Cathedral News
Sunday 10 May - Sunday 24 May
A Warm Welcome
The church year offers many opportunities to see our own lives reflected and formed by the wider Christian story. So, for me, this Lent had a particular poignancy as I reflected on how it offers a sort of spiritual declutter, stripping us down to what really matters, our relationship and dependency on God, but also accompanied this time by a household declutter with many trips to recycling centres and charity shops, preparing for that moment when all our lives’ possessions would be packed into one van for the big move.
It was therefore a joy to arrive in Lincoln at the start of Easter – in what, I have been warned, has been unusually warm weather. And so our own new beginning is tied into the great story of new life and new creation in Christ.
In these remaining days of Easter, we transition from sharing in the joy and bewilderment of the first witnesses to unfolding the various mysteries of Easter, in particular Ascension and Pentecost.
Our liturgical time reflects the book of Acts, which places the Ascension forty days after Easter Sunday and Pentecost as fifty days, the word itself derived from the Greek word for ‘fifty’. But this chronological approach is complemented in John’s Gospel with something more
synchronic as the mysteries marked by Easter Sunday, Ascension, and Pentecost are densely woven together and are even implicit on Good Friday.
So John suggests two ‘Pentecost’ moments: in the Upper Room on Easter Sunday, Jesus breathes on the disciples and says ‘Receive the Holy Spirit’, but before that, on the Cross, he bows his head and (in the Greek) ‘gives over the spirit’ – ‘gave up the ghost’ in the King James version. Moreover, this is just after inviting the Beloved Disciple and Mary into a new familial relationship, the start of the Church (‘Behold your mother, your son’), and after his death, blood and water flow from his side, anticipating the Church’s sacraments of Baptism and Eucharist.
Furthermore, in John’s Gospel, the Cross is the moment when Jesus is ‘raised up’ and ‘glorified’, anticipating the Ascension as well as the Resurrection. No wonder that Jesus’ last word on the Cross in John is ‘it is finished’ –accomplished. All of the achievements of Easter are there to be discerned.
So it is that we are given fifty days to allow this to unfold, and now it comes to its climax at Ascension and Pentecost, when Christ brings our humanity to its final heavenly goal and, through the Spirit, we become his body on earth, sustained by his sacraments as we shall then celebrate at Corpus Christi.
Thank you so much for welcoming Linda and me into this, our new Church family, for this exciting new beginning and in this very special place where I know there are many deep wells to explore, as we seek to be Christ’s Easter people.
Kevin Walton, Canon Chancellor
Worship and Mission
Weekly service schedule
Details of services and music can be viewed on the Cathedral’s website. Visit: https://lincolncathedral.com/ worship-music/services-list
Stillpoint
This is a time of guided silent prayer to be still and aware of the presence of God. We meet in the Longland Chantry from 9.15am to 9.45am on the following Mondays: 11 May, 1 June, 6 July, 7 September, 5 October, 2 November, 7 December
Ascension Day Thursday 14 May
All are welcome to join us for any of our services on Ascension Day, including:
7.am - Eucharist (in the Morning Chapel) followed by breakfast in the Cathedral Café
5.30pm - Festal Evensong (St Hugh’s Choir)
7pm - Sung Eucharist (joint with St Mary Magdalene, Lincoln) at St Paul in the Bail.
Choral Mattins
Choral Mattins is held once a month on a Sunday at 9.30am. The next Choral Mattins services will be: 17 May, 7 June
Ecumenical Procession in Honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Dean and Canon Eddy Jarosz, Parish Priest of St Hugh of Lincoln Roman Catholic Church, will lead a procession from Our Lady of Lincoln Church, Cabourne Avenue (LN2 2HE) to the Cathedral on Saturday 23 May. The procession will begin at 2pm. All welcome. Clergy and servers are invited to robe. Contact the Dean for further details.
Community
Join
the Cathedral Consort
The Cathedral Consort is currently looking to welcome new singers, particularly tenors and basses, to strengthen its ranks for the coming year. This is a friendly and committed group that sings for special services and events, offering the opportunity to perform a wide range of sacred music to a high standard.
We are seeking enthusiastic singers with a passion for choral music. Previous choral experience and the ability to read music are necessary. If you are interested in arranging an audition, please do get in touch with the Music Department for further details – music@lincolncathedral. com
Thy Kingdom Come
Thursday 14 - Sunday 24 May
Thy Kingdom Come (TKC) is a global ecumenical prayer movement that invites Christians around the world to pray from Ascension to Pentecost for the life of the Holy Spirit in our lives and world today. There are various prayer journals and reflections available for download if you would like to join - https://www. thykingdomcome.global/resources-0
Book Group: The Universal Christ, by Richard Rohr
There will be two groups beginning which will provide the opportunity to read and discuss this book. Both will meet monthly. The first meetings for each are:
• 7pm Wed 6 May (contact John and Jeannette Davies)
• 4pm Tue 12 May (contact Rowena King)
The book is available to purchase at the Cathedral Shop.
Bedehouse Concert
Friday 15 May, 7pm
You are warmly invited to an evening of music at the Chapel of St Anne’s Bedehouses on Sewell Road, Lincoln, featuring Ruben Dales, one of our choral scholars, on vocals with musician and composer Colin Dudman on piano.
Tickets are priced at £7 plus booking fee and can be booked using the QR code below.
Pentecost Cakes in the Cloisters - LCCC
Sunday 24 May - After Evensong Tickets are £5 and can be purchased in the Chapter House after Sunday Eucharist at 10.30am. Alternatively you can arrange payment through bank transfer by emailing lccc@lincolncathedral.com
Join the Community Roll
Want to hear more from the Cathedral? Join the Community Roll!
Belonging to our Community Roll allows the Cathedral to contact you, and for you to opt-in to any of our regular communications, including getting the Cathedral News booklet sent to you via email.
In addition, you may also wish to join our Worshipper’s Roll, which is similar to a Parish Church electoral roll, and allows us to connect as a congregation, and for those eligible to vote in elections for Deanery Synod representatives to do so.
If you’d like to join one or both of these rolls, please use the QR code below.
Viking lecture at Stow Minster
Saturday 13 June, 4pm
In the sublime setting of Stow Minster, Dr Johanne Porter will share her research and insights into our Viking history. Afterwards, enjoy refreshments, see the Viking graffiti, and speak with a guide about the history of this ancient church. There will also be updates on the progress made towards setting up a Friends of Stow Minster as an Action Group is launched. For parking on the day, look out for the signs and marshalls. To register your interest, and ask any questions, please email Revd Jane Foster-Smith at jane.foster-smith@lincoln.anglican.org
Reading Rota
We are preparing the next reading rota for Sundays from 15 May to 22 November. We welcome new people to join this important ministry. If you are interested in being a reader, please speak to Muriel Robinson or Lindsey Sutton at coffee after the 10.30am Eucharist (ask someone to point them out if you’re unsure who to look for), or email us at: readingrotas@lincolncathedral.com.
You would typically read once or twice in a half-year rota, and we provide induction and support for new readers. Please contact us if you would like to participate. We look forward to hearing from you!
Cathedral Chat
Thursdays, 3.30pm–4.30pm Fancy a coffee and a chat? Bump into friends old and new and join Rowena, our Canon Missioner, at our welcoming table at the Cathedral Café.
Minibus Driver Vacancy
We have an exciting opportunity for a mini-bus driver to join our team at the Song School. You’ll help transport junior members of the Cathedral Choir to and from the Cathedral and their school during the working week, and occasionally to drive the choir to concerts in the county. If you’re interested in finding out more and applying, visit our websitehttps://lincolncathedral.com/currentvacancies/
Events
Special Summer tours
This summer, enjoy our exciting new tours and uncover details about the Cathedral that are not often heard.
Workshop Tour
Step behind the scenes on a rare workshop tour and meet the stonemasons, joiners, glaziers, plumbers, conservators, and facilities team whose expertise sustains the Cathedral.
Poetry, Prose and Passion Tour
From Geoffrey Chaucer to Lewis Carroll, step inside the magnificent Lincoln Cathedral and journey through almost a thousand years of literary history.
Tickets are now on sale, but spaces are limited and sell fast. Visit our website to find out more and to book your ticketshttps://lincolncathedral.com/cathedraltours/
Lunchtime Recital
Friday 15 May, 1.10pm
Join us for a Lunchtime Recital in the Nave by three members of the Cathedral Choir, performing O Dive Custos: Duets and solo songs by Henry Purcell.
This performance will include Ruben Dales as countertenor, Richard Lindsey as countertenor and on recorder, and Jeffrey Makinson on Chamber Organ.
The Lunchtime Recital is included in your Cathedral Admission. We hope you can join us.
Botanical Bounty Exhibition
Monday 15 June to Sunday 21 June, 10am to 4pm
Lincolnshire Textiles is a longestablished group of textile and embroidery enthusiasts from across the county. ‘Botanical Bounty’ brings together a rich variety of work inspired by the natural world. Leaves, flowers, seeds and organic forms are explored through traditional embroidery, mixed media and experimental textile techniques. While some pieces draw on established traditions, others push materials and processes in new directions, demonstrating how textile practice continues to evolve.
On Sunday 21 June the exhibition will be open from 1pm to 3pm.
Lincoln Symphony Orchestra – Summer Concert
Saturday 20 June, 7.30pm
Join the Lincoln Symphony Orchestra for their summer concert, featuring the Classic FM Hall of Fame 2025 favourite, Piano Concerto No.2 – Sergei Rachmaninoff and Symphony No.3 –Camille Saint-Saëns.
This concert will be conducted by Aric Prentice and lead by Becky Taylor.
Lunchtime Recital – Yipeng Xu
Thursday 25 June, 1.15pm
Please join us for our Lunchtime Recital performed by Lincoln Cathedral Organ Scholar, Yipeng Xu.
This lunchtime recital is included in your Cathedral Admission
For more details of forthcoming events and to book your tickets, go to our website at www.lincolncathedral.com/ events
