I have had so many thoughts and prayers over the last nearly two years, but not been able to put into words what I’m thinking and feeling.
Many times I have been on the edge of posting, but not been able to.
Today, I was listening to a short passage from the Gospel of Luke in my daily ‘Pray as you go‘ … here it is:
And the child’s father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, ‘This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too.’ Luke 2:33-35
The child is Jesus. Simeon is a priest in the temple in Jerusalem. Mary and Joseph have brought Jesus at 40 days old to present him to the Lord. The words said to Mary are disturbing. They point to the way that Jesus will speak truth to the powers of his day, and the opposition that he will receive as a consequence.
Having listened to the reading a couple of times, I was invited to think about a character that I identified with in the passage. Or maybe I would like to imagine holding the baby in my arms ?
I’m writing this as we are surrounded by ugliness. By actions and words that spread hate and violence.
We are in the middle of the unlawful and genocidal actions of the Zionist state of Israel.
In addition we have to contend with racism directed at those seeking refuge in our land.
All around we see forces at work that are not rooted in compassion and understanding, but cruelty and ignorance.
I imagine myself in the middle of all of this, and ask myself what do I do, or say.
Do I shout out ?
“From the river to the sea …”
Yes, I have joined in those chants, and will still do so.
Do I hold up a placard ?
“Free Palestine, save Gaza”
Yes, I have done that each week in a public space this year, and will continue to do so.
But today, I have an image of myself with thousands of people simply holding babies.
No chants,
No words,
No placards.
Just holding a baby in my arms.
To hold a placard I would need to put the baby down, or give the precious bundle to someone else.
To shout a chant I might disturb this sleeping infant.
The most important thing in my mind is to protect this baby, who speaks to me of vulnerability, of non-violence, of possibility, of innocence.
Maybe this could be a worldwide Christian witness to the self giving love of that tiny babe.
Thousands, millions of people simply holding a baby in their arms.
A witness to the disrupting power of non-violence.
Join me.
N.B. this would be intended as a symbolic protest, in case you thought I was suggesting we put real babies in danger.
Tag: Jesus
So, It’s Been A While
Around 20 years ago, we came a across a small Human Rights organistion called Amos Trust … named for some words in the Hebrew Bible (The book of the prophet Amos chapter 5) …
But let justice roll on like a river righteousness like a never-failing stream!
The particular aspect of their work that we support is working for Justice and peace in what one middle eastern Christian has called ‘The Land of the Holy One’
Our introduction to this came when we learned about the wall of separation that creates enclosed, shut off areas for Palestinians. We learned about the restrictions on Palestinians, and the many inequalities that they suffer.
For 20 years now, we have been learning about the roots of these injustices … which go back over 100 years – with key moments like the Balfour declaration in 1917, which started the path for the Jewish state, and everything that has happened since.
We’re seeing that all play out in a horrific way now in Gaza, in the West Bank, and in the last couple of days, the escalation in Lebanon.
So – I was looking at a part of Luke’s Gospel, in the New Testament, as I was preparing to take a service last week in our weekday service of Holy Communion.
In the early chapter of Luke’s Gospel, we see Jesus healing people on the edge of socoety – outcasts. We see Jesus healing on the Sabbath, which in the eyes of the religious leaders amounted to breaking the commandment to keep the Sabbath holy. We see Jesus calling working class fishermen to be his close followers. We see him calling even a tax collector. Jesus is pronouncing forgiveness, another aspect of what he’s doing that would have outraged the religious leaders. His teaching is even openly critical of them as rule bound and narrow.
And now Jesus has been invited to the house of a pharisee – for them to check him out. Test him. See if he really is as bad as they think.
Now there is a woman – described as ‘sinful woman,’ who has very likely heard Jesus, or at least been told enough about him to know that she needs what he is offering – that is, the opportunity for a fresh start. She hears that Jesus has been invited to the pharisee’s house and she turns up. She would have sat around the edge of the room, hoping for some food when the meal has finished. She’s waiting for Jesus to arrive, and she has come to offer thanks to him for his teaching about forgiveness. She has come prepared with some perfume. Maybe she doesn’t yet know how this is all going to work out, but she’s there because Jesus is there. She is there in reponse to knowing that she is forgiven.
Then Jesus arrives. But something is wrong. Simon, the host, does not give Jesus the customary kiss of greeting, or provide Jesus with the oil and water to wash himself. It’s an insult, and everyone knows it. And the woman sees it.
So she decides to do what Simon should have done. She has no water with which to wash Jesus’ feet, but she has her tears, and washes his feet with her tears.
She has no oil to anoint his head, but she anoints his feet with the perfume she has bought.
Simon should have given Jesus a kiss of greeting, so she kissed Jesus’ feet.
I have heard many sermons on these verses, and they have often been used to encourage us to think about our worship. What is it that we bring to Jesus ? The woman brought what was most precious – valuable perfumed ointment. Should we not also offer to Jesus the things that are most precious – our whole self ?
That’s one way to read the verses. I would like to suggest another, that seems to fit with the way Jesus’ ministry is developing.
The woman is acting in solidarity with Jesus. She is confused as to why Jesus has not had the greeting that was usual. She understands that it is an insult. But she is willing to take a risk and do for Jesus what Simon should have done.
And how will Jesus respond, after the outrageous behaviour of the woman ? The assembled pharisees might have expected him, in his position as a religious teacher, (however much they might have been suspicious of him) to be uncomfortable, even hostile to what the woman has done.
But Jesus comes to her defence. He sides with her. He acts in solidarity with her. And by doing so, he will further antagonise the religious leaders and demonstrate that what he has come to do is not limited to working within the boundaries of what they accept. He has come to challenge the very dynamics of power that exist.
And the call to us is to follow his lead. To see where power is being used to oppress, and stand in solidarity with those who are suffering.
We want to stand with all who are suffering, whatever ‘side’ they are on. But as far as the land of the Holy One is concerned, we stand with the people of Gaza and the Occupied Territories of the West Bank, and campaign for a just peace that gives Palestinians equality and dignity that is rightfully theirs.
Why I Believe In Jesus
There’s a passage in John’s Gospel, (Chapter 5 verses 31 – 47) where Jesus explains reasons for people to people in him. Here they are:
1 John the Baptist. John came with a message of truth, and an important part of that message pointed to Jesus.
2 The works that Jesus was doing. Even more than John’s witness, the works that Jesus was doing were evidence.
3 God the Father. The Father also gives witness to Jesus, but where minds are closed, and there is a refusal to believe, it is impossible to hear his voice.
4 The Scriptures. Openness to hear the truths contained in the written word leads to a revelation of the ‘Living Word’ (Jesus)
So, the question is – why do I believe in Jesus ?
- The people who, like John the Baptist, showed me Jesus.
My Sunday School teacher, Jim Gravett. Jim was also a teacher at my secondary school, so I saw his faith lived out in the work setting as well as at church. I remember outings that we went on a children – sometimes a walk in the Sussex countryside, after which we would all go back to Jim’s house where he and his wife would cook us something like beans on toast. Simple hospitality that I remember from 50+ years ago. Jim kept a range of animals at the bottom of the garden and we were captivated by watching his ferrets run around the garden. Jim kept chickens at school as well, and would take the left over communion bread and feed it to the hens. An earthy, simple faith.
Bob and Julie Phipps, who attended our church, and experienced several bereavements – losing a son in a road accident and another son as well – I can’t remember the circumstances. Yet they were the most alive and faith filled couple I knew. They talked about their faith with enthusiasm; they believed that God answered prayer, and had a long string of faith stories to prove it.
My parents, who brought me up in a relaxed way that allowed me to take things at my pace, and never forced things on me.
My uncle Hugh and Aunty Mary. Hugh would look for opportunities to have a one to one with his nephews and nieces and would be sure to ask us how things were between us and God. They were both so generous with their home, having an open table on a Sunday lunch time for anyone to join the family. I spent so many Sundays with them when I was a student, enjoying the food and the company.
Gareth Bolton, a primary school teacher who would spend every holiday working with a Christian mission agency. His faith in action was inspiring. His charity, AMEN, is now supporting thousands of small communities around the world.
David and Dorothy Bond; David was the vicar of St James Church in Selby, North Yorkshire, and set for me an example of Christian leadership. A gentle, humble man, with a passionate faith. Together David and Dorothy modelled hospitality and welcomed us into the church and into their lives. - The works of God/Jesus that I have seen in my own life and in the lives of others. Christians who have lived a life of faith, whilst experiencing great suffering and difficulty. Answers to prayers that have sometimes been ‘yes’, sometimes ‘no,’ and sometimes ‘not now.’
- God. Always trying to live with an openness to what God is doing in me and around me. A sense of God’s care – what the Old Testament calls ‘steadfast love and faithfulness.’
- The Scriptures. So many times God has spoken to me through something in scripture. I wish I had written them all down, because my memory lets me down. I will read a passage, or a verse, and it will immediately connect with something that I am asking, or something I am about to do. I have heard it called serendipity, but for me it is God at work, and it happens so often that I couldn’t explain it away.
Here’s the passage – John 5:31-47
Witnesses to Jesus
31 If I speak for myself, there is no way to prove I am telling the truth. 32 But there is someone else who speaks for me, and I know what he says is true. 33 You sent messengers to John, and he told them the truth. 34 I don’t depend on what people say about me, but I tell you these things so that you may be saved. 35 John was a lamp that gave a lot of light, and you were glad to enjoy his light for a while.
36 But something more important than John speaks for me. I mean the things that the Father has given me to do! All of these speak for me and prove that the Father sent me.
37 The Father who sent me also speaks for me, but you have never heard his voice or seen him face to face. 38 You have not believed his message, because you refused to have faith in the one he sent.
39 You search the Scriptures, because you think you will find eternal life in them. The Scriptures tell about me, 40 but you refuse to come to me for eternal life.
41 I don’t care about human praise, 42 but I do know that none of you love God. 43 I have come with my Father’s authority, and you have not welcomed me. But you will welcome people who come on their own. 44 How could you possibly believe? You like to have your friends praise you, and you don’t care about praise that the only God can give!
45 Don’t think that I will be the one to accuse you to the Father. You have put your hope in Moses, yet he is the very one who will accuse you. 46 Moses wrote about me, and if you had believed Moses, you would have believed me. 47 But if you don’t believe what Moses wrote, how can you believe what I say?
Do I agree with Jesus ?
I was reading today in Matthew’s Gospel Chapter 26. Jesus is at the home of someone called Simon the Leper. An unnamed woman anoints his head with a very expensive far of prefumed oil. The disciples are not happy – the oil could have been sold and the money used for the poor. Jesus disagrees – ‘You will always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me …what she has done today will be remembered whenever the Gospel is preached’
How do we read scripture ? It’s easy to assume that we’re supposed to read it from the ‘right’ point of view. This usually means seeing it from the perspective of the ‘good’ person. To be on the side of the angels. To see things from the point of view of the underdog. To side with the poor.
So in this passage, I want to see it from the disciples’ angle. I think they’re right. The money could have been used for the poor. And I would hope that Jesus would agree, and tell her to stop. But he doesn’t. Uhh ?
Any thoughts ?
Grace and Peace.
Song for Today #13
Talk about Suffering
When I started on thinking about suffering, this song came to mind. As far as I can tell it’s origins are ‘traditional’
It sounds like a song written out of real experience – like so many of the spirituals yearning for a more just life. My guess is that the sufferings come from injustice and poverty.
For the person of faith that yearning has often been expressed as hope in life after death. Heaven, Paradise, Shangri La, Elysium etc. That may be because there doesn’t seem to be any real possibility for this life getting any better, so our only hope is in heaven.
Cries such as this however must lead in the direction of change here and now.
I like to find a live version which is here, showcasing Phil Keaggy’s amazing guitar work. Talk about Suffering – Phil Keaggy
but this is Phil Keaggy’s recorded version. Talk about Suffering
Nine Beats
A few years ago, at the Greenbelt Festival, I came across a group called the Nine Beats Collective
who were running some sessions based around the ancient wisdom of nine sayings of Jesus.
These sayings of Jesus all start with the word blessed – blessed are you when …
So I went to the sessions, and I bought a little book – The Ninefold Path – that contained some reflections and spiritual exercises, but it stayed on my bookshelf – that is until this week.
I had actually been thinking about the book last week sometime, and on Monday I decided to have a look at in my daily prayer time. So I took the book, along with my Bible and my notebook and sat down to read. First, I looked to see what my daily reading from the Bible was, and could hardly believe it when I saw that it was those exact same sayings of Jesus from Matthew’s Gospel!
I just love it when that happens. Call it synchronicity if you like. It’s when God says something through the daily events of life. It happens a lot actually if you look out for it.
That encouraged me to take The Ninefold Path book and look at it seriously. So this week, I have been focusing on Beatitude no. 1 – Blessed are the poor in Spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Essentially this is saying that the most important thing that God is looking for in us is a willingness to let go of the idea that it’s all about our own efforts. All that God has for us is gift. We simply have to see our poverty and need, and receive.
So each day this week, among other things, I’ve been asking myself:
What am I thankful for today ?
What do I need today ?
One of the the things I love about these sayings of Jesus is that they are so accessible. You don’t need to be a religious (as in Churchy) person to benefit from them. You don’t need a degree in theology. You don’t even need to have much in the way of believing in God actually, just an openness to learn and receive. There’s wisdom here to help anyone in daily life.
You’re blessed when you’ve come to the end of your own resources. With less of you there is more of God and his way of living.
Work Of Love And Grace
Today’s question – What could be different about church ?
I came across a verse today in psalm 68 – I’m reading the New Revised Standard Version
verse 9:
Rain in abundance, O God, you showered abroad;
you restored your heritage when it languished;
you restored your heritage when it languished;
I’m taking God’s heritage here as the Church of God. And in this country and in so many secular, Post Christendon societies, the Church of God has lost its edge.
So the hope held out here is that God will restore the Church.
Rain in abundance: this reminds us that this restoration will be a work of God. We do not send the rain, this is not something that we can control.
You showered abroad: I realise that translations vary enormously, but the word that came to me today through this phrase was another hope – that God’s renewal would be widespread.
In the latter half of the 20th century, there was a widespread renewal in worship, with greater openness to the work of the Holy Spirit.
What I am praying for is a greater openness now to the Holy Spirit breaking down the walls of the church to spread God’s goodness and grace.
There’s a story in the Gospel about the woman who brought a jar of precious perfume to Jesus – she broke it open and poured it over Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
What I pray for is for the world to filled with the gracious works of the Holy Spirit through God’s church. Of course those works of love and grace are not absent now, but we long for more.
The Scribes Mark 2:6-12
Mark 2:6-12
‘The Scribes and the Pharisees’ will appear more and more as Mark’s Gospel continues. But this is their first appearance, and it’s the first sign of conflict between Jesus and the religious leaders. We had a hint in an earlier incident, when the people in the synangogue comment that Jesus is not like the scribes (the scribes were the acknowledged experts in the religious law).
In this exchange, the scribes object to Jesus telling a paralysed man that his sins are forgiven. (Only God can forgive sin) Jesus responds by healing the man, as if to say – ‘You want to know if I have authority to forgive sin, well yes I do!’
The scribes thought that they knew what religion was all about. Thier job was to know the scriptures and to interpret them. But for them it had become a set of rules to follow rather than a relationship to grow in. When religion has become just a set of rules or rituals, rather than a relationship, then we have lost it.
It happens in all areas of life, not just religion. And some people stick to rules not just for themselves, but so that they can control others. But it is especially dangerous when people use God, or rules about religion, to exercise control over others.
The Importance Of The Old
Mar 1:2-2
What Jesus brings is not a new religion. We have enough of that. More than enough. Jesus was rooted in the Old Testament scriptures, in the faith of his ancestors. What Jesus brought was a fulfilment of the promises made long ago.
These words are addressed TO Jesus ‘See I am sending my messenger ahead of you’
The old is often rejected in favour of the new. The old is often scorned. It’s boring, irrelevant. But this new thing that Jesus does is rooted in the ancient revelation of God through the prophets. Christians (especially evangelical and charistmatic ones) sometimes think that by singing a load of new songs and listening to inspirational preaching, we can get everything we need to feed our spirit.
This is in danger of being Do it Yourself Christianity. There are ancient ways of reading, and praying and living that we miss at our peril
Five Short Words 