Parish of Llandudno North Wales, Rector's letter

April 2015

As I write this letter I have just been watching the TV coverage of the reception of Richard Ill's mortal remains into Leicester Cathedral in preparation for his re-interment there. Ever since Richard's remains were discovered under the car park in Leicester, and through DNA testing were subsequently confirmed to be indeed those of the King, I have followed events in Leicester with great interest.

Richard III is of course a very controversial figure and this is not the place to enter into a discussion about his character and whether he was responsible for murdering the Princes in the Tower etc. Since Tudor times he has been demonised and our view of him has been inevitably shaped by Shakespeare's play which cast him as an out and out villain. Surely the events surrounding the discovery of his bones and their re-interment should at least encourage us look at his character and his reign afresh and come to our own conclusions.

Richard was received into Leicester Cathedral this evening not just as a King but as a man who deserves a respectful burial and who like each one of us, whatever our background, is in need of the mercy of God. It is especially fitting that his interment has taken place just before Holy Week and Easter when our thoughts are centred on the death and resurrection of the Lord.

Indeed Richard's new tomb in Leicester Cathedral has been specially designed not just to honour the King but also to speak of the Christian hope of resurrection. The cathedral's website describes the thinking behind the design of the tomb. The starting point of the design is the light breaking into the tomb of Jesus on Easter Day - a symbol of the new life we receive in Christ. There is a deep cross-shaped cut in the top of the new tomb which will both flood it with light and also remind us that this new life was won through the death of Christ. The tomb is tilted slightly as if rising to meet the risen Jesus.

So it seems that this tomb will speak powerfully of Christ's death and resurrection and I am very much looking forward to a pilgrimage to Leicester to see it later this year. But meanwhile I don't need to wait until then to reflect on these important mysteries. I can do it here in Llandudno and I can do it this month. Each year Holy Week and Easter offer us the opportunity to be drawn deeply into the events surrounding Our Lord's death and resurrection and so to appreciate something of the amazing love of God revealed in these events.

So I invite everyone to do their best to participate in as many of the services during this special time as possible. Each of them in turn introduces us to a particular aspect of the passion, death and resurrection of the Lord. Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Day each take us along another stage in the journey as we take up our cross with Christ and share in his joy at the resurrection. With King Richard III may we know our need of God's grace and finally enter into His glory!

Fr. John

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