 9:35-10:8.

“Pain is the first proper step to real compassion; it can be a foundation for understanding all those who struggle with their existence.” David Whyte, poet.

In the Gospel today, Jesus is continuing his ministry of teaching, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing those who come to him. Matthew writes that he healed every disease and every sickness - this is a comprehensive and sustained outreach to all he meets. As he does this, Jesus realises how harassed and helpless the crowds are and he asks his disciples to pray for more workers as “the harvest is plentiful but the labourers are few.” He then sends out twelve of them to begin to supply this need - in other words, they are to answer their own prayer through their own actions and responses to what he commands. They are not to seek payment and are to go first to those with whom they are familiar, Jews rather than Gentiles or Samaritans who were the traditional enemy of the Jews. However, by the end of Matthew’s gospel, women, Gentiles and Samaritans will have been included - a sign of Jesus’ widening understanding of what is being asked of him. As Jesus instructs his disciples, he again uses the imperative - this is another command, not an option. They are to do this and be part of the answer to what is needed in the face of so much need.

So many years later, there is still much need and so many people who feel harassed and helpless about what is happening in life today with others being disaffected or unable to discover how to overcome this. Amongst them are NEETs, those not in education, employment or training: in the UK, 1,012,000 young people aged 16 to 24 years were NEET in March 2026. That’s a shocking 13.5% of that whole age group and there are many suggestions why this is happening, yet being labelled as Not anything is unlikely to help. What Is the potential for change and healing?

Nowadays, the work of healing is mainly undertaken by the NHS and health care professionals although the costs are huge, more resources are needed and waiting lists are lengthy. Here in Powys, the largest county in Wales, there is no major hospital and some patients have to travel to either Gobowen, near Oswestry, or Shrewsbury - both in England - to receive treatment, for which a wait of 104 weeks is sometimes imposed by the Welsh government. As the latest resident doctors’ strike has now been cancelled with hopes rising that a settlement may have been reached in the long-running dispute, waiting times may begin to improve.

What prayers are we praying for those who are in need of healing or are harassed and helpless - and, like those first disciples, how could we be part of a compassionate and active response to our own prayers?

With my prayers; pob bendith,
Christine, Priest Guardian.

07/06/2026

Reflection for the First Sunday after Trinity

“Go and learn what this means, ’I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’” Jesus, quoting the prophet Hosea, in today’s Gospel Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26.

“What would you stop to bless and caress/ if you believed that blessing could address/ our painful illusions of brokenness?” Bernadette Millers, poet.

In the Gospel today, Jesus calls a tax collector to follow him - and what if he had not? For that man, loathed as he was for working for the occupying power to implement taxation and doubtless creaming off some of the profits for himself, went on to become the saint whose Gospel bears his name, dying for the faith he proclaimed as one of the Apostles. Jesus must have seen something in Matthew that he didn’t yet discern in himself and when he calls him, it’s an imperative Jesus to uses: an order. Matthew had a choice, however, to follow him or to remain with his money and his familiar way of life, but it seems that he got up and left all this. Matthew didn’t choose Jesus - Jesus chose him. And so, in the ordinariness of working life, as for Peter and Andrew whilst casting nets at sea, or James and John whilst repairing their nets with their father, a new way of life and faith intervenes so unexpectedly.
It’s the same for the other tax collectors and those ‘sinners’ who meet with Jesus as he eats at Matthew’s house where many shunned by the law gathered with him. The Pharisees see this and complain about it but Jesus tells them that it is the sick who need a doctor and gives them another imperative: “Go and learn…” Yet it is a leader of the synagogue, one abiding by the religious laws of the day, who allows his need of healing for his daughter to overcome all this as he asked for Jesus’ help. At this, now it’s Jesus who gets up and follows him just as a woman with gynaecological problems also comes to Jesus wanting to touch his cloak. Under the rules of the time, Jesus would be expected to avoid both a woman and the bleeding from which she had been suffering for twelve years but he responds immediately to her and tells her that her faith has made her well. The faith of the synagogue leader also makes his daughter well, although the professional mourners at her house laugh when Jesus says she is not dead. As with Matthew, there is no questioning or checking from Jesus about their status - both find healing because of their faith in him. It is the religious people of the day who doubt him.

What Jesus does reminds his followers that faith is not found in the regulations and rules drawn up by religious people but in the need, dirt and mess of human beings encountering Jesus’ healing and ministry as lives are changed and hope is answered. Just as he told the Pharisees to learn to show mercy rather than sacrifice, so the same is true today. Jesus isn’t saying that ritual and worship don’t matter but that love and mercy are more important as he reaches across boundaries and conditional treatment that isolates those in most need. In responding to the included and excluded alike, the outsider and those within, Jesus mixes up the traditional thinking of his day as the distressed and suffering people around him find a welcome and response that the synagogue - and some churches today? - would have withheld due to them being thought to be unclean. The leader and the woman are both unnamed - but they find the healing they seek through God’s love and care for all humanity, not just a religious few.

It’s clear from much happening nationally as well as internationally today that the rules and traditions of our time are being reinterpreted in ways that often bring isolation or sacrifice rather than healing and mercy. Who are those who have been merciful to us and are there perhaps ongoing situations in our own lives, families and communities where, like the Pharisees challenged by Jesus, we also need to go and learn the greater importance of showing mercy to others rather than sacrifice?

With my prayers; pob bendith,
Christine, Priest Guardian.

05/06/2026

Reflection for Trinity Sunday

“…in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…” Jesus to his disciples in today’s Gospel, Matthew 28:16-20.

“He was a solemn, unsmiling, sanctimonious iceberg who looked like he was waiting for a vacancy in the Trinity.” Mark Twain’s observation of a proud man he knew.

In Matthew’s gospel reading today, the Great Commission, Jesus gives the eleven disciples their final instructions just before he leaves them. This gospel doesn’t contain any of the resurrection accounts to be found in the others and so this is the first time they meet him according to Matthew. This ending happens in Galilee, where Jesus first began to preach, and the disciples worship him although some appear to be uncertain - understandably, if they have not seen Jesus since his terrible death.

Part of their mission is to baptise in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, God the Trinity that is Three-in-One and One-in-Three. This does not just imply the love, communion and collaboration at the heart of God but also immersion into a relationship with the three persons of God the Trinity at baptism. Matthew’s writing implies that this was then developed throughout the early church but it seems that wasn’t actually the case. No other New Testament accounts use this, although some such as Acts 19:5 and Galatians 3:27 suggest that baptism was carried out in the name of Jesus alone. Would the authors, Luke and Paul, have written this if Jesus had given this specific guidance in the name of the Trinity as only Matthew suggests or did it take time for word to spread as the liturgy of the early church slowly evolved?

Gradually, those originally called the People of the Way became known as Christians, reflecting Jesus as God in human form and his teaching as a way of belief and faith in the three persons of the Trinity. Today, the immersion in the Trinity happens not just in baptism but at other significant moments such as anointing, the laying on of hands and receiving a blessing in the Christian church. The complex mystery and power at the heart of this and Jesus’ commission to make disciples in the world today is reflected in John Donne’s Holy Sonnet XIV, known by Robert Oppenheimer who then named the first nuclear test Trinity:
Batter my heart, three-person’d God, for you
As yet but knock, breathe, shine, and seek to mend;
That I may rise and stand, o’erthrow me, and bend
Your force to break, blow, burn, and make me new.

With my prayers; pob bendith
Christine, Priest Guardian.

05/06/2026

June services at the Shrine Church of St. Melangell.

The month of June is named after Juno the Roman goddess of youth and was originally dedicated to the young whilst May was for the elders, the Maiores. The longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, the summer solstice, falls on June 21st this year, with the word solstice originating from the Latin word solstitium meaning sun-stopping because the sun seems to be standing still in the sky. Due to its association with the goddess of youth, the warmer, longer daylight and the beautiful colours of the surrounding flowers and trees, June was a popular month for getting married - and it still is!

This year, it’s also when the church begins ‘Ordinary Time’, the lengthy season of Sundays after Trinity Sunday on 31st May, following the high points of Easter, Ascension Day and Pentecost or Whitsun. For that reason, the liturgical colour changes from white to green, reflecting the vivid greens of the plants and leaves on the trees maturing after May’s blossom. Traditionally, that is said to reflect hope and steady growth in life and spirituality - but in those days, green was also the colour of the most widely available dye needed for the vestments and altar frontals.

Calling this time Ordinary can be ironic for every day and season has potential for high points just as for the humdrum, for the mundane as much as for the exciting and for routine as much as variation. The one can enhance the other in that what seems boring may allow time for rest, reflection and maintenance which may be lacking in the zest, preparation and fun of celebrations. Equally, too much festivity can result in exhaustion or perhaps an awful hangover!

There’s nothing ordinary about the gift of time, which can be so precious whatever’s being experienced, although that’s not always appreciated. How is yours being used today and, as the year and the clock ticks on, what is the time telling you?
With my prayers,
Christine, Priest Guardian.

The following services will be held in June followed by a shared lunch on Thursdays and tea with cake on Sundays:

Monday 1st June - Tuesday 9th June: Cydweithio, Collaborate, an exhibition of poems and paintings by local artists from 10am - 4pm in the church. This will also include Ivan Murray’s illustrated plaques about Jesus, based on those on the ceiling of Ziess Chapel in Switzerland.

First Sunday after Trinity, June 7th, 3pm: Service of reflection.
Thursday June 11th, noon: Holy Eucharist and healing service for Barnabas, Apostle.

Second Sunday after Trinity, June 14th, 3pm: Service of reflection.
Thursday June 18th, noon: Holy Eucharist.

Third Sunday after Trinity, June 21st, 3pm: Service of reflection.
Thursday June 25th noon: Holy Eucharist and healing service.

Fourth Sunday after Trinity, June 28th, 3pm: Service of reflection.
Monday June 29th, 10.30am: Julian Group in the centre.

For further details or to book the Shepherd’s Hut or centre, please ring 01691 860408 or contact [email protected] - thank you!

25/05/2026

Reflection for the Day of Pentecost and the feast day of St Melangell.

‘Jesus breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”’ From today’s Gospel, John 20:19-23.

This is not the usual account of Pentecost, that given in Acts chapter 1 where Luke tells of the coming of the Holy Spirit as tongues of flame and a rushing, mighty wind. This is St John’s account of Jesus appearing to his bewildered followers who have betrayed and deserted him and now locked themselves in the Upper Room in Jerusalem out of fear of what may happen next. They’re also endeavouring to come to terms with his terrible death and rumours that he may be alive. Amidst this turmoil, rather than giving up on the disciples, Jesus comes to them and says, “Peace be with you” as he shows them the marks of the wounds he suffered. Seeing his scars, the disciples realise that this really is Jesus and not only does he bring them peace, Jesus breathes on them and says, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” This gentle breath, rather than the mighty wind of Acts, is what those frightened disciples needed as their lives begin to be transformed by the love of Jesus and, despite their failings, they are then commissioned by him to forgive sins, just as they have been forgiven. That same spirit and transformation is still at work today as, despite the turmoil and uncertainty of our world and lives now, we too can find the peace and hope that Jesus still brings to his followers, even if we struggle to understand or accept what is happening, like those first disciples.

This compassion and gentleness was also shown in the life of Melangell as she came to terms with profound change here in the valley after rescuing a hare and refusing to hand it over to Brochwel, Prince of Powys. As her feast day is marked today, thanks are given for Melangell’s life, example and church in the following prayer, found in the archives here:
We thank you, Lord God, for the life and prayer of your servant, Melangell. May her care and compassion for all your creatures inspire us in our day with the same concern for all that you have made. May we, with her learn, to find your glory in the world around us and in all that you give us. We ask this in the name of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

With my prayers,
Christine, Priest Guardian.

12/05/2026

12/05/2026

Reflection for the Sixth Sunday of Easter and Christian Aid Week.

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” Jesus in John 14:15 - 21

“We all live in this environment, we have the same struggles. We help each other in everything. It is very important, so that no one carries too much themselves.” Belinda in Dagoretti, Kenya, one of the communities supported by Christian Aid.

In chapter 13 of John’s Gospel, Jesus gives his disciples ‘a new commandment’: “Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples.” John 13:34-35.

This commandment comes just after Judas leaves the Last Supper to betray Jesus and it comes just before Jesus predicts that Simon Peter will deny knowing him. The commandment to love is surrounded by failure to show love in action. Yet love persists, even as the disciples fall short of what they are called to do.

The former Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, says of Peter’s denial: ‘Peter stands for all the human characters whom Jesus confronts – the apostles, the witnesses, the Church, ourselves.’ His failure is our failure. And yet like him we are continually called afresh to try again in our service of the God of love. In ‘Meeting God in Mark’, 2014.

You may have heard the saying: ‘Love conquers all’. What Jesus offers is not a conquering love that pushes past and ignores what we get wrong. Instead, he gives us a love that endures. This love will be offered to us precisely in those moments when we feel we least deserve it.

In the Gospel today, Jesus expresses this unfailing care. He tells the disciples that they will never be alone, or ‘orphaned’. The Spirit is coming and they can be assured of God’s faithful, constant presence forever. And Jesus tells the disciples too that the love he has given to them is theirs to share.

If we love Jesus, then we will keep his command to love one another. This love does not have neat boundaries. We are not asked to love only those whom we like or only those who have never wronged us, or only those who offer us something in return. If we are to love Jesus by loving as he does, we must love abundantly and radically. We must love in action. We must transform the world with our love. This is what marks out the followers of Jesus.

We will make mistakes. We will fall short. But we will be called again and again to the work of love. Love in action can change the world…. You might be surprised by just how much of a difference you can make!

Sunday's reflection was based on those published for Christian Aid week. For further stories and resources, or to make a contribution to its work please go to christianaid.org.uk

11/05/2026

It's that blue-violet haze time of year again

03/05/2026

Reflection for the Fifth Sunday of Easter.

Thomas said, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” From today’s Gospel, John 14:1-14.

‘The Way before we know your name… the Truth they cannot yet discern… the Life within the life they love.’ Malcolm Guite, from his sonnet for St Thomas the Apostle, in Parable and Paradox, published by Canterbury Press.

Once again, the Gospel reading today involves Thomas, who doubted the other disciples when they said they had seen Jesus on the day of resurrection but came to believe when Jesus reappeared to them all a week later. Still known as Doubting Thomas by many, this disciple nevertheless found the courage openly to wrestle with what he was being told, resulting in responses of great significance from Jesus.

That’s so in today’s reading, which takes place at the Last Supper, as Thomas asks Jesus what he’s talking about when he tells them that they know where he is going. This is a confusing time for the disciples: Jesus is preparing them for what is going to happen and they are all still in the upper room before Jesus is arrested in Gethsemane. In response to Thomas’ honest and direct question, Jesus replies with the sixth of the I Am sayings, “I am the way, the truth and the life.” This passage is often used at funerals today, including my mum’s.

The I Am sayings refer to the divine name given to Moses at the burning bush: I am who I am. In using this, Jesus is telling his followers who he is - but, understandably, they don’t realise although each term is rooted in the scriptures. Moses tells the Israelites to “Follow the path that the Lord your God has commanded you,” and St John reminds his readers that, ‘The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.’ In John 19:37, Jesus himself tells Pilate, “For this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.” “What is truth?” Pilate then asks - a question that echoes down the ages. Jesus also tells Martha, “I am the resurrection and the life” in John 11, and in chapter 5, says that, “As the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself.”

There are many more scriptures in which Christians see Jesus as the fulfilment of the scriptures and he becomes not the way, the truth and the life but ‘… our Life, our Truth, our Way.’ (Guite, above.) For those first disciples don’t seem to realise, until Jesus responds to Thomas’ question, that this is not just for the future. Jesus doesn’t say that he will be but that he IS the way - the way of faith is already being followed, bewildering as this may seem to them. Jesus IS the truth, hard as it may be for the disciples to understand this, and Jesus IS the life now as well as at the resurrection, overwhelming though this is. For these are not just principles or values on which to base life, but embodied in Jesus himself who declared to his followers that he IS these things - and this is still being declared today.

With my prayers; pob bendith,
Christine, Priest Guardian.