War Cry 9 April 2022

Festival organiser waxes lyrical on TS Eliot

WAR CRY

9 April 2022 50p

Faithful investigations Vicar and inspector unite to solve Granchester’s murder mystery

Playing out the stories of Jesus

What is The Salvation Army?

From the editor’s desk

The Salvation Army is a Christian church and registered charity seeking to share the good news of Jesus and nurture committed followers of him. We also serve people without discrimination, care for creation and seek justice and reconciliation. We offer practical support and services in more than 700 centres throughout the UK. Go to salvationarmy.org.uk/find-a-church to find your nearest centre.

THE Bible does not give a description of what Jesus looked like. However, in western society, there is a perception – even among people who would not consider themselves Christians – of what he was like: white, with long hair and a beard.

It is very unlikely that this is accurate, but the idea is so firmly rooted in people’s subconscious that when James Burke-Dunsmore – who is white with long hair and a beard – is out in public, people have been known to ask him to turn water into wine. It could be considered irksome, but James is an actor who has played the Son of God in a number of productions, and he is happy to look the part.

In an interview in this week’s War Cry, James talks about how he first played Jesus in 1998. Some of his friends, he tells us, were concerned that, if he took on the role even once, he could become typecast as Jesus.

‘But I knew that there were such depths of his character to look into,’ he says. ‘I challenge anyone to find the full depth of Jesus.’

Next Friday (15 April), James will be aiming to reveal more of Jesus’ character to the general public as he plays the part of the Messiah in this year’s Passion play in London’s Trafalgar Square. In the play, he will depict Jesus’ arrest, crucifixion and death as well as his resurrection, which Christians will celebrate on Easter Day. James describes the events he portrays as ‘one of the most engaging and life-changing stories, because it offers a mirror to our lives, and then an opportunity for our own transformation’.

The real actions of Jesus that James recreates have transformed the lives of millions of people. They give Christians an eternal life full of purpose and meaning. While we may not know what Jesus looked like physically, we know that his life, death ad the War C and resurrection can change the way our lives e re ry u’v look for ever.

What is the War Cry? The Salvation Army first published a newspaper called the War Cry in London in December 1879, and we have continued to appear every week since then. Our name refers to our battle for people’s hearts and souls as we promote the positive impact of the Christian faith and The Salvation Army’s fight for greater social justice.

WAR CRY Issue No 7571

When yo

Email: warcry@salvationarmy.org.uk The Salvation Army United Kingdom and Ireland Territory 101 Newington Causeway London SE1 6BN

CONTENTS

Tel: 0845 634 0101 Subscriptions: 01933 445445 (option 1, option 1) or email: subscriptions@satcol.org Founder: William Booth General: Brian Peddle Territorial Commander: Commissioner Anthony Cotterill Editor-in-Chief: Major Mal Davies

FEATURES

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in Grantchester 5

Slash, bang, wallop – what a picture!

Vandalised paintings inspire art 6

Chapter and verse

Churches host ‘Waste Land’ poem

INFO

festival 8

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Sinner sought Vicar is on the hunt for a killer

Published weekly by The Salvation Army © The Salvation Army United Kingdom and Ireland Territory ISSN 0043-0226 The Salvation Army Trust is a registered charity. The charity number in England, Wales and Northern Ireland is 214779, in Scotland SC009359 and in the Republic of Ireland CHY6399.

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Editor: Andrew Stone, Major Deputy Editor: Philip Halcrow Production Editor: Ivan Radford Assistant Editor: Sarah Olowofoyeku Staff Writer: Emily Bright Staff Writer: Claire Brine Editorial Assistant: Linda McTurk Graphic Designer: Rodney Kingston Graphic Designer: Mark Knight

‘I had to do a lot of soul-searching’

Actor on playing Jesus REGULARS 4

War Cry World

12 Team Talk 13 Past Times 14 Puzzles 15 War Cry Kitchen Front-page picture: ITV

ITV

The Rev Will Davenport seeks to make amends with widow Bonnie Evans

Trials and errors Vicar investigates idea of second chances in Grantchester series finale TV preview by Emily Bright

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TARING up at the spectacular stained-glass windows of his church, the Rev Will Davenport takes a moment to reflect on his regrets, in the finale of the seventh series of Grantchester, which will be aired on ITV on Friday (15 April).

As the episode opens, Will (Tom Brittney) confesses in conversation that he has treated a couple of women in a way that he is not proud of, one of them being widow Bonnie Evans (Charlotte Ritchie).

Will repents and sets out to make amends with Bonnie in the hope of a fresh start. However, his introspection is interrupted when his friend DI Geordie Keating (Robson Green) bursts into the café, saying that there has been a murder – another in a spate of killings of people living on the streets. They have all suffered the same kind of neck injury.

Earlier in the series, Geordie was convinced that he’d caught the serial killer, a university student called Robin Fellows (Jeremy Ang Jones). But, as there has been another victim, Robin – who confessed and is serving time – may not be guilty.

So the duo approach one of his prison visitors, a controversial professor called Dr Edith Larson (Rowena King), to work

out what really happened.

However, she has an unhelpful attitude towards the victims, calling them ‘men with troubled pasts who can’t or won’t be helped’, adding that ‘society pays the price for their actions’.

Will holds a very different view from Edith, believing in redemption for everyone, regardless of how dark life gets.

‘If we turn to God,’ he says, ‘he understands and forgives.’

It can be tempting to write off others or even ourselves based on the past. We may mistakenly believe that, for various reasons, people can be beyond redemption. In our own lives, it could be that events out of our control have left us feeling broken, hurt or helpless. Or perhaps our own actions may have made our circumstances worse.

However, those who share Will’s Christian faith believe that no one is ever beyond help. With God, there is always hope.

One Bible writer who was facing a particularly dire situation recalled a time when he called out to God. He remembered: ‘He turned to me and

No one is ever beyond help

DI Geordie Keating and the Rev Will Davenport heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand’ (Psalm 40:1 and 2 New International Version).

That same second chance is available to us all. God loves us unconditionally.

It’s OK if we don’t have a clue what to do next in life. If we confess we don’t have all the answers and ask God for help, he will support us through the toughest times.

Perhaps it’s time to investigate a relationship with him.

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NICO TAVERNISE/NETFLIX

Director believes in Christians

Jennifer Lawrence, Leonardo DiCaprio and Timothée Chalamet, who plays the role of a Christian, in the film ‘Don’t Look Up’

FILM director Adam McKay says he included a Christian character in his recent Netflix film, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence, because people of faith are important in the environmental movement.

The satirical film, Don’t Look Up, which is about society’s response to the discovery of an asteroid hurtling towards Earth, is a comment on climate change. Towards the end of the film, the main characters gather for a meal, and Yule, a Christian with a kind heart, says a prayer.

In an interview with faith magazine Relevant, Adam said: ‘By my reckoning, it’s the most beautiful moment of the movie. It gets me every time I watch it.’

He went on to speak about his belief that people who have faith are ‘the bedrock’ of the movement against climate change, and that religion and science are compatible.

He said: ‘The way our movie starts is with Jen Lawrence’s character having a simple cup of tea and some toast and just looking and listening to, if you want to phrase it this way, God’s creation. I find science very beautiful. I find it very religious.’ Later, he adds, ‘I really am a believer that people of faith are going to be the bedrock of this movement.’

Easter ‘insights’ on TV and radio

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a warcry@salvationarmy.org.uk @TheWarCryUK TheWarCryUK

B salvationarmy.org.uk/warcry BBC/KING’S COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE/BENJAMIN SHEEN

TO mark Easter, the BBC will be broadcasting special content, including Easter from King’s on BBC Two, featuring music by the Choir of King’s College, Cambridge.

Daisy Scalchi, BBC commissioning editor, religion, says: ‘Our Easter content this year offers everything from insights into how kindness and compassion can bring joy, to how communities have been built on faith over millennia.’

At 6am on Good Friday (15 April), BBC local radio stations will broadcast Keeping Faith at Easter, a programme featuring stories of hope from around England, including those of the thousands of people being helped by churches to settle in this country from Hong Kong. In the evening on Radio 2, At the Foot of the Cross, hosted by Katie Piper, will include performances by the Kingdom Choir and a telling of the story of Jesus’ crucifixion through poetry.

On Easter Day, the Bishop of Leeds, the Right Rev Nick Baines, will lead a service, and Pope Francis will deliver his Easter message in Rome, both of which will be broadcast live on BBC One. On BBC Two, the Most Rev Justin Welby will share an Easter message of hope, live from Canterbury Cathedral.

BBC Radio Ulster/Foyle will run an extended edition of Sunday with Brian D’Arcy, featuring reflections on Easter.

On BBC One Scotland, Reflections at the Quay will include Scottish folkstyle worship and traditional hymns.

Four presenters will explore the Easter theme of light and hope in the darkness.

The new Archbishop of Wales, the Most Rev Andy John, will lead the Sunday service on BBC Wales.

Do you have a story to share?

‘Easter from King’s’ will be aired during the Easter weekend

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‘Self-Portrait at the Age of 63, after Rembrandt’, 2022, by Ali Cherri, a response to ‘Self-Portrait at the Age of 63’, 1669, by Rembrandt, which was attacked in 1998

Art

THE Salvation Army’s international leader has urged members of the church and charity to take the opportunity of Holy Week and Easter to ‘share the gospel with everyone – in every and any way you can’, because ‘it brings hope’.

In a message sent to Salvationists around the world for Easter, General Brian Peddle encourages them not to ‘lose confidence in or shy away from’ the meaning of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus, but to remind themselves of the ‘overarching story of the gospel’ and to communicate it to others.

‘Wherever you are in the world, whatever your age, no matter your circumstance, the gospel of Jesus Christ is good news,’ he writes. ‘The gospel encapsulates God’s love for and choice of you; it communicates the provision of grace, mercy, forgiveness and reconciliation; it contains the power of resurrection and promise of eternal life.’

The General urges his readers to ‘find relevant and respectful ways’ at Easter to spread the message of ‘the saving grace of God, made manifest in Jesus’.

NATIONAL GALLERY, LONDON

Easter story ‘brings hope’

Art-wrenching

National Gallery displays new works inspired by vandalised paintings Feature by Philip Halcrow

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HEY have been shot, slashed and splashed with paint. But now five previously vandalised National Gallery pictures have inspired an exhibition of new works of art. If You Prick Us, Do We Not Bleed? by Ali Cherri – which runs at the gallery until 12 June – considers how people respond to violence and trauma.

Researching accounts of how the pictures had been attacked while on display, the Lebanon-born artist was struck by the public’s emotional response and the language used to describe the damaged painting and subsequent repairs. The words were often the same as would be applied to a living being. For instance, when Leonardo da Vinci’s drawing The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne and the Infant Saint John the Baptist was shot in 1987, the keeper of the National Gallery described the damage as a ‘bruise’.

Ali Cherri has made sculptural installations in response to each wounded work.

A Rembrandt self-portrait that was vandalised with paint in 1998 prompted Cherri to create a shrunken, vulnerable-looking wax likeness of the Dutch master’s head. His response to the Leonardo drawing is an enlarged representation of the ‘bruise’, displayed alongside newspapers from the date of the attack, giving viewers a glimpse into what was taking place in the wider world.

Anyone who looks round the rooms where the new works are displayed will see more reflections on violence. Cherri’s objects are surrounded by early Renaissance works showing Jesus, slashed and beaten at the time of his crucifixion.

Paintings such as Francesco Francia’s Pietà and Ercole de’ Roberti’s The Dead Christ have always encouraged the viewers to see Jesus’ death as ultimately being about more than physical cruelty. They highlight that when Jesus responded to the violence against him with forgiveness, he demonstrated the extent of God’s love for us all, whatever our flaws. It’s why one Bible writer could tell a group of Jesus’ early followers: ‘By his cuts and bruises, you are healed’ (1 Peter 2:24 Contemporary English Version).

Jesus’ response to suffering has inspired not only art but also the whole outlook of people who have put their trust in the picture of God he painted.

The damage was described as a ‘bruise’

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In 1922, TS Eliot published a groundbreaking poem referencing some of the sights and sounds of the capital. LIAM BROWNE explains why the festival he co-curated to mark the centenary of ‘The Waste Land’ is taking place in the City of London’s churches and why the poem still has something to say

MATTHEW ANDREWS

London calling Interview by Philip Halcrow Liam Browne (right) with co-curator Seán Doran

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TS Eliot in 1921 6 • WAR CRY • 9 April 2022

HE choice of venues for a festival celebrating the centenary of TS Eliot’s poem ‘The Waste Land’ was not without rhyme or reason. When Liam Browne and his co-curator Seán Doran were asked by Eliot’s estate to mark the literary landmark, they looked towards a specific location – and some particular buildings.

‘In the poem, there are references to streets and churches in the City of London,’ says Liam. ‘These were the streets that Eliot walked on his way to Lloyds Bank, where he was working, and he called into some of these churches during his breaks.’

Scanning the Square Mile, Liam was ‘astonished at the number of churches in very close proximity to each other’, which chimed with one of the ideas for the celebration of Eliot’s innovative work.

‘We felt that the festival should try to capture the fragmentary nature of the poem,’ he says. ‘Rather than putting on a series of big events of two hours each, we thought about how we could reflect Eliot’s notion when he writes in the poem, “These fragments I have shored against my ruins” – the sense of this is what we culturally want to hold on to.

‘So we are offering little fragments of artistic expression.

The audience will step into one church and experience 15 minutes of something – they might hear an actor read some poetry or someone play the piano or see some flamenco – and then they move on to another church and experience another 15 minutes of something else.’

Each of the mini-celebrations in the Fragments festival – which runs until Tuesday (12 April) – is linked in some way to ‘The Waste Land’ or to the historic church in which the event

MATTHEW ANDREWS

‘Audiences might step into one church and see some flamenco’ takes place.

‘All Hallows by the Tower has a blackened wall against one side of the church, caused by bombing during the Second World War,’ explains Liam. ‘We felt it was a powerful backdrop for a performance of Messiaen’s “Quartet for the End of Time”, which was written in 1940 for prisoners in Germany. There’s also a reference in “The Waste Land” to a “blackened wall”.’

At St Mary Woolnoth – a church named in ‘The Waste Land’ – the Incognito Gospel Choir will sing songs including ‘Amazing Grace’, written by John Newton, who became rector of the church in 1780.

Liam believes audiences will find that the church environment will ‘heighten the experience of whatever they listen to or watch’. The churches, however, provide more than historical reference points. ‘“The Waste Land” is a spiritual poem,’ he says, ‘and Eliot was a spiritual poet.

The churches that he visited meant a lot to him. I think everything in his work is to do with the spiritual journey, and art and culture were important to him as part of that development.’

The Incognito Gospel Choir will be singing at St Mary Woolnoth

Liam points out that ‘you can draw a contrast between “The Waste Land” and something like the Four Quartets’, Eliot’s later poems, written after he was baptised into the Anglican Church, which contain ‘a measure of serenity’.

‘But,’ Liam adds, ‘“The Waste Land” is a response to the times in which he was living.’ And 1922 was a time of disquiet. ‘“The Waste Land” came out of the First World War and the Spanish flu epidemic. It came out of a sense of global uncertainty.

When you read the documentation from around the time, five or six years after the end of the First World War, people are still talking about just coming out of it, because the shockwaves were so powerful. People were still adjusting.

‘Eliot’s writing emerged out of that sense of a fragile world. A hundred years on, it feels that we’re – hopefully – coming out of a pandemic, we’ve got a climate crisis, we’ve got what’s happening in Ukraine. We again have a sense of uncertainty in the world, where not that long ago we felt a measure of security.

‘The poem addresses the question of what do we hold on to at these times.

We again have a sense of uncertainty

During the pandemic, some people turned to poetry as a comfort, a support or an inspiration. At such times, you turn to essentials, and Eliot’s poem came out of that as well. He was writing something he felt was necessary. He was feeling that the cultural, the spiritual life was more important than ever, when such havoc had been wreaked in the world.’

‘The Waste Land’ contains references to arid lands and decay, but also to growth and rain and to a resurrection appearance of Jesus.

‘Even though it’s a dark poem in many ways, there are extraordinary flashes of beauty and spirituality,’ says Liam, who hopes that the festival will be uplifting because of the works presented and ‘the atmosphere of the churches’, which were important to Eliot – and which are still there.

‘In the City,’ he says, ‘you look down a little side street and you see a church and a skyscraper next to each other. The area has been taken over by banks and mammon, yet these churches are holding their ground.’ l For more information visit thewasteland2022.com

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Jesus actor gets the gospel across Ahead of his final year of acting the part of Jesus in Trafalgar Square’s Passion play, which will be performed twice on Good Friday (15 April), JAMES BURKE-DUNSMORE reflects on what he has learnt from his years of playing Jesus in productions around the world Interview by Emily Bright

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E has been asked to turn water into wine, heard confessions in restaurants and even broken up fights in the street. That’s according to a Financial Times interview with James Burke-Dunsmore, who for the past decade has appeared as Jesus in the annual Passion play in London’s Trafalgar Square.

I’m curious to find out more about how people interact with James, who does bear a striking physical resemblance to the Jesus portrayed in popular culture. ‘They have the most enjoyable reactions,’ he says. ‘I’ve had it in restaurants where people have halfheartedly joked: “We feel like we’re

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JO POMEROY

James Burke-Dunsmore has played the role of Jesus in plays since 1998 sitting near Jesus.” But within minutes of chatting to them, they all start talking about their lives in a confessional way.’

While being told he looks like Jesus may have its lighter side, James’s performances in the Passion play don’t shy away from depicting the hard-hitting realities of the gospel accounts of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. It’s not always an easy watch for audiences.

‘My initial interest in the role was that, having always worked on plays by William Shakespeare, Geoffrey Chaucer, Noël Coward and Charles Dickens, I was looking at a book – the Bible – that everyone has an opinion about,’ he says. ‘I think people find the story of Jesus itself uncomfortable, particularly when it’s being told in a public place. There will be people who can’t watch the Crucifixion, for example.’

James is well versed in seeing audience reactions to his role, having first depicted Jesus in a play at Wintershall, a venue in the heart of the Surrey countryside, back in 1998. Then in 2010, the same company performed its first Passion

play in Trafalgar Square. James gave his debut performance as Jesus in the central London location the following year.

This month marks his final outing at Trafalgar Square, with two performances on Good Friday. But he’ll continue to perform Passion plays at Wintershall for the rest of the year, and is planning for others in 2023.

Looking back on how he prepared to play Jesus for the first time, James says: ‘I had a great appreciation of all the attempts to describe him in the stories, through painting and culture. But suddenly, I had to look at his words and work out what was on his mind, what his intentions were, and what made him very human, a person you could instantly associate with. He always seemed to speak of the best in us.’

So, I wonder, how do you go about preparing to play someone who is fully God yet also fully human?

‘I had to do a lot of soul-searching, to think about dropping my vices and why I was carrying out behaviours and ways of thinking, to filter out my unnecessary baggage,’ James explains. ‘It was an extraordinary process for an actor. It’s very rare to have such an extreme person to play.’

There are also the practical implications of his performance to consider. ‘I’ve had to solve a lot of things in rehearsals. How would Jesus

I had to do a lot of soul-searching

walk? When Jesus skids on wet leaves in Trafalgar Square, how would he right himself and carry on?’

James has fully embraced the opportunity to step into the shoes of the Son of God and to empathise with what it would have been like to face opposition and stand alone.

‘There have been occasions where Jesus’ extraordinary confidence in a crowd has rubbed off on me,’ he says. ‘I don’t think there are many people who enjoy being a single person surrounded by a crowd. It’s extremely daunting, particularly if that crowd doesn’t want you to be there or is questioning you or doubting you. It takes courage to stand up for yourself.

‘I’m in scenes where Jesus is surrounded by opinion and often violence.

I’ve learnt year after year more and more what it is to have the confidence to stand up for what you believe in, for what you have that’s important enough for you not to turn away.’

Passion plays portray the story of the days leading up to Jesus being crucified on a cross. They show him enjoying huge popularity that suddenly turns to opposition after he criticises and argues with the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem. It is a story that tells how Jesus forgives those guilty of causing him to feel anguish, abandonment and physical pain.

One year, James suffered actual physical pain while performing when one of the actors playing a Roman soldier

Turn to page 10 f

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JO POMEROY

A performance of the Passion play in Trafalgar Square

From page 9 unintentionally went off script and hit James hard with a mallet.

‘He fractured my ankles,’ says James.

‘As they were hoisting me up on the cross, and as I hung there, he was looking up at me, apologising, because he knew what he had done. And what’s the first of the statements Jesus makes on the cross?

“Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”

‘I was in utter agony and I was very concerned that I wasn’t going to be able to walk and perform the resurrection scene. I was furious because the reason the soldier had hit me was that he was under-rehearsed, brought in at the last minute. I blamed the producer. While I was hanging on the cross, in front of 10,000 people, I was filled with anger, pain, fury and judgement.

‘And I knew I couldn’t deliver the line “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” until I’d forgiven the producer. So once I’d forgiven them for possibly crippling me, I delivered the line.’

Although live performances come with their challenges, James is keen to return to his role after being prevented from doing so because of pandemic restrictions.

‘We stopped mid-rehearsals in March two years ago,’ he recalls. ‘That had a big effect on us, because the process that we were all so familiar with was interrupted.

‘When it was suddenly cancelled, it was horrible for everyone. Some of these actors had been doing these plays for as long as me, and they were used to this being a part of their Easter.’

Covid-19’s legacy will also bring an added poignancy to the Passion play performances, explains James. ‘We have lost some very dear friends and actors

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during the pandemic, and we’re going to miss them terribly.’

In the context of the pandemic, the idea of sacrifice in particular may have a whole new resonance with the cast, crew and audiences.

‘Over the past two years, it has been mentioned so many times in the news: what people have sacrificed, what others weren’t willing to sacrifice,’ says James.

‘And it has made people angry, upset and despairing, grieving for all the things that have been sacrificed.’

James aims to bring this timely theme into his performances.

‘One of the things we talk about most in preparation for these plays is sacrifice, because if the sacrifice that Jesus was willing to make doesn’t come through, if it’s seen as too easy, if it’s seen as what was just going to be, you miss the depth of what he truly did. You also don’t connect with the example he gives to us all about what sacrifice should be in our lives.

This story has to speak to people in all walks of life, otherwise we’ve failed.’

One interaction with a member of the public stands out for James as the inspiration for how he sees his Jesus role.

During a run of a production of Macbeth in which he took the main role, he was approached by a woman who said she’d enjoyed watching. She enquired what he was doing next, and James told her that he was rehearsing to play Jesus. Her reaction wasn’t quite what he expected.

‘She said: “I’d love to see you play Jesus.” Bearing in mind, she saw me as Macbeth the previous night, the darkest of all Shakespeare’s characters, and now she’s going to see the Light of the world.

And then she paused, looked at me and said: “But only if you tell it properly. Only if you use enough blood.”

‘I think about her every time I tell the story, and about what she may have witnessed or experienced in life. I think if we pad the Easter story in cotton wool, then it’s not going to reach everyone, and it’s not going to give the example that I hope everyone will be inspired by.’

The significance of retelling the Easter story, something that millions of people around the globe believe in, is not lost on James. ‘This is the ultimate story about transformation. But it’s a transformation driven by such clarity,’ he says.

‘And it seems to be matched by no other story that I can think of, that I’ve found – and my goodness I’ve looked – and

It’s very rare to have such an extreme person to play

I keep coming back to the Bible stories because there is an encouragement from transformation that speaks so clearly and openly to everyone.’

He believes that this theme of transformation is ‘what makes it such a frightening story, but also one of the most engaging and life-changing stories, because it offers a mirror to our lives, and then an opportunity for our own transformation’.

Over the course of his career, James has been involved in retelling the story elsewhere through Passion plays in Scotland, Wales and Australia, and has been invited to write and direct them in South Africa, America, the Cayman Islands and Kenya. After more than two decades of depicting Jesus, you could be forgiven for thinking that he has exhausted his well of creativity. Far from it.

He explains: ‘Back in 1998, so many people said to me: “James, don’t play Jesus again.

You’ll get typecast.” But

I knew that there were such depths of his character to look into, and I still haven’t found the bottom.

‘Books come out every month, every year, trying to find the bottom of this man’s heart, his soul, his character, everything about him. Nobody seems to have managed. I challenge anyone to find the full depth of Jesus.’

l For more information visit wintershall.org.uk

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Prayerlink YOUR prayers are requested for Micky, who wants to absorb all that he reads in the Scriptures and to pass on what he learns to others.

The War Cry invites readers to send in requests for prayer, including the first names of individuals and details of their ­circumstances, for publication. Send your Prayerlink requests to warcry@salvationarmy.org.uk or to War Cry, 101 Newington Causeway, Lon­don SE1 6BN. Mark your correspondence ‘Confidential’.

j

Becoming a Christian

There is no set formula to becoming a Christian, but many people have found saying this prayer to be a helpful first step to a relationship with God

Lord Jesus Christ, I am truly sorry for the things I have done wrong in my life. Please forgive me. I now turn from everything that I know is wrong.

Thank you that you died on the cross for me so that I could be forgiven and set free.

Thank you that you offer me forgiveness and the gift of your Holy Spirit.

Please come into my life by your Holy Spirit to be with me for ever.

Thank you, Lord Jesus.

Amen

talk ‘ ’ Team talk TEAM TALK Spoilt for choice

Claire Brine gives her take on a story catching the attention of War Cry reporters

IS it possible to have too much choice? Psychologist Barry Schwartz seems to think so. In a Viewpoint article for Radio Times, the author of The Paradox of Choice turned to Netflix to argue his case.

‘Have you ever spent half an hour flicking through hundreds of options only to end up watching … something you’ve already seen?’ he asked.

My answer? Yes. Yes, I have.

He went on: ‘Perhaps when you complicate people’s lives with choice, instead of being liberated by all this freedom, we end up paralysed by it…

An excess of options … may be leading to a massive increase in anxiety, depression and drug abuse.’

To counter the effects of too-much-choice syndrome, Barry suggests making life simpler. He suggests that people could ask themselves: ‘Which of the things that I pursue really matter? Which of the decisions I make every day really matter?’

While I’d hate to come across as holier-thanthou, I couldn’t help but see some similarities between Barry’s words and a story about Jesus in the Bible. When a woman called Martha was feeling overwhelmed by all the housework in front of her, Jesus told her to keep things simple.

You are consumed by ‘so many things’, he said, ‘but only one thing is necessary’ (Luke 10:41 and 42 Contemporary English Version).

Jesus wanted his friend to grasp that spending time with him would bring her far more fulfilment and peace than the pursuit of hundreds of other things.

Living in a world where people tend to focus so much on consumption and striving for the next thing before they have even finished the first thing, I find the idea of doing less of choosing simplicity – almost revolutionary. I also imagine that the benefits of giving our brains a little bit of peace and quiet are huge.

Though life may constantly present us with multiple choices, we don’t always have to say yes. Releasing ourselves from the pressure to see and do it all allows our eyes to be opened to what’s really important – and for many of us, that’s a relationship with Jesus. By choosing him above anything else, we find our lives enriched in ways we could never have imagined.

We don’t always have to say yes

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War Cry 101 Newington Causeway London SE1 6BN

Basic reading about Christianity Information about The Salvation Army

Looking for help?

Contact details of a Salvation Army minister Name Address Extract from Why Jesus? by Nicky Gumbel published by Alpha International, 2011. Used by kind permission of Alpha International

Or email your details and request to warcry@salvationarmy.org.uk 12 • WAR CRY • 9 April 2022

Q

QUICK QUIZ 1

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In which Scottish city are the football stadiums Ibrox and Celtic Park?

Derived from Jamaican patois, what does the greeting ‘wagwan’ mean?

A 3

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Morgan Freeman played a prisoner named Ellis Boyd ‘Red’ Redding in which 1994 film?

To the nearest hundred metres, how tall is the Eiffel Tower?

What was the stage name of American singer Richard Wayne Penniman?

Who is the current UK foreign secretary?

ANSWERS

Hannah Carr looks back to a notable event that happened during this month in history

Titanic disaster brought devastation ON 10 April 1912, the RMS Titanic set sail from Southampton with 2,200 people on board. Just five days later, the ship that was said to be unsinkable, sank to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean, resulting in the deaths of more than 1,500 people.

The film based on the event, starring Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio, dramatically depicted the tragedy, but it didn’t reflect the effect the sinking had on the rest of the world. The Titanic was supposed to be the safest boat ever built. Thousands put their trust in it. Yet it sank.

It’s hard to imagine the devastation that was felt by the family and friends of its passengers and crew members. A different, but equally as real, devastation must also have been felt by the people responsible for building the boat. And, across the world, seafarers may well have lost confidence in the safety of their own vessels when something as ‘unsinkable’ as the Titanic was lost.

Having our confidence shaken or our trust betrayed is truly horrible. Sometimes, it is difficult to make yourself vulnerable and place your trust in someone or something in the first place. It can be especially hard when you’re putting your trust in something you don’t yet know.

Believing in God may often seem like a leap in the dark, and it can be scary. However, millions of Christians have found that, when they have placed their trust in him, he never lets them down. Even if other people disappoint them or circumstances don’t work out as they hope, they can always face these situations knowing that God is with them, helping them.

They take encouragement from the Bible, which records God as saying: ‘I will never leave you; I will never abandon you’ (Hebrews 13:5 New Century Version).

God offers that same reassurance today to anyone who will put their trust in him. Regardless of what is going on in our lives, we don’t have to despair. God will never let us down.

It’s hard to imagine the devastation

9 April 2022 • WAR CRY • 13

1. Glasgow. 2. What’s going on?

3 The Shawshank Redemption. 4. 300 metres.

5. Little Richard. 6. Liz Truss.

PUZZLES Quick CROSSWORD

SUDOKU

ACROSS 1. Beaming (7) 5. Clouded (5) 7. Vogue (7) 8. Drench (5) 10. Portent (4) 11. Frightful (8) 13. Mean (6) 14. Achieve (6) 17. Customary (8) 19. Carry (4) 21. Long for (5) 22. Severe (7) 23. Bellow (5) 24. Feared (7)

DOWN 2. Disagree (7) 3. Keen (4) 4. Loudspeaker (6) 5. Temperate (8) 6. Fill tightly (5) 7. Stupidly (9) 9. Irrational (9) 12. Intuition (8) 15. Tipped off (7)

Fill the grid so that every column, every row and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1 to 9

2 7

9

7 6

4 8 1 6

5 8 9 2 6 5 1 4 8 4 6 1 4 6 3 7 4 3 2 1 16. Frank (6) 18. Well done (5) 20. Docile (4)

WORDSEARCH

2 7 8 3 5 4 1 9 5 9 1 7 6 2 4 8 Look up, down, forwards, backwards and diagonally on the grid to find 3 these 6 4Shakespeare 9 8 1plays 2 5 4 3 5 2 1 6 9 7 U Q T Z X J P S O T V N I Q N B X J 2 K6Z W 8 V7V 3 1 Q J J H C U B9L U U P5N W P R K H L L Z A GO KWE L U T N E 8 1 7 4 9 5 6 3 B FWK H I A V B K VWY I I R S R 8 E2 I 1 U A S Y O U L7 I K T Z4T 9 O G3 L 6 H Q Q S B R S U H I N E Q U MM R H S 1 5 3 6 2 7 8 4 C B U H Z C F K T R Q S E Q Z R E E 5 Y3Z M 8 O7N 2 M X R W Q A L6E 4I V9A O H

M O HONEYC B Each solution starts on the coloured cell and reads clockwise round the number 1. Type of cake 2. Turn upside down 3. Part of a tree 4. Noisy disturbance 5. Move quickly 6. Support

A R M K D Q W I Q Z

ANSWERS 2 5 3 4 9 8 7 1 6

7 9 6 3 2 1 8 5 4

8 1 4 5 6 7 2 3 9

4

3 7 9 2 8 4 1 6 5

5 6 8 1 7 9 4 2 3

4 2 1 6 3 5 9 7 8

3 3

1 4 2 9 5 6 3 8 7

9 8 5 7 1 3 6 4 2

6 3 7 8 4 2 5 9 1

2 1 7

HONEYCOMB 1. Sponge. 2. Invert. 3. Branch.

4. Fracas. 5. Whoosh. 6. Uphold.

QUICK CROSSWORD ACROSS: 1. Radiant. 5. Misty. 7. Fashion.

8. Douse. 10. Omen. 11. Horrific. 13. Intend.

14. Attain. 17. Habitual. 19. Bear. 21. Yearn.

22. Drastic. 23. Shout. 24. Dreaded.

DOWN: 2. Dissent. 3. Avid. 4. Tannoy.

5. Moderate. 6. Stuff. 7. Foolishly.

9. Eccentric. 12. Instinct. 15. Alerted.

16. Candid. 18. Bravo. 20. Tame.

14 • WAR CRY • 9 April 2022

5

D N H Q D E I T S B

I I H Z L I E U T N

S S O X H T A R DM W I C I E P WE QM

E S A R N L N E L F

R H I O U F E F F G

C S R J D X V T T S

D D D Y U C F H H C

AS YOU LIKE IT HAMLET HENRY VIII JULIUS CAESAR KING LEAR MACBETH MERCHANT OF VENICE OTHELLO

N N Q P V R O D N I

A G I R T L T D I L

S U L U L G N X G Q

U H T E B C A M H T

L F H F A L H Q T N

I T N E E R C Z I Q

O G G P L A R E E O

R Y V I I I E B Q Z

T F O G N I M A T K

RICHARD III ROMEO AND JULIET TAMING OF THE SHREW TITUS ANDRONICUS TROILUS AND CRESSIDA TWELFTH NIGHT WINTER’S TALE

6 3 7 8 4 2 5 9 1

Spanish torrijas Ingredients 3 British Lion eggs 150ml milk 1tsp vanilla extract 5tbsp icing sugar, sifted 12 x 1.5cm-thick baguette slices Sunflower oil 1tsp ground cinnamon 300g berries

Method Whisk the eggs with the milk, vanilla extract and 2tbsp icing sugar in a large bowl. Add the baguette slices and turn them over until they are thoroughly soaked.

Heat a little oil in a large non-stick pan over a medium heat and cook a few soaked bread slices for 1-2 minutes, until golden. Turn them over and continue cooking for a further minute.

Transfer to a warm plate and repeat with the remaining slices.

Mix together the remaining 3tbsp icing sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.

Dust the torrijas with the sugar and cinnamon mixture and sprinkle the berries over, to serve.

SERVES

4

Portuguese cod bake Ingredients 4 British Lion eggs 750g small waxy potatoes, cut into 0.5cm-thick slices 1 large onion, thinly sliced 4tbsp extra virgin olive oil Salt and ground black pepper 75g mixed pitted olives, sliced Large handful parsley leaves 450g skinless, boneless cod fillet, cut into 4cm chunks Lemon wedges, to serve

Method Heat the oven to 190C/375F/ Gas Mark 5.

Boil the eggs in a pan for 6 minutes, then allow them to cool and set aside.

Add the potatoes to another pan of boiling water, and boil for 5 minutes.

Add the onion and drizzle with 2tbsp oil. Season with salt and pepper.

Mix well and bake in the oven for 20 minutes.

Remove the dish from the oven and add the olives and parsley. Return to the oven for 10 minutes.

Add the cod to the dish and drizzle with the remaining 2tbsp oil. Cook for a further 15 minutes, until the cod is just cooked through.

Meanwhile, shell the eggs and slice each in half. Add to the cooked cod dish and place in the oven for a few minutes to warm through, before serving with lemon wedges.

SERVES

2

Recipes reprinted, with permission, from the British Egg Information Service website egginfo.co.uk

9 April 2022 • WAR CRY • 15

Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me Psalm 23:4 (New International Version)

WAR CRY