Issue 63 September 2026

Kids corner

Terrific Toasties

Written by two of our young servants, who are very thankful for the community's support

On Sunday 13 September, four boys from our Sunday School made tasty cheese toasties for the church community.

They spent the week preparing for service by heading to the shops and buying the ingredients to ensure their toastie station was a success. They itemised, calculated and prepared signs and sandwiches with zeal.

Two were the professional cooks, one was the speedy delivery boy and one neatly took the orders. The toastie team served in the spacious and bustling St John's hall and dedicated the service to raising money for the Church.

Overall, it was an exciting experience for the boys and the Church, and it was such a success that they sold out.

We will look to potentially create a rotating roster to encourage more children across the congregation to serve the church in a similar way.

Parish life

Be Still and Know That I Am God

Women's retreat wrap-up

Last weekend, the women of our church gathered for a beautiful time of fellowship, reflection and spiritual renewal around the theme, "Be still and know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10).

Our opening discussion invited us to look more deeply at what it truly means to be still. Psalm 46 speaks into a world of turmoil and conflict, and when God speaks in verse 10, His command is not simply to become quiet. The Hebrew word translated as "still" carries the sense of letting go, ceasing, releasing our frantic activity and surrendering our struggle for control.

This gave us a powerful picture: sometimes being still means putting down our weapons, the things we cling to, the problems we try desperately to fix, and the burdens we insist on carrying ourselves.

We reflected on the story of the Israelites standing trapped between the Red Sea and the approaching Egyptian army. With nowhere to turn, Moses told the people:

How often do we find ourselves in a similar place? Faced with situations we cannot control, we try to solve, repair, manage and anticipate every possible outcome. Yet Psalm 46 reminds us that stillness begins when we remember who God is.

To "know that I am God" is to recognise His character: He is all-knowing, ever-present, all-powerful, holy, sovereign, faithful and good. When we truly acknowledge who He is, we can begin to trust Him with the things we cannot control.

We were encouraged to consider what we might be holding onto with a tightly closed fist: perhaps fear, worry, disappointment, a difficult relationship, sorrow, frustration or a burden we have carried for far too long. God invites us to open our hands and place these things before Him.

A closed fist has no room to receive.

Living it out

The retreat also explored some practical ways we can learn to live this out.

• When anxious or difficult thoughts arise, we can consciously pause, take a breath and pray: "Lord, I release this to You. Take control and help me to trust You today."
• We can bring our burdens to the altar, remembering that it is a place of surrender and offering.
• Through the Jesus Prayer, we can continually redirect our hearts and minds back towards Christ.
• We can deliberately turn our thoughts from fear, worry and self-pity towards gratitude and thanksgiving, seeking God in every circumstance and asking Him to reveal Himself to us.
• Serving others can help us to look outward rather than becoming consumed by our own worries. Each morning, we can pray: "Lord, send me someone or something today through which I can give glory to You. I surrender this day to You."

The heart of the message was simple, yet deeply challenging:

As we left the retreat, may we continue to practise this kind of stillness: not simply sitting quietly, but releasing our need to control, trusting the God who knows us and loves us, and making space with open hands to receive whatever He wants to give.

"Be still, and know that I am God." (Psalm 46:10)

Saints of St John's

Fr Bishoy Kamel

Feast day: 12 Paremhat · 21 March

Who was he? Fr Bishoy Kamel was a twentieth-century Coptic priest of St George Church in Sporting, Alexandria. He was known for deeply personal pastoral care, teaching, mission, love for the Liturgy, and a life of service that continued even through serious illness.

What can our family learn from Fr Bishoy Kamel?

1. Love goes to where people are

Fr Bishoy did not think ministry ended when a church service finished. Accounts of his pastoral life remember him visiting people personally, including the needy, and using feast days such as Christmas, Epiphany and Easter as opportunities to share the joy of the feast with people who might otherwise be forgotten.

What it means for our family: It is easy for families to think love means having good feelings about people. Christian love moves. It notices who is alone, who is struggling and who might need us to cross the room, make the call, visit, cook, help or simply stay a little longer.

Family challenge: As a family, choose one person who may be lonely or carrying something difficult. Contact or visit them with no agenda except to show love.

2. The feast is bigger when we share it

Fr Bishoy treated the great feasts of the Church as something to be lived, not merely attended. His care for people after feast services showed that celebrating Christ should overflow into generosity and attention to others.

What it means for our family: Our family celebrations can easily become about our own food, gifts, photos and plans. The Church's feasts teach us that joy grows when it is shared. A family can make generosity part of the tradition, not an occasional extra.

Family challenge: Choose one upcoming feast or family celebration and add one act of giving to the plan: a meal for someone, a donation, a visit or an invitation to a person who may otherwise be alone.

3. We can offer God the difficult parts too

Fr Bishoy's final years included serious illness, yet his teaching repeatedly centred on the Cross as the place where suffering is united with the love of Christ. He did not pretend pain was easy, but he allowed even suffering to become part of his relationship with God.

What it means for our family: Families cannot remove every disappointment, illness, pressure or grief from one another. We can, however, learn not to waste suffering by turning only inward. We can ask, "How can I stay loving, faithful and close to God in this?"

Family challenge: When something frustrating or painful happens, pause before complaining and pray one sentence: "Jesus, help me carry this with You."

Read more about this blessed saint in the recently published book The Living Gospel: The Life of St Pishoy Kamel by Olivia Marie Soliman, available now on Amazon.

From the pulpit

A Life of Witness

Fr Luke · The Coptic New Year (Nayrouz)

Which Coptic New Year are we in? What year is it from the beginning of the Coptic calendar?

This year is 1743 of the Coptic New Year. When a new calendar is established, it is usually marked from a monumental or significant moment. For example, calendars throughout the world use BC and AD, marking history in relation to the birth of Christ, the crowning moment of humanity.

But for the Coptic Church, the calendar begins with the era of persecution. In the year 284 AD, the Church essentially said, "This is our crowning moment. We are going to start our calendar from today."

The crowning moment for the Coptic Church was the era of the Martyrs.

Those who persecuted the Church intended the persecution to be the death of the Church. Instead, it became the birth of the Church. The early Christian father Tertullian, who lived in the second century, famously described this reality by saying that "the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church."

When the Martyrs died, their blood became the seed from which the Church grew. It makes sense, then, that the Coptic calendar begins with the era of martyrdom, because it represents the seed of the Church in which we live today.

The Lord Christ taught this principle as well:

When the Martyrs died, they produced much grain, and that grain became the fruit of the Church we live in today.

If we understand what the word martyr actually means, this becomes even more meaningful. The Greek word martyr means "witness." It was a term commonly used in the courtroom, where a witness would stand and give testimony about a case.

When the Church speaks about the Martyrs, therefore, it is speaking about people who came forward and gave witness and testimony about Christ. They gave evidence that Christ was real, that they truly believed He was God, and that everything they were doing was for something greater.

People would see the Martyrs approaching death with such conviction and be inspired by their faith. They would say, "These people must be telling the truth," and many would convert to Christianity. This is why, with the death of one Martyr, thousands could be brought to Christ.

One of the more recent examples is the 21 Martyrs of Libya. If you look at the icon of the 21 Martyrs in front of our church, you will see that the Martyr on the bottom right is darker-skinned than the other 20. His name was Matthew, and he was a man from Ghana who was captured alongside the 20 Coptic Christians.

We do not know much about him. We do not know how much faith he had or whether he grew up in a Christian household. But we know what he said immediately before his death. When they asked him if he would deny Christianity, he looked at the Coptic Christians beside him and said, "Their God is my God."

He saw the weakness and suffering of the Christians beside him, but he also saw the conviction of their faith. He decided that whatever they believed must be real, and he chose to follow Christ.

When we talk about martyrdom, therefore, we are talking about people who give witness to others about Christ.

Just as every saint depicted in the icons around our church gives a different kind of witness, we are all called to witness Christ in different ways. They are not all the same. Some gave their witness by dying for Christ, while others gave their witness through the way they lived.

Abraham gave his witness by living a life of faith. He went all in with faith. Whatever God asked him to do, he followed. God told him to leave his house and his land and go to a land that He would show him, and Abraham followed. God told him to sacrifice his son Isaac, and he trusted God. This was Abraham's way of witnessing.

Daniel the Prophet gave his witness by living a life of integrity. He determined that he would not defile himself in the palace, but would follow God with integrity. His life itself became his witness.

St Paul gave his witness through a life of service. He travelled from place to place preaching Christ to every nation, and through his service, people were inspired to follow God.

St Anthony gave his witness by leaving the world, becoming a monk and living in the desert. This was his testimony and his witness to Christianity.

This shows us that there is not just one way to witness Christ. People can witness Christ in many different ways.

Red and white martyrdom

The Church presents us with two types of martyrdom. The martyrdom we are most familiar with is often called red martyrdom, the martyrdom of dying for Christ. But the Church also offers us another form, known as white martyrdom.

White martyrdom is a whole life given as an ongoing witness to Christ.

What I want us to think about today is our role as parents and spouses, and as Christians living in the world today. We may never be in a position where we are required to die for Christ. But if we are not going to experience red martyrdom, then let us at least take up the path of white martyrdom: living a life that is a true witness to who Christ is for everyone around us.

Think about your own life. Is my life providing a witness to who Christ really is? Do people interact with me and think, "I want to be a Christian because of this person"?

Whether we realise it or not, our lives are giving evidence to those around us.

It might be our spouse who is watching. We might be giving witness primarily to our spouse, and they might love Christ or struggle with Christ because of the witness we give.

We might be giving witness to our children. For many of our children, we are the people they look to most closely for an example of faith. Their relationship with God can be shaped by the type of witness we give them.

So is the witness my life gives drawing people to Christ, like the Martyrs did? Or does it allow them to form a negative view of Christ because of the way I live?

As parents, we need to be like the Martyrs and become the seed of faith for our children. The life we live can be the seed that helps them grow in the love of God. We give them a witness that Christ is the most important thing we can teach them.

Ways we can witness to our children

There are many different ways we can provide this witness to our children.

For some, it might mean following the commandments of God. In every decision I make, I can show my children that my decisions are based on the Gospel and the Bible. The Bible is the absolute truth in my life, and it is the foundation for everything I do.

I might provide a witness by living a life of integrity. I can show my children that I am not someone who cheats, steals or lies. I can live a life of genuine integrity so that they look at me and say, "Because my parents live a life of integrity, I want to be a Christian too."

I might witness to my children by showing them that I want to follow the commandments of God, even the difficult ones. God calls us to honour the Sabbath, so every Sunday, no matter what is happening in the world around me, I will be at church. I will honour the Sabbath by spending my Sunday in church and serving others.

I can be a witness to my children and those around me by living a life of service. I can rush to serve anyone in need. I can rush to do hidden acts of service that no one else knows about, without receiving glory or recognition, but simply because of my love for God.

A genuine life of service provides a powerful witness to our children.

I can also provide a witness by showing them my reliance on God in every situation. When I experience hardship or difficulty, I can model for my children what it means to run to God and rely on Him. I can remain at peace, knowing that when I place my problems before God, He will take care of me.

I can be a witness through my life of prayer. My children can see their mother and father living a prayerful life. They can see us standing together as a family, praying and remaining in constant communion with God.

St John Chrysostom speaks about the role of parents, comparing a parent to an artist who shapes a statue. He invites us as parents to raise our children and shape them to become athletes of Christ.

Yes, we want to teach our children many things. We want them to be educated. We want to teach them about sports and about the world. But all of these things come secondary to teaching them first about Christ.

A real flame

Sometimes we think witnessing is about what we say with our mouths. But witnessing is not simply something we talk about. It is something we live. It is something we become.

Witnessing is something that comes from within us, not simply something we speak about.

Think about the candles we use on the altar. They are not real candles; they are battery-operated candles. If there is a light in one candle and I try to shine it onto another candle, it will not light the other candle because it is not a real flame.

Sometimes we can be a little like that.

We can spend hours telling our children about God, but if we are not a real candle, if we are not living a genuine life of witness and do not have a close relationship with God ourselves, then that faith will not resonate with them.

For us to be a true witness, it has to be something we become within ourselves, not simply something we talk to our children about.

What would your children say?

I want to finish with a video someone shared with me last week on Father's Day. It was an interview with a 14-year-old girl in America, whose mother was asking her questions about her dad.

I really loved the answers she gave, and as I share them, I want you to think about what your own children might say about you.

The first question the mother asked was, "What is Dad's favourite thing to do? Where do you see Dad most happy?"

The girl answered that her dad was happiest when he was spending time with his family, when he was in church and when he was spending time with God.

She saw her dad at his happiest when he was with his family and with God. Those were the things that made him happiest.

The mother then asked, "What is Dad really good at? What are Dad's skills?"

She answered, "Dad is really good at showing up, being there for us when we need him, and teaching us about God."

Again, she connected what her dad was good at with God.

Finally, the mother asked, "What is the most important thing Dad has ever taught you?"

Her answer was simply, "To love God."

I wish that all of us could provide this kind of witness for our children. That one day, when they look at our lives, we could receive similar answers from them.

That they would see in us a life full of faith, full of a deep and genuine relationship with God. A life where we put God first in everything we do.

We want our children to know that, for us, God comes first. And not simply because we say it, but because we actually live it every day of our lives.

If we leave our children with one important message, let that message be about God.

And if we plant just one seed, let us choose for it to be the seed of faith, the seed of God.

Because in the end, that is the only thing that matters. Glory be to God.

Parish life

Nayrouz at St Mary's Cathedral

The inaugural Coptic Nayrouz celebration was held at St Mary's Cathedral, Bexley, with a candlelit procession through the surrounding streets.