Growth seems to be a bit of a theme over recent days. The Chancellor’s budget gave rise to heated debates about growth and investment in the right bits of the economy to boost our growth performance in comparison with countries of a similar ilk. There are questions amongst Christian and other moral thinkers about whether growth should be necessarily the obsession it is. It is true that increased wealth and income can lead to a better standard of living and many social benefits such as technological advances, medical discoveries and better public services and social care. Yet, the downside of our obsession with growth is all too plain to see – rampant consumerism, growing inequality between rich and poor and huge damage to our environment and climate. We live in a world where it is difficult to do things perfectly and our moral duty is to count the cost, particularly as Christians, to the most vulnerable in our society and across our world.
The financial challenge that we face as a cathedral means that we need to grow our income. That might be from events, fundraising, legacies and visitors. It will also need to include growth in what we the regulars give as part of our Christian generosity.
However, one thing we are clear about is that growth in income only makes sense if we grow in our discipleship and in our mission. Unless we want to be just a spectacular tourist attraction, growing as a church has must comprise a consistent, constant ambition to grow in bringing people to Christ, in joyfully serving the community, in standing up outrageously for justice and love in our world, especially for the most vulnerable, and above all in the richness, depth, extent and quality of our worship of the Almighty.
Lent is a puzzling contradiction of our secular understanding of growth. Instead of becoming richer and possessing more and more to grow, Lent asks us to strip back, to return to basics, and to reduce our consumption and our activity in order to grow in what really matters, in eternal treasure. As we embark on these last few days before the awful and awe inspiring events of Passiontide and Holy Week, it may be good to spend a moment or two reviewing how much we have grown in the transcendent and the holy. It’s not too late to spend some time, pared back and simply in the presence of God asking for help in assessing whether our growth as individuals and as a body has been in the right things or not – or whether any growth is happening at all.
THE REVD CANON DAVID DADSWELL
Worship & Mission
Weekly service schedule
The service sheet for the coming fortnight can be viewed on the cathedral website (click link to visit)
Sacred Space
Sacred Space will be taking place at 7pm on the following Sundays in 2023: 19 March, 21 May, 16 July, 10 September and 19 November. Sacred Space is a gentle, reflective service with time to wonder, the opportunity to use all your senses to explore faith and the chance to experience the unique and serene atmosphere of the Cathedral as the day draws to a close.
The Feast of the Annunciation of our Lord to the Blessed Virgin Mary – 24 and 25 March
Reflecting the beginning of the Christmas cycle of feasts, this festival recalls the visit of the Angel to the Virgin Mary, announcing the coming birth of Jesus. The following services take place for this day:
Friday 24 March: Eve of the Feast of the Annunciation
5.30pm – Solemn Evensong (with music sung by the Cathedral Choir)
At this service we will also install Mark Warrick as a Non-Residentiary Canon, and Simon Jones as a Residentiary Canon and Interim Dean – we warmly welcome both to the Cathedral.
Saturday 25 March: The Feast of the Annunciation
9am – Morning Prayer
12.30pm – Eucharist
5.30pm – Evening Prayer
Stations of the Cross – Wednesdays until 9 April
Meet in the Nave at 4.30pm every Wednesday. Join one of our chaplains for this quiet and devotional reflection on the journey to the Cross.
Palm Sunday – 2 April
10.30am – Procession of the Palms, Reading of the Passion and Sung Eucharist. This service begins in the Castle
3.45pm – Choral Evensong
Special Services during Holy Week – 3 April to 8 April
During Holy Week we will have the following special services in addition to our regular pattern of worship.
Monday 3 April
5.30pm – Choral Evensong
7.30pm – Compline with Meditation
Tuesday 4 April
11am – Chrism Eucharist
5.30pm – Choral Evensong
7.30pm – Compline with Meditation
Wednesday 5 April
5.30pm – Choral Evensong
7.30pm – Tenebrae: an evening service of Holy Week
Maundy Thursday 6 April
7.30pm – Eucharist of the Last Supper, Stripping of the Altar and watch of the Passion until Midnight
Good Friday 7 April
9.30am – Liturgy of Good Friday
12noon – Three Hours’ Devotion
Easter Eve Saturday 8 April
8pm – Paschal Vigil with Baptism and Confirmation and the First Eucharist of Easter
Easter Day – 9 April
7.45am – Litany
8am – Holy Communion
10.30am – Festal Eucharist of Easter Day
12.30pm – Holy Communion
3.45pm – Festal Evensong for Easter Day
Community
COO and Chapter Clerk
We would like to take this opportunity to welcome Dr Tracy Buckby to the Cathedral as our Chief Operating Officer and Chapter Clerk.
Palm Cross making
We will be making palm crosses in the Chapter house from 10am until 12noon on 30 March 2023. All are welcome to come and help produce the crosses for Palm Sunday. Free tea and coffee will be available during this time. Experience not required!
Events
St John Passion
25 March, 7.00pm
Performed by Lincoln Cathedral Choir, the St John Passion is a much-anticipated regular event in the Cathedral’s calendar.
A night at the Opera – London Concertante
15 April, 7.30pm
London Concertante present a captivating evening at the opera with various works of the finest opera arias and overtures, including works by Puccini, Verdi, Rossini and Mozart.
Medieval Graffiti with Matthew Champion
Friday 28 April, 7pm
Join us as Matthew explains what is meant by historical graffiti and share and examine examples of historical graffiti in public buildings, and in particular, places of worship.
Fleetwood Mac by Candlelight
6 June, 7.00pm
Featuring a cast of West End Singers and a live band, join us for a ‘landslide’ concert, jam packed with Fleetwood Mac hits as you have never heard them before.
Bowie by Candlelight
7 June, 7.00pm
An incredible night of Bowie anthems including ‘Let’s Dance’, ‘Starman’, ‘Life on Mars’, ‘Rebel Rebel’ and more, performed at the beautiful Lincoln Cathedral by Candlelight.
Byrd 400
30 June – 4 July
A five-day festival with daily choral services sung by the Cathedral Choir will focus on Byrd’s liturgical music
Lincoln Jazz Festival
14 July – 16 July
A weekend festival of Jazz and Gospel music featuring leading musicians from the UK and overseas.
For more details of forthcoming events and to book your tickets, go to our website at www.lincolncathedral.com/forthcoming-events
Bible Readings
Sunday 19 March
Fourth Sunday of Lent
Eucharist
1 Samuel 16.1-13
Ephesians 5.8-14
John 9
Evening Prayer
Micah 7
James 5
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Sunday 26 March
Fifth Sunday of Lent
Eucharist
Ezekiel 37. 1-14
Romans 8.6-11
John 11.1-45
Evening Prayer
Lamentations 3.19-33
Matthew 20.17-end
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Sunday 2 April
Palm Sunday
Eucharist
Liturgy of the Palms:
Matthew 21.1-11
Liturgy of the Passion:
Philippians 2.5-11
Matthew 26.14-end of 27
Evening Prayer
Isaiah 5.1-7
Matthew 21.33-end
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