‘April is the cruellest month…’ with these words T.S. Eliot opened his modernist masterpiece, The Waste Land, in 1921.
It was the aftermath of World War I and the Spanish flu pandemic. Millions had died. His poem brims with the pain, the trauma, the disillusionment and the death of that time.
Now it is April 2020. Eliot could never have imagined that nearly 100 years on, April might well become our ‘cruellest month’, when trauma and death stalk our land as the coronavirus pandemic is forecast to peak.
These are times unparalleled in any of our life experiences. In the words of the Psalmist, the ‘foundations are being shaken’.
And yet – as Christians we can lift our eyes from the turmoil and look up. Psalm 46 is a favourite here at Parish Pump, and we’d like to share some verses from it with you now:
‘God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.
‘Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea…‘Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall; He lifts His voice, the earth melts.
‘The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.
‘He says, “Be still, and know that I am God…’
Psalm 46
We are praying for you, our lovely church magazine and website editors, at this time. With churches shut and services cancelled, your role in running the church magazine or website is critical just now. Whether you produce a magazine, or whether you run a website, you will need to keep your church family in regular touch with each other and your wider community.
For this reason, in addition to our regular monthly issue, we have launched a WEEKLY FRIDAY UPDATE, with the latest stories on how the church is responding to the coronavirus outbreak. These are for you to put on your church website. Look under Resources/ Editorial / Coronavirus update or click here.
Remember, you are not alone! We will be running a wide range of inspiring and encouraging articles during this time, to help you keep your readers informed, entertained, and above all, we hope, encouraged to look upwards…
Let’s all take refuge in Him, as we seek His grace to cope with the many challenges which daily life is throwing our way at present.
Stay safe, stay well!
With our warm wishes and prayers
Anne Coomes and the Parish Pump Team