My yoke is easy; my burden is light

There is no suggestion from Jesus that there won't be a yoke and there won't be a burden. We set our sights on God in Christ, who calls us to walk in his ways and to carry his light into the darker parts of the world and even the darker places of our own lives. When we align our lives with the life of Jesus of Nazareth it is as if we take on the mantel of his calling, we are 'clothed with Christ', we live for him and with him and in him. When we share in the broken bread of communion we become the body of Christ.

We are tied to Christ and we bear the expectation of living for him. There is a yoke and there is a burden.

Too often too many people seek to make things better for others by denying the other's painful experience or downplaying the feelings those experiences leave behind. In other words, we are too good at colluding with a kind of kindness that isn't very kind.

True kindness is honest and sits with the pain and hurt that others feel rather than seeking to dismiss it or move on from it. It's totally understandable why we do this: we don't like the pain that we feel coming from the other person, we want to make the situation better, we want a life that is more comfortable than the one we experience in those moments of discomfort. We are, with the best will in the world, acting as if there is no yoke and there are no burdens.

Whilst it is totally understandable, it is not what Christ calls us towards. Rather, we would do well to accept the yoke and the burden. Only then, when we allow the yoke to sit on our shoulders, when we lean into the burdens we see, know and feel, then it will begin to emerge that, as Jesus says, "My yoke is easy and my burden is light".

The Christian faith is not about taking away the pains, troubles and difficulties of life; nor is it about making our own way through life on our own for our own. The Christian faith calls us into community, names us as The Body. When we can inhabit that truth we begin to understand more the paradox of faith: the more we lean into the yoke, the more comfortable it sits; the more weight of the world we carry, the lighter the burden becomes.

For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

Dan Tyndall

7 July 2023

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Sermon on Sunday,10th August 2025

By matthew.buckmaster • August 10, 2025

Preached by the Revd Laura Verrall-Kelly, Associate Vicar

Interregnum Information

By Laura.Verrall-Kelly • August 7, 2025

Keeping You Updated During the Interregnum As I prepare to go on maternity leave at the end of August, I want to share some important updates regarding our Sunday Services and communication during the Interregnum period. We’ve taken time to consider what is sustainable and meaningful in this season of transition, and while some of the changes have been difficult, they are intended to ensure we can continue to worship together well. Service Changes 8am BCP Eucharist We’ve made the difficult decision to pause this service during the vacancy, following a PCC vote (with 3 votes against). This is due to the limited availability of clergy to cover two Eucharist services on a Sunday. We’re grateful that this decision has allowed us to secure strong cover for the other services. If you’re looking for an early service, the Cathedral offers Morning Prayer at 7.40am and BCP Eucharist at 8am. This change to the 8am will happen from the beginning of October. Mattins & Evensong These will continue with support from a growing team of Lay Leaders. If you're interested in helping lead, please speak to Simon Goodman. Please note: bespoke online orders of service will no longer be produced weekly. Instead, we will use a standard booklet and hymn book in church. Online viewers will receive a standard order of service plus a document with Bible readings and hymns. 10.30am Sung Eucharist Some small changes are being made to simplify things for visiting clergy: Notices will be read by a Church Warden, Duty Warden or Church Representative Communion distribution will return to queue formation A Gradual Hymn will replace the Responsorial Psalm - there is simply not the resource to produce a weekly or termly Psalm hand out in church. We’ll use a standard “Eucharist during the Vacancy” order of service (in booklet form), with hymn books provided in church. As with other services, online resources will mirror this setup. These changes to the 10.30am will happen from the 17th August. Christingle Service Due to the scale of this service and the planning it requires, we’ve made the difficult decision to pause it this year. Without full-time clergy to oversee preparations and lead the service, we don’t believe we can deliver it safely or well. We know this will be disappointing, but this service will be back. Ongoing Communication Thanks to Chris Duncan and Sam Love, we will continue to send out a weekly email during the Interregnum. I’m very grateful to both of them for stepping up to support in this way. We know some of these decisions may not affect everyone, while others may feel them more deeply. We don’t expect universal agreement, and that’s okay — your questions and thoughts are welcome and valued. All we ask is that feedback is offered with kindness and respect for those who have worked hard to make these plans in a short space of time. Thank you for being part of this community and for your ongoing support as we navigate this together.