St Margaret's Church Prestwich

This month’s letter to the parish comes from our organist, Tom D:

Dear Friends,

Over the last few weeks, we have been journeying through Creationtide, exploring and celebrating different aspects of creation, from ‘forest’ to ‘river’, our relationship with it and our duty of care towards it.

As we head towards autumn, we see the world around us change. The once green leaves of the summer months start to turn into hues of golds, browns and reds as they carpet the floor beneath our feet. The nights become longer, days become shorter and temperatures become lower. While some may feel that these events are somewhat saddening, I believe that this season can be see as one of reflection, renewal and celebration. Let me give you some examples.

As humans, we tend not to like the dark, for many, it gives way to our instinctual fear of the unknown. However, the darkness that longer nights bring enables us to renew and restore ourselves physically, emotionally and spiritually. Reminding us to take that quiet moment our of what are often hectic schedules for inward reflection and meditation. The darkness is also a time of sleep, a time of physical and mental healing and restoration.

Autumn also reminds us of impermanence of the world around us. Nothing in creation stays the same for ever and nothing in creation is permeant. This reminds us to seize every moment that we have and to spend less time thinking, planning or even worrying about the future. However, this impermanence reminds us of the fragility of creation – how much we are dependent on it and it is on us.

There is a fine balance between what we can take from our world and how we treat it, it’s a case of give and take, and it seems that we are now taking more from the earth than we are giving back to it. Much like we need time to heal, we must also allow our world to do so too; autumn is the time when creation takes time to renew. The fragility of the world, however, is something that we are becoming increasingly aware of. This summer, we all heard about or experienced first-hand the soaring temperatures that engulfed Europe. It is now estimated that 61,000 people may have died as a result of the heatwaves. It is clear that if we want creation to sustain us as a human race, we must do our best to safeguard its welfare.

Our journey through autumn is also one of celebration. Recently, we celebrated Harvest Festival at St. Margaret’s. That was a time to thank God not only for the food that sustains us over the winter months, but also for the gifts and talents of the thousands who work in associated industries. But, at its core, Harvest Festival goes beyond that – it is a time to reflect and ‘harvest’ all that is good in our lives; our relationships, our talents, our achievements. Perhaps this year, autumn can be a time to reflect on how we can help to build a better world for generations to come.

Tom D

Parish Organist