Compton, 2026
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U2 - The Tears Of Things.
Sunday, 22 February 2026
In God, 'You are Enough'
Here's the sermon that I shared at St Andrew's Wickford this morning and will be sharing at St Peter's Nevendon this afternoon:
Sermon: (10.00am, St Andrew’s, 22/02/26)
Standing proud in the heart of Manchester’s university district on the exterior of St Peter’s House a 22 x 13 foot billboard towered above the streets below giving a refreshingly affirming message to passing students and commuters. It said, ‘You are enough’. It would be easy to assume this is an affirmation of the kind of individualism that says ‘I’m alright, Jack’ as ‘I’m looking after No.1.’ However, as St Peter’s House is the base for the Christian chaplaincy team for the Manchester Universities and the Royal Northern College of Music, that’s unlikely to be the intended message.
The artist who created the piece, Micah Purnell, notes that, ‘Capitalist ideology aims to impart the notion that we are worthy of love and belonging - once we have bought into the product or service. Consumerism wraps things up in neat little packages and sells them as idealised gifts of perfection. Advertising props up this notion with the assumption that we are inadequate - stealing our love of ourselves, and selling it back at a price.’
He goes on to say that BrenΓ© Brown, a research Professor at Houston University, has found through extensive quantitative research that the one thing that keeps us from love and belonging is the fear that we are not worthy of love and belonging. She found that those who fully experience joy and live wholeheartedly have four characteristics in common: the courage to accept their imperfection; compassion towards themselves first; the ability to let go of who they should be in order to be who they really are, and to embrace vulnerability and unknowing. His installation, therefore, says, ‘You’re not perfect, you’re never going to be, and that’s the good news.’ You are enough, as you are.
The temptations faced by Jesus in the wilderness (Matthew 4.1-11) were all temptations to see his situation and his trust in God as being insufficient, or ‘not enough.’ His temptations began with the reality of his situation, the fact that he was hungry because of fasting for 40 days. He had not had enough food and the temptation was to say that there was not enough and use his power to create food from nowhere. Jesus responded by saying that the words of God were enough for him. The second temptation was in regard to his mission and his then obscurity. Jesus was on his own in the wilderness and was offered celebrity and fame because his obscurity was clearly not enough to achieve his mission. Jesus’ response was essentially saying that the path he was following was enough. The final temptation was linked but, instead of being focused on fame, was focused on power. Jesus’ mission was to save all humanity and he was offered power over all humanity as a shortcut to success and as recognition of the lack of power he possessed as an insignificant carpenter in a backwater of the mighty Roman Empire. Jesus responded by saying that God’s way was enough for him.
Jesus was tempted on the basis that who he was and what he had were not enough to achieve the mission he had been given. He was tempted to think of himself, his situation and God, in terms of scarcity and deficit. But deficit is not our modus operandi as Christians. We don’t have to look far for a mission statement for the church. Jesus said, ‘I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly’ (John 10.10). Living abundant life; that’s what the Father intends, the Son embodies, the Spirit facilitates.
Sam Wells, the Vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields says that, as Christians, we are called to live in such a way that gratefully receives the abundance God is giving us, evidences the transformation from scarcity to abundance to which God is calling us, dwells with God in that abundant life, and shares that abundance far and wide.
Jesus is our model of abundant life; his life, death and resurrection chart the transformation from the scarcity of sin and death to the abundance of healing and resurrection; he longs to bring all humankind into reconciled and flourishing relationship with God, one another, ourselves and all creation.
In the middle of the wilderness where he literally had nothing, Jesus received God’s abundance, the abundant life that would sustain him throughout his journey to the cross, and beyond. Also, his time in the wilderness came immediately after his baptism where God had spoken to him saying ‘You are my own dear Son. With you I am well pleased’. God had essentially said to him then, ‘You are Enough’.
As such, we can defend ourselves against temptation as Jesus did. “As God’s children,” Tom Wright says, “we are entitled to use the same defence” as Jesus himself. “Store scripture in your heart,” he writes, “and know how to use it.” When we do, we are able to see through the temptation to think of all that we have as inadequate and, instead, to view our lives and all that we have as a gift from God knowing that, in him, we are enough.
Lent is commonly thought of as being about those things we give up but Lent is ultimately about our opening up. Opening up our lives to receive more of the abundance and the gifts that God is giving to us. In Lent, we give up some of our usual practices in order to have more time for God and to be with God. More time to open up to him and deepen our relationship with him. That was what Jesus was doing in the wilderness and, like him, we too can discover that, as we receive all that God is giving to us, God is enough, God's abundance is enough, our churches and communities are enough, and we are enough. Amen.
Sermon: (10.00am, St Andrew’s, 22/02/26)
Standing proud in the heart of Manchester’s university district on the exterior of St Peter’s House a 22 x 13 foot billboard towered above the streets below giving a refreshingly affirming message to passing students and commuters. It said, ‘You are enough’. It would be easy to assume this is an affirmation of the kind of individualism that says ‘I’m alright, Jack’ as ‘I’m looking after No.1.’ However, as St Peter’s House is the base for the Christian chaplaincy team for the Manchester Universities and the Royal Northern College of Music, that’s unlikely to be the intended message.
The artist who created the piece, Micah Purnell, notes that, ‘Capitalist ideology aims to impart the notion that we are worthy of love and belonging - once we have bought into the product or service. Consumerism wraps things up in neat little packages and sells them as idealised gifts of perfection. Advertising props up this notion with the assumption that we are inadequate - stealing our love of ourselves, and selling it back at a price.’
He goes on to say that BrenΓ© Brown, a research Professor at Houston University, has found through extensive quantitative research that the one thing that keeps us from love and belonging is the fear that we are not worthy of love and belonging. She found that those who fully experience joy and live wholeheartedly have four characteristics in common: the courage to accept their imperfection; compassion towards themselves first; the ability to let go of who they should be in order to be who they really are, and to embrace vulnerability and unknowing. His installation, therefore, says, ‘You’re not perfect, you’re never going to be, and that’s the good news.’ You are enough, as you are.
The temptations faced by Jesus in the wilderness (Matthew 4.1-11) were all temptations to see his situation and his trust in God as being insufficient, or ‘not enough.’ His temptations began with the reality of his situation, the fact that he was hungry because of fasting for 40 days. He had not had enough food and the temptation was to say that there was not enough and use his power to create food from nowhere. Jesus responded by saying that the words of God were enough for him. The second temptation was in regard to his mission and his then obscurity. Jesus was on his own in the wilderness and was offered celebrity and fame because his obscurity was clearly not enough to achieve his mission. Jesus’ response was essentially saying that the path he was following was enough. The final temptation was linked but, instead of being focused on fame, was focused on power. Jesus’ mission was to save all humanity and he was offered power over all humanity as a shortcut to success and as recognition of the lack of power he possessed as an insignificant carpenter in a backwater of the mighty Roman Empire. Jesus responded by saying that God’s way was enough for him.
Jesus was tempted on the basis that who he was and what he had were not enough to achieve the mission he had been given. He was tempted to think of himself, his situation and God, in terms of scarcity and deficit. But deficit is not our modus operandi as Christians. We don’t have to look far for a mission statement for the church. Jesus said, ‘I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly’ (John 10.10). Living abundant life; that’s what the Father intends, the Son embodies, the Spirit facilitates.
Sam Wells, the Vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields says that, as Christians, we are called to live in such a way that gratefully receives the abundance God is giving us, evidences the transformation from scarcity to abundance to which God is calling us, dwells with God in that abundant life, and shares that abundance far and wide.
Jesus is our model of abundant life; his life, death and resurrection chart the transformation from the scarcity of sin and death to the abundance of healing and resurrection; he longs to bring all humankind into reconciled and flourishing relationship with God, one another, ourselves and all creation.
In the middle of the wilderness where he literally had nothing, Jesus received God’s abundance, the abundant life that would sustain him throughout his journey to the cross, and beyond. Also, his time in the wilderness came immediately after his baptism where God had spoken to him saying ‘You are my own dear Son. With you I am well pleased’. God had essentially said to him then, ‘You are Enough’.
As such, we can defend ourselves against temptation as Jesus did. “As God’s children,” Tom Wright says, “we are entitled to use the same defence” as Jesus himself. “Store scripture in your heart,” he writes, “and know how to use it.” When we do, we are able to see through the temptation to think of all that we have as inadequate and, instead, to view our lives and all that we have as a gift from God knowing that, in him, we are enough.
Lent is commonly thought of as being about those things we give up but Lent is ultimately about our opening up. Opening up our lives to receive more of the abundance and the gifts that God is giving to us. In Lent, we give up some of our usual practices in order to have more time for God and to be with God. More time to open up to him and deepen our relationship with him. That was what Jesus was doing in the wilderness and, like him, we too can discover that, as we receive all that God is giving to us, God is enough, God's abundance is enough, our churches and communities are enough, and we are enough. Amen.
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Mumford and Sons - Begin Again.
Wednesday, 18 February 2026
Chappel Galleries - 'Peter Rodulfo: Waiting for a bite'
The alluring mystery of everyday life is contemplated in his work and this exhibition:
‘Watching and waiting also characterises the work of the artist in creation. Rodulfo writes of casting a line out and waiting for a bite, not knowing which creature will take the bait, because he suspects that something surprising may be lurking under the surface of his image as it emerges and coheres. Through the patient watching and waiting that the artist undertakes for that emergent something in the work, his images entice, tease and challenge us, as viewers, to pay attention to what is revealed through the interplay between the patterns of form and colour within which our interactions in creation and in community occur. The patterns of shadows, reflections, and echoes seen in these works then evoke memories from different times and places in our own lives. Life is an alluring mystery which changes and passes too quickly for us to apprehend fully. Rodulfo’s images still a moment in time, enabling us to stop, wait, and see by paying attention to the emergent something his art has revealed. What will bite, what will surface, what will emerge, what will you notice, as you watch and wait and see?’
See here for information about my catalogue essay on Alan Caine and here for information about an essay on Damien Hirst, originally written to be a catalogue essay.
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Bill Callahan - Stepping Out For Air.
Visual Commentary on Scripture - Lent Stations: Community
Click below to visit the first Lent Station, titled 'You Shall Eat the Plants of the Field':
Station 1: You Shall Eat the Plants of the Field
Lent Stations: Community
One of the traditional Christian practices in Lent, along with prayer and fasting, is almsgiving. It’s easy to read the giving of alms as a mere financial transaction; more specifically (and worse) to see it as nothing more than rich people patronising poor people with their money. This has also infected some of our reactions to the word ‘charity’. We hear this in the understandable protest: ‘I don’t want your charity!’. Surely justice would be better; a fair chance for all.
But the full sense (often forgotten) of charity has its roots in the Latin word caritas, and this means something to which justice is just as central as mercy. Properly understood, charity means living in love and in right relationship with one’s neighbour. It means being in community. The Lenten practice of almsgiving sits in this wider context of practices that strengthen the bonds of community.
Indeed, in some cultures, the giver of alms is required to deliver their gift upwards into the hand of the recipient—a hand which is held over theirs. This makes the giver humble and dignifies the recipient. It opens a whole new perspective on ‘giving up’ something for Lent!
This year’s VCS Lenten series of artworks and associated commentaries is centred on the theme of community, something as urgently needed as ever in a fractured world.
Anyone subscribed to the VCS ππ±π‘π’ππ’ππ’π¨π§ π¨π ππ‘π πͺπππ€ will receive Lent emails twice a week, directly to their inbox. Click on the link to sign up now: https://thevcs.org/sign-vcs-emails
My first exhibition for the VCS was 'Back from the Brink' on Daniel 4: 'Immediately the word was fulfilled upon Nebuchadnezzar. He was driven from among men, and ate grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven till his hair grew as long as eagles’ feathers, and his nails were like birds’ claws.' (Daniel 4:33). In the exhibition I explore this chapter with William Blake's 'Nebuchadnezzar', 1795–c.1805, Arthur Boyd's 'Nebuchadnezzar's Dream of the Tree', 1969, and Peter Howson's 'The Third Step', 2001.
My second exhibition was 'A Question of Faith' and explored Hebrews 11 through the paintings of New Zealand artist Colin McCahon. McCahon is widely recognised as New Zealand’s foremost painter. Over 45 years, his work encompassed many themes, subjects and styles, from landscape to figuration to abstraction and an innovative use of painted text. His adaption of aspects of modernist painting to a specific local situation and his intense engagement with spiritual matters, mark him out as a distinctive figure in twentieth-century art.
My third exhibition was 'Fishers of People'. This exhibition uses Damien Hirst's 'Isolated Elements Swimming in the Same Direction for the Purpose of Understanding (Left) and (Right)', John Bellany's 'Kinlochbervie', and Paul Thek's 'Fishman in Excelsis Table' to discuss Matthew 4:12-22 and Mark 1:14-20. These artworks give us what is essentially a collage of the kingdom whereby we are invited to imagine the kingdom of God as a body of water in which Christians are immersed and through which they are raised.
My fourth exhibition was 'Before the Deluge', a series of climate-focused commentaries on Genesis 6 looking at 'The Flood' by Norman Adams, 'Noah in the Ark and a Church' by Albert Herbert, and 'Noah's Ark' by Sadao Watanabe.
My fifth exhibition reflects on 1 Thessalonians 2:17–4:12. It is called 'Establishing the Heart' and includes works of art by Antoine Camilleri, John Reilly and Stanley Spencer. This exhibition explores how pleasing God in our everyday lives - by living quietly, minding our own affairs, and working with our hands - leads us to see life, work and art as prayer.
For more on the artists included in these exhibitions click on the following links: Antoine Camilleri, John Reilly, Stanley Spencer, William Blake, Arthur Boyd, Peter Howson, Colin McCahon, Damien Hirst, John Bellany, and Paul Thek.
The VCS is a freely accessible online publication that provides theological commentary on the Bible in dialogue with works of art. It helps its users to (re)discover the Bible in new ways through the illuminating interaction of artworks, scriptural texts, and commissioned commentaries. The virtual exhibitions of the VCS aim to facilitate new possibilities of seeing and reading so that the biblical text and the selected works of art come alive in new and vivid ways.
Each section of the VCS is a virtual exhibition comprising a biblical passage, three art works, and their associated commentaries. The curators of each exhibition select artworks that they consider will open up the biblical texts for interpretation, and/or offer new perspectives on themes the texts address. The commentaries explain and interpret the relationships between the works of art and the scriptural text.
Find out more about the VCS, its exhibitions and other resources through a short series of HeartEdge workshops introducing the VCS as a whole and exploring particular exhibitions with their curators. These workshops can be viewed here, here, here and here.
The VCS has a daily email exploring the Bible through art. Through concise but vivid day-by-day encounters, Bible and Art Daily will take you on a series of journeys through the world of Scripture and the history of art. The VCS have spent the last year bringing together experts in theology and art history to carefully curate a treasury of week-long series, each exploring a particular theme, an artistic medium, or a biblical character. Find out more and subscribe here.
My second exhibition was 'A Question of Faith' and explored Hebrews 11 through the paintings of New Zealand artist Colin McCahon. McCahon is widely recognised as New Zealand’s foremost painter. Over 45 years, his work encompassed many themes, subjects and styles, from landscape to figuration to abstraction and an innovative use of painted text. His adaption of aspects of modernist painting to a specific local situation and his intense engagement with spiritual matters, mark him out as a distinctive figure in twentieth-century art.
My third exhibition was 'Fishers of People'. This exhibition uses Damien Hirst's 'Isolated Elements Swimming in the Same Direction for the Purpose of Understanding (Left) and (Right)', John Bellany's 'Kinlochbervie', and Paul Thek's 'Fishman in Excelsis Table' to discuss Matthew 4:12-22 and Mark 1:14-20. These artworks give us what is essentially a collage of the kingdom whereby we are invited to imagine the kingdom of God as a body of water in which Christians are immersed and through which they are raised.
My fourth exhibition was 'Before the Deluge', a series of climate-focused commentaries on Genesis 6 looking at 'The Flood' by Norman Adams, 'Noah in the Ark and a Church' by Albert Herbert, and 'Noah's Ark' by Sadao Watanabe.
My fifth exhibition reflects on 1 Thessalonians 2:17–4:12. It is called 'Establishing the Heart' and includes works of art by Antoine Camilleri, John Reilly and Stanley Spencer. This exhibition explores how pleasing God in our everyday lives - by living quietly, minding our own affairs, and working with our hands - leads us to see life, work and art as prayer.
For more on the artists included in these exhibitions click on the following links: Antoine Camilleri, John Reilly, Stanley Spencer, William Blake, Arthur Boyd, Peter Howson, Colin McCahon, Damien Hirst, John Bellany, and Paul Thek.
The VCS is a freely accessible online publication that provides theological commentary on the Bible in dialogue with works of art. It helps its users to (re)discover the Bible in new ways through the illuminating interaction of artworks, scriptural texts, and commissioned commentaries. The virtual exhibitions of the VCS aim to facilitate new possibilities of seeing and reading so that the biblical text and the selected works of art come alive in new and vivid ways.
Each section of the VCS is a virtual exhibition comprising a biblical passage, three art works, and their associated commentaries. The curators of each exhibition select artworks that they consider will open up the biblical texts for interpretation, and/or offer new perspectives on themes the texts address. The commentaries explain and interpret the relationships between the works of art and the scriptural text.
Find out more about the VCS, its exhibitions and other resources through a short series of HeartEdge workshops introducing the VCS as a whole and exploring particular exhibitions with their curators. These workshops can be viewed here, here, here and here.
The VCS has a daily email exploring the Bible through art. Through concise but vivid day-by-day encounters, Bible and Art Daily will take you on a series of journeys through the world of Scripture and the history of art. The VCS have spent the last year bringing together experts in theology and art history to carefully curate a treasury of week-long series, each exploring a particular theme, an artistic medium, or a biblical character. Find out more and subscribe here.
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Tuesday, 17 February 2026
Rev Simpkins in concert
St Andrew’s Church,
11 London Road,
Wickford SS12 0AN
Suffolk-Essex musician, Rev Simpkins, presents an evening of acoustic music of great imagination and charm.
The Rev will perform songs from his acclaimed folk albums such as ‘Big Sea’ and ‘Saltings’, together with songs from his band album ‘Pissabed Prophet’.
The gig will also feature songs from the Rev’s most recent album ‘Headwater’, a collection of fever dreams and reflections on awe and delirium, recorded in the aftermath of an extreme reaction to immunotherapy treatment for stage 4 cancer. These songs recreate sounds and visions experienced on the hospital ward.
The Rev’s sweeping melodies, rich harmonies, and fascinating lyrics have won him both a cult following and national acclaim.
This is a rare chance to experience the breadth of the Rev’s work in one evening.
"Bizarre Post-Punk mastery...Ludicrously cool" 8/10 Vive le Rock on ‘Pissabed Prophet’
“Headwater takes us into new ruminative territory with its industrial electronic soundscapes and use of drones and silences to bring us into contemplation.” International Times
Part of ‘Unveiled’, the Friday night arts and performance event at St Andrew’s Church.
No ticket required – donations requested on the night.
See my reviews of Pissabed Prophet and Headwater here and here plus my interview with the Rev for Seen and Unseen here.
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Rev Simpkins - Holy Innocent's Day.
Monday, 16 February 2026
Portsmouth Cathedral and 'Sanctuary' exhibition
From humble beginnings in 1180 at the heart of Portsmouth's original settlement, this church, dedicated to Thomas Becket, became a parish church around 1320 and a Cathedral in 1927. It has been integral to the development of Portsmouth as a modern, vibrant city. There is much interesting art in the Cathedral.
The nave organ case was designed by Didier Grassin in 2001; the inside of the panels were designed by Patrick Caulfield and painted by Alan Murphy:
‘The organ is in the middle of the design – enfolded by a circle. This speaks of unity of sound and glory. It is a universally accessible symbol, as was specified in the artist’s brief. They themselves echo the Grassin case design which features a fish (or Ickthus) motif on the front of the closed case. The four fish – two on the left and two on the right are Christian symbols which, in turn, enfold the circle within.
The left side depicts night. On the left is a stylised depiction of a lighthouse shining on the sea. Here, there is a particular and universal reference. The particular reference is to the motto of the City of Portsmouth, “Heaven’s Light our Guide.” The universal reference is to God in the mandala (or lozenge) shape at the top of the lighthouse. This shape is used in Orthodox iconography to encompass Christ in Glory. The universal in the particular can also be described theologically as Incarnation.
The right side depicts day. On this side is the sun, and a depiction of the hull of a fishing vessel. The Portsmouth fishing fleet uses the identification P. It is also a play on the Christian monogram – Chi-Rho – the first two letters of Christ in Greek.’
The icon of Our Lady of the Sign over the altar in the Lady Chapel, with its richly gilded background, was created by the famous Russian iconographer Sergei Fyodorov, and dedicated on the feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary on 8th September 2002.
The ‘sign’ in the title is the sign of Isaiah 7:14 – ‘The young woman is with child and will give birth to a son, whom she will call Emmanuel.’ Mary is the ‘God-bearer’, and Jesus prays within her and blesses us; the icon shows Christ in a roundel or medallion, making a gesture of blessing with his right hand. As Canon Alan Wilkinson, co-donor of the icon, wrote: ’Here is Christ praying in Mary. It is a sign and a reminder that our best prayers are when we are silent and let the Christ hidden in the depths of our being pray to the Father.’
At the time the Fyodorov icon was created, in 2001, the Dean William Taylor wrote about it: ‘Icons interact directly with those who look at them. … a quotation of St Augustine of Hippo sums up the meaning of the icon to those who look at it, or pray before it in faith: “Of what help is it that Jesus was born, if he is not born within us.”’
In the south tower transept is the bronze statue of St John the Baptist by David Wynne. It was cast in 1951 as a memorial to a Winchester College pupil killed on the Matterhorn.
Sanctuary, an exhibition by the artist Nicholas Mynheer is open daily from 18 February to 12 April 2026. The exhibition features paintings and sculptures that explore the experiences of refugees, both ancient and contemporary. The story of Jesus, Mary and Joseph fleeing to Egypt sits alongside the realities faced by people crossing the English Channel today. Mynheer's work doesn't offer easy answers – instead, it asks questions. What would we do if our home were no longer safe? How do we respond to those seeking refuge? What does it mean to hope for a better life when the risks are so great? The exhibition is open during standard cathedral opening hours, and is free to view.
Sanctuary, an exhibition by the artist Nicholas Mynheer is open daily from 18 February to 12 April 2026. The exhibition features paintings and sculptures that explore the experiences of refugees, both ancient and contemporary. The story of Jesus, Mary and Joseph fleeing to Egypt sits alongside the realities faced by people crossing the English Channel today. Mynheer's work doesn't offer easy answers – instead, it asks questions. What would we do if our home were no longer safe? How do we respond to those seeking refuge? What does it mean to hope for a better life when the risks are so great? The exhibition is open during standard cathedral opening hours, and is free to view.
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Karl Jenkins - Adiemus Songs of Sanctuary-Hymn.
Watts Cemetery Chapel
The Watts Cemetery Chapel is a unique Grade I-listed terracotta building which is the work of artist and designer Mary Watts and can be found at Compton in Surrey. Over 70 people from the local community helped her create it between 1895 and 1904. It opened in 1898 and remains a working chapel to this day.
Clay tiles decorate the outside. They blend Celtic, Romanesque, and Art Nouveau influences. Inside the Chapel you will find one of the most important and experimental wall paintings in England.
The cemetery is more than 120 years old. It was laid out by Mary Watts between 1895 and 1898, with the help of Compton Parish Council.
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Van Morrison - Comfort You.
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