Last month we launched our very own Church Magazine. This replaced the Parish News, which had served all three churches in the Parish of Upton-cum-Chalvey for many years.

This month we are launching the magazine officially, with more content, more contributors and, most importantly of all, a name!

The name GRIDIRON comes from the story of St Laurence, who was the Archdeacon of Rome sometime in the third century. During one of the persecutions, Laurence was ordered to deliver all of the church’s wealth to the Prefect. Laurence asked for three days, at the end of which he took the tyrant to a building where he said all the riches of the church had been gathered. Laurence opened the door and presented the Prefect with all the poor, sick and crippled people that he could find.

The Prefect unfortunately didn’t appreciate the joke and ordered that Laurence be tied to a GRIDIRON and thoroughly grilled. Laurence is said to have kept his sense of humour to the last, and told his tormentors, "You can turn me over, I think this side’s done!"

So why call the magazine the GRIDIRON? I suspect the person who suggested the name meant it as a joke. Perhaps they were suggesting that church magazines can often be instruments of torture. If they were then I’m sure St Laurence would have approved. After all he seems to have had a quite unique sense of humour!

But perhaps there are other reasons for using the name? One of the most powerful Christian symbols is the Cross, which was for many years considered as a symbol of shame and darkness - the instrument of torture on which Jesus was executed. But the Church soon came to realise that it was through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross that he was able to bring salvation and hope to the whole world. The cross was therefore transformed from being an object of shame to become a symbol of Christ’s victory - a symbol of hope in the midst of darkness.

Many people in the early church believed that it was a great honour to be martyred for the sake of the Gospel. They often went to their deaths joyfully because they believed that they were being given the privilege of sharing in the sufferings of Christ on the Cross. St Laurence probably saw the GRIDIRON as being his Cross and therefore something valuable and precious.

For us the GRIDIRON reminds us of the passionate commitment that St Laurence had for those in need. As far as he was concerned the poor and the sick were more precious than silver and gold - more valuable to him than his own life. Our connection with St Laurence reminds us of Christ’s call to follow him in a life of self-sacrificial love.

The GRIDIRON also reminds us of the fact that hope is always possible in the midst of despair and darkness. We know that life is not always perfect or ideal, but we also know that God is present with us in our pain and sorrow - that he is always able to turn our darkness into light. As St Laurence faced martyrdom in the certain hope that God would receive him, so we face our own troubles and difficulties in the knowledge that God is with us.

Our new magazine celebrates the GRIDIRON as a symbol of service and hope. As we launch this new project we pray that we will continue to share that hope together as a community for many years ahead.