Lesson in trust from St Lawrence of Warkworth

There has been a Church of St Lawrence in the same place in Warkworth since 737AD and it has a tragic history but an inspiring presence. In 1174 King William of Lion entered Warkworth and set fire to the church building in which 300 of the women and children from the town had sought refuge--all perished. As I entered the church me this morning two things struck me: The first were the stained glass windows above the alter which were illuminated by glorious sunshine streaming through (see pic left taken with my Blackberry phone); The second, was the well stocked display of cards, books, gifts and candles near the entrance with an 'Honesty box' for purchases. I was imbued with a sense of trust in an age when transparency is all we have left--banks of CCTV cameras, bar codes, tags, cabinets, barriers, suspicious officials tell us that we are all suspected thieves who certainly can't be trusted. But, here was a church leading stating through its open door policy that they trusted the visitor to be honest and responsible. Now a number of churches will have similar arrangements but minimise the downside by only having on display a few dog-eared postcards and a photocopied guide. My guess is that most visitors, like myself, will find it so inspiring to be trusted that they will cough up not only the face price of the good purchased but a bit more besides. I am with the leaders of St Lawrence and am optimistic about human nature--in short, I believe that the vast majority of people can be trusted to do the right thing, not because they are being watched but because they are moral beings and desire to do write rather than wrong--given he chance.