The Sunday Archive: The Pilot, October 1997 - Part 2
THE BEST WE CAN DO
By Fraser Martin
BY the time you read this, Princess Diana will have been buried a month. Copydate and magazine printing dictate that I am writing this at a time when the shock and the pain have subsided and the funeral is over, but while the rawness is still unhealed. It is impossible to predict what the people's mood will be by now (have you noticed that, during all this, the country has become "the people"? Biblical terminology) and so if you have had enough of the subject, please feel free to skip this article. I suspect you won't. Such was Diana's magnetism. What a tragic time, especially for William and Harry. They have lost so much, and the people who have shown such extraordinary outward signs of inner grief for a woman most of them had never met and were never likely to, can only guess at the heartache, the suffering those boys are going through, not to mention all the unanswerable questions they can't ask. The results of the investigations into the cause of the crash will only add to the pain.
I was sad when I heard the news of her death. Who wouldn't be? The underprivileged, the diseased, the dying and the socially outcast had all lost a champion. I have to confess that I still find it hard to grasp the fact that we will no longer see or read about a person who had almost become part of our daily lives, who, if not visible on our screens or in our papers, would soon be again, looking radiant, shy, determined. And, latterly, undaunted by the overwhelming press attention which undoubtedly cost her so much; an attention fuelled, it has to be said, by our craving to know her every move, her every step. In short, to know her without ever meeting her.
In the days that followed her death, my sadness became more profound, but the emphasis shifted. I now felt sadness for the thousands upon thousands of people who flocked to lay flowers at Buckingham Palace, at Kensington Palace, at Harrods, at Althorp House, indeed anywhere associated with Diana when she was alive. Teddy bears, balloons, even bottles of wine became symbols of people's grief. It was the best they could do. How profoundly sad. For here, it appeared, was a Nation in mourning for the only thing they believed in and, having lost it, were inconsolable. Diana, it seems, had become an icon, something to be worshipped, and having discovered her mortality, people were bereft, left without anything. So I was sad for a society, a "people," with an aching desire for something to believe in. And they believed in Diana. Laudable. Understandable, perhaps. But not enough. When she died, they were left devastated. No resurrection here. She was gone.
Someone said that there is a God-shaped hole in all of us. Perhaps now is the time to stop bunging it full of things which don't fit and fill it with Jesus. And then helping others to do the same. He has all the right attributes. He is a friend that we can meet and get to know personally, not just read about. He will always be there and never let us down. He has already died and has risen again, to life in eternity, so will never leave us. He is no candle in the wind, but the Light of the World. We, individually and as a people, need faith, not an icon, and we need to lay our lives down as an offering to God. Not lay flowers at a railing. Now. Then perhaps we can offer the best tribute to Princess Diana that any of us can, that of helping our fellow man, as she did, but from a position of faith rather than fame. Just think how amazing it would be if the nation, the "people," turned to God. Let's use our faith, as she used her position, to reverse the evil in the world, to reconcile enemies, to show God's love to those around us and to make the difference. It's the best we can do.
Fraser Martin
DOTS COULD STAMP OUT TB
THE four letters DOTS are shorthand for one of the most important medical breakthroughs of the century, one that promises a way of curbing the world-wide epidemic of tuberculosis.
No other TB control strategy comes close to being as effective and as affordable as DOTS (Directly Observed Treatment, Short-Course). The simple secret of its success is that the health worker who provides the anti-TB drugs to patients watches them swallow the pills.
Previous campaigns have failed because they made the patient, not the health system, responsible for achieving a cure.
Even here in Britain TB has been on the increase, but it is in developing countries that the disease has reached epidemic proportions. Over 100 years after Robert Koch unmasked the TB germ, more people died from TB in 1995 than in any other year in history. No other infectious disease is creating as many orphans and wrecking so many lives.
The DOTS method provides a permanent cure for more than nine out of ten patients treated. Programmes not using DOTS often cure only 40 per cent of patients. Yet DOTS costs between one and five dollars for each healthy year of life saved. There is no need for the patient to go into hospital.
What is more, it prevents spread. When a patient is not cured, he or she will infect, on average, 10 to 15 friends, families and co-workers each year. The World Health Organisation says there is no other feasible way to protect the world's 500 million annual between-countries travellers — and the people to whom they return home.
DOTS works because the right combination and dosage of drugs are used for the right length of time, usually six to eight months. The patient is observed taking the pills by a health worker or trained volunteer and the process is closely monitored. Last year, about a million patients in 70 countries were treated this way.
Through the Study Window
By Tony Keogh
As I look through the window, already brown autumnal leaves are beginning to appear, and the church, still half hidden by the lush green of summer, will soon be visible through the latticed fingers of leafless branches. This is a time of passing — summer over too soon and autumn nudging its gentle message of needing to die before the resurgence of spring.
I have just come back from town. The holidaymakers are now mainly the middle-aged and the elderly; gone are the young voices, their owners are now back at school or preparing to leave the Island for university. On the way back home, I called into our Post Office to see Jenny and Chris and to post a letter to Michael, our Bishop of Winchester. The letter was in response to his letter in which he invited me to inform him of our causes for thankfulness and any special intentions which we would like him to mention in his prayers.
Our cause for gratitude in this beautiful Island home is the opportunity which we have to share our fellowship and to minister to those who are visiting us. It is truly a great joy to meet folk from all over Britain and, indeed, from all over the world. We also have a number of families who come back year after year and have become honorary "Trinitais."
At the end of August, we were highly delighted to welcome Nan and Katy Doe from Canada. In the mid '60s, Nan's husband Kent and I were at St Michael's Theological College together so I had not seen them for more than thirty years. However, Jill went down to Toronto to spend the day with them when she was in Canada last year so this was a good opportunity to return their hospitality. Sadly, their stay with us was for four days only but it was wonderful to meet up with Nan after so many years and to meet her youngest daughter. Kent was unable to come to Britain on this occasion but maybe they will be able to come together in the future. It makes one realise that the passing of time and the distance of many miles have no effect on true friendship.
Impromptu Worship
The fellowship and ministry with the holidaymakers saw its culmination on the morning of Saturday 6th September, the day of the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales. I spent part of the morning in church, partly to be quiet and partly to prepare myself for the wedding later that day of Charles Gallichan and Fay Bennett. There were a number of holidaymakers in church; they all knew that they had to come to church but were not sure what to do when they arrived. I explained who I was and invited them to an impromptu service; it was simply wondrous.
If there are lessons to be learnt from the recent sad events, let us not be in too great a rush to come to conclusions, but to take time to reflect and to pray about our world and those in authority who have the power to change it
By Tony Keogh
As I look through the window, already brown autumnal leaves are beginning to appear, and the church, still half hidden by the lush green of summer, will soon be visible through the latticed fingers of leafless branches. This is a time of passing — summer over too soon and autumn nudging its gentle message of needing to die before the resurgence of spring.
I have just come back from town. The holidaymakers are now mainly the middle-aged and the elderly; gone are the young voices, their owners are now back at school or preparing to leave the Island for university. On the way back home, I called into our Post Office to see Jenny and Chris and to post a letter to Michael, our Bishop of Winchester. The letter was in response to his letter in which he invited me to inform him of our causes for thankfulness and any special intentions which we would like him to mention in his prayers.
Our cause for gratitude in this beautiful Island home is the opportunity which we have to share our fellowship and to minister to those who are visiting us. It is truly a great joy to meet folk from all over Britain and, indeed, from all over the world. We also have a number of families who come back year after year and have become honorary "Trinitais."
At the end of August, we were highly delighted to welcome Nan and Katy Doe from Canada. In the mid '60s, Nan's husband Kent and I were at St Michael's Theological College together so I had not seen them for more than thirty years. However, Jill went down to Toronto to spend the day with them when she was in Canada last year so this was a good opportunity to return their hospitality. Sadly, their stay with us was for four days only but it was wonderful to meet up with Nan after so many years and to meet her youngest daughter. Kent was unable to come to Britain on this occasion but maybe they will be able to come together in the future. It makes one realise that the passing of time and the distance of many miles have no effect on true friendship.
Impromptu Worship
The fellowship and ministry with the holidaymakers saw its culmination on the morning of Saturday 6th September, the day of the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales. I spent part of the morning in church, partly to be quiet and partly to prepare myself for the wedding later that day of Charles Gallichan and Fay Bennett. There were a number of holidaymakers in church; they all knew that they had to come to church but were not sure what to do when they arrived. I explained who I was and invited them to an impromptu service; it was simply wondrous.
If there are lessons to be learnt from the recent sad events, let us not be in too great a rush to come to conclusions, but to take time to reflect and to pray about our world and those in authority who have the power to change it
SAMPSON'S ISLAND
By Michael Halliwell
FOR SOME YEARS now it has been customary for a band of Celtic enthusiasts in Grouville parish to make a Christmas Eve pilgrimage to St Samson's island, off the coast at La Rocque (where Seymour Tower now stands) and to pray there.
This year, for the first time in centuries, the feast of St Samson, bishop and missionary to the Islands, was celebrated at La Rocque on the reputed site of the Chapel of St Samson. On 28th July, his feast day in the diocesan calendar, twenty parishioners met at Seymour slip and walked in procession behind a wooden Celtic cross and an icon of Christ, along the beach to the open area where his chapel is believed to have stood.
By Michael Halliwell
FOR SOME YEARS now it has been customary for a band of Celtic enthusiasts in Grouville parish to make a Christmas Eve pilgrimage to St Samson's island, off the coast at La Rocque (where Seymour Tower now stands) and to pray there.
This year, for the first time in centuries, the feast of St Samson, bishop and missionary to the Islands, was celebrated at La Rocque on the reputed site of the Chapel of St Samson. On 28th July, his feast day in the diocesan calendar, twenty parishioners met at Seymour slip and walked in procession behind a wooden Celtic cross and an icon of Christ, along the beach to the open area where his chapel is believed to have stood.
It may come as a surprise to some to learn that Samson is commemorated in Jersey, but the history of his life, written only a few centuries after he lived, records not only that he visited Guernsey, where of course a parish is named after him, but that the people of Jersey "were known to him:' His probable presence here is substantiated by the naming of places after him in St Ouen, St Brelade (where there was a large Celtic settlement) and Grouville.
It seems likely that, like other saints of the Celtic period, Samson had his main dwelling and chapel on the shore, and retreated to his off-shore island for special periods of quiet, prayer and contemplation, and to engage in spiritual warfare. This was the custom of Cuthbert at Lindisfarne and many of his contemporaries in sanctuaries of prayer on islands round the coasts of Britain.
The eucharist was celebrated according to Rite A with Celtic variations in the prayers and a special preface in the eucharistic prayer.
And so St Samson and his companions are now celebrated twice a year in Grouville, as the people of this parish rediscover their ancient heritage and enter more deeply into it.
The eucharist was celebrated according to Rite A with Celtic variations in the prayers and a special preface in the eucharistic prayer.
And so St Samson and his companions are now celebrated twice a year in Grouville, as the people of this parish rediscover their ancient heritage and enter more deeply into it.
ARE SOUND BITES SUSTAINING?
By Bill Matthews
I WAS talking recently to one of our well known TV presenters and he said, "I'm afraid that I only deal in Sound Bites. If it can't be said in ten seconds then it’s not worth saying." I was then provoked to respond, "If it can be said in ten seconds then it’s not worth hearing."
Which of us is right? A meaningless question really, since what both statements do is to polarize extremes. But isn't this the great disease of mass communication today?
Certainly, brevity is the soul of wit and we need punchlines to knock people out with our news. But, especially if our news is good, then people, rather than being knocked out or even woken up by it, want to hear it explained and to know more about it. Explaining things in detail is often a hard and difficult task but if we avoid it then we don't get to the heart of people and things. You cannot get punchier, for instance, than to say "love your neighbour" and add "as yourself."
Obvious? Yes, but what does it mean? That is the real question. And, how does it affect us? That is the real issue. Punchy statements may sound wonderful but they make little sense unless the implications are clearly worked out in our lives. The Bread of life and the Bread of heaven is much more than a sound bite.
There is a terrible temptation now in this age of punchline and slogan to think that everything can be simplified. Then when we find that important tasks call for effort which can often be long and exhausting, then comes disappointment, disillusion and despair. We feel cheated and indeed we have been, by media superficiality, which is not easily reconciled to the need for hard work over the long term which most of our problems call for.
Brevity is wonderful but even more so is the understanding of the need for the long term commitment to good work to make noble sentiments come true. ONE WORLD is a truly noble and simple sentiment but the task of accomplishing it is neither simple nor short term.
We celebrate ONE WORLD on the Island from 19th-26th October.
Here in Jersey we can wake up on a good morning and meet good people and feel that life is good. We are lucky. This is not possible everywhere in our broken world. So we need to count our blessings and recognise that we can live happily and in peace because others before us have worked hard to create an environment where this is possible. We need also to recognise that our peaceful community can disintegrate or be broken down if we allow it. Inertia is a perfect recipe for this. There can be no enduring community without us applying ourselves to recreate it continuously.
The concept of ONE WORLD is this very task of building and sustaining a world at one with itself. It is the work of our God who created the world for good. It is the work of
Jesus who showed us that we must love our neighbour as our God does. It is the Church as the Body of Christ seeking to save what is lost and heal the brokenness so that we can all become whole. So that we can be at one with one another.
There is no more important task. It is a big, big, big one! It will tax all our energy and our imagination. It is full of imponderable problems. It is also full of immense opportunities. It is full of adventure and fun. It is an exciting task. And it is for all of us.
The One World Week Programme is full of activities for everyone to share in and enjoy. Let us not waste this opportunity for God.
BILL MATTHEWS
Friday 10th October:
Apollo Male Voice Choir in Concert
Wesley Grove — 8 pm
This internationally renowned choir presents a programme of popular music —with proceeds being donated to "The Week."
Friday 17th October: 'Return to Haiti'
An illustrated talk given by Derek Poole. Bethlehem Methodist Church — 8 pm
The Rev Derek Poole lived for five years in Haiti. He returned this year, partly to investigate a proposed new Overseas Aid project.
Saturday 18th October:
International Food Fair with Music
Royal Square — 10.30 am — 2.30 pm
A chance to enjoy food from nationalities around the world represented in Jersey, plus musical entertainment.
Sunday 19th October:
One World Week in Church Services
The start of One World Week proper and many Island churches will include themes or elements for the Week in their services this Sunday.
Throughout the Week:
Tune in to Radio Jersey's 'Morning Thought' at 6.50 each day Monday to Friday for a reflection linked to the evening's event.
Monday 20th October:
`Racism in Jersey - the way forward'
St Paul's Centre — 8 pm
Is racism a problem we need to face Jersey? Come and share experiences, and start thinking what is to be done. Facilitated by Jackie Walker, an experienced worker in this field.
Tuesday 21st October: Christmas is here - already!
St Paul's Centre — 8 pm
What's gone wrong? A varied programme of practical steps to make Christmas better for you and others.
Wednesday 22nd October: `An Experience of Africa'
St Paul's Centre — 8 pm
The true story of an Overseas Aid working party.
Thursday 23rd October — United Nations Day
Interfaith Evening
St Thomas' Community
An opportunity to meet people faiths and to share values.
Thursday 23rd October: Grouville One World Concert
Grouville Church — 7.30 pm
A varied programme to celebrate One World Week.
Friday 24th October:
`Women's Work in the World'
Société Jersiaise — 8 pm
Lois Hainsworth has vast international experience and will reflect on the UN Women's Conference at Beijing and beyond.
Saturday 25th October: International Training Centre,
Jersey Zoo
Meet conservation workers from all over the world and see the ITC at work at this all-day event. Activities for all ages.
Sunday 26th October:
Most Island churches will include prayers to round off what will have been a memorable and busy Week.
By Bill Matthews
I WAS talking recently to one of our well known TV presenters and he said, "I'm afraid that I only deal in Sound Bites. If it can't be said in ten seconds then it’s not worth saying." I was then provoked to respond, "If it can be said in ten seconds then it’s not worth hearing."
Which of us is right? A meaningless question really, since what both statements do is to polarize extremes. But isn't this the great disease of mass communication today?
Certainly, brevity is the soul of wit and we need punchlines to knock people out with our news. But, especially if our news is good, then people, rather than being knocked out or even woken up by it, want to hear it explained and to know more about it. Explaining things in detail is often a hard and difficult task but if we avoid it then we don't get to the heart of people and things. You cannot get punchier, for instance, than to say "love your neighbour" and add "as yourself."
Obvious? Yes, but what does it mean? That is the real question. And, how does it affect us? That is the real issue. Punchy statements may sound wonderful but they make little sense unless the implications are clearly worked out in our lives. The Bread of life and the Bread of heaven is much more than a sound bite.
There is a terrible temptation now in this age of punchline and slogan to think that everything can be simplified. Then when we find that important tasks call for effort which can often be long and exhausting, then comes disappointment, disillusion and despair. We feel cheated and indeed we have been, by media superficiality, which is not easily reconciled to the need for hard work over the long term which most of our problems call for.
Brevity is wonderful but even more so is the understanding of the need for the long term commitment to good work to make noble sentiments come true. ONE WORLD is a truly noble and simple sentiment but the task of accomplishing it is neither simple nor short term.
We celebrate ONE WORLD on the Island from 19th-26th October.
Here in Jersey we can wake up on a good morning and meet good people and feel that life is good. We are lucky. This is not possible everywhere in our broken world. So we need to count our blessings and recognise that we can live happily and in peace because others before us have worked hard to create an environment where this is possible. We need also to recognise that our peaceful community can disintegrate or be broken down if we allow it. Inertia is a perfect recipe for this. There can be no enduring community without us applying ourselves to recreate it continuously.
The concept of ONE WORLD is this very task of building and sustaining a world at one with itself. It is the work of our God who created the world for good. It is the work of
Jesus who showed us that we must love our neighbour as our God does. It is the Church as the Body of Christ seeking to save what is lost and heal the brokenness so that we can all become whole. So that we can be at one with one another.
There is no more important task. It is a big, big, big one! It will tax all our energy and our imagination. It is full of imponderable problems. It is also full of immense opportunities. It is full of adventure and fun. It is an exciting task. And it is for all of us.
The One World Week Programme is full of activities for everyone to share in and enjoy. Let us not waste this opportunity for God.
BILL MATTHEWS
Friday 10th October:
Apollo Male Voice Choir in Concert
Wesley Grove — 8 pm
This internationally renowned choir presents a programme of popular music —with proceeds being donated to "The Week."
Friday 17th October: 'Return to Haiti'
An illustrated talk given by Derek Poole. Bethlehem Methodist Church — 8 pm
The Rev Derek Poole lived for five years in Haiti. He returned this year, partly to investigate a proposed new Overseas Aid project.
Saturday 18th October:
International Food Fair with Music
Royal Square — 10.30 am — 2.30 pm
A chance to enjoy food from nationalities around the world represented in Jersey, plus musical entertainment.
Sunday 19th October:
One World Week in Church Services
The start of One World Week proper and many Island churches will include themes or elements for the Week in their services this Sunday.
Throughout the Week:
Tune in to Radio Jersey's 'Morning Thought' at 6.50 each day Monday to Friday for a reflection linked to the evening's event.
Monday 20th October:
`Racism in Jersey - the way forward'
St Paul's Centre — 8 pm
Is racism a problem we need to face Jersey? Come and share experiences, and start thinking what is to be done. Facilitated by Jackie Walker, an experienced worker in this field.
Tuesday 21st October: Christmas is here - already!
St Paul's Centre — 8 pm
What's gone wrong? A varied programme of practical steps to make Christmas better for you and others.
Wednesday 22nd October: `An Experience of Africa'
St Paul's Centre — 8 pm
The true story of an Overseas Aid working party.
Thursday 23rd October — United Nations Day
Interfaith Evening
St Thomas' Community
An opportunity to meet people faiths and to share values.
Thursday 23rd October: Grouville One World Concert
Grouville Church — 7.30 pm
A varied programme to celebrate One World Week.
Friday 24th October:
`Women's Work in the World'
Société Jersiaise — 8 pm
Lois Hainsworth has vast international experience and will reflect on the UN Women's Conference at Beijing and beyond.
Saturday 25th October: International Training Centre,
Jersey Zoo
Meet conservation workers from all over the world and see the ITC at work at this all-day event. Activities for all ages.
Sunday 26th October:
Most Island churches will include prayers to round off what will have been a memorable and busy Week.
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