WEARER OF THE WEEK - March 18th. 2006

Name
Jonathan Lord

Where do you live?
The West End of Glasgow.

How do you spend your time?
Working in motor sport; doing part-time market research; singing in two choirs; Vestry Secretary and magazine editor for St Bride's Episcopal Church in Glasgow; supporting Dunfermline Athletic in football and Hampshire in cricket.

What difference does your faith make to the way you approach life?
I hope that it gives me the tolerance to see the other person's point of view most of the time; and the courage to stand up for what I believe is the right course of action.

What is your earliest memory of church/religion/spirituality?
I remember the Archdeacon of Bath coming to visit my mother when I was about four.
Rock and roll had just come in, and I bade him farewell with the words "See you later, alligator!".
I also remember visits to Bristol Cathedral where there were annual carol services for readers of the Robin comic, and evening services at St Paul's, Beith in the early 1960s.
I'm afraid I became quite an expert on the Prayer Book pages which explain how to calculate the date of Easter in the year 2199 during some of the less inspiring sermons!
Later on, the style of churchmanship and worship at All Saints' Church in St Andrews, where I was a student, was an enormous influence. The Rector there, Canon Macdonald ("Father Mac") left his mark on generations of students.

How would you describe your spiritual journey so far?
Doing my best to follow the road book, but a few unscheduled diversions along the way.

For what in your life are you most grateful to God?
For allowing me to be brought up by parents who sacrificed a lot for me and supported me in everything I did. For giving me reasonably good health and for allowing me to see my son Richard develop from a baby to a confident 18 year old who towers over me.

Which part of your character do you feel God has done most work on?
I hope he has given me the virtues of tolerance, reliability and loyalty to my friends, for which I am grateful.

Which do you feel needs a bit of work?
The part which encourages me to procrastinate – filling in this questionnaire is a case in point! And how I wish he had blessed me with a better memory for faces and the ability to recognise people when I meet them out of context: my failures in this respect have been a lifelong source of embarrassment.

If you could witness an incident in the Old AND New Testament, what would they be and why?
The Old Testament one should really be Jehu driving furiously, but he never entered the Scottish Rally so I'll go for Noah building and loading up the Ark. The logistical challenge of building the vessel, preventing the lions from eating the zebras and keeping an eye on the weather the whole time has a certain appeal.
For the New Testament, I would go for the denial of Christ by Peter: I don't think anyone really knows how they would respond to being put to the test in this way, and I think many of us would react in the same way as Peter. It's always been one of the most dramatic moments in J S Bach's St Matthew Passion for me.

Is there a particular Bible verse which you keep in mind?
Hebrews 13:8: "Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today and for ever".
A particular hymn?
"The strife is o'er" to the tune "Victory" is the ultimate Resurrection hymn for me.

How did you first encounter Holy Socks?
I was given my first pair (Jonah) as a stocking filler (or should that be a sock filler?) by my late mother at Christmas 2002. As this was her last Christmas, they have a special significance.

Which design and to whom would you like us to send a pair of Holy Socks?
Alison Gifford, who sings with me in the choir at St Bride's and preserves my sanity with supportive e-mails and the occasional glass of red wine, deserves a pair.

Where have Holy Socks walked on your feet?
Various motor sport events throughout the country ranging from racing and rallying to karting.

Thanks Jonathan, I look forward to meeting up sometime at a motorsport event.

The Wearer of the Week feature will be returning regularly shortly.