Candlemas at Springfield Birmingham
‘Inspiring.’
‘I hope that I will always know that Jesus is with me.’
‘Hope is important to all of us no matter what our age.’
This key theme of hope was the thread that ran through the Candlemas service in St Christopher’s Church Birmingham, led by Anna Chaplain church lead Debbie Ducille and Debbie Gurling, the local Anna Chaplain.
Entitled ‘A Celebration of Age and Anna Chaplaincy’, the service was attended by and involved a cross-section of people from the first to the fourth ages of life. Anna Chaplaincy network member Catriona Foster, older people’s pastor at St John’s Church, Harborne also joined in the celebrations.
At the beginning, a small group of children and adults were invited to take a candle to represent the light Jesus has given us. At the end of the service, the whole congregation was given a candle to represent them as ‘lights’ being sent out into the world.
Through visual aids, it was demonstrated that despite our outer shells ageing, getting older is not the end… as, like Anna, our spirits are very much alive and able to produce new life and bless others.
Psalm 71:14 – ‘As for me I shall always have hope.’
This was the verse central to the message, as it remained relevant and true to everyone who came, irrespective of age or circumstance.
