The Lion Sermon

Sir John Gayer, a merchant and sometime Lord Mayor of London, was once travelling in the Syrian desert and came across a lion. Terrified he would be attacked, Sir John cried out to God for rescue - and the lion left him alone. In grateful thanks for his safety, on his return Sir John gave money to the parish of St Katharine Cree for the benefit of the poor and for the preaching of an annual sermon - the 'Lion Sermon'.

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Each year, a sermon is preached on the theme of facing challenges with the help of God.

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The 378th Lion Sermon will be given at a Choral Evensong in October 2027. Come back to this page in the New Year for details.

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You can read the 2026 Order of Service here.

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For recent past sermons:

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• The 377th Lion Sermon was given by Cardinal George Jacob Koovakad, Prefect of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue in the Vatican.

• The 376th Lion Sermon was given by Professor Vincent Rougeau, the first leader of a Catholic institution to preach it and the President of the College of the Holy Cross, MA.

• The 375th Lion Sermon was given by Elizabeth Oldfield, author of Fully Alive: Tending to the Soul in Turbulent Times (2024) and host of The Sacred podcast since 2017.

• The 374th Lion Sermon was given by Luljeta Nuzi, founder and CEO of the Shpresa Programme and an inspirational leader of London's Albanian community.

• The 373rd Lion Sermon was given by the Rev'd Josh Harris, the Priest-in-Charge of St Katharine Cree, about the new chapter of ministry in this church. It can be downloaded here.