Chronicles

Posted on August 31, 2026 by 1urcher

This is part of a series that I very much hope to publish. Any advice would be welcomed.

Supper

The days after the entry and what might have seemed like the desecration of the Temple were fraught with tension, questions and counter-questions ranging from questions about taxes to what would happen at the end of time. I was glad when a sort of cousin offered me some work towards the end of the week. Yes, on a roof. It kept me occupied. I did not realise that I was working almost next door to the room where the Teacher would eat Passover with the twelve and others. From my vantage point, I could see the preparations and the earnest way people went about trying to de-leaven the space, thus keeping it holy.

I saw his closest disciples arrive in twos and threes, as well as some of the women. I could not hear, of course, but what I saw was as astounding. I learnt from others what had been said. There were others who joined me on the roof and on surrounding ones. All of us almost hidden by the darkness. I was astounded that the Teacher got up from the table, took off his outer garment, and picking up a bowl began to wash the feet of his friends. That was the job of the lowest servant, not of the Teacher. Some seemed to protest, and I smiled that Peter was the most vocal, and yet even he had his feet washed.

At certain points those with Jesus seemed to remonstrate with each other. They seemed to be accusing each other and were startled and angry. It made no sense at all, at least not until the cold light of day. The Teacher broke bread, and shared wine. He was very purposeful and restrained about it. At one point, he gave the favoured piece of bread to the one called Judas, who got up and left the table. I watched as he came down the stairs with his cloak pulled around him. It was as if he was trying to make himself invisible. He need not have tried, for as he walked away darkness enveloped him.

No one else left and he did not return. I could see them sharing food as the story of the Passover was being retold. Instinctively those of us on the roofs began to recount the tale as well. It was our festival of liberation. I had shared it of course with family and friends, including Deborah on many occasions, and now watching he who I maybe hoped was the Messiah lead it.

Eventually they left the room together and headed down to the Kidron Valley. Most of us who were on the roofs followed. No one stopped us. We were singing the psalm of the Passover as we went. We must be going to the Garden, said one of those with me. He goes there to pray.

When we arrived at Gethsemane, most of us sat around the edge, while the 12 went deeper into the garden. I heard later that he had taken three of them deeper sit. These Olive groves had been here for generations. Maybe since creation itself. I wonder what stories they could tell. As time passed, I drifted until I slept.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Galatians – a beginning

Posted on August 19, 2026 by 1urcher

A letter. Who does not love receiving one? I had never met him. I discovered Jesus through someone that he had left behind. I had been completely bowled over by the discovery of Jesus the Christ. My life had changed more than I ever imagined. I had heard stories of Paul and longed to meet him. Who would not want to? After all, he was someone who had met Jesus in a dramatic way. He had tried to imprison those who followed Jesus and had succeeded. Then everything changed, and he had been sent to teach about Jesus to everyone. There are rumours that he did not look particularly impressive and was not a great orator. I can only judge by the fact that he seemed to form a community of people who followed the Christ wherever he went.

The letter was not a very comfortable read. He was a forceful writer. We were accused of abandoning the gospel, the good news. I am not sure that was completely fair. Like many of us in our churches, I was not Jewish. I did not really know much about Judaism and yet understood that I had begun to follow the Jewish Messiah; although many of Jesus’ people did not believe in him. I had tried to learn as much as I could. Sometime after I had started to follow the Way, some believers from Judaea arrived. They seemed to know James (Jacob), the brother of Jesus and leader of the church in Jerusalem. Some of our number said that he had sent them, although they themselves never said that. They wanted us observe Torah as we followed Jesus. That seemed to make sense.

But then the letter. It was like a sagitta (a roman arrow) that split the argument apart. The gospel was based on grace the letter declared. It did more than declare. If Paul was not good at public speaking, and as I have said, I had never heard him, his words on the page were dynamic and challenging. He argued that grace seasoned everything, and he called Jewish figures like Moses and Abraham as his witnesses. It was provocative too, if you can keep the Law and that is enough, then the Messiah was killed for nothing.

It caused a bit of a rumpus the letter. Those from Judaea seemed to disappear. I am not sure where they went. I did wonder for a long while how much I needed to understand Judaism and try to follow Torah if only to try to understand some of the things that Jesus said and did. As time went on that seemed to be less of an issue. People still read Paul’s letter though. We were desperate not to follow another gospel. I wondered what prompted him to write to us and realised that he wrote to us because we had written to him, not on parchment but in the reports, he had of how we lived. That is in itself a letter, a letter to the apostle so we in turn received a letter from him.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Confession

Posted on August 19, 2026 by 1urcher

You never stayed in one place when you followed Jesus. This time it was two days walk from the Galilee to Caesarea Phillipi. There were the ones he called, and others of us who walked with him. Those of us on the fringe, as it were, changed over time. It is with a smile now that I recall we became called followers of the Way. We seemed to go wherever he went. it was an odd place to come to, to an area named after the emperor by one the Herod family.

It was during that time that Jesus called his circle to him, and asked the following question, who people say that the son of man is. I think when he said son of man, he was referring to himself as a human being. Others amongst us thought he was referring to himself as a heavenly figure. That made sense from some of our holy writings. Sometimes you were never sure with what Jesus was saying. Indeed, I needed to have the parable of the Sower explained to me several times. Anyway, lots of people were saying lots of things about the man from Nazareth. John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.

All three of them were popular descriptions for several reasons. The Baptist and my rabbi were cousins and therefore had a lot in common. Elijah is sometimes thought to be the one who would come to herald the Messiah. those listening to Jesus were convinced he was a prophet: an uncomfortable truth teller who pointed us back to God. It would be worth saying that not all our leaders would have agreed with popular sentiment.

Then Jesus dropped his voice and asked, what about you: who do you say I am. I think there was silence for quite a while before the reply came. You are the Messiah, the son of the living God. There was silence for what seemed longer then. All of us probably had our own understanding of what Messiah was meant to be: conqueror, king, wiseman, priest, prophet, teacher enter our minds and disappear. Not many of us would have used the term son of God, although in our psalms the king of Israel is described as such.

It was our rabbi who broke the silence. You are blessed because God has revealed this to you. He said this to Simon to whom he gave a new name, ‘Rock’ (Peter). I was then lost with what he said next, not because I did not understand it, although in fairness I did not completely; keys and binding and such like. I was lost in the fact that the one we had yearned and prayed for was stood in front of us. He was not like we imagined. That made sense really. In my experience of these things, God is not like we imagine, certainly not how I do. Here he was, smiling at us as we were keeping up with what had just happened.

Then he said: do not tell anyone who I am. I think that was to give us time to breathe.

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

The woman’s faith

Posted on August 15, 2026 by 1urcher

He was and is the fulfilment of a dreams, hopes, and longings, yet my rabbi had an uncanny knack of seeming to make things harder. We lived with lots of ritual to protect us from breaking the law. Many had forgotten by the idea of publicly enacted ritual was part of the civil disobedience promoted by the Maccabees. It frustrated our enemies. I laugh at that fact until I remember it is now burdensome to all and excludes those whom the heroes of our faith would not have dreamt of doing. It had become more than ritual. It became part of the fabric of our identity. Using separate utensils, wearing special clothing, eating differently may have started in the desire to declare the holiness of God but now had become a weapon. Jesus knew all of that. He seemed to want to set it all aside, and then on the other reshape it and make the demands of God firmer. In many ways this how we Jews decide things, we debate, argue, even wrestle with each other to establish the truth. I would argue that my rabbi was doing just that.

It was in his dealings with people that he challenged that was he was doing. On one occasion, we had entered deep into an area that was foreign to everyone of us. We were made more uncomfortable when someone shouted after him calling him, ‘Lord’. Pagans called lots of people, ‘Lord’, but she added, ‘Son of David’. That is what we call the Messiah, and her use of the term unnerved me more. Jesus acted like he had not heard her, but she kept drawing attention to us by repeatedly calling out. Her daughter was unwell. It was unlike him just to be silent. We asked him to send her away, and all he said was that he was sent to the lost amongst the house of Israel. He merely repeated what we were thinking. Indeed, we wondered why were even in this area.

Then she was right in front of him, kneeling before him. Help me, she simply said. Our rabbi said simply that food could not be taken from children and given to the dogs. That was brave, we were in hostile territory. They called us things too. There was a cold war between us. Yet, her eyes remained on him as she agreed with him and said even the dogs eat crumbs that fall from the table. That is true. Jesus smiled and his eyes danced in the way that they did when he was teaching something. It was not her that he was teaching, but us. The woman’s daughter was healed and her faith greater than some of our own leaders who hectored rather than honoured the man who we delighted to be with.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Thomas: a dance with doubt

Posted on July 3, 2026 by 1urcher

For seven long days, he had sat alone even when there had been others around him. For hour after long hour, he could not meet their gaze, he was a stranger in the group. They had so many memories to share; they had partied, laughed, worked, questioned, and followed together. Their journey had come to an end together as the clouds had turned black on that Friday afternoon. He was sliding slowly out of the group. They had hoped he would be the Christ. They had all given up everything to follow him.

Thomas could hardly believe what they had told him. Alive. How was that possible. It had started with Mary, and mother, Mary, and some of the other women. Then Simon and John had said the tomb was empty. Simon had been explaining to everyone that he too had seen him, when Clopas had come crashing through the door from Emmaus saying Jesus had been with them as they had journeyed, and how he had broken bread with them. Story after story had been told, Jesus who had been executed by Roman Empire was now alive. Or so, they said. Their mourning and grief had turned to dancing.

Thomas gazed at his hands. He had not been there with the others. He had needed to get out. Grief and despair had invaded the room. The room in which they are shared the Passover, and where the master had looked into his eyes, as he had washed his feet. Thomas had been gone for just a half an hour, and when he came back; they had started to tell him their rumours of joy. He had seen nothing. Thomas wanted to share their hopes and dreams, impractical though they may be. Simply he could not. Then he had said it, ‘unless I see for myself, I will not believe’.

Those words lingered in the air still seven days later. They had stopped looking at him too. He was no longer a follower of their way. In the morning, he had decided to leave and make him way to wherever his home might be.

‘Shalom’, he said. Thomas had not quite heard the voice, as the others fell silent. ‘Peace’, the voice said, jarring Thomas out of his thoughts. Their eyes met. He was alive, as so was Thomas. ‘Thomas’ said the voice inviting him to stop doubting and believe. No condemnation, just understanding.

Thomas fell to his knees and grasped Jesus’ feet. ‘Lord and God’. Thomas was kneeling, and so were the others. Jesus looked at him and smiled; and then was gone again. Thomas unpacked his bag, and began another journey with his friends.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Grey Lady

Posted on June 28, 2026 by 1urcher

A monologue to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the Telford Suspension Bridge in Conwy

Just like the ancient church which the town has grown up around, so my two neighbours have grown up around me. They can scarcely believe that I was once the thing. I made everything faster ensuring the mail coaches flowed more freely between Holyhead and the rest of the world. Of course, nothing stays young and vibrant for ever. What I have lost in being new, I have gained by being steady and steadfast. I have seen many things over my time. It has been easy for me to observe, because with age comes a certain invisibility. Although this is helped by my splendid design, Mr T made me to fit in. Nestled as I am beneath the castle, with my turrets I am almost camouflaged, although a squadron of seagulls seems to find me with ease.

The town of Conwy has always been at the heart of development and of course tourism. That of course began with the advent of the railway with Robert Stephenson’s railway bridge that arrived two decades after me. I wondered whether these new things called locomotives would catch on. They did, but they were overtaken by automobiles. Cars were not faster, simply fuelled by people’s desire to travel alone. That was a rarity when I was but a dream in young Thomas’s mind.

Obviously, I am used to being upgraded. 70 years after my opening original wooden road deck was replaced with a more durable iron roadway to accommodate heavier traffic and in 1904 a pedestrian walkway added. I was allowed to retire in 1958 when the new road bridge was completed and opening for automobiles that would travel faster than I thought possible.

I have borne the weight of horses, carriages, ordinary people, and royalty, from Victoria to Charles III. The other Stevenson, with a ‘v’, Robert Louis spent his childhood visiting the castle and being captivated by me. Hence, even I have a history with seadogs, pirates from Long John Silver to modern festival goers. Charles Darwin visited as he studied rock formations along the coastline, not to mention Charlotte Bronte, William Wordworth, and Beatrix Potter. I think it is my melancholy nature that gives the mood for inspiration.

As tourism has increased, I have stood more apart. People see me from the castle, but do not visit now as much. People walking their dogs do, as do couples seeking a moment alone. I keep watch silently, a steward for the ages. People have laughed, wept, danced, and lamented as they have crossed over me. Proposals made and relationships broken.

The town is constantly evolving, although it remains as it has always been a medieval town with a rich history. I have seen industries come and go. Mussels have been farmed, as fishing has ebbed and flowed. I have heard sounds of war and peace. The creation of the mulberry harbour that was then taken to Normandy is just one glorious example.

I have stood the test of time. People gather occasionally to celebrate me, even though at times I do seem to be forgotten. From time to time my story is retold as I am rediscovered. Humans mark time by anniversaries. I am told that people remember playing on my walkways with grandparents and parents and bringing their children to see my finery. I stand firm a place of connection and history. I am a place of memories a reminder of different times. If you listen quietly, I am a reminder of connectivity, of transformation, of hope.

I am 200. That is a lot and yet no time at all. I still stand watching the ebb and flow of the river and of life. That has been my job to watch and keep still. You will see many things if you slow down and keep watch with me.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Miracle Baby

Posted on May 30, 2026 by 1urcher

In most families I would have been the miracle baby. But then he came along. It did not matter that for our families and friends my birth was celebrated more than his. That was not strange. The gift of a son to a tired couple who had given up hope made more people smile than of rumours of a different sort of conception and birth. Apparently when I heard my aunt’s voice when she greeted my mother, I leapt enthusiastically. Even then it is said that I knew I was in the presence of my Lord.

I suppose being special, different was something that united us. I was expected, destined to serve, like my father, in the Temple, as a priest. That was the way of things. That said, I should have been called Zechariah like him if we had followed the way of things. I wonder what he or my mother would have thought if they had been alive when I wandered off into the wilderness. I hope they would have had a wry smile for the knew the writings, the law, and the prophets; and the hopes and dreams contained within them that had sustained and shaped our peoples.

Of course, I remember him coming to be baptised. We had played together as children, and sometimes as teenagers wondered where we would go and what we would become. I knew of course that the reason for my birth was to prepare the way for him. I had quite a following. Disciples of my own. I was challenged too by the religious leaders who wanted to know who and what I was. I had my own vocation. My own voice. We heard together the voice as he came up out of the waters. I knew I would prepare the way for him.

In many ways that is what we all do, isn’t it? We are ones who prepare the way for him. It was a few months after his baptism that we heard that he was in the region, and his disciples were baptising on his behalf. My followers wanted to put a stop to it. That was not the way it was going to be. Apparently, I said something like. He must increase. I must decrease. That was not easy for my followers to hear, but it was also not easy for me to say. I was the older. I was the one whose lineage was without question, and yet I have never been more comfortable than when I fully embrace my own role as the voice, the one who calls, who yearns for people to see who he really is.

The thing is he exceeds our expectations and at the same time does not quite fit them. You must be in his presence for it to begin to make sense. My job was to invite people to follow him, and to those wondering, he asks them to come and see. I only ever invited people to prepare to follow him, even though I might have wanted people to take preparing seriously.

I am now in chains in Herod’s dungeon. Whatever else happens. The truth is simple. He must always increase, and I must learn to step aside to allow him the freedom to call people in his way. I still leap enthusiastically at some of the things he has done.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Worship

Posted on May 30, 2026 by 1urcher

I just thought I would share this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vOMSFSmESBk

I hope you like it.

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Nationalisms

Posted on May 20, 2026 by 1urcher

Wes Streeting MP, recently resigned from the UK Cabinet and possible candidate for the leadership of the Labour Party, should there be a vacancy, lamented that nationalism is on the rise and indeed that the devolved administrations all now were controlled by nationalists. This was an existential threat to the the fabric of the United Kingdom.

Let me be clear, nationalism can, for me, be a form of idolatry. I say that writing on the eightieth anniversary of the execution of one of my heroes, Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Welsh, Scottish, and Irish nationalisms are though not that. The three Celtic nations express their nationalism in different ways. All are borne out of sense of injustice. This can be hard for those of us who are English to hear. I wrestled with it in my recent PhD, which I am still hopeful that I can combat my own laziness and find a publisher for. Nevertheless, we cannot talk of the history of the British isles without talking to some extent about colonialism. I hear the pop of another can of words opening in such a short number of words.

Nationalism is also on the rise in England, embodied partly in the progress of Reform UK. That is too rooted for many of its voters in injustice (I cannot deny that) and should be the topic of another blog post, but it does not have the inclusion of Welsh and Scottish nationalism. I have not experienced within Wales any hostility towards my Englishness. It might help that I have learnt and am learning Cymraeg and have embraced the culture. There has sometimes been some lively banter around rugby, but that has disappeared of late. Let the Reader understand.

What was Streeting getting at about an existential threat to the UK? I think he misunderstands the nationalisms of Plaid Cymru and the SNP. Both do advocate independence from the UK, but they do so on the basis that the current arrangements flow out of injustice and both parties want the nations of the British Isles to flourish and relate well together.

I suppose the words of the prophet spring to mind: let justice flow like rivers and righteousness like a never failing stream.

The reason for their arguments deserve more than a blog post and more than the campaigning rhetoric of a would be leader of the Labour Party.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Sermon | Bregeth for Ascension Day | Dydd Iau’r Dyrchafael

Posted on May 20, 2026 by 1urcher

It is good to meet here and hold a Welsh service. Conwy is not now known for its use of the Welsh language, although around 20% of the local area are Welsh speakers. Our church schools take Welsh seriously, one is Welsh-medium and the other working towards that. This holy place is the burial place of Welsh princes, even though it is surrounded by a castle built by an English king. I walk through the doors of the tower of that is older than the castle and town walls with a sense of awe. This has been a place of prayer for generation upon generation. You are most welcome here.

Mae’n braf cyfarfod yma a chynnal gwasanaeth Cymraeg. Nid ydy Conwy bellach yn adnabyddus am ei defnydd o’r iaith Gymraeg, er bod tua 20% o’r ardal leol yn siaradwyr Cymraeg. Mae ein hysgolion eglwysig yn cymryd y Gymraeg o ddifrif, mae un yn gyfrwng y Gymraeg a’r llall yn gweithio tuag at hynny. Y lle sanctaidd hwn yw man claddu tywysogion Cymru, er ei fod wedi’i amgylchynu gan gastell a adeiladwyd gan frenin o Loegr. Rwy’n cerdded trwy ddrysau tŵr sy’n hŷn na’r castell a muriau’r dref gyda theimlad o ryfeddod. Mae hwn wedi bod yn lle gweddi ers cenhedlaeth ar ôl cenhedlaeth. Croeso cynnes i chi yma.

What was the first ever Welsh word you learnt to say. For many it is ‘how are you?’ or for those who have followed the Wlpan course, as I did, it is ‘I am a parrot. The first word I learnt was ‘hollaluog. When I arrived in Holyhead, I had not a word of Welsh, but lots of curiosity. That is how learn, isn’t it?

Beth oedd y gair Cymraeg cyntaf erioed i chi ddysgu ei ddweud? I rhai, ‘sut wyt ti?’ neu i’r rhai sydd wedi dilyn y cwrs Wlpan, fel fi, ‘parot dw i.’ Y gair cyntaf i mi ei ddysgu oedd ‘hollaluog’. Pan dw i wedi cyraedd i Gaergybi, heb gair o Gymraeg, ond llawer o chwilfrydedd. Dyna sut i ddysgu?

As we know the word disciple means learner. The disciples of Jesus were always learning. In our passage from Acts, they ask Jesus a question. The answer given shows that they need to go on learning. Don’t we all? I needed to learn word other than ‘Hollaluog’ in order to communicate. Believe me, it is not the most useful word outside of church.

Fel y gwyddom, mae’r gair disgybl yn golygu dysgwr. Roedd disgyblion Iesu bob amser yn dysgu. Yn ein darn o Actau, maen nhw’n gofyn cwestiwn i Iesu. Mae’r ateb a roddir yn dangos bod angen iddyn nhw barhau i ddysgu. Onid ydym ni i gyd? Roedd angen i mi ddysgu gair heblaw ‘Hollaluog’ er mwyn cyfathrebu. Credwch fi, nid dyma’r gair mwyaf defnyddiol y tu allan i’r eglwys.

They want to know how long things will take. When will everything be finished? Learners of everything know that that is a question. When will I speak Welsh fluently? When will I write using mutations without panicking? When? When? When?

Maen nhw eisiau gwybod pa mor hir fydd pethau’n ei gymryd. Pryd fydd popeth wedi’i orffen? Mae dysgwyr popeth yn gwybod bod hwnnw’n gwestiwn. Pryd fydda i’n siarad Cymraeg yn rhugl? Pryd fydda i’n ysgrifennu gan ddefnyddio treigladau heb banicio? Pryd? Pryd? Pryd?

Jesus told his disciples they had to wait and be patient. Waiting is something I find difficult. They were to wait for the promised Holy Spirit. That is a story for another day, except to say one thing. The disciples would go places and do things that were beyond their imagination.

I might say that learning the language of heaven, which for now we will say is Welsh, has taken me to new places and made me do things that I might never have imagined. I have laughed at my mistakes. A particular delight was the time I spoke to the children of Ysgol Thomas Ellis in Holyhead and attempted to lead the service in Welsh without a script and say that Jesus flew into Jerusalem on the donkey. The children laughed, so did the staff.

Dywedodd Iesu wrth ei ddisgyblion fod yn rhaid iddyn nhw aros a bod yn amyneddgar. Mae aros yn rhywbeth sy’n anodd i mi. Roedden nhw i aros am yr Ysbryd Glân addawedig. Dyna stori ar gyfer diwrnod arall, ac eithrio dweud un peth. Byddai’r disgyblion yn mynd i leoedd ac yn gwneud pethau oedd y tu hwnt i’w dychymyg.

Efallai y byddwn i’n dweud bod dysgu iaith y nefoedd, sef y Gymraeg am y tro, wedi fy nghymryd i leoedd newydd ac wedi gwneud i mi wneud pethau na fyddwn i efallai byth wedi’u dychmygu. Rwyf wedi chwerthin am fy nghamgymeriadau. Pleser arbennig oedd yr amser y siaradais â phlant Ysgol Thomas Ellis yng Nghaergybi a cheisio arwain y gwasanaeth yn y Gymraeg heb sgript a dweud bod Iesu wedi hedfan i Jerwsalem ar yr asyn. Chwarddodd y plant, felly hefyd y staff.

I am sure the disciples also made mistakes. As a disciple of Jesus, I make mistakes today.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment