News from First Church

 Many folk imagine that going to church is a bit of an ordeal, a waste of time, or at best a

stuffy affair marked by archaic mumbo jumbo. 

One attendance at First Church would dispel these misconceptions. 

To start with, the environment is informal with no sign of incense or solemn chanting. 

Instead, for those who arrive in their Sunday best (jeans and open neck shirt) twenty minutes before the service starts, the first urgent priority is a cup of tea bolstered by a truly impressive array of scones and home baking. The talk then is less about Genesis or Delilah and more about the cricket or Navratilova. Its lively and truly congenial.

At around 10 a.m. the tinkle of a bell announces that we should quell our chat and pay attention. This is always a rewarding experience. Jim Veitch is one of the most erudite yet accessible voices pedalling his ecclesiastical wares in New Zealand.

For Martinborough in the sticks to have his insights is a small miracle. 

His main thrust (as far as I can make out) is interpretation and context i.e. the meaning of biblical passages and an appreciation of the historical background. Some of it is demanding but there is little chance of dozing off for anybody with a genuine interest in the topic. For that is the nub of the matter. 

When people say they’re not religious, which in a secular society is the majority, they usually imagine God as a bearded old man spatially located in the sky and hell as the hot location underground where we’re consigned for eternity after receiving the thumbs down. Such puerile images are ok for 7-year-olds but not grown-ups. A bit of intellectual effort is required.

See you on Sunday!

Looking to this month the Church calendar encompasses Lent.

The traditionalist view of this period and Easter which follows it, is being constantly refreshed with new evidence and information and is an invitation to understand the old story in new and relevant ways.

Easter Services at First Church 

Corner Jellicoe & Weld Sts 

Good Friday, 29 March 10 a.m.

Easter Sunday, 31 March 10a.m.