I am praying for peace this Easter ...love will triumph

I’M OFTEN asked hard questions. The most direct are usually from schoolchildren. What exactly do you do? I’m the Vicar for the vicars. I’m a voice for the Christian faith.

- Stephen Cottrell

And sometimes the most painful. What football team do you support? Spurs. I am, as the Bible says, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. Though things are picking up a bit.

But the hardest and most important are about God. How do you know God? How can I know God? How can I be close to God?

My answers vary.

I find God in the beauty of God’s creation.

I find God in the beauty of worship.

I find God in the inspiring example of people’s lives, especially those who live lives of generosity and sacrifice.

I find God in silence.

I find God in stillness.

However, I am one of those people who don’t find silence and stillness easy. I have discovered that in order for my mind and heart to be still, my body needs to be moving.

So I love to walk. I especially love to go on pilgrimage.

In a few months’ time, I’m embarking on a long walk along the 62-mile St Cuthbert Way between the Scottish Borders town of Melrose to Holy Island off the coast of Northumberland.

Consequently, the time when I maybe feel closest to God each day is when I walk the dog – our new rather bouncy Cocker Spaniel, Molly.

Each day begins with a walk. It is also when I find myself facing hard questions.

The story of Holy Week and Easter also generates some big questions. Most of all, what does this story of suffering and this very strange story of resurrection mean for us today?