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

Opening anno from R4.
大象传媒 Radio 4.听听 And now it鈥檚 time for Sunday Worship which this week comes live from Llandaff Cathedral in Cardiff.听听 On this Second Sunday of Advent, the Dean, the Very Reverend Gerwyn Capon reflects on journeying towards Christ.听 The service is led by Canon Edwin Counsell.

1.听WELCOME & INTRO听EDWIN
Good morning.听 Bore da a croeso.听 Welcome to Cardiff, Wales鈥� bustling capital city.Built in the 12th century on the site of a pre-Norman church on the banks of the River Taff, this Cathedral houses a wonderful creation by Sir Jacob Epstein.听 The striking 听figure of Christ in Majesty is raised above the nave on a concrete 听arch, drawing both regular parishioners and passing visitors, in awe, 听into the mystery of God鈥檚 presence in this ancient place.
Here, as in many churches, today, we light the second candle on the traditional Advent wreath.听 Often referred to as the Bethlehem Candle, it鈥檚 light is a signpost to the birth of a Saviour and God鈥檚 听coming amongst us.听 (Light match)

Preparations, at this often-frantic time of year, are familiar to us all.听 Remembering the cards and presents is enough, let alone wondering whether we鈥檒l need a vegan nut roast and a turkey to 听keep everyone happy on Christmas Day!听
Meantime, our choristers are preparing for a hectic schedule in the coming weeks, as they help this Cathedral, once again, to tell a familiar story through music and praise.

This season connects us to the Bethlehem journey of Mary and Joseph, with the chance to gain new insights and unexpected encounters.听 The clarion call of Advent is for us to be watching, ready and expectant when the light of Christ is kindled, 听illuminating our way ahead.

And It鈥檚 a call to which we can respond together, in Bernadette Farrell鈥檚 hymn 鈥淐hrist be our Light鈥�

2.听MUSIC 2听CHOIR/CONG/ORGAN听
听Longing for light, we wait in darkness.

3.听笔搁础驰贰搁听贰顿奥滨狈/颁翱狈骋
听Your Word, Lord, is a lantern to our feet and a light upon our path: the peace and light of Jesus Christ be with you.
听All: And also with you.
听
Blessed are you, sovereign Lord, creator of light and darkness. As Advent light falls on our path to show us the way to Bethlehem, you renew your promise to reveal among us the light of your presence.听 听So, may your word be a lantern to our feet and a light upon our 听path, that we may behold your glory coming among us.听 Strengthen 听us in our stumbling weakness and free our tongues to sing your 听praise, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
All: Blessed be God for ever.
听
William McKie鈥檚 anthem, 鈥淲e wait for thy loving kindness, O God鈥� roots us to this season of Advent as, in expectation of God鈥檚 righteousness, so we proclaim the Lord鈥檚 praises.

4.听SOLOIST/CHOIR / ORGAN听听
We wait for thy loving kindness, O God William McKie

5.听LINK INTO READING 1 EDWIN
The same confident proclamation that God鈥檚 righteousness will be fulfilled is at the heart of our first reading.听听听 Written perhaps 8 centuries before the birth of Jesus, the opening of Chapter 11 of the Book of the Prophet Isaiah foretells the coming of a Saviour, not only to fulfil the promises of old, but to transform the world by his very presence.

6.听READING 1
Isaiah 11: 1-10 (NRSV)
1 A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse,
听听听 and a branch shall grow out of his roots.
2 The spirit of the LORD shall rest on him,
听听听 the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
听听听 the spirit of counsel and might,
听听听 the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.
3 His delight shall be in the fear of the LORD.
He shall not judge by what his eyes see,
听听听 or decide by what his ears hear;
4 but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
听听听 and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,
听听听 and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.
5 Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist,
听听听 and faithfulness the belt around his loins.
6 The wolf shall live with the lamb,
听听听 the leopard shall lie down with the kid,
the calf and the lion and the fatling together,
听听听 and a little child shall lead them.
7 The cow and the bear shall graze,
听听听 their young shall lie down together;
听听听 and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
8 The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp,
听听听 and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder鈥檚 den.
9 They will not hurt or destroy
听听听 on all my holy mountain;
for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD
听听听 as the waters cover the sea.
10 On that day the root of Jesse shall stand as a signal to the peoples; the nations shall inquire of him, and his dwelling shall be glorious.

7.听 LINK: EDWIN
The Welsh song, 鈥淭ua Bethlem dref鈥�, meaning 鈥淥n to Bethlehem town鈥� is sung now by the choir and it invites us to embark on a journey that leads to the cradle in Bethlehem.听听 But there鈥檚 urgency too, and a warning, that we shouldn鈥檛 miss out on a glimpse of the Christ child:听 because the reward - the gift at the end of the road - is the utter peace of being drawn into the near presence of God - where we, too, might kneel and pray.听

8.听SOLOIST/CHOIR / ORGAN:听"Tua Bethlem dref鈥澨� .David Evans arr. Geoffrey Webber听听

9.听LINK: EDWIN
So many aspects of faith are rooted in ancient creeds and well-known customs; few more so that the opening verses of chapter 2 of Luke鈥檚 Gospel which tell the familiar story of the preparations for Christ鈥檚 birth in Bethlehem.听听 Yet Advent bids us hear those words anew, and find in them our own journey into the mystery of God鈥檚 love.听
After the reading, we鈥檒l hear from The Dean of Llandaff, the Very Reverend Gerwyn Capon.

10.听Reading 2听听
In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered.听 This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria.听听 All went to their own towns to be registered.听听 Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David.听听 He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child.听听听 While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child.听听 And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

11听SERMON Part 1 THE DEAN听听
听Life is often described as a journey; we 鈥渢ravel鈥� through it.听 We can travel with a companion who means the world to us.听 Some of us may decide to go that distance essentially on our own for so many reasons; either way life鈥檚 journey will take us into uncertain 听territory, and most of us at some point or another hit sections of the path that take us to places not of our own choosing.

For those who have a belief in God, they will speak of the journey of faith 鈥� that inward direction of travel that seeks to discover the depth of the mystery of God鈥檚 being and to have a relationship with him.听 Faith doesn鈥檛 provide all the answers and 听it isn鈥檛 necessarily a thing that helps us cope with the difficult 听terrain of life.听 Having a relationship with God doesn鈥檛 insulate us 听from the harsh realities of life. So why bother you may ask?
听Perhaps at its deepest level faith gives us a perspective that 听enables us to acknowledge that we鈥檙e not alone, that behind the veil of this world, what we know to be certain, lies something, a 听person, a God who has revealed himself to be the author of life 听and the source of love itself.

听Throughout its history, the church has spoken of the Advent journey as one that is made from unknowing to knowing, from darkness to light.听 We begin the story of Christ鈥檚 nativity with the warning of the prophets centuries before his birth. They urge the 听community to turn back from their dark selfish motives. These 听warnings developed into a prophetic promise that God would 听send a Saviour who would for all time, embody a pattern of life 听that reflected God鈥檚 intention for his world. And we end the 听journey peering as it were over the edge of the manger to 听see 听the wonder and mystery of a child, who鈥檚 destiny becomes ours 听through the gift of faith.

In this Cathedral last Sunday, our Advent Procession made its way through the interior of the Nave which had been plunged into darkness 鈥� looking up to the roof it appeared as if we鈥檇 been locked into an upturned ship or an underground cavern, the 听pillars and arches resembling a dark and frightening forest, 听shadows everywhere 鈥� in those moments of eerie silence it was a 听menacing place.

Gradually with candles and music the light dispelled the darkness, the shadows retreated, and we greeted with joy the proclamation of the good news of the gospel.

Today as we light the second candle of the Advent wreath, we consider the journey of Joseph and Mary, one that was ordinary enough but its ending in the inn turned into the great re beginning for the human family.

It鈥檚 a drama that speaks to many people. The power of that liturgy reminding us that despite the beauty of our world and the love and friendships that keep us going day by day, it鈥檚 a world that has been darkened through human wickedness, and the 听corruption of power; and for Christians, the knowledge that 听God 听acted in time to enter into the tragedy of that story has us 听turning away in despair.

12.听CHOIR 听听
Thou shalt know Him when He comes

13听SERMON Part 2 THE DEAN
听Mark Sirett鈥檚 setting of 鈥淭hou shalt know him when he comes鈥�.听 The title seems to suggest that faith will have its answer when we see Jesus face to face at last. But if the modesty of his first 听appearance is anything to go by, it begs 听the question 鈥淗ow and 听where will we see him? Will we be 听looking in the right place?鈥� 听He is after all, in our midst 听already!听 Perhaps its only pride and 听prejudice that prevents us 听from truly seeing him. In fact he is 听most visible today in those 听who have accepted him into 听their lives and that transformative 听power leads such 听people to 听reflect Christ鈥檚 values, his pattern 听of living.听

听About a year ago I bought an old Victorian painting.听 It wasn鈥檛 expensive, I liked the frame and I had some blank wall space to fill.听听 The painting was almost entirely blackened with years of grime and I hadn鈥檛 realised that under all that dirt was a 听picture of the landscape looking into St John鈥檚 Vale in Cumbria, a 听place that is very special to me.听听 I had it cleaned and to my utter 听amazement detail emerged, and colour and light.听听听
听
In just such a way, we are invited to clean the canvasses on which our world and our lives are drawn.听 The pictures painted by the writers of our bible readings this morning offer us the chance to reveal, to rediscover some of the colour and light听 听hidden from our eyes.听听听听听
听
St Luke describes in the opening chapters of the Gospel, the dramatic intervention by God in the life of Mary who, bewildered and yet intensely moved by the power of the spiritual experience she鈥檇 received, nevertheless 听committed herself to a journey she could never have truly 听understood at that stage. The Romans compelled a 听registration of the population in Palestine, so Mary and 听Joseph were forced to make a journey to Bethlehem, Joseph鈥檚 听ancestral home.

Beneath the machinations of the earthly superpower of the day, 听there also played the subtle eternal power of the kingdom of heaven, bringing what St Paul would later claim as 鈥渢he glorious liberty of the children of God鈥�.听

The Prophet Isaiah, in some of the most vivid and wonderful verses in the Old Testament, foretold of the birth of the Messiah. But this would not be a leader in political terms, [even though his Davidic lineage would be traced back to the kings of 听Israel鈥檚 past.]听听 No, his appearance was promised as one that 听would shatter the world鈥檚 tired disorder and establish a 听reordered creation 鈥� who could do this other than God 听himself!

Isaiah鈥檚 message addressed a political and religious system that had lost its way, the creation would be offered salvation and renewal, and he paints the wonderful picture of the wolf living with the lamb, the leopard with the kid 鈥� in other words, the 听natural predatory violence we see in creation (what we see as 听the natural order where there are those who eat and 听those who 听get eaten) all this will pass away 鈥� salvation through Christ 听addresses the whole of creation, not just 听the human family 鈥� 听this is what true peace will look like.

In advent, we鈥檙e invited not just to witness the gradual cleaning of the picture of God鈥檚 creation, the stripping away of the darkness and stain that humanity has left on it, we鈥檙e also invited to do this ourselves during this penitential journey, 听dispelling the darkness without and within 鈥� it is the season for 听Christian Hope.
听
Christ is alive and we can find him; in Advent we鈥檙e set on that journey of faith to discover Jesus again, to know him in an entirely new and living way. It is an invitation to be transformed.

I was tremendously moved some years ago, upon discovering the story of a priest in North Wales, one Owen Reynolds who was Rector of Aberconwy.听听 Before the building of Telford鈥檚 suspension bridge over the river Conwy, ferry men 听would convey travellers in small rowing boats across the fast 听flowing and treacherous waters.听听 In the burial registers 听Reynolds had circled six names, all of whom he鈥檇 buried on St 听Stephen鈥檚 Day, with a further inscription written in Welsh in the 听margin 鈥渂oddwyd鈥� 鈥� drowned!听

The men, had been swept away during a storm on Christmas Eve. They had lost their way for want of a bridge 鈥揳nd that is precisely what the promise of Advent gives us today 鈥� for his love of us Christ spans the distance between God and his world, 听between his heart and your heart and mine.

We will always have our own journeys to make. Some will bring us to a good place, others not so good. And the journey we will all finally make is beyond doubt 鈥� what Advent seeks to reassure us of, is that all our wanderings, be they the right paths or the 听wrong ways, be they joyful, be they painful, ultimately lead us 听back to the God who loves us and waits for us at the journey鈥檚 听end.

14.听CONG/CHOIR/ORGAN
Hills of the north, rejoice听听听听 Tune: Little Cornard

15听INTERCESSIONS 听EDWIN/READERS/CONG听听听

Edwin:
That hymn invites the whole earth to join in one voice to rejoice in God鈥檚 promises, so may we have the courage and confidence to offer our prayers to our heavenly Father.听 Let us pray.

Reader 1:
God of all love and compassion, as we wait in expectation for the coming of a Saviour, fill our hearts and our lives with the Advent hope of all that is to come, that your Spirit may be upon each one of us, bringing with it a promise of freedom and salvation, liberation and redemption, in Jesus Christ鈥檚 name.

CHOIR SUNG RESPONSE

Reader 2:听

As Christ our Saviour was given to the world, so may you come quietly to each of us, in our times of need, on the difficult stages of life鈥檚 journey, with the same generous love; may we know that you are near to all who are weighed down by illness, bereavement, poverty and the many burdens of life.听 May they know comfort and consolation of your near presence.

Today we remember ..... space for topical prayer if needed.

CHOIR SUNG RESPONSE

Reader 3:听

Lord, walk with us and light our way in the times of uncertainty, whether in our own lives, in the lives of our nations,听 or in the life of the world; reveal your abiding presence that renews all things.听听 We entrust to you all in positions of leadership and power over others, and all our elected representatives, that they may exercise wisdom and compassion in all they do.

CHOIR SUNG RESPONSE

Reader 4
Lord, in all things, give us a prophet鈥檚 vision of the world and of one another, so that we may have new insights into your presence and the possibilities that are presented to us, each day of this Advent journey.

CHOIR SUNG RESPONSE

16.听LORD鈥橲 PRAYER听听听听 EDWIN/CONG:听听

With hearts and voices that are expectant that God鈥檚 Kingdom will come, let鈥檚 pray in the words that Jesus taught to his disciples鈥�

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

17 LINK听EDWIN听

Our final hymn gives us a glimpse of the glory that is yet to be revealed and, as our Advent journey continues, so the mystery of God鈥檚 love unfolds before our eyes.听 To the tune Nun Danket, we sing, 鈥淐hrist is the world鈥檚 true light鈥�

18. CONG/CHOIR/ORGAN听听听
Christ is the world's true light听听 Tune: Nun Danket

19. THE BLESSING THE DEAN听听

BLESSING 1
We believe that the Son of God once came to us;
we look for him to come again.
May his coming bring us the light of his holiness.
Amen.

May God make us steadfast in faith,
joyful in hope, and untiring in love
all the days of our lives.
Amen.

We rejoice that our Redeemer
came to live with us.
When he comes again in glory,
may he reward us with endless life.
Amen.

BLESSING 2
And the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, be with you all, ever more.听 Amen.

20 ORGAN VOLUNTARY David G. Thomas听听

CLOSING ANNO from Radio 4
David Geoffrey Thomas playing Chorale-Improvisation on Nun danket alle Gott听by Sigfrid Karg-Elert ending this week鈥檚 live Sunday Worship from Llandaff Cathedral in Cardiff. The Director of Music was Stephen Moore.听 听The service was led by Canon Edwin Counsell and the Sermon was given by the 听Dean, the Very Reverend Gerwyn Capon.听听听 The producer was Karen Walker.

Sunday Worship next week, the Third Sunday of Advent, comes from Christ Church Chorleywood, in the Greater London suburbs.