An extract from the Dean's sermon during the service for admission of children to Holy Communion ..
Finally, I want us to think about the in-between time for Hannah and Samuel.
Samuel’s birth will have been a unique and special moment for Hannah and her husband. It is for each us when we hold a newborn in our arms, and wonder what the future holds for this precious little person.
Sooner than any of us, Hannah lets Samuel go. He moves into the life to which he has been called by God and to which his mother releases him.
I am at that point right now with my youngest child, who has just finished her university studies and landed her dream job. It is a poignant moment. A moment of deep joy and hope for the future.
But what about the in-between time, the time between the birth of the child and the departure of the young adult?
During that in-between time we nurture, we love, we shape, we support, we educate and we empower our children so that they can become all that God offers them and all that we wish for them.
What we are doing here this morning is one step through that ‘in-between’ time.
As they claim their place at the Table of Jesus, we celebrate the journey they are making and we rededicate ourselves as parents, family, school and church to be there for them as they become the people God is calling them to be.
The full text of this sermon, along with a link to a video of the sermon being delivered, is available online.