Christchurch South Methodist Parish

St Marks

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Welcome!

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St Marks Church and Hall
Cnr Barrington & Somerfield Streets, Somerfield, Christchurch 8024

Car Park entry from Barrington Street

Presbyter

  • Rev Andrew Donaldson

    Phone: 027 428 7356

Preaching Plan

 

         

APRIL SERVICES

April 2nd  10:00 am      Rev Andrew Donaldson

                                      Palm/Passion Sunday

April 2nd  7:00 pm       Rev Andrew Donaldson

                                      Contemplative Service at

                                      Whareora 8, Athelstan St

April 6th  7:00 pm        Rev Andrew Donaldson

                                      Maundy Thursday Service

                                      at St Marks

April 7th  9:30 am         Rev Andrew Donaldson

                                      Good Friday Service

                                      at St Marks

April 9th  10:00 am       Rev Andrew Donaldson

                                      Easter Day Service 

                                      with Holy Communion

April 16th 10:00 am       Linda Cowan

                                       All Age Worship 

April 23rd 10:00 am      Rev Andrew Donaldson

                                      Harvest Festival

April 30th 10:00 am      Wendy Russell        

                                      Morning Worship

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Our Vision

  • Growing & sharing our faith in God, 
  • Joining together for worship & celebration, 
  • Living faith by serving others and offering hospitality to our local community.
2022 St Marks church

Our Values

Acceptance
Caring
Creativity
Outreach
Teamwork
Worshipfulness

Presbyter's Ramblings

  PRESBYTER'S RAMBLINGS:

 At the time of writing this piece we are about to enter into the season of Easter. Traditionally this marks the highest point in the Church Year. Next Sunday we will be celebrating Palm Sunday when Jesus enters into Jerusalem. A week later, we will remember his suffering, death and resurrection.

 Over the last number of weeks the Lenten study group has been following the Gospel of Matthew’s story of Jesus’ and his disciple’s journey to Jerusalem. We have heard how Jesus threatened the power of Rome and that of Jerusalem’s temple and civil authorities. The Temple authorities, priests and elders, the Pharisees, Sadducees, Herodians, Pilate and Herod Antipas all took part in bringing Jesus down. What did he do that had everyone gunning for him?

 Jesus teaching spoke of the Kingdom of God. This new way of living that turns the social, religious and political order on their head. The first shall be last and the last shall be first. Jesus teaches that the Temple is not the place where God resides, God is spirit and we will worship in spirit. This undermined the role of the Temple.

 He certainly did threaten the Pax Romana, The peace that was kept under the threat of the Roman sword. Messiahs come and go. Pilate had dispatched a number of would be Messiahs. Jerusalem at the time of Passover was certainly dangerous. If a disturbance did break out, Pilate and his soldiers were ready to put any uprising down. The Jewish authorities knew what this would mean, and would try to keep a lid on the people.

 As the Easter Story unfolds, there is a sense of  inevitably death.  Jesus is, as we know crucified.  This is not the end of the story, three days later Jesus is raised from death.  Many traditions have formed around this  event.  Both biblical and extra-biblical. We know  the  biblical  stories well, but for  traditions that sit outside of the New Testament think, the Shroud of Turin, Jesus surviving the cross and heading off to the south of France or to the east. 

 There are many mysteries in the Easter story, the resurrection being one. The mechanics of resurrection  have long been a topic of speculation. Of the mechanics, the truth is, we do not know.  The why, we can answer.

God affirms the ministry of Jesus; indeed God set the Easter events in train. The affirmation of Easter is, in Jesus, we see God, In Jesus we see God incarnate,  In Jesus we see God with us.

                                                                                         Andrew

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