Tower and Town, October 2024 (view the full edition)Clergy LetterIt was beautiful in Savernake Forest this morning. The sun was streaming through the trees, lighting up the leaves, casting shadows across the path. Trotting through shadows and sunshine our dog Yanni's coat glistened as he walked through the light. Every now and again, he would stop, raise his nose and sniff. I wondered what he could smell. So, I too stopped, sniffed and enjoyed the aroma of damp vegetation. I'd love to know what Yanni caught on the breeze. I then reflected on the beauty all around me from the ground to the highest twig. From iridescent black beetles scuttling across the path to tiny wrens high in the branches singing their hearts out. Over the past few months we have seen the crops growing, ripen and harvested. Grain is now gathered into silos and straw transported round the country. This "Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness," (John Keats), is the season in our churches when we thank God for the harvest and all that he provides for us. It is a time to consider how we can look after the earth and what we can do for those who are not as fortunate. This is a good time to think about how to help those who won't enjoy a harvest this year, through buying FairTrade produce and giving to such charities as Christian Aid and Water Aid. Supporting our local food banks help those in our own communities who are unable to afford to feed their families. It is so good that we can easily buy FairTrade products and give to the food banks through our town's supermarkets. We also reflect on how we can care for our world, which is abused and being ravaged by the effects of climate change. On 22nd June this year, Jane and I joined the "Restore Nature Now" family friendly protest march in London to encourage those in power to take action to protect and restore nature to what it could be. We were with over 60,000 other people, including Chris Packham and Dame Judy Dench, concerned about the state of our natural world. Wearing my dog collar, some avoided me, but others engaged in interesting conversations. Who knows what good it will do, but it was better than just shouting at the radio when hearing about sewage being pumped into our waterways! Seeing some acorns on an oak tree today reminded me that sometimes we wonder what we can do to solve big issues. On our own we might be one person, but if enough people do the same thing, together we make an impact and change things. In Genesis chapter two, God creates the world and "took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it," (2:15). Harvest Festival is an opportunity to thank God for all that we enjoy from the harvest and commit ourselves to caring for the earth. Stephen Skinner |