28 July 2025

Prince- Archbishop, Father Adelhard,

Now at the pinnacle of priesthood,

I say to thee, Farewell.

Almighty God grant all go well with thee.

Be an honour to the church, follow Christ’s word,

Clear in thy task and careful in thy speech.

Be thine an open hand, a merry heart,

Christ in thy mouth, life that all men may know

A love of righteousness and compassion.

The poem was written by the eighth century Yorkshire schoolmaster, Alcuin. When he was fifty, he left York to take over Charlemagne’s Palace School. It’s from there that he wrote to his friend, Adelhard.

He had just become the Archbishop of Canterbury. Alcuin gives him some useful advice. ‘Be thine an open hand, a merry heart.’ And he describes his achievement as ‘the pinnacle of priesthood’.

Whether we reach high office or not, the advice which Alcuin gives is well-suited not only to priests and ministers but to elders and members of the Kirk.

We desire to follow Christ’s Word and to do so with clarity and care.  We should be intentional about the work we do and careful in what we say. The open hand and merry heart creates transparency and joy.

But, most of all, we are to be little sermons whereby our words and, indeed, our actions speak about the love of God in Christ and provide the best humus for the Holy Spirit to harvest good.

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