What is in Kelvin's Head?

  • Florence Li Tim-Oi – Celebrating 70 years since her ordination

    I’m just off to celebrate a Eucharist because it is a Feast Day – the Conversion of St Paul. The standard, if rather weak, in-joke is that one is going to pray for the Conversion of St Paul rather than simply remember the Conversion of St Paul – not least because Paul had things to say that have not been terribly helpful to a modern world where women and men are equal.

    As I celebrate the feast today I’m going to be remembering with thanksgiving this woman: The Rev Florence Li Tim-Oi and celebrating 70 years since her ordination.

    Florence Li Tim-Oi

    She was the first woman to be made a priest in the Anglican Communion and today is 70 years since it happened. It happened in wartime when there were no men around and it happened secretly and without the permission of synods and decision-making bodies simply, I suspect because they couldn’t meet at the time.

    The most extraordinary thing about Mother Florence is that once the war was over, she gave up her license to act as a priest (but not her orders) until such time as her church accepted the principle that women and men could equally be regarded as priests. In her part of the world, that meant waiting until 1971.

    I can’t imagine what it was like to wait so many years to be treated as an equal.

    No, wait a minute.

    I can.

    , ,

8 responses to “Passion Sunday Sermon”

  1. Allan Ronald Avatar
    Allan Ronald

    Thank you for this excellent sermon.

    Reply
  2. Pam Avatar
    Pam

    Thanks for this sermon Kelvin. I now know more about spikenard than I did (which was nothing much!). And I also like the Gandhi reference.

    Reply
  3. Diarmuid o Avatar
    Diarmuid o

    Very thoughtful.. Love the Quote on the smell of justice.. Love etc. thank you!

    Reply
  4. RevRuth Avatar
    RevRuth

    According to my sources spikenard is a sharp smell, somewhere between mint and ginseng. Now you see, I had it more myrrh like, more heady. But I can see that mint and ginseng would be better at covering up rotting body smells.

    Reply
  5. kennedy fraser Avatar
    kennedy fraser

    Our associate priest (Bryan Owen) managed to get a spikenard candle for his sermon on Sunday

    Reply
    1. kelvin Avatar
      kelvin

      AND WHAT DID IT SMELL OF, FOR HEAVEN’S SAKE?

      Reply
      1. Ruth Avatar
        Ruth

        As it’s the same family as Valerian, it may smell strongly of smelly feet – and (like Valerian) send cats into a state of frenzy…..

        Reply
  6. Rosemary Hannah Avatar
    Rosemary Hannah

    http://www.amazon.co.uk/SPIKENARD-ESSENTIAL-Nardostachys-jatamansi-10ml/dp/B002RJL4C0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1363812646&sr=8-1

    Reply

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