As the Chapter Letter goes out today we are commemorating VE day 75.

At 11am silence will be observed and Services held around the country as we remember and reflect. This evening the Cathedral will be lit red, white and blue. During the day we are being encouraged to mark the occasion with bunting at our windows, picnics at home, online parties with family and friends or tea and cake on the front doorstep. In 1945 after the years of war in Europe, people spilled out onto the streets to celebrate hope and liberation, freedom from oppression and the return to peace time and safety. They danced and held street parties as communities came together to celebrate.

In these days of a very hidden war against a virus we cannot see, we can draw comfort in the knowledge of the great outpouring of hope and optimism that VE day brought to the nation. Like then, we look forward to the day when this adversity will come to an end and we will meet again outside our homes without fear or danger.

Celebrating together with the symbolic food of bread and wine is a feature of Christian worship. In the picnics at home today we share a different sort of communion. A shared party, be it virtual or with our household or at the window with our neighbours, to connect and mark our common life, our shared hopes and our thanksgiving for past and present heroes.

Some today will be without the means to join in. Neighbours who are worried about how to pay the bills and feed their families. Here at the Cathedral we are supporting the Big Picnic for Hope. It is a fundraiser to support both the Trussell Trust and other local food banks, using the VE day commemorations to encourage us all to remember the Dunkirk spirit of World War Two and the way that people came together with great effort to support and care for the most vulnerable in desperate times.

Foodbanks both locally and nationally are always in need of support and the COVID-19 crisis has meant that many more people have found themselves relying on them to feed their families. In turn, this means that the food banks need to make their resources stretch further than ever. By donating to the Big Picnic for Hope you will be ensuring that another family can share a meal together and demonstrating practical Christian love.

Back in the dark days of conflict and blackouts, Lincoln Cathedral was the navigation point and signal of hope and safe return for pilots coming home from air raids. The Cathedral remains a beacon of hope to many and a sign of the gospel message of Christ as light shining in the darkness of the world’s ills, offering security, refuge and faith in the abiding presence of God in our midst. Our new lighting scheme has enabled us to convey powerful messages of love and support which have made real connections with our community.

We too are called to shine as lights in the world. Let us make VE day 75, a day to dedicate ourselves afresh to peace and liberty, to remember with thanksgiving the service and sacrifice of others, and do something that enacts hope and makes a difference to those who are most in need.

DEAN CHRISTINE

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Worship & Mission

Today, on VE Day, we will be sharing a reflection and music from the Dean and Choir.
Our online worship this Sunday will be Choral Mattins. It will be online from 7am.

In the coming weeks we will have more services available:
Sunday 17 May – Holy Communion
Thursday 21 May, Ascension Day – Holy Communion
Sunday 24 May – Choral Mattins
Sunday 31 May, Pentecost – Holy Communion

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Community

Donating to food banks or the Big Picnic for Hope
If you are taking part in the Big Picnic for Hope, you can contribute to their fundraising appeal for the Trussell Trust

You may also wish to support other local foodbanks, such as Lincoln Community Larder: https://localgiving.org/charity/lincoln-community-larder/

News about our Cathedral curate Rachel Revely
As part of Rachel’s scheduled programme of curacy training, she is off on a six-month placement to Branston from this Monday. This enables Rachel to gain experience in rural parish ministry and mission. She is taking the opportunity to learn about community outreach and service in a parish setting during the unique challenges and context of Covid-19.

Rachel will remain amongst us as a neighbour living in Minster Yard, but will not be involved in Cathedral ministry during this period. We look forward to welcoming her back around Advent.

Stuart Boyfield
Stuart Boyfield celebrates his 43rd anniversary of working with Lincoln Cathedral in the Cathedral Works Department.

Stuart supervises the Domus team, which is Latin for ‘Home’. The Domus team are the relentless cogs forever in the background; the essential building services team. Stuart spends his days maintaining crucial services of the buildings, keeping the precinct clean and tidy while assisting clerical and organisation staff complete typical day to day tasks.

Director of Works and Property, Michael Sheppard says “Stuart’s long service is admirable and he is a highly respected member of the team. Things we all take for granted, including clock chimes, fire alarm testing and litter picking are all completed by Stuart and his team. Without these sometimes simple but critical tasks, we and the public would not enjoy the beauty and seemingly undisturbed grace of the Cathedral and the precinct. A true example of a key worker in the Cathedral organisation”.

Pastoral care
If you would like support, or just a chat with a friendly voice, please do contact either the Subdean, the Dean’s Verger or the Assistant Curate. We also encourage you to continue to check on the welfare of friends, neighbours and relatives.

John Patrick 07956 566101 subdean@lincolncathedral.com
John Campbell 07733 276335 deansverger@lincolncathedral.com

The Mind website also has some excellent resources to help you manage your wellbeing
https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/coronavirus/coronavirus-and-your-wellbeing/

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Bible Readings

Sunday 10 May
Fifth Sunday of Easter

Eucharist
Acts 7: 55-end
1 Peter 2: 2-10
John 14: 1-14

Mattins
Ezekiel 37: 1-12
John5: 19-29

Evening Prayer
Zechariah 4: 1-10
Revelation 21: 1-14

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Sunday 17 May
Sixth Sunday of Easter

Eucharist
Acts 17: 22-31
1 Peter 3: 13-end
John 14: 15-21

Mattins
Job 14: 1-2, 7-15 and 19: 23-27a
1 Thessalonians 4: 13-end

Evening Prayer
Zechariah 8: 1-13
Revelation 21: 22-22.5

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Sunday 24 May
Seventh Sunday of Easter

Eucharist
Acts 1: 6-14
1 Peter 4:12-14, 5:6-11
John 17:1-11

Mattins
Isaiah 65:17-end
Revelation 21: 1-8

Evening Prayer
Zechariah 8: 1-13
Revelation 21: 22-22.5