Subject: News from the University Church

God’s Good Time


by Patricia O'Neill


Psalm 77 v 11

I will remember the works of the Lord

and call to mind your wonders of old time


It probably reflects my characteristic impatience that two phrases ring out from my childhood. ‘All in God’s good time’ and ‘When God made time, He made plenty of it’. I remembered this when I was thinking about the oddity of leap year with its magical extra day. Now, God may have divided the light from the darkness and called the light day and the darkness night, but I’m pretty sure he didn’t decide a year would be 365 and a quarter days long, thus requiring an extra day every fourth year to avoid another ‘give us back our eleven days’ scenario. So while clocks and calendars are humankind’s way of measuring our lives, they don’t encompass our experience of time. We know that time is elusive, obeys its own reality, not ours. People talk about the endless summers of their childhood and of time speeding up as we grow older. Think of the elongation of time from the point at which you know you can’t avoid an accident and its actual occurrence. Think of the occasions when you are suddenly ambushed by the sense of something having happened to you before your current experience. There are so many occasions when time drags, or flies, or stands still.


Time and space are basic concepts in use in physics, but my understanding is that science doesn’t claim to explain them, so for now at least, there is room for other interpretations of the mystery. I love the notion of time being bendy, elusive, beyond our understanding. I suppose I’m trying to make sense of the fact that someone with whom I shared my life for almost fifty years is now not here, but clearly not ‘gone’. So Philip no longer exists in calendar time, but in what the church would call ‘eternal life’, although that notion is too easily elided with our earthly experience of time and, in consequence, becomes almost unbearable. All those souls! Floating about vaguely for ever and ever! That childish image of mine has given way to an acceptance of the mystery of God’s good time, where we all exist in the divine, in the time that has no past, present or future, but is here, now and always.

Eco Hints for March


Celebrate Spring. Immerse yourself in the sights and sounds of the season – breathe in the fragrance of blossoms, observe budding catkins, note different bird songs, spot footprints, or use the PlantNet app to identify spring flowers. Nature can boost our happiness, so spend time in your garden, on your balcony, and in local green spaces.

Dedicate quality time to appreciate creation’s beauty, and thank God for the hope that spring can bring with our Lent resources at arocha.org.uk/connect-with-gods-creation-overlent/

Notices


BAMPTON LECTURES – continuing 10AM, TUESDAY 5 MARCH

This year the Bampton Lectures will be given by the Rt Revd Dr Rowan Williams. A former Archbishop of Canterbury and Archbishop of Wales, Rowan Williams has written extensively on faith in the public square. In these lectures, Dr Williams will return to the theme of solidarity, exploring its roots in Catholic Social Thought and exploring how a solidarity-shaped ethic might serve to address some of the issues at the heart of our public life. There will be no 12.15pm Eucharist on these Tuesdays.


OXFORD UKRAINE CONCERT HARMONY - FUNDRAISING CONCERT - 2 MARCH, 7.30PM

Please join us for a fund-raising concert for Ukraine. Oxford Ukraine Concert Harmony hopes to raise enough money to provide an ambulance to send to the front line. Tickets are not for sale, but donations will be collected on the evening. The programme will feature Thomas Tallis' Spem in Alium, along with music by Brahms, Bruckner and Handel.


POETRY HOUR: 5.30PM WEDNESDAY, 6 MARCH, OLD LIBRARY

Poetry Hour is a forum for a diverse group of poets who have been reading and writing poetry together since 2015 in a relaxed and supportive environment. This term we are reading and responding to the poems of Rowan Williams. This week we will be reading his poem Milton.


ECUMENICAL TAIZE PRAYER (WPCU) - 1pm, TUESDAY 12 MARCH

Join us for a special, simple ecumenical service of sung Taize Prayer after the Eucharist on 12th March. The service is organised in collaboration with the Churches Together in Central Oxford.


READ WITH FAITH IN ACTION THROUGH LENT

Join us in reading the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Lent Book by Selina Stone -Tary Awhile: wisdom from Black spirituality for people of faith. Please speak to Hannah if you would like to borrow a copy.


MULTI-FACETED MOTHERING - 10AM SATURDAY 9 MARCH

The traditional image of mothering can stir in us a range of responses, emotions, and experiences. Can you help us to shape a space in which all can creatively explore the multi-faceted nature of mothering in an inclusive, gentle, and prayerful way? If you would be happy to help, please contact Hannah or Gabrielle Conway-Morris.


FAITH IN ACTION GIVING UPDATE

Thanks to the generosity of the congregation, in 2023 we gave financial gift to a number of causes including £2k to Littlemore Church which supported them in providing direct assistance to families and children experiencing poverty and to isolated older people and those with mental health needs, and £2k to Oxfam (the Old Library is where the first meeting of Oxfam took place) to continue their work in poverty-relief across the globe. We have also given gifts of £250 each to the Hidden Spire project, Oxford Community Action, the Gatehouse and to the Oxford Food Hub (in memory of Janet Greenland who volunteered there for many years).


COFFEE AND DOUGHNUTS: 11.15AM WEDNESDAYS

During Term we are offering Coffee and Doughnuts on Wednesday mornings in the De Brome Chapel. Do come and invite others for this weekly informal chance to drop in and chat.


FREE LUNCHTIME RECITAL SERIES: 1.00PM THURSDAYS

Our Thursday lunchtime concert series continues, featuring students from the Royal Academy of Music. These recitals are free and open to all.


BIBLE STUDY: 12.45PM FRIDAYS

This term, we will be studying the Book of Esther. The Book of Esther presents a tale about a courageous woman who saves her people. Everyone is welcome.


SUPPORTING OUR MINISTRY   
If you would like to support the ministry of the University Church, you may wish to make a cash donation at the offertory or via the contactless card machine by the High Street entrance. You can also make a donation online (please use the QR code) through the Parish Giving Scheme or by sending a text: Text "SMV X" to 70085 to donate £X. E.g.: "SMV 5" to 70085 will donate £5.00. Texts cost £X plus one standard rate message. Thank you!

St Mary's Church, High Street, OX1 4BJ, Oxford, United Kingdom

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