大象传媒

Please note:

This script cannot exactly reflect the transmission, as it was prepared before the service was broadcast. It may include editorial notes prepared by the producer, and minor spelling and other errors that were corrected before the radio broadcast.

It may contain gaps to be filled in at the time so that prayers may reflect the needs of the world, and changes may also be made at the last minute for timing reasons, or to reflect current events.

Radio 4 Opening Announcement:听 大象传媒 Radio 4.听 It鈥檚 ten past eight and time to go live to Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon for Sunday Worship.听 The service is called 鈥楩rom Grief to Glory鈥� and it鈥檚 led by the Vicar of Holy Trinity, the Revd Patrick Taylor. It begins with music by William Walton from his film score to Shakespeare鈥檚 鈥楬enry V鈥� and words from 鈥楰ing John鈥� spoken by David Suchet.

Orchestra: Death of Falstaff - Passacaglia (Walton)

Reader (over music):
Grief fills the room up of my absent child,
Lies in his bed, walks up and down with me,
Puts on his pretty looks, repeats his words,
Remembers me of all his gracious parts,
Stuffs out his vacant garments with his form;
Then, have I reason to be fond of grief?
Fare you well:听 had you such a loss as I,
I could give better comfort than you do.
I will not keep this form upon my head,
When there is such disorder in my wit.
听
听
Patrick Taylor:
Good morning and welcome to Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon for this service commemorating the 400th anniversary of the death of William Shakespeare.

This beautiful Parish Church sits on the banks of the river Avon, just down stream from the Royal Shakespeare Theatre.

Only a few paces away from where I鈥檓 standing is Shakespeare鈥檚 Grave, where he was buried, according to our Parish Register, on 25th April 1616.

Our service this morning takes us on a journey from grief through to celebration, from death to new life.

When Shakespeare died, all who knew and loved him felt the loss and bereavement acutely.听 His funeral, like our service today, fell during Eastertide - the season in which Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ
who rose from the dead.

So it鈥檚 fitting that as we remember Shakespeare鈥檚 death, we also give joyful thanks to God for the wonderful legacy of our great playwright 鈥檚 work which lives on to this day throughout the world.

In a moment we鈥檒l hear a sentence from the Order for the Burial of the Dead in Queen Elizabeth I鈥檚 1558 Prayer Book, set to music by Thomas Morley, who was a contemporary of Shakespeare,

The service would have begun, as funerals still do to this day, with the priest meeting the body at the church door and proclaiming from St. John鈥檚 Gospel:

鈥淚 am the resurrection and the life (saith the Lord.) He that believeth in me, yea, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And whosoever liveth, and believeth in me, shall not die forever.鈥�

Choir: Funeral Sentence (Morley)

Thou knowest, Lord, the secrets of our hearts: shut not thy merciful ears unto our prayers, but spare us, Lord most holy, O God most mighty, O holy and most merciful Saviour, thou most worthy Judge eternal.听 Suffer us not at our last hour for any pains of death to fall from thee.

Patrick Taylor:
The instructions, or rubrics, in the service book that would have been used at Shakespeare鈥檚 funeral, state that the words we鈥檝e just heard should be said or sung 鈥榳hen they come to the grave, while the corpse is made ready to be laid into the earth.鈥�

We may be encouraged to reflect on our own experience of losing someone we love as we hear again those words spoken at the beginning of today鈥檚 broadcast by the grieving Lady Constance for her son, Prince Arthur, in The Life and Death of King John. It鈥檚 likely that Shakespeare wrote these lines shortly after the death of his own son, Hamnet, who died in August 1596, aged 11, and is buried in the churchyard here.听 This setting is by Benedict Wilson.

Choir: Grief fills the room (Benedict Wilson)

Patrick Taylor:
Let us pray:
Almighty God, as we gather to recall the life and death of William Shakespeare, hear our prayers and strengthen our faith that all who trust in you may know their lives to be changed through your love.听 We ask this in the name of him who overcome death and opened to us the gate of everlasting life, Jesus Christ our Lord.听 All. Amen

The Bible reading appointed in the 1558 Order for the Burial of the Dead is rather long: 38 verses from St. Paul鈥檚 First Letter to the Corinthians. We hear a selection of those verses today from the 15th chapter.听 They communicate Paul鈥檚 absolute confidence in the resurrection, something fundamental to the Christian faith.
听
Reader: 1 Corinthians 15 (from the 1558 Prayer Book)听听
Christ is risen from the dead, and become the first fruits of them that slept.听 For by a man came death, and by a man came the resurrection of the dead .听 For as by Adam all die, even so by Christ shall all be made alive, but every man in his own order.听 The first is Christ, then they that are Christ's at his coming.听 Then cometh the end when he hath delivered up the kingdom to God the Father, when he hath put down all rule, and all authority and power.听 Then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory:听 Death, where is thy sting?听 Hell, where is thy victory?听 The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law.听 But thanks be unto God, which hath given us victory, through our Lord Jesus Christ.听 Therefore, my dear brethren, be steadfast and immovable, always rich in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know, how your labour is not in vain in the Lord.听

This is the Word of the Lord.听听听 All: Thanks be to God.
听
Patrick Taylor:
In a moment we鈥檒l be welcoming our preacher this morning, the Revd Dr Paul Edmondson, Head of Research at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.听 But first听 鈥� an Easter hymn by a contemporary of Shakespeare, Edmund Spenser: 鈥楳ost glorious Lord of life, that on this day didst make Thy triumph over death and sin.鈥櫶�

Hymn: Most glorious Lord of life (Farley Castle)

Paul Edmondson:听
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
听
It feels as though we are as close as possible to genius. A few steps away from me, is the grave of William Shakespeare. Over the centuries, millions of people have visited Stratford-upon-Avon, to stand where Shakespeare stood, and to reflect at his graveside.
听
It is understood that Shakespeare was born on Sunday 23 April 1564. He died on that same date, aged 52, a fateful day he happens to share with the Patron Saint of England: 23rd April is St George鈥檚 Day. It might be tempting to think of Shakespeare as a quintessentially English writer, but his mind, encouraged by the outlook of his age, was broader than that. Shakespeare looked to European stories as well as to English ones for his inspiration; he was as equally at home with Latin literature as he was with the chronicles of English history. And well Shakespeare knew that St George was no Englishman, but a truly international saint, a patron and guiding star for at least nineteen countries, including:听 Georgia, Egypt, Rumania, Ethiopia, India, Iraq, Palestine, the Ukraine, and Russia.
听
Shakespeare participated in a shared European culture and has become truly international. His great liberal-mindedness and life-giving sense of freedom, continue to speak to people in cultures very different to Shakespeare鈥檚 own. In the words of his own Cassius in Julius Caesar:
听
听鈥楬ow many ages hence
Shall this our lofty scene be acted over,
In states unborn and accents yet unknown!鈥� (Act 3.1)
听
Shakespeare鈥檚 underlying project was to entertain, break moulds, and to do this by feeding the mind as well as the heart. And he is always on the side of life: 鈥楽imply the thing I am shall make me live鈥�, says the broken Parolles in All鈥檚 Well That Ends Well.
If we go looking for a spirituality in Shakespeare, we鈥檒l probably find it in his determination to love people just as they are, in the vivid lives he bodies forth on stage.
听
This is surely the gift of Shakespeare鈥檚 big heart: he shows us how to approach life, and art, with love. Shakespeare鈥檚 overall achievement is one of extreme inclusion and passionate particularity. That鈥檚 no less than the cream of all our hearts as human beings, which Shakespeare鈥檚 poet-priest contemporary, George Herbert, expresses in our next hymn, 鈥楰ing of Glory, King of Peace.鈥�

Hymn: King of glory, King of peace (Gwalchmai)

Paul Edmondson:
Picture the scene. Shakespeare and his family are returning home to their house, New Place, the largest dwelling in the borough of Stratford-upon-Avon. He was only ever an intermittent lodger in London and, New Place his family home from 1597, offered him space in which to think and write.
听
Imagine that it鈥檚 Easter Day, 1610. The family has returned from Holy Communion, and Shakespeare is thinking about his next play, The Winter鈥檚 Tale.
听
Those words from St Paul, about Jesus鈥檚 resurrection, are ringing in his ears: 鈥榯hen shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.鈥� Shakespeare knows only too well the pain that the death of loved ones brings, and, like all of us, also hears an inner voice of doubt: 鈥楢y, but to die, and to go we know not where鈥�, says the condemned Claudio in Measure for Measure.
听
But, he has dramatised resurrection stories throughout his career: Hero in Much Ado About Nothing, the twins Viola and Sebastian in Twelfth Night, or What You Will, and Claudio himself in Measure for Measure. All of them are supposed dead, but we see them come back to life; they return to live among their loved ones.
听
In The Winter鈥檚 Tale, Shakespeare鈥檚 resurrection scenario is even more moving than his previous ones. Queen Hermione died sixteen years ago. Her statue is presented to her guilt-ridden widower, King Leontes. We then hear the line from Paulina (whose name reminds us of St Paul): 鈥榠t is required you do awake your faith.鈥� And the statue comes to life. Hermione, her husband, and their long-lost daughter are all reunited, and the forgiveness of past wrongs is now possible. In Shakespeare鈥檚 source story for The Winter鈥檚 Tale there is no reunion or resurrection, and the King Leontes figure kills himself. Instead Shakespeare shows us how lives can change because of love, loyalty, and nothing short of an apparent miracle.
听
We鈥檝e moved from grief to glory in today鈥檚 worship. Whatever your religious belief might be 鈥� or even if you feel you have none 鈥� we are all of us united by the will to go on living and loving. It is certainly my belief, that the Christian story of the resurrection expresses the deepest hope for our common humanity. Whatever our faith, or lack thereof, life and love will always 鈥� eventually 鈥� have the victory.
听
Four hundred years after Shakespeare鈥檚 death, his inclusivity and generosity of spirit, like St George himself, brings together many people, and from all over the world.
听
It was in this spirit that I wrote a sonnet of my own, which I鈥檒l read, and then we鈥檒l hear it set to music by Philip Stopford. It has been specially commissioned by Holy Trinity Church for their annual Shakespeare Service.
听
William Shakespeare 1616-2016
听
Imagine that you see him looking out
above you from a window at New Place,
there鈥檚 music in his mind, the people shout
and cheer to see their hearts beat in his face.
His book, brimful with lovers, clowns and kings,
spills over, dances down his window sill 鈥�
a silken thread of ink still spinning sings
and weaves our tongues together with his quill.
Tonight his words will nest in rhyming trees,
quick syllables trip moonbeams on the land,
his pages, stirred with rhythms of the seas,
break tempests of the mind upon the sand:
our muse of fire, water, earth and air
in Stratford-upon-Avon 鈥� everywhere.
听
Choir: Anthem (Philip Stopford)听
Words as above

Intercessor:听听Let us pray
We praise you, O God, the author and giver of all good things, that in your great love you give us so much that enriches our hearts and minds.

Intercessor:听 听For artists in every age, who by their gifts have given delight and recreation to their fellow men and women, and especially today for William Shakespeare,听 a loyal townsman of Stratford-upon-Avon, actor, poet and dramatist, who worshipped here and is buried in this Church, we give you thanks
All 听听听and praise your holy name.

Intercessor:听 听For all literature, music, theatre and dance, which delight and console, disturb and challenge, we give you thanks,
All 听听听and praise your holy name.

Intercessor:听 听We pray that we may be enlightened and inspired by the works of our poet as we recall this anniversary of his death.听 In this town we pray especially for the Royal Shakespeare Company, The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, the Shakespeare Institute, all who have taken part in the Shakespeare birthday celebrations, and everyone who keeps alive our memory of the life and works of William Shakespeare.
Lord, in your mercy,
All 听听听hear our prayer.

Intercessor:听 听Bless our Queen as she celebrates her 90th birthday and all to whom authority has been given.听 Bring your divine peace and justice to bear on broken nations.
Lord, in your mercy,
All 听听听hear our prayer.

Intercessor:听 听We commend to God those who suffer, those who have died, and all who mourn.
Lord, in your mercy,
All 听听听hear our prayer.

Intercessor:听 听And finally we pray for ourselves, that through our dryness, fresh springs of creativity, forgiveness and love might flow.
Lord, in your mercy,
All 听听听hear our prayer.

听

Patrick Taylor:
We're now going to hear a funeral song from Shakespeare鈥檚听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听 Cymbeline.听 The play is set in a pagan world, but William Shakespeare has other plans. He reflects on the closeness of mortality, our fragility and our need to be resigned to it.听 The young man in the play who seems to be dead will eventually be seen resurrected. The Christian faith teaches us that we have nothing to 'fear' in death; our hope is in Jesus Christ.

Soloist: Fear no more the heat of the sun...' (Finzi)听

Patrick Taylor:
Confident in Christ's victory over death, and claiming his promises, we entrust ourselves and all those whom we love to God鈥檚 care and protection, as we pray using the words our Saviour taught us:

All听听听Our Father, who art in heaven,
听听听hallowed be thy name;
听听听thy kingdom come;
听听听thy will be done;
听听听on earth as it is in heaven.
听听听Give us this day our daily bread.
听听听And forgive us our trespasses,
听听听as we forgive those who trespass against us.
听听听And lead us not into temptation;
听听听but deliver us from evil.
听听听For thine is the kingdom,
听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听 听听the power, and the glory,
听听听for ever and ever.听
听听听听听听听听听听听听 听听Amen.

听

Our final hymn, sung often both at funerals and in this Easter season proclaims the endless victory over death won by God鈥檚 eternal love.

Hymn: Thine be the glory (Tune: Maccabaeus)

Patrick Taylor:
The Lord be with you
All听听 And also with you

God the Father,
by whose love Christ was raised from the dead,
strengthen you to walk with him in his risen life.
And the blessing of God almighty, 鈥�
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be among you, and remain with you always.
All听听 Amen.

Orchestral Voluntary: St Paul's Suite (Holst)