This Theological Reflection called “Strength and Dignity” was written in a single morning by Amelia, at a creative workshop run by Capital Youth in the summer of 2022.
Watch the video below or scroll down for the transcript of the piece.
Strength and Dignity
Have you ever thought about the women in the Bible? There are many. Not as many as the men, but what the women did was incredible.
In mark 15 verse 40, it showed that the women stayed – they stayed and waited for Jesus. They were the first and last people to see him on the cross when he died. It described the men as being scared and worried, about what would happen if they were there. You could interpret from this that the women were persecuted so much that they literally did not care what else people thought of them.
Mary the mother of Jesus, was the first to see him, as she was the one that gave birth to him. They were first to see him after he was resurrected; Mary Magdalen and Mary, the mother of Jesus, saw him and believed, whereas some of the male disciples even struggled to believe it was Jesus and had to see him to believe.
What would you have done? Would you have stayed and waited at the feet of Jesus as Mary did, as she wanted to commit herself to faith and be an active disciple? Or would you wait and make sure, see the wounds and then believe?
My hope is, that going forward we can be clothed in strength and dignity – and laugh without fear of the future, like the women in the Bible did.
Written and read by Amelia Stead, 16.
To find out more about youth participation in the Diocese of London, visit the children and youth support page.