Easter Message of New Life, says the Bishop of St Asaph

In his message, Bishop Gregory says: “… the promise of God at Easter is there will be new life. There will be new beginnings, and with the help of God, we can build into a fullness of new life, finding new ways to serve our communities, new ways to enter into the joys of life, new ways to celebrate the new life into which God invites us.”

You can read Bishop Gregory’s Easter Message in full in Welsh or English

Bishop Gregory has also filmed his message and its available to watch at.  https://youtu.be/f2ApEf4QnO8

The Bishop of St Asaph is pastorally responsible for more than 200 churches and congregations and 51 church schools in north east and mid Wales. He is one of the six bishops of the Church in Wales, which is an independent Province of the world-wide Anglican Communion.

Easter Message from the Bishop of St Asaph, Gregory Cameron

Near the entrance of Esgobty [Bishop’s house] there is the most magnificent Magnolia tree.  Around this time of year it is particularly exciting as the green buds begin to blossom and the white flowers begin to peep through. In a few weeks’ time the whole tree will be covered in white blossom, beautiful and startling.  Then the flowers will drop away and we’ll be waiting for next year.

That reliable sign of new life every Spring is for me a sign of the reliability of the love of God in creation. More than this, every Spring we remember the resurrection of Jesus Christ:  he who was crucified yet who, in Christian faith, rose again, conquering the powers of sadness and of death.

That theme of new life is particularly important for us this year.  This time last year we were just entering into lockdown. We had no idea that a year later we would still be faced with the challenges of Coronavirus.

In this last year a lot will have changed. People have died.  People have struggled. The whole of society has had to work very hard, cooperating in order to bring us through the crisis.

But the promise of God at Easter is there will be new life. There will be new beginnings, and with the help of God, we can build into a fullness of new life, finding new ways to serve our communities, new ways to enter into the joys of life, new ways to celebrate the new life into which God invites us.

Neges y Pasg oddi wrth Esgob Llanelwy, Gregory Cameron

Ger y fynedfa i’r Esgobty mae yna goeden Magnolia fawr, ysblennydd.  Mae tua’r adeg yma o’r flwyddyn yn hynod gyffrous wrth i’r blagur gwyrdd ddechrau agor a’r blodau gwyn ddechrau dangos eu pennau.  Mewn ychydig wythnosau, bydd y goeden gyfa’n flodau gwyn drosti, yn hardd ac yn rhyfeddol; yna bydd y blodau’n disgyn a byddwn yn gorfod disgwyl am flwyddyn arall.

Mae’r arwydd dibynadwy hwn o fywyd newydd bob Gwanwyn yn arwydd o ba mor ddibynadwy yw cariad Duw yn y greadigaeth.  A, phob gwanwyn, byddwn yn cofio am atgyfodiad Iesu Grist a gafodd ei groeshoelio ac eto, yn ffydd y Cristion, a gododd eto gan goncro grymoedd tristwch a marwolaeth.

Mae thema bywyd newydd yn arbennig o bwysig i ni eleni.  Yr adeg yma y llynedd, roedden ni’n cychwyn ar y cyfnod clo.  Doedd gan neb ddim syniad y bydden ni, flwyddyn yn ddiweddarach, yn dal i orfod wynebu heriau’r Coronafeirws. Ac yn y flwyddyn ddiwethaf hon, bydd llawer wedi newid.  Mae pobl wedi marw. Mae pobl yn cael trafferth.  Bu’n rhaid i gymdeithas gyfan weithio’n galed iawn i gydweithio er mwyn i ni oroesi’r argyfwng. Ond addewid Duw adeg y Pasg yw y bydd yna fywyd newydd.  Bydd yna ddechreuad newydd a, chyda help Duw, gallwn ni adeiladu i lawnder bywyd newydd, canfod ffyrdd newydd o wasanaethu ein cymunedau, ffyrdd newydd o ganfod llawenydd bywyd, ffyrdd newydd o ddathlu’r bywyd newydd y mae Duw’n ein gwahodd ni iddo.