#Lockdown Pilgrimage - 2nd Sunday in Lent

 

From Lockdown to Locked Out

Today's destination church was St. Michael's Sco Ruston of what's left of it. 


Ruined in the 1980's  An ivy clad dangerous ruin.  Thoughts turn to the future of the Cof E in the country. Is this the future for many rural churches?  The answer to the question is clearly yes, unless someone takes responsibility for preserving these buildings that are the treasure chests of  their community.

But need that be a problem for the future ministry of our national church? My answer is a definite, No! Give or take a bit of local difficulty with invading Mercians and Vikings the Church in East Anglia used central places for their mission. Often adopting the existing central places. See - Ritual Landscape in Pagan and Early Christian England  . It was only in the 11th century that there was an explosion of church building and a division of once large parishes.

Centering the Church's Mission on central places should work well in the post-pandemic world. The so called Minster Model makes sense but there is absolutely every reason that a local community should want to maintain and keep in use their long established heritage church buildings not just as a museum but as a house of prayer. "Festival Church"  is a phrase that is much used these days!

I was sorry not to be able to pass through the gate of St. Michael's to wander in God's Acre and "kneel where prayer has been valid",   I was able to pray on the outside looking in and consider the Snowdrops growing among the gravestones.

But, when all is said and done, pilgrimage, even little mini-pilgrimages, are for our own spiritual well being. They are meant for making the soul. Considering the flowers, I could not escape the Primroses that were just coming into flower.


"The Primrose path that leads to the eternal bonfire." was the Shakespeare line that came to mind. The patron of Sco Ruston, St. Michael turned my mind to the book Revelation, my less than young bones reminded me  that I was already well past my best before date! Never mind the future of the Church, better look to my soul!

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