In the program Grand Designs, host Kevin McCloud walks with people who are transforming often old buildings into new and beautiful designs. I had a little experience with this when I was in Nowra Parish and the old parish hall, which for many years was used by the school as classrooms, but had been laying abandoned for more than a decade. Because experts judged that the building’s fabric was essentially sound, it was better – and cheaper – to renovate the space for a new parish centre, rather than demolishing it and starting again. But once it had been gutted, many questions arose – such as how much space to allow for the various elements, like large meeting spaces, offices, catechist centre; do you keep the existing flooring / walls / ceiling, or do you add in a new ceiling to allow for air-conditioning and new lighting. The process is a little similar to what St Peter leads us through in the opening section of his first letter, which we will journey with during the season of Easter. Just as you need to examine the breadth, height and depth of a room to make sure it suits its purpose, so also in the Christian life we need to determine a similar reality.
Recorded at St Mary’s, Leppington 8am (9’03’)
Second Sunday of Easter, Year A (Sunday of Divine Mercy)
1 Peter 1:3-9