Not the one who takes up his bed and walks But the ones who have known him all along And carry him in —
Their shoulders numb, the ache and stoop deeplocked In their backs, the stretcher handles Slippery with sweat. And no let up
Until he’s strapped on tight, made tiltable and raised to the tiled roof, then lowered for healing. Be mindful of them as they stand and wait
For the burn of the paid out ropes to cool, Their slight lightheadedness and incredulity To pass, those who had known him all along.
‘Miracle’, by Seamus Heaney
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Image: ‘The Sick of the Palsy Cured and His Sins forgiven’. Engraving by James Newton, 1795(?), after C.R. Ryley.
Photo: Wellcome Collection gallery, used under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence.
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In St Mary’s prayer cycle for this month, we pray for all living under corrupt regimes around the world.
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In these unprecedented times, St Mary’s is reaching out and supporting our community in many ways, especially online. But with activities in our buildings greatly restricted, we no longer receive the previous level of financial support from collections at Services, nor from hiring out the church and hall buildings.
If you can help us financially to continue to offer Christ's love to our community in these difficult times, please consider making a donation by debit/credit card and to Gift Aid it if possible, by clicking this link to 'givealittle':
Thank you!