COMERFORD WAY: Patrick Comerford’s online journal on Anglicanism, theology, spirituality, history, architecture, travel, poetry, beach walks ... and more
Damien Hirst’s sculpture of Saint Bartholomew, ‘Exquisite Pain’, in Saint Bartholomew the Great Church, Smithfield, London (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Patrick Comerford
We are continuing in Ordinary Time in the Church Calendar and this week began with the Twelfth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity XII). The Church Calendar today celebrates the feast of Saint Bartholomew the Apostle (24 August).
Later today, I hope to take part in the choir rehearsals preparing for a funeral tomorrow in Saint Mary and Saint Giles Church, Stony Stratford. Before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, for reflection, prayer and reading in these ways:
1, today’s Gospel reading;
2, a reflection on the Gospel reading;
3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;
4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.
Saint Bartholomew the Apostle … a statue on the west front of Lichfield Cathedral (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Luke 22: 24-30 (NRSVA):
24 A dispute also arose among them as to which one of them was to be regarded as the greatest. 25 But he said to them, ‘The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those in authority over them are called benefactors. 26 But not so with you; rather the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like one who serves. 27 For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one at the table? But I am among you as one who serves.
28 ‘You are those who have stood by me in my trials; 29 and I confer on you, just as my Father has conferred on me, a kingdom, 30 so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and you will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.’
A statue of Saint Bartholomew above the south porch of Saint Bartholomew’s Church, Wednesbury (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Today’s Reflections:
The Church Calendar today celebrates Saint Bartholomew the Apostle (24 August). Exciting Holiness recalls that it has long been assumed that Bartholomew is the same as Nathanael, ‘though it is not a certainty’.
The gospels speak of Philip bringing Nathanael to Jesus, who calls him an Israelite worthy of the name. He is also present beside the Sea of Galilee at the resurrection. Although he seems initially a somewhat cynical man, he recognises Jesus for who he is and proclaims him as Son of God and King of Israel.
Bartholomew is listed among the Twelve in the three Synoptic Gospels: Matthew, Mark and Luke, and in Acts of the Apostles. But, apart from the narrative about Nathanael, we are left with silence when it comes to the story of Saint Bartholomew.
One of my favourite walks in silence in the English countryside is along Cross in Hand Lane, which starts at the back of the Hedgehog Vintage Inn in Lichfield and leads to Farewell and Saint Bartholomew’s Church, on the northern fringes of Lichfield.
This walk along Cross in Hand Lane marks the beginning – or the end – of the pilgrim route between the shrine of Saint Chad in Lichfield and the shrine of Saint Werburgh in Chester Cathedral.
Today, this pilgrim route is marked out as the Two Saints’ Way. And little has changed in the landscape along this route since mediaeval times. The road twists and turns, rises and falls, with countryside that has changed little over the centuries.
At this time of the year, the fields are usually green and golden under the clear blue skies of summer. There are horses in paddocks here, or cows there, and most of the land is arable or being used for grazing.
Although farming patterns have changed in the last 30 or 40 years, these fields may not have changed in shape or altered in their use for centuries, and even the names on new-built houses can reflect names that date back to a period in the 12th to 14th century.
Apart from the occasional passing car or van, one other walker and one or two cyclists, the only hints of modernity are the overhead pylons, and until their demolition in recent years the smoking towers of the power station in Rugeley could be glimpsed in the distance.
This walk often offers me opportunities to clear out the cobwebs in the corners of my brain and (hopefully) my soul, and allows me time to enjoy this walk as this walk and as nothing more.
I have stopped to admire the shapes and patterns of the fields and the trees. I have stopped in silence at the babbling brook. I have stopped to look at Farewell Mill. The local historian Kate Gomez suggests the name has nothing to do with saying goodbye and points out that the alternative spelling of ‘Fairwell’ refers to a nearby ‘fair or clear spring.’
Often as priests, we think we should be filling the silent spaces in time with intense prayers and thoughts about sermons and services that need preparation. But sometimes we need to just let go and empty our minds, our thoughts – even our prayers. We take everything else to be recycled as we clear out spaces in our houses, our offices, our studies and our garden sheds. But we seldom give time to clearing out the clutter in our inner spiritual spaces, allowing them to benefit from recycling.
Silence is prayer in itself, on its own, alone.
A gate in the churchyard at Saint Bartholomew’s Church in Farewell, at the end of Cross in Hand Lane, on the northern fringes of Lichfield (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Today’s Prayers (Monday 24 August 2026, Saint Bartholomew the Apostle):
In Pray with the World Church, the prayer diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), the theme this week, from 23 to 29 August 2026 (pp 32-33), is ‘Legacies of History’. This theme was introduced yesterday with a reflection by the Revd Dr Rachele Evie Vernon O’Brien, a Jamaican-born theologian and advocate.
The USPG Prayer Diary today (Monday 24 August 2026, Saint Bartholomew the Apostle) invites us to pray:
Lord of compassion, remember young people who feel let down by the Church. Draw them into communities where your love is shown in actions as well as words.
The Collect:
Almighty and everlasting God,
who gave to your apostle Bartholomew grace
truly to believe and to preach your word:
grant that your Church
may love that word which he believed
and may faithfully preach and receive the same;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
The Post Communion Prayer:
Almighty God,
who on the day of Pentecost
sent your Holy Spirit to the apostles
with the wind from heaven and in tongues of flame,
filling them with joy and boldness to preach the gospel :
by the power of the same Spirit
strengthen us to witness to your truth
and to draw everyone to the fire of your love;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Saint Bartholomew’s Church, Farewell … at the end of a walk along Cross in Hand Lane from the Hedgehog Vintage Inn in Lichfield (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
The Earl of Cumberford is a fictional character in the Regency romance novel ‘Contrary Cousins’ (1981) by Judith Harkness
Patrick Comerford
When I was walking around Hopwas in one of my recent treks through the countryside in Staffordshire, I came across a blog posting from 2010 on ‘Tamworth Time Hikes’ in which a blogger, writing about the Woodhouse in Hopwas Wood back in 2010, said the house was ‘probably built on orders of the Marquess of Donegal around 1750 for use as a hunting lodge and retreat, being close to his Fisherwick estate.’
The blogger goes on to claim: ‘Local hearsay reports that there was a site here as far back as 1540, from the wife of the earl of Comberford, I cannot confirm any of this but its [sic] worth investigating.’
Of course, the blogger could never have confirmed any of this. The family of the Marquess of Donegall owned Comberford Hall in the 18th century, and before them the Comberford family owned large tracts of Hopwas, which is west of Comberford, on the road between Lichfield and Tamworth.
But there never was an Earl of Comberford, nor was there a Countess of Comberford who built the Woodhouse in Hopwas in the mid-16th century. Much as the conceited side of my inner personality might delight in the prospect of inheriting such a title, the nearest there ever was to an Earl of Comberford is a fictional character in a blockbuster or ‘chick-lit’ novel by the American romantic fiction writer Judith Harkness.
’A Mapp of Staffordshire with its Hundreds’ by Richard Blome (1715) names Comberford as Cumberford
The spelling ‘Cumberford’ is used on the Comberford family monument erected by Joseph Comerford in the Comberford Chapel in Saint Editha’s Church, Tamworth, in 1725. Ten years earlier, Richard Blome’s ‘A Mapp of Staffordshire with its Hundreds’ (1715) is unusual in tilting Staffordshire, viewing it from south to north on a left-to-right axis. Like many maps of the name, it spells Comberford as ‘Cumberford’. The same spelling was used 20 years before that in Robert Morden’s map, ‘Staffordshire’, for Camden’s Britannia (1695). Reviewers claim Judith Harkness often makes historical errors in her English settings. But, at least in her spelling of this fictitious aristocrat’s title she is not being entirely unhistorical.
The Earl of Cumberford is a fictional character in her Regency romance novel Contrary Cousins (1981), and she portrays him as a pompous English nobleman who detests the American branch of his family. Cumberford hates his American relatives and when his nieces arrive in London, the romantic comedy begins. When the Powell cousins take London society by storm, Cumberford is livid with rage. Lady Pendleton was certain her plan would succeed, for lively Antonia was irresistibly pretty, and Serena merely required the attentions of a first-rate dressmaker and a more confident manner to attract the notice of London’s most eligible bachelors.
But if Lady Pendleton could have foreseen how well her scheme would work and just which lords would soon be courting her charges in earnest, she would never have let Antonia and Serena off the boat from America.
Judith Harkness paints the fashionable world of Regency England, when styles were dictated by Beau Brummel, the Duchess of Devonshire held court, and dandies paraded in their phaetons and four. Groomed by their mothers to capture the hearts of the most eligible bachelors of the day, fashionable young ladies passed the Season in London and at Bath, where they were presented at a string of assemblies and balls in their finery and feathers.
Brimming with period detail, Contrary Cousins was written to appeal to readers who enjoy a good, old-fashioned romantic caper in the tradition of Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer.
Judith Harkness is the author of five classic Regency romances: The Montague Scandal, The Admiral’s Daughter, The Determined Bachelor, Contrary Cousins, and Lady Charlotte’s Ruse, all originally published by Signet. She is the co-author of a screenplay, Emma in New York, an updated version of the classic Jane Austen novel set in contemporary Manhattan.
As JH Richardson, Judith Harkness also writes non-fiction on subjects ranging from children with learning and developmental issues to profiles of notable creative artists. She lives in Rhode Island with her husband, Will Taft.
The Woodhouse in Hopwas was also known as Hopwas Hayes Lodge and was built in 1730 by Zachary Babington
As for the Woodhouse in Hopwas, it was also known known as Hopwas Hayes Lodge. It was built in 1730 by Zachary Babington (1690-1745) as part of the Fisherwick estate. It was situated on the highest part of Hopwas Wood.
Zachary Babington was a barrister and was High Sheriff of Staffordshire in 1713 and 1724. He was the son of John Babington (High Sheriff in 1702), and was named after his grandfather, the Revd Canon Dr Zachary Babington (1549-1613), Chancellor of Lichfield Cathedral and Master of Saint John’s Hospital. He was distantly related to Anthony Babington, who in 1586 was hung, drawn and quartered on Tower Hill for his role in the Babington Plot to put Mary Queen of Scots, on the English throne.
Although there never was an Earl of Comberford, it is here we find a link with the Comberford family: Zachary’s grandfather, Humphrey Babington, married one of three sisters who jointly became heiresses to the vast Beaumont estates, including Wednesbury:
• Jane or Joan Beaumont, the eldest daughter, married William Babington of Teremore;
• Dorothy Beaumont, the second daughter and co-heir, married Humphrey Comberford of Comberford, Staffordshire;
• Eleanor Beaumont, the youngest daughter, married William Babington’s brother Humphrey Babington of Rothley Temple, Leicestershire.
The grandson of Canon Zachary Babington, the younger Zachary Babington, lived at Curborough Hall, near Lichfield, and later at Whittington Old Hall. His daughter Mary married Theophilus Levett, town clerk of Lichfield, and so the Levett family inherited the Babington estates at Curborough and Packington, including the Woodhouse.
The Woodhouse was altered in the 19th and 20th centuries, but it fell into disrepair and was demolished in 2010.
The Earl of Cumberford is a fictional character in a novel by Judith Harkness
The sower and the seed … a window in Saint Leonard’s Church, Wigginton, between Lichfield and Tamworth in Staffordshire (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
Patrick Comerford
We are continuing in Ordinary Time in the Church and this week began with the Seventh Sunday after Trinity (Trinity VII, 19 July 2026).
We are attending a funeral later today. But, before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, for reflection, prayer and reading in these ways:
1, today’s Gospel reading;
2, a reflection on the Gospel reading;
3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;
4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.
The Gospel reading today (Matthew 13: 18-23) continues this week’s themes of the sower and the seed … fields in Stoke Bruerne, Northamptonshire (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Matthew 13: 18-23 (NRSVA):
18 ‘Hear then the parable of the sower. 19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart; this is what was sown on the path. 20 As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21 yet such a person has no root, but endures only for a while, and when trouble or persecution arises on account of the word, that person immediately falls away. 22 As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing. 23 But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.’
Sowing and planting in the fields in Comberford, Staffordshire, east of Lichfield and north of Tamworth (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Today’s Reflections:
In the Gospel reading at the Eucharist today (Matthew 13: 18-23), we continue a series of readings about the Parable of the Sower and the Seed and its interpretation.
Sometimes these readings have seemed more relevant for Harvest thanksgiving services, which are still many weeks. But as I travelled by train to an from Cambridge earlier this week, I realised the time of sowing has past and work of harvesting is now in full swing.
This morning’s reading concludes with Jesus comparing the seed that was sown on good soil with ‘the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.’
Do you think that the apostles, as they preached or sowed the word and the Good News had debriefing and review meetings, as good management practice might expect today, and compared notes about their ‘yields’, one 100-fold, another 60-fold, and yet another 30-fold?
I sometimes find I am ill-at-ease with the discussion how hear about church-growth, with people boasting their church attendance over recent years has increased 30-fold, 60-fold or even 100-fold. In some parishes I ministered in, church attendance on Sunday mornings was often below 100, below 60, most often even below 30.
To judge my ‘performance in ministry’ based on those figures, others might have judged me a failure. But they were faithful, they were caring, they believed, they were generous, and they came Sunday-after-Sunday, with failure, even when the crops and the fields and the cattle had to be attended to, the shops opened, customers’ needs attended, and the margins were so slow that everything was run on a shoestring.
When the harvest was gathered in, they would share generously in the bounties of creation.
The late Father Herbert Edwin William Slade (1912-1999), a priest of the Society of Saint John the Evangelist or the Cowley Fathers in Oxford, once wrote: ‘The Eucharist is the supreme model of an intimacy with nature which is universal. All creation is God’s body. God indwells all of his creatures. God’s Spirit is present in all that God has made. Therefore, our intimacy with creation must never stop short at contemplative admiration.’
God’s harvest, the Kingdom of God, is all-embracing, is greater than my imagination. It includes all aspects and dimensions of creation, the harvest of the fields, and a harvest of people, including even those I am in danger of thinking do no count, even in danger of ignoring and leaving behind.
Who are the small people, the small numbers, the 30-fold rather than 100-fold the church who think they are successful in terms of numbers and church growth are in danger of counting out, leaving to one side?
The harvest is greater than we can imagine, greater than we want to admit.
In a recent posting, my friend and colleague, the Revd David Messer, has helped me to draw a comparison between my daily blogging and some of my experiences in ministry:
‘I wish I had something worthwhile of my own to say, but at the moment, I haven’t the wherewithal … because rural ministry means living in a permanent state of failure – which is exhausting. So instead, here’s a wonderful quote from Giles Fraser, which gives me heart:
‘In a world where we semaphore our successes to each other at every possible opportunity, churches cannot be blamed for failing to live up to this austere and wonderful message. The worst of them judge their success in entirely worldly terms, by counting their followers.
‘Their websites show images of happy, uncomplicated people doing good improving stuff in the big community. But if I am right about the meaning of Christ’s passion, then a church is at its best when it fails, when it gives up on all the ecclesiastical glitter, when the weeds start to break through the floor, and when it shows others that failure is absolutely nothing of the sort.
‘This is the site of real triumph, the moment of success.
‘Failure is redeemed.
‘Hallelujah.’
Moving from ideas such as these into prayer, I might pray in these words, although I do not know who wrote them:
‘May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, superficial relationships, so that you will live deep within your heart.
‘May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppression and exploitation of people, so that you will work for justice, equality and peace.
‘May God bless you with tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation and war, so that you will reach out your hand to comfort them and change their pain into joy.’
In July fields off Cross in Hand Lane in Lichfield (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Today’s Prayers (Friday 24 July 2026):
In Pray with the World Church, the prayer diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), the theme this week, from 19 to 25 July 2026 (pp 20-21), is ‘Flood Relief in Mozambique’. This theme was introduced on Sunday with a programme update from the Revd Mauricio S Mugunhe, Executive Director Anglican Social Action, Igreja Anglicana de Moçambique e Angola (the Anglican Church of Mozambique and Angola).
The USPG prayer diary today (Friday 24 July 2026) invites us to pray:
Lord God, we pray for the Igreja Anglicana de Moçambique e Angola, for its bishops, clergy, and lay leaders. Strengthen the ministry through Anglican Social Action, that the Church may shine like a light to all in need.
The Collect of the Day:
Lord of all power and might,
the author and giver of all good things:
graft in our hearts the love of your name,
increase in us true religion,
nourish us with all goodness,
and of your great mercy keep us in the same;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
The Post Communion Prayer:
Lord God, whose Son is the true vine and the source of life,
ever giving himself that the world may live:
may we so receive within ourselves
the power of his death and passion
that, in his saving cup,
we may share his glory and be made perfect in his love;
for he is alive and reigns, now and for ever.
Additional Collect
Generous God,
you give us gifts and make them grow:
though our faith is small as mustard seed,
make it grow to your glory
and the flourishing of your kingdom;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Collect on the Eve of Saint James:
Merciful God,
whose holy apostle Saint James,
leaving his father and all that he had,
was obedient to the calling of your Son Jesus Christ
and followed him even to death:
help us, forsaking the false attractions of the world,
to be ready at all times to answer your call without delay;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
‘There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth’ (Matthew 13: 42) … Gnasher and Gnipper in the ‘Beano’ always seemed ready to gnash their teeth
Patrick Comerford
We are in Ordinary Time in the Church Calendar and today is the Seventh Sunday after Trinity (Trinity VII, 19 July 2026). Later this morning I hope to take part in the Parish Eucharist in Saint Mary and Saint Giles, Stony Stratford, singing with the choir and reading the first lesson.
Having stayed up last night to see England beat France 6-4 for third place in the World Cup, there are two interesting sporting events attracting my attention later today: the All-Ireland hurling final between Limerick and Galway this afternoon, and the World Cup final between Argentina and Spain this evening. But, before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, to reflect, to pray and to read in these ways:
1, reading today’s Gospel reading;
2, a short reflection;
3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;
4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.
A field ready for the harvest off Cross in Hand near Lichfield (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Matthew 13: 24-30, 36-43 (NRSVA):
24 He put before them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; 25 but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. 26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. 27 And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, “Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?” 28 He answered, “An enemy has done this.” The slaves said to him, “Then do you want us to go and gather them?” 29 But he replied, “No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. 30 Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn”.’
36 Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples approached him, saying, ‘Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.’ 37 He answered, ‘The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; 38 the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds are the children of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Just as the weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, 42 and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let anyone with ears listen!’
Fields of green close to Comberford village, between Tamworth and Lichfield in Staffordshire (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
Today’s Reflections:
In my imagination, when I was a child, not only were the summers long and sunny, but weekend entertainment was simpler and less complicated. The highlights of the weekend seemed to be Dr Who and Dixon of Dock Green, and the weekly editions of the Eagle and the Beano.
I may have been just a little too old (16) for the first appearance of Gnasher (1968), the pet dog of Dennis the Menace in the Beano. The G- tagged onto the beginning of the name of both Gnasher and his son Gnipper is pronounced silently, just like the silent P at the beginning of Psmith, the Rupert Psmith in so many PG Wodehouse novels.
Most of the Beano speech bubbles for both Gnasher and Gnipper consist of normal English words beginning with the letter ‘N’ with a silent ‘G’ added to the beginning, as in ‘Gnight, Gnight.’
I was a little too old for the introduction of Gnasher, but nonetheless my friends in my late teens and early 20s loved Gnasher and Gniper, joked about those silent ‘Gs’ and even recalled how as children we had joked about ‘weeping and G-nashing of teeth.’
There is very little to joke about in today’s Gospel reading (Matthew 13: 36-43). The idea of people being thrown into the furnace of fire is not a very appealing image for children, and so to joke about it is a childhood method of coping.
But throughout history, humanity has stooped to burn what we dislike and what we want to expunge, and we have done it constantly.
We have been burning books as Christians since Saint Athanasius ordered the burning of texts in Alexandria in the year 367 CE. In the Middle Ages, and sometimes even later, we burned heretics at the stake. When that stopped, we burned anything deemed to be an occasions of sin.
They were burned publicly as an accompanying theme for the outdoor sermons of San Bernardino da Siena in the early 15th century. These included mirrors, cosmetics, fine dresses, playing cards … even musical instruments, and, of course, books, song sheets, artworks, paintings and sculpture. In his sermons, the book-burning friar regularly called for Jews and gays to be either isolated from society or eliminated from the human community.
Later in Florence, the supporters of Savonarola collected and publicly burned thousands of objects, including cosmetics, art, and books in 1497.
On the other hand, Franz Kafka’s last request to his friend Max Brod in 1921 was to ‘burn all my diaries, letters, manuscripts … completely and unread'.
But, more recently, the Nazis staged regular book burnings, especially burning books by Jewish writers, including Thomas Mann, Karl Marx and Albert Einstein.
Extremists of all religious and political persuasions want to burn the symbols and totems of their opponents, whether it is Pastor Terry Jones burning the Quran and effigies of Bill Clinton and Barack Obama in Florida or jihadists burning the Twin Towers in New York.
The limits of our extremists seem to be defined by their inflammatory words.
But who is being burned in this morning’s Gospel reading?
Who is doing the burning?
And who will be weeping and gnashing their teeth?
Contrary to many shoddy reading of this Gospel reading, Christians are not asked to burn anyone or anything at all. And, if we have enemies, we are called not to burn them but to love them.
Christ has been speaks by the lake first to the crowd, telling them the parable of the wheat and the weeds (verse 24-30). The word that we have traditionally translated as tares or weeds (verses 25, 26, 27, 29, 30, 36, 38, 40) is the Greek word ζιζάνια (zizania), a type of wild rice grass, although Saint Matthew is probably referring to a type of darnel or noxious weed. It looks like wheat until the plants mature and the ears open, and the seeds are a strong soporific poison.
Christ then withdraws into a house, and has a private conversation with the Disciples (verses 36-43), in which he explains he is the sower (verse 37), the good seed is not the Word, but the Children of the Kingdom (verse 38), the weeds are the ‘Children of the Evil One’ (verse 38), and the field is the world (verse 38).
The harvest is not gathered by the disciples or the children of the kingdom, but by angels sent by the Son of Man (verses 39, 41).
It is an apocalyptic image, describing poetically and dramatically a future cataclysm, and not an image to describe what should be happening today.
It is imagery that draws on the apocalyptic images in the Book of Daniel, where the three young men who are faithful to God are tried in the fires of the furnace, yet come out alive, stronger and firmer in their faith (see Daniel 3: 1-10).
The slaves or δοῦλοι (douloi), the people who want to separate the darnel from the wheat (verse 27-28), are the disciples: Saint Paul introduces himself in his letters with phrases like Παῦλος δοῦλος Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ (Paul, a doulos or slave, or servant of Jesus Christ), (see Romans 1: 1, Philippians 1: 1, Titus 1: 1), and the same word is used by James (see James 1: 1), Peter (see II Peter 1: 1) and Jude (see Jude 1) to introduce themselves in their letters.
In the Book of Revelation, this word is used to describe the Disciples and the Church (see Revelation 1: 1; 22: 3).
In other words, the Apostolic writers see themselves as slaves in the field, working at Christ’s command in the world.
This is one of eight parables about the last judgment that are found only in Saint Matthew’s Gospel, and six of the seven New Testament uses of the phrase ‘weeping and gnashing of teeth’ (ὁ κλαυθμὸς καὶ ὁ βρυγμὸς τῶν ὀδόντων) occur in this Gospel (Matthew 8: 12; 13: 42; 13: 50; 22: 13; 24: 51; and 25: 30; see also Luke 13: 28).
When it comes to explaining the parable to the disciples in today’s reading (verses 36-43), the earlier references to the slaves in the first part (verses 27-28) are no longer there. It is not that the slaves have disappeared – Christ is speaking directly to those who would want to uproot the tares but who would find themselves uprooting the wheat too.
The weeding of the field is God’s job, not ours. The reapers, not the slaves, will gather in both the weeds and the wheat, the weeds first and then the wheat (verse 30).
Farmers are baling the hay and taking in the harvest in many places already. In a few weeks’ time, many farmers will be seen burning off the stubble on their fields to prepare the soil for autumn sowing and the planting of new crops. In this sense, the farmer understands burning as purification and preparation – it is not as harsh as city dwellers think.
It is not for us to decide who is in and who is out in Christ’s field, in the kingdom of God. That is Christ’s task alone.
Christ gently cautions the Disciples against rash decisions about who is in and who is out. Gently, he lets them see that the tares are not damaging the growth of the wheat, they just grow alongside it and amidst it.
But so often we decide to assume God’s role. We do it constantly in society, and we do it constantly in the Church, deciding who should be in and who should be out.
The harvest comes at the end of time, not now, and I should not hasten it even if the reapers seem to tarry.
The weeds we identify and want to uproot may turn out to be wheat, what we presume to be wheat because it looks like us may turn out to be weeds.
We assume the role of the reapers every time we decide we would be better off without someone in our society or in the Church because we disagree with them about issues like sexuality, women bishops and priests, and other issues that we mistake for core values.
The core values, as Christ himself explains, again and again, are loving God and loving others.
It is not without good reason that the Patristic writers warn that schism is worse than heresy (see Saint John Chrysostom, Patrologia Græca, vol. lxii, col. 87, On Ephesians, Homily 11, §5). We do not need to demythologise this morning’s reading. Christ leaves that to the future. This morning we are called to grow and not to worry about the tares. That growth must always emphasise love first.
When some members of the Church have sought to ‘out’ or ‘throw out’ people because of their sexuality, they have caused immense personal tragedy for individuals and their families and friends – weeping and gnashing of teeth indeed.
When I want a Church or society that looks like me, I eventually end up living on a desert island or as a member of a sect of one – and there I might just find out too how unhappy I am with myself!
But if I allow myself to grow in faith and trust and love with others, I may, I just may, to my surprise, find that they too are wheat rather than weeds, and they may discover the same about me.
‘The field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom’ (Matthew 13: 38) … fields of green off Comberford Lane, between Wigginton and Comberford in south Staffordshire (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
Today’s Prayers (Sunday 19 July 2026, Trinity VII):
In Pray with the World Church, the prayer diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), the theme this week, from 19 to 25 July 2026 (pp 20-21), is ‘Flood Relief in Mozambique’. This theme is introduced today with a programme update from the Revd Mauricio S Mugunhe, Executive Director Anglican Social Action, Igreja Anglicana de Moçambique e Angola (the Anglican Church of Mozambique and Angola):
Since late 2025, Mozambique has endured a severe cyclonic season that culminated in catastrophic flooding across the southern regions in January 2026. Following heavy rainfall, many rivers including the Umbeluzi, Maputo, and Incomati overflowed, while cities such as Matola, Xai-Xai, and Maxixe experienced severe flooding due to blocked drainage systems. The government declared a national red alert.
The scale of the disaster has been immense. According to national authorities, more than 720,000 people have been affected, over 120 lives lost, and tens of thousands of homes damaged or destroyed. In the Gaza Province in the south of Mozambique, where the new Anglican Diocese of Maciene is located, over 40% of its territory was submerged and over 150 km of roads destroyed. Communities remain displaced, with some cut off by damaged roads, and there is an increased risk of water-borne disease.
In the face of this suffering, the Church is called to respond. The Anglican Church in Mozambique has mobilised to provide food, clothing, blankets, mosquito nets, and other essentials, while also supporting the rebuilding of safer homes. With the support of USPG, we have been able to extend this ministry of compassion by offering immediate relief and contributing to longer-term recovery for displaced families. Even in the midst of loss, we trust in God’s presence among those who suffer, and in the calling of the Church to be a sign of hope and healing in the world.
The USPG prayer diary today (Sunday 19 July 2026, Trinity VII) invites us to pray as we read and meditate on Matthew 13: 24-30, 36-43.
‘But gather the wheat into my barn’ (Matthew 13: 30) … a barn near Comberford Hall, between Tamworth and Lichfield in Staffordshire (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
The Collect of the Day:
Lord of all power and might,
the author and giver of all good things:
graft in our hearts the love of your name,
increase in us true religion,
nourish us with all goodness,
and of your great mercy keep us in the same;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
The Post Communion Prayer:
Lord God, whose Son is the true vine and the source of life,
ever giving himself that the world may live:
may we so receive within ourselves
the power of his death and passion
that, in his saving cup,
we may share his glory and be made perfect in his love;
for he is alive and reigns, now and for ever.
Additional Collect
Generous God,
you give us gifts and make them grow:
though our faith is small as mustard seed,
make it grow to your glory
and the flourishing of your kingdom;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
‘At that time Jesus went through the cornfields on the sabbath’ (Matthew 12: 1) … walking through fields in Hopwas, between Lichfield and Tamworth (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
Patrick Comerford
We are in Ordinary Time in the Church Calendar and the week began with the Sixth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity VI, 12 July 2026).
Before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, to reflect, to pray and to read in these ways:
1, reading today’s Gospel reading;
2, a short reflection;
3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;
4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.
Walking through the fields near Comberford Hall, between Lichfield and Tamworth (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
Matthew 12: 1-8 (NRSVA):
1 At that time Jesus went through the cornfields on the sabbath; his disciples were hungry, and they began to pluck heads of grain and to eat. 2 When the Pharisees saw it, they said to him, ‘Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the sabbath.’ 3 He said to them, ‘Have you not read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? 4 He entered the house of God and ate the bread of the Presence, which it was not lawful for him or his companions to eat, but only for the priests. 5 Or have you not read in the law that on the sabbath the priests in the temple break the sabbath and yet are guiltless? 6 I tell you, something greater than the temple is here. 7 But if you had known what this means, “I desire mercy and not sacrifice”, you would not have condemned the guiltless. 8 For the Son of Man is lord of the sabbath.’
The Bread of the Presence in the Temple depicted in the Kupa Synagogue in Kraków (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Today’s Reflections:
Summer is a beautiful time of the year in the countryside, with ripe fields of green and yellow under blue skies. In the past few weeks, I have walked through ripe fields and meadows by Stony Stratford and Winslow in Buckinghamshire, near Lichfield, Tamworth and Rugeley in south Staffordshire, in Oxford, and I have passed through beautiful fields on bus journeys in Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Staffordshire and Norfolk.
As I read this morning’s Gospel reading at the Eucharist (Matthew 12: 1-8), I imagine Christ and his disciples walking through fields of green and gold such as these when they are confronted with the bureaucratic rules of the day and are accused of breaking the Sabbath.
Christ responds by stating that plucking grain on the Sabbath does not profane sacred writ. In doing so he reinterprets the Torah and clarifies the true nature of sacred endeavour.
Matthew 12:1-8 may be a retelling of Mark 2: 23-27. An analysis of this passage shows:
• verses 3-4 are an historical analogy found in I Samuel 21: 1-6, where David’s hunger supersedes the Law;
• verse 5 is a reconfiguration of Numbers 28: 9-10 and Exodus 35: 3;
• verse 7 is a reworking Hosea 6: 6: ‘For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt-offerings’ (NRSVA).
The reference to David’s story (I Samuel 21: 1-6) associates the temple with the alleviation of hunger and makes the point that hunger supersedes form and tradition.
Hosea 6: 6 repeats the principle that human need is pre-eminent over tradition.
Christ presents his own teachings not as a replacement for Torah but as a guide to its fulfilment. Ultimately, the Torah is to reflect God’s character of love, mercy, and generosity, and human need has priority over religious observance. Mercy was, and is, more in line with God’s intentions for the Sabbath rather than the strict obedience of the Sabbath demanded at the time.
This morning’s Gospel reading offers an interesting challenge to oppressive bureaucracy and rule-making, an important insight at a time when oppressive rules and regulations are being made day-by-day by capricious decision-makers in the White House.
This passage also offers insights into how Christ looks to a future beyond both Torah and Temple. It is a reading that looks forward to a new era of mercy, beyond compliance to the narrow interpretations of laws and regulations.
Fresh bread welcoming guests at the Captain’s House in Panormos, near Rethymnon in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Today’s Prayers (Friday 17 July 2026):
In Pray with the World Church, the prayer diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), the theme this week, from 12 to 18 July 2026 (pp 18-19), is ‘The Land of the Highlanders’. This theme was introduced on Sunday with a reflection by the Most Revd Mark Strange, Primus of the Scottish Episcopal Church.
The USPG prayer diary today (Friday 17 July 2026) invites us to pray
Lord God, strengthen your Church in the Highlands as it ministers across great distances. Sustain our leaders, clergy and congregations with perseverance and hope.
The Collect of the Day:
Merciful God,
you have prepared for those who love you
such good things as pass our understanding:
pour into our hearts such love toward you
that we, loving you in all things and above all things,
may obtain your promises,
which exceed all that we can desire;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
The Post Communion Prayer:
God of our pilgrimage,
you have led us to the living water:
refresh and sustain us
as we go forward on our journey,
in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Additional Collect
Creator God,
you made us all in your image:
may we discern you in all that we see,
and serve you in all that we do;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Tomkins Park and Arboretum in Winslow … the park includes five acres that wwre once part of the gardens of Winslow Hall and has at least 24 rare and unusual trees (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
Patrick Comerford
For reasons that I cannot even explain to myself rationally, I wanted to go back to Winslow in Buckinghamshire earlier this week, grasping the opportunities provided by the surprisingly early summer sunshine, to take photographs for my blog and my social media pages at Comerford Way, which has provided a catching rebranding and name for this blog.
But while I was there I also found myself paying attention once again to the Cappadocian Maple at the point where Comerford Way meets Station Road and McLernon Way.
This tree is the sixth largest tree of this species found in these islands. It is believed that this Cappadocian Maple in the open green area at Comerford Way is one of the earliest of these trees to be introduced into Britain, as early as 1838 – more than a decade before the railway came to Winslow and Station Road was developed.
In the wild, the Cappadocian Maple is found in ancient Cappadocia in Turkey, east along the Caucasus and the Himalayas, into south-west China. It is one of the few maples that regrows from around the base of the trunk.
It is a medium-sized deciduous tree growing to 20-30 metres tall with a broad, rounded crown. The five to seven-lobed, pointed, glossy green leaves turn a rich yellow in autumn and the leaf stalks exude a milky sap when broken. Clusters of small yellow-green flowers in early spring are followed by winged seeds.
Appropriately for the unusual weather we have been experiencing in England in recent weeks, this tree is tolerant of drought and it grows on a wide variety of soils. The thicket of narrow stems around the tree grow from the roots and they are a typical feature of this species.
Banner Homes, Sutton Homes and AVDC, who have developed some of the modern housing around Comerford Way and the other streets in this part of Winslow, co-operated in protecting the tree during building work, and cuttings from the tree have been propagated and grown in local schools and on nearby open spaces. The mature trees on the site are protected by a Preservation Order issued 29 years ago in 1997.
Comerford Way off Station Road is named after Denis Comerford (1908-1994), the last railway signalman to work at Winslow Railway Station almost 60 years ago. So I could say, with mixed pride and much humour, that the Cappadocian Maple at the entrance to Comerford Way is, in more ways than one, a true part of the family tree.
The Cappadocian Maple at Comerford Way in Winslow … one of the earliest introduced into Britain, as early as 1838 (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
I decided to ramble back into Winslow through streets and walkways that I had never known before and unexpectedly found myself at Tomkins Park and Arboretum, a hidden gem of five acres that was once the northern part of the gardens of nearby Winslow Hall, and with a fine selection of trees including another Cappadocian Maple and a rare Laurel Leaved Oak, the only one known in Buckinghamshire. The tree has been officially designated by the Tree Register for the United Kingdom as a Champion Tree for Buckinghamshire.
Winslow Town Council bought the park from Julian Tomkins and the Tomkins estate in 2013 with the support of a grant from the New Homes Bonus scheme administered by Aylesbury Vale District Council.
The park was originally part of the Winslow Hall estate, which had several owners over 250 or more years before it was bought by Sir Edward and Lady Tomkins in 1959. At the time, Winslow Hall was threatened with demolition, but the Tomkins family carefully and sympathetically restored the house and improved the garden behind it, planting specimen trees and shrubs.
Sir Edward Tomkins entered the Diplomatic Service shortly before the outbreak of World War II in September 1939, and joined the army in 1940. He was posted to the Middle East, and was a liaison officer with the Free French forces. He was taken prisoner at Bir Hacheim in the Libyan desert south of Tobruk, and later was held as a prisoner-of-war in northern Italy. He was also a man of resourceful courage, as was borne out by his escape from the prisoner-of-war camp in Italy and his 800 km trek to Bari to rejoin the allied forces.
He spent most of his post-war career in Europe, where he was completely at home, speaking faultless German and Italian. He met his wife, Gillian Benson, in Paris and they married in 1955.
Sir Edward’s final diplomatic post was as Ambassador to France in 1972-1975, when he took a leading role in the negotiations for Britain to join what was then the European Economic Community (EEC) in 1973. When he retired from the Diplomatic Service in 1975, the couple moved permanently to Winslow Hall, and she planted many of the trees seen in the park today. Lady Tomkins died in 2003, Sir Edward Tomkins died in 2007.
The rare Laurel Leaved Oak in Tomkins Park and Arboretum in Winslow is the only one known in Buckinghamshire (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
A wealth of trees from various parts of the world can be seen in the park, which owes much to the 17th and 18th century plant hunters who travelled the world to collect new and undiscovered species of trees and shrubs. The park and arboretum opened in November 2016, and remain open to the public free of charge.
The park has numbered signs for 24 of the more unusual trees in the collection:
Black Locust
Cedar of Lebanon
Western Red Cedar
Cider Gum
Dawn Redwood
London Plane
Laurel Leaved Oak
Japanese Larch
Red Horse Chestnut
Hungarian Oak
Raywood Ash
Katsura Tree
Norway Maple ‘Crimson King’
Swamp Cypress
Black Poplar
Northern Red Oak
Silver Maple
Blue Atlas Cedar
Sweet Chestnut
Brewer’s Weeping Spruce
Giant Redwood or Wellingtonia
Deodar Cedar
Cappadocian Maple
Japanese Pagoda Tree
The Brewer’s Weeping Spruce in Tomkins Park and Arboretum, Winslow (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
There are explanatory signs close to most of the important specimen trees, and I spent an hour or so moving from one tree to the next, reading about their origins and derivation. Although I spent precious parts of my early childhood on my grandmother’s farm in rural West Waterford, I grew up not knowing the names of trees, apart from willow trees and chestnuts, so this peaceful hour earlier this week was also an education in itself.
Winslow is about 16 km south of Stony Stratford and only 40 minutes away by bus through Buckingham. Tomkins Park probably remains unseen by and unknown to many people who pass through Winslow by bus or car, yet this ‘Secret Garden’ is only a two or three-minute easy stroll east of the High Street.
After an hour or so in the park, I had seen only half of these specimen trees. I continued back into Winslow and sat outside Crumbs Café, on the corner of High Street and Sheep Street, with a double espresso and watching the traffic and the world go by. While this summer lasts, I must get the bus back to Winslow and return to Tomkins Park to continue my education in the names of trees.
Winslow Hall on Sheep Street, Winslow … bought by Sir Edward and Lady Tomkins in 1959 (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
‘Feed my lambs … Tend my sheep … Feed my sheep’ (John 21: 15-17) … sheep in a field on farm at Comberford, east of Lichfield and north of Tamworth in Staffordshire (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
Patrick Comerford
Easter is a 50-day season, beginning on Easter Day (5 April 2026) and continuing through Ascension Day until the Day of Pentecost or Whit Sunday next Sunday (24 June 2026).
This week began with the Seventh Sunday of Easter (Easter VII, 17 May 2026). Before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, to reflect, to pray and to read in these ways:
1, reading today’s Gospel reading;
2, a short reflection;
3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;
4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.
‘Feed my lambs … Tend my sheep … Feed my sheep’ (John 21: 15-17) … sheep feeding on a small farm at Platanias in Rethymnon, Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
John 21: 15-19 (NRSVA):
15 When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my lambs.’ 16 A second time he said to him, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Tend my sheep.’ 17 He said to him the third time, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’ And he said to him, ‘Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my sheep. 18 Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go.’ 19 (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, ‘Follow me.’
The Risen Christ by the shore of Tiberias with the disciples and their catch of fish (John 21: 1-14) … a fresco in Saint Constantine and Saint Helen Church, Rethymnon (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Today’s Reflection:
The Gospel reading at the Eucharist today (John 21: 15-19) moves forward from our recent readings from Christ’s ‘Farewell Discourse’ at the Last Supper (John 14: 1 to 16: 33) and his prayer to the Father as the High Priestly Prayer (John 17: 1-26) to the post-Resurrection appearances.
This morning’s reading is set by the shore of Tiberias, where the Risen Christ is with the disciples as they catch water in the lake. We read the preceding verses in this chapter (1-14) on the Friday of Easter Week (10 April 2026); the following verses, which we read today (verses 15-19). provided the Gospel reading at the funeral Mass of Pope Francis last year (26 April 2025).
In today’s reading, the Risen Christ has three questions that he puts to Peter after breakfast by the shore. They appear a little confused or repetitive in most English translations, but the difference is clear in the original Greek.
In his first two questions to Peter, Christ uses the verb ἀγαπάω (agapáo).
CS Lewis talks in one of his books of The Four Loves:
• The first, στοργή (storgé), is the affection of familiarity;
• the second is φιλία (philia), the strong bond between close friends;
• the third, ἔρως (eros), Lewis identifies not with eroticism but with the word we use when we say we are in love with someone;
• the fourth love is ἀγάπη (agape), the love that takes no account of my own interests, that loves no matter what happens – it is the greatest of loves, it reflects the love of God.
Perhaps, the first time, Christ asks: ‘Simon son of John, do you love me more than you and your friends love one another but in the way God loves you?’ (John 21: 15).
But Peter is either evasive or misses the point, and answers with a different verb: φιλέω (phileo): ‘I’m fond of you, I like you like a brother, I agree with you. I’m OK, you’re OK’ (verse 15).
‘OK,’ says Christ, ‘feed the little ones the Good Shepherd welcomes into the fold’ (verse 15).
Then a second time, we can imagine him asking more simply: ‘Simon son of John, do you love me the way God loves you?’ (verse 16).
But Peter once again misses the point, and answers with the verb φιλέω (phileo): ‘I’m fond of you, I like you like a brother, I agree with you. I’m OK, you’re OK’ (verse 16).
‘OK,’ says Christ, ‘look after those in the flock the Good Shepherd tends’ (verse 16).
But then he asks a third question: ‘Simon, son of John, do you love me?’ (verse 17).
Many English-language translations say Peter was upset, felt hurt, when Christ asked him a third time. We might be tempted to think this is because he was asked the same question repetitively, three times, that his answer was not listened to the first or second time round.
But this third time, Christ asks a different question, using Peter’s verb φιλέω (phileo), as if to ask: ‘OK Peter, do you love me as your brother?’ (verse 17).
This time around, Peter replies using the same word Christ uses in his third question. But, more importantly, he confesses Jesus as Lord (verse 17), as Lord of everything. This confession of faith comes the third time round from the disciple who earlier denied Christ three times (see John 18). And Christ then asks him to feed the whole flock, all the sheep of the Good Shepherd, lambs, ewes, lost ones, found ones, white sheep, black sheep, fluffy sheep, bedraggled and dirt-covered sheep – the whole lot (21: 17).
The disciples do not recognise Jesus as he stands on the beach just after daybreak (verse 4). But despite their initial blindness, their initial failings, their initial denials, God continues to call them.
And so too with us. God calls us in all our unworthiness to feed his lambs, to tend his sheep, to feed his sheep, not just the little ones, not just the big ones.
Do you love him enough, as he loves you, to see this as enough fame to bask in?
Do you love him enough to feed his little ones when others want to ignore them, despise them, call them racist names, see their children as extra added burdens, want to send them back?
Do you love him enough to see this as the benchmark against which you and I, society, the Church, priests and people together, all we are involved in, mark how we relate to the myriad, the thousands and thousands, to all living life?
Christ is risen! The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia!
‘Feed my lambs … Tend my sheep … Feed my sheep’ (John 21: 15-17) … sheep and lambs near the River Great Ouse, between Calverton and Stony Stratford (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Today’s Prayers (Friday 22 May 2026):
The theme this week (17-23 May 2026) in ‘Pray With the World Church’, the Prayer Diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel) has been ‘Breaking Barriers: Gender Justice in Malawi’ (pp 56-57). This theme was introduced on Sunday with Reflections from Tamara Khismisi, Projects Coordinator, Anglican Church in Malawi.
The USPG prayer diary invites us to pray today (Friday 22 May 2026):
Father God, guide local leaders to create safe, inclusive schools where every girl can learn and thrive without fear or stigma.
The Collect:
O God the King of glory,
you have exalted your only Son Jesus Christ
with great triumph to your kingdom in heaven:
we beseech you, leave us not comfortless,
but send your Holy Spirit to strengthen us
and exalt us to the place where our Saviour Christ is gone before,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
The Post-Communion Prayer:
Eternal God, giver of love and power,
your Son Jesus Christ has sent us into all the world
to preach the gospel of his kingdom:
confirm us in this mission,
and help us to live the good news we proclaim;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Additional Collect:
Risen, ascended Lord,
as we rejoice at your triumph,
fill your Church on earth with power and compassion,
that all who are estranged by sin
may find forgiveness and know your peace,
to the glory of God the Father.
Saint Chad’s Church in Hopwas, Staffordshire, was designed by John Douglas (1830-1911) and built in 1879-1881 (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
Patrick Comerford
My 10-mile walk through the countryside in south Staffordshire last week, starting at the Moat House in Tamworth, brought me to Wigginton and Saint Leonard’s Church, along Comberford Lane and Wigginton Lane to Comberford and the banks of the River Tame, and then along Coton Lane to Hopwas.
Before returning to Tamworth, I stopped to see Hopwas and Hopwas Hayes Wood, climbed up the hill to Saint Chad’s Church, walked along the canal towpaths beside the Tame Otter and the Red Lion, and had a late lunch in the Tame Otter.
Saint Chad’s Church, tucked under the woods, was built in 1879-1881 to replace the earlier Saint John’s Chapel, built as a chapel-of-ease for Tamworth parish in 1836. Saint John’s churchyard can still be seen on the right-hand or west side of Hints Lane, walking up from the Tame Otter, just beyond Hopwas Methodist Church.
Saint Chad’s Church, Hopwas, was built on the initiative of the Revd William MacGregor (1848-1937), Vicar of Tamworth (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
The Revd William MacGregor (1848-1937) who was, without doubt, Tamworth’s ultimate ‘champion of the poor’ and the very embodiment of the Victorian ‘slum priest’. He was a curate in Hopwas, outside Tamworth, in 1872-1876, and then Vicar of Saint Matthias’, Liverpool, in 1877-1878. But he returned to Tamworth and the Diocese of Lichfield when he was appointed Vicar of Tamworth in 1878 at the age of 30.
When he was the Vicar of Tamworth (1878-1887), MacGregor gave Saint Editha’s Church a major facelift, had its bells recast, and built two churches, at Glascote and at Hopwas. Saint John’s was too small to cater for the growing population of Hopwas, but when he sought land to build a new church, he was opposed by Sir Robert Peel who argued that the population was not large enough. However, the Revd TK Levett of Packington Hall gave an acre of land as a site for a new church in 1878, and Herbert Dean later gave additional land to ensure the church had an open setting.
The foundation stone was laid in 1879 and Saint Chad’s was consecrated on 23 April 1881 by William Dalrymple Maclagan (1826-1910), Bishop of Lichfield (1878-1891) and later Archbishop of York (1891-1908).
The foundation stone was laid in 1879 and Saint Chad’s was consecrated in 1881 by Bishop William Dalrymple Maclagan of Lichfield (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
This brick and timber-framed ‘chocolate-box’, Arts and Crafts church on Hopwas Hill is in the shadow of Hopwas Hayes Wood. It has been praised by the architectural historian Sir Nikolaus Pevsner as ‘an ingenious and entertaining building’. It was designed by the architect John Douglas (1830-1911) of Chester and is now a Grade II listed building.
The architect John Douglas (1830-1911) of Chester also designed many of the interior fittings, including the choir stalls, pulpit, pews and sanctuary rail. As an architect, Douglas designed over 500 buildings in Cheshire, North Wales, and north-west England, particularly on the Eaton Hall estate.
Douglas designed 500 or more buildings, built at least 40 new churches or chapels, restored, altered or renovated many more churches, and designed fittings and furniture for the interiors of his churches. His other works include houses, farms, shops, banks, offices, hotels, a hospital, drinking fountains, clocks, schools, public baths, a library, a bridge, an obelisk, cheese factories, and public conveniences. Most of his work was in Cheshire and North Wales, although there are some in Lancashire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire and Scotland.
Inside Saint Chad’s Church, Hopwas, facing east towards the High Altar, choir and chancel (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
His architectural styles were eclectic. He worked during the period of the Gothic Revival, and much of his works incorporates elements of the English Gothic style. The firm where he trained was at the forefront of the Gothic Revival and both Edmund Sharpe and EG Paley were influenced by the Cambridge Camden Society and by AWN Pugin. Douglas’s first church, Saint John the Evangelist at Over, Winsford, was entirely English Gothic in style.
He was also influenced by European architectural styles and he included French, German and Dutch elements. However, he is probably best remembered for incorporating vernacular elements in his buildings, in particular half-timbering, influenced by the black-and-white revival in Chester. One of his characteristic features is his inclusion of dormer windows rising through the eaves and surmounted by hipped roofs. Other elements include tile-hanging, pargeting and the use of decorative brick in diapering and the design of tall chimney stacks, and his use of joinery and highly detailed wood carving.
Douglas attracted commissions from wealthy landowners and industrialists, especially the Grosvenor family of Eaton Hall. Most of his works have survived, particularly his churches. Chester has a number of his structures, the most admired of which are his half-timbered black-and-white buildings and the Eastgate Clock. The highest concentration of his work is found in the Eaton Hall estate and the surrounding villages of Eccleston, Aldford and Pulford.
Inside Saint Chad’s Church, Hopwas, facing west from the High Altar, choir and chancel (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
John Douglas was born in Sandiway, Cheshire, on 11 April 1830, the second of four children and the only son of John Douglas, a builder, joiner, surveyor and timber merchant from Northampton, and his wife Mary (née Swindley) from Aldford on the Eaton estate in Cheshire. John Douglas senior was a builder and joiner, and also described himself as an architect, surveyor and a timber merchant.
He gained experience in his father’s building yard and workshop before being articled in the 1840s to EG Paley of Sharpe and Paley, architects in Lancaster. He was Paley’s chief assistant until he established his own office at No 6 Abbey Square, Chester, in 1855-1860.
Douglas married Elizabeth Edmunds from Bangor-is-y-Coed, Flintshire, in 1860 in Saint Dunawd’s Church, the village church he later restored, and they were the parents of five children.
He designed four churches and chapels, eight parsonages and large houses for the Duke of Westminster, as well as 15 schools, around 50 farms, about 300 cottages, lodges and smithies, two factories, two inns and about 12 commercial buildings on the Eaton Hall estate, as well as a church and buildings on the Halkyn estate in Flintshire.
He also had commissions from the Earl of Sefton, the Earl of Ellesmere, the Marquess of Cholmondeley, Lord Kenyon, and the Gladstone family, including WE Gladstone, and from soap makers such as the Johnsons and WH Lever, the creator of Port Sunlight.
John Douglas designed many of the interior fittings, including the choir stalls, pulpit, pews and sanctuary rail (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
By the time Douglas moved to Chester, the black-and-white revival using half-timbering was well under way, and Douglas came to incorporate this style in his buildings in Chester and elsewhere. Part of his earliest work for the Grosvenor family, the entrance lodge to Grosvenor Park, used half-timbering in its upper storey, the first known use by Douglas of black-and-white.
One of Douglas's most important secular buildings is St Deiniol’s Library, at Hawarden, Flintshire, designed for WE Gladstone and his family. His work in the centre of Chester includes 38 Bridge Street (1897), a timber-framed shop that incorporates a section of Chester Rows and has heavily decorated carving. The architectural historian Edward Hubbard says that ‘in this work, the city’s half-timber revival reached its very apogee’.
Douglas died on 23 May 1911 at Walmoor Hill, the large house he built for himself at Dee Banks, and he was buried at Overleigh Old Cemetery, Chester. Pevsner describes him as ‘the best Cheshire architect’.
he East Window (1890) is probably by Heaton, Butler & Bayne (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
A notice in the church porch reads:
Enter this door
as if the floor within were gold
and every wall of jewels,
all of wealth untold,
as if a choir
in robes were signing here.
Nor shout – nor rush
but hush for
God is here.
Saint Chad’s Church, which Douglas designed in Hopwas, was built by J Deakins. Pevsner says that in its design it is ‘certainly an ingenious and entertaining building’. All the timber is oak. The exterior design resembles a chalet, well suited to the woodland background. The lower walls are reddish pink brick and at the chancel continue up to form a low saddle backed tower topped with an octagonal turret of oak shingles surmounted with a wrought iron cross and weather vane.
Saint Chad’s is built in red brick with timber framing in its upper parts, and has a roof of plain tiles. The church is crowned by an octagonal flèche. Its plan consists of a five-bay nave and a single-bay chancel between which is the flèche, with a vestry to the south and an annex with the organ to the north.
The octagonal stone font at the west end of Saint Chad’s Church, Hopwas (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
The interior consists mainly of buff coloured brick and dark oak. The chancel has a five-light east window with Perpendicular tracery and a square head. The East window by Heaton, Butler & Bayne (1890) depicts the Crucifixion in the centre with the Nativity and Baptism of Christ to the left, and the women at the empty tomb and the road to Emmaus to the right.
The fittings include an octagonal stone font, a carved oak pulpit with stone base and steps, open cusped arches, a wooden altar rail with traceried panels, an oak lectern and oak pews with poppyheads.
The original organ appears to have been pneumatically controlled with the manual on the south side and the pipes installed on the north side. Small pipes were laid in a duct under the floor enabling the keys being pressed to direct wind to the pipes. A small archway in the west side of the organ chamber may have been the access point for the ‘bellows boy’ to provide wind for the organ.
The present organ manual is sunk down 2 ft in front of the priest’s stall with the music coming from the pipes on the north wall behind the choir stalls. The organ was built by the organ builders Hill, Norman & Beard in 1940. It was installed by Herbert Dean in memory of his first wife Esther and was dedicated on 20 May 1940. The organ is being restored after an infestation of wood worm, with the entire organ stripped down, restored and rebuilt.
The organ was built by Hill, Norman & Beard in 1940 (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
The war memorial in the churchyard is at the east end of the church. The Celtic cross in Peterhead granite is 3.7 m (12 ft) high with interlace carving, carved wreaths and the names of people who died in World War I and World War II.
As for the Revd William MacGregor, the priest who initiated the building Saint of Chad’s, his initiative in starting the Co-op in Tamworth enraged many business owners in Tamworth. He was abused in the street, damned in letters sent to him, to the Tamworth Herald and to the bishop, and some parishioners stopped going to church in protest.
He resigned as Vicar of Tamworth in 1887 but continued to live in Tamworth, faithful to his beliefs and morals, held in esteem by ordinary working men and women. He sat on Warwickshire County Council (1888-1917) and was chair of the Tamworth Herald (1906-1928). He was 89 when he died on 26 February 1937 at Bolehall Manor; it seems fitting that he was buried at Saint Chad’s Church, Hopwas.
The war memorial in the churchyard at the east end of the church (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
A poster on the noticeboard says:
In happy moments, praise God.
In difficult moments, seek God.
In quiet moments, trust God.
In every moment, thank God.
• Saint Chad’s Church, Hopwas, is part of a benefice that includes Saint Editha’s Church, Tamworth, Saint Francis, Leyfields, and Saint Andrew’s, Kettlebrook, and the Revd Andrew Lythall is the vicar. The Eucharist is celebrated most Sundays at 10:30 am, but occasionally this is replaced with ‘Prayer & Praise’. On a fifth Sunday in the month, a joint service alternates between Saint Chad’s Church and Hopwas Methodist Church.
Sir Niklaus Pevsner describes Saint Chad’s Church, Hopwas, as ‘an ingenious and entertaining building’ (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2026)
