Preached at St Alphege Church on Sunday 24th February 2008 at 11am Eucharist
Third Sunday in Lent, Year A
Readings: Exodus 17:1-7 Romans 5:1-11 John 4:5-42
Perhaps, like me, you were sometimes frustrated by the weather last summer. Apparently it was the wettest summer since better records of rainfall started to be collected in 1914. Although autumn 2007 was relatively dry the winter has been wet and flood warnings seem to have become common place. Flooding along the River Severn and the River Avon seems to have become routine and the residents of Tewksbury could be forgiven for wishing that there was far less water around.
How different all this is from Palestine where water is a scarce resource and the perpetual threat is not flooding but rather draught. In biblical Palestine collecting the water needed for the day, was a significant daily task, and one that could become critical in times of draught. Water for drinking, for washing, for watering animals and plants was a precious commodity associated with sustaining life, cleansing bring life to the desert. People in Gloucestershire today may find it rather hard to think of water in such a positive way, but that is the mindset that we need if we are to understand our scripture readings today.
First of all we have the reading from Exodus where the Israelites are in rebellion against Moses and against God because of the lack of water. They start to say that they would have done better to stay in Egypt where at least there was water to drink. Moses asks God what to do. God tells Moses to go and strike a particular rock so that water will flow. Moses does as God tells him, water flows from the rock. The people have plenty to drink and the crisis is averted. However there is something unsatisfactory about the story. It is one of very few places in the bible where God appears to relent to people who are fighting against him. God often relents to people who repent, plead to him or who cry out for help, but it is very rare that he relents to people who struggle against him. Moses names the place Massah (which means trial) and Meribah (which means contention) because there the people put God to the test.
Unease about this incident pervades the Old Testament. The same story is told in the book of Numbers, chapter 20 and in this account God blames Moses and Aaron for their lack of belief during the incident. God declares that Moses and Aaron will not therefore lead the Israelites into the Promised Land. This judgement is repeated in Deuteronomy chapter 32. In Deuteronomy chapter 6 the Lord gives a specific commandment; do not put the Lord your God to the test, as you did at Massah. Psalms 95 and 106 both dwell on the incident, recognising God’s displeasure at being put to the test.
Water is also a key theme in our gospel reading. Jesus talks about the gift of living water, which he wants to give to us. This point comes up in Jesus’ remarkable and wonderful conversation with the Samaritan woman. One of the remarkable things about the conversation is the taboos that it breaks. And these are broken for a very specific purpose. They are broken to show that the love of Jesus, and the gospel message is for everybody… for everybody. The first taboo is that in this kind of situation a man like Jesus would not be expected to talk to a woman. But the gospel is for women every bit as much as it is for men and Jesus does not hesitate to talk to the woman. The second taboo is that as Jew, Jesus would not be expected to talk to a Samaritan. The Jews looked on the Samaritans as a people which had abandoned key parts of its Israelite heritage and religion during the Jewish exile of the sixth century BC. The Samaritans had interbred with other peoples and now practised what the Jews saw as a corrupted version of the Jewish religion based around their own temple on Mount Gerizim. Jews would not voluntarily associate with Samaritans, and would normal seek to avoid travelling through Samaria. But Jesus clearly recognised the Samaritans, like the Jews and the Gentiles, as sons and daughters of the one father in heaven, and so as brothers and sisters to be loved, and as people with whom the gospel should be shared. In his conversation with the Samaritan woman Jesus suggests that although salvation comes from the Jews, it comes for all people. The hour has come when worship will no longer depend on temples, be they in Jerusalem or on the mountain in Samaria. Rather the Heavenly Father seeks anyone who will worship in spirit and in truth. Jesus stayed two days in the Samaritan City to preach and to teach, and we are told that many came to believe in him, because of his word. We are told that they recognised him not so much as the saviour of Israel or the King of the Jews, but rather as the saviour of the World. And so it is that God’s agenda for the messiah and for the Jewish people is shown to be far greater than they had ever imagined. The love of Jesus is for everybody, without distinction; it is a universal love, and the kingdom that this love brings is a kingdom for the whole world.
This fact that Jesus’ love is for everybody…that it is universal, has implications for us as we seek to grow into the likeness of Christ on our journey towards heaven. We too are called to love everybody and this is very challenging. It is usually easy to love the people who we instinctively like, but it is much harder to love the people we don’t like. It is usually fairly easy to love people who are like us, from similar backgrounds and with similar aspirations, but it is much harder to love people who are very different from ourselves. At yet this is one of the key characteristics that distinguishes real love (the love of God) from merely human love. Probably most of us still need to grow in love, so that our love becomes more universal, more open to all, more like the love of God.
And when we think of loving people who are very different from ourselves I think it is worth clarifying a little about what that requires and does not require. To love someone does not require me to agree with their politics, or their lifestyle, or even their morals. Jesus presumably did not “agree” with the Samaritan woman’s religion or with her propensity for getting through husbands. Despite these things he did what he could to build a relationship with her, and to help her on her journey towards God. He spoke to her, offered her living water and called her to worship in spirit and in truth. Love requires us to look beyond our own thoughts and feelings and see the person in front of us as someone created by God, loved by God, who is called by God to share in the life of heaven just as we ourselves are called. Love calls us to do practically what we can to help that person. Very often, that means listening to them, being ready to set aside our own thoughts and feelings in order to be properly attentive to the needs and aspirations of the person in front of us.
So let us pray that the Lord will give us his living water to sustain our hearts and to help them grow in love for everyone. May the living water wash our hearts of all prejudices. May our love may become pure and free of self interest. May Christ’s living water in us become a spring welling up and bringing new life to those parts of our being which are arid and dry like a desert. So may the love of God in us grow, and bring us and many others to eternal life. Amen.
24 February 2008
17 February 2008
Transfiguration
Preached at St Alphege Church on Sunday 17th February 2008 at 11am Eucharist
Second Sunday in Lent, Year A
Readings: Genesis 12:1-4a Romans 4:1-5,13-17 Matthew 17:1-9
Perhaps you are familiar with J K Rowling’ series of Harry Potter books? The books are primarily set in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. At the school one of the first subjects that a new student is likely to encounter is called Transfiguration. Transfiguration is magic that changes something into something else. Professor McGonagall demonstrates transfiguration by changing her desk into a pig. In their first lesson the students are asked to change a matchstick into a needle.
And so it is that for a whole generation of children, and probably many adults too, the word “Transfiguration” conjures up images of witches and wizards, wands and incantations, which have absolutely nothing to do with the Transfiguration that we heard about in our gospel reading today!
As a child I remember hearing the Transfiguration story from the gospels. I remember thinking that the Transfiguration was just about the strangest story in the whole of the New Testament. Healing miracles I could understand. Bringing people back from the dead was easy to imagine, but the Transfiguration was very hard to picture. It was very hard to imagine what happened, why it happened and why it was necessary.
The story starts as Jesus leads his three most trusted disciples up a high mountain. The scriptures do not tell us which mountain this was, but traditionally it has always been assumed to be Mount Tabor, to the west of the Sea of Galilee, not far from Nazareth. While they are on the mountain, the three disciples witness a most extra ordinary event. It is as though the disciples are briefly allowed to peer into some heavenly realm and see things that are not usually seen from earth. Important things about Jesus are revealed to them.
First of all the disciples see Jesus’ face start to shine like the sun and his clothes turn to a dazzling white. This hints at the divinity of Christ, or at least of his closeness to God. Then the disciples see Moses and Elijah alongside Jesus and talking to Jesus. Moses and Elijah are the two most important prophets in Judaism, so their appearance alongside Jesus emphasises the importance of Jesus, and his relevance to the Jewish tradition. Mark’s account of the transfiguration emphasises that the disciples were overcome by fear. Luke’s account has them overcome with sleep, but in both those accounts Peter hardly knows what he is saying as he offers to build shelters for Jesus, Moses and Elijah.
Then suddenly a bright cloud envelops them and a voice says, “This is my Son, the beloved with whom I am well pleased; listen to him!” This is the voice of God, and a clear affirmation that Jesus is the Son of God.
Then suddenly it is all over. The cloud has gone, Moses and Elijah are gone. It seems that Jesus look like a normal human being once again. He helps the disciples to get up and tells them not to be afraid. He also tells them not to discuss this incident until after the resurrection.
The Transfiguration is very strange, but it clearly tells us some important things about Jesus.
But there are also some aspects of the Transfiguration story that make us think about the very start of Jesus’ public ministry; the moment when Jesus was baptised by John the Baptist in the River Jordon. The most powerful link is the voice from heaven that proclaims “This is my Son, the beloved with whom I am well pleased.” This is almost exactly what is said by the voice from heaven at the Baptism of Christ. But there are other links too. If we had read a few verses further in Matthew’s gospel this morning we would have heard Jesus explaining that John the Baptist has the role of Elijah, the prophet who comes before the Messiah. So Elijah’s presence at the transfiguration can be compared to John the Baptists presence at the Baptism. Moses was present at the Transfiguration. He was not present at the baptism, although passing to new life through the waters of baptism always reminds us of Moses leading the Israelites through the waters of the Red Sea.
There are also things about the Transfiguration that make us think about the very last moments of Jesus’ ministry on earth; the Ascension. The account of the Ascension in the Acts of the Apostles (acts 1) is also set on a mountain; Mount Olivet, near Jerusalem. Jesus is hidden by a cloud and two men in white robes appear to the disciples and talk to them.
So the Transfiguration reminds us of the Baptism of Christ at the start of his ministry and it reminds us of the Ascension at the end of his ministry. It also reminds us of the Most Holy Trinity. God the Father speaks, God the Son, Jesus, is transfigured and God the Holy Spirit is often associated with the bright cloud that envelops them all.
And it seems to me that it is very helpful for us to have this image of Jesus in Glory and to keep this image before us. As Christians we are on a journey towards heaven. We aspire to eternal life, and this life is in Jesus (1John 5:11, 2Timothy1:1). We aspire to share in the holiness of God (Hebrews 12:10), to share in the glory of Jesus (2 Thessalonians 2:15, Romans 8:17) and we don’t necessarily really know what this means or what the experience might be like. And perhaps the Transfiguration starts to give us a glimpse of what it might be like to live in heaven, to dwell permanently close to Jesus with his face shining like the sun and with his clothes dazzlingly white. The disciples seem to have found this experience completely overpowering. Probably there is part of us that wants nothing more than this, that longs for it and waits for it. A yet probably there is also a part of us that finds the idea very exposing, very exhausting, very threatening. We all have our saintly tendencies that rejoice in the presence of Christ, and will all have our sinful tendencies which want to turn from Christ and to hide in the dark. The Transfiguration reminds us that we need to develop and practice and grow in our saintly tendencies that are of Christ, and that rejoice in the presence of Christ and that want to bring us to Christ. Similarly it reminds us that our sinful tendencies have to be left behind. We have to be ready to lose them and to let them die and wither away. We know that it is the pure of heart who will see God. Our impurities might be very hard to live with in the intense light of the glory of Christ.
This is what Lent is about. It is about reminding ourselves anew that we must turn from sin and to follow Christ. This means following in the commandments of Christ and seeking always to grow in love for God and grow in love for our neighbour. Of course we can only do this by the grace of God, but we can pray for that grace and we can make sure that we make the best possible use of the grace that God gives us. Growing in love means living according to our saintly tendencies, it means be generous to others, serving others and wanting their good. It means forsaking our tendencies towards greed and selfishness; our desires to reject, dominate or manipulate others.
So let’s choose to always live in our “saint” so that our saint can grow and develop and come to maturity. Let’s be ready to let our “sinner” wither away, because we know that when we come to encounter Christ in his glory, our “saint” will rejoice to share in the life of heaven, but our “sinner” will find it quite impossible.
Second Sunday in Lent, Year A
Readings: Genesis 12:1-4a Romans 4:1-5,13-17 Matthew 17:1-9
Perhaps you are familiar with J K Rowling’ series of Harry Potter books? The books are primarily set in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. At the school one of the first subjects that a new student is likely to encounter is called Transfiguration. Transfiguration is magic that changes something into something else. Professor McGonagall demonstrates transfiguration by changing her desk into a pig. In their first lesson the students are asked to change a matchstick into a needle.
And so it is that for a whole generation of children, and probably many adults too, the word “Transfiguration” conjures up images of witches and wizards, wands and incantations, which have absolutely nothing to do with the Transfiguration that we heard about in our gospel reading today!
As a child I remember hearing the Transfiguration story from the gospels. I remember thinking that the Transfiguration was just about the strangest story in the whole of the New Testament. Healing miracles I could understand. Bringing people back from the dead was easy to imagine, but the Transfiguration was very hard to picture. It was very hard to imagine what happened, why it happened and why it was necessary.
The story starts as Jesus leads his three most trusted disciples up a high mountain. The scriptures do not tell us which mountain this was, but traditionally it has always been assumed to be Mount Tabor, to the west of the Sea of Galilee, not far from Nazareth. While they are on the mountain, the three disciples witness a most extra ordinary event. It is as though the disciples are briefly allowed to peer into some heavenly realm and see things that are not usually seen from earth. Important things about Jesus are revealed to them.
First of all the disciples see Jesus’ face start to shine like the sun and his clothes turn to a dazzling white. This hints at the divinity of Christ, or at least of his closeness to God. Then the disciples see Moses and Elijah alongside Jesus and talking to Jesus. Moses and Elijah are the two most important prophets in Judaism, so their appearance alongside Jesus emphasises the importance of Jesus, and his relevance to the Jewish tradition. Mark’s account of the transfiguration emphasises that the disciples were overcome by fear. Luke’s account has them overcome with sleep, but in both those accounts Peter hardly knows what he is saying as he offers to build shelters for Jesus, Moses and Elijah.
Then suddenly a bright cloud envelops them and a voice says, “This is my Son, the beloved with whom I am well pleased; listen to him!” This is the voice of God, and a clear affirmation that Jesus is the Son of God.
Then suddenly it is all over. The cloud has gone, Moses and Elijah are gone. It seems that Jesus look like a normal human being once again. He helps the disciples to get up and tells them not to be afraid. He also tells them not to discuss this incident until after the resurrection.
The Transfiguration is very strange, but it clearly tells us some important things about Jesus.
But there are also some aspects of the Transfiguration story that make us think about the very start of Jesus’ public ministry; the moment when Jesus was baptised by John the Baptist in the River Jordon. The most powerful link is the voice from heaven that proclaims “This is my Son, the beloved with whom I am well pleased.” This is almost exactly what is said by the voice from heaven at the Baptism of Christ. But there are other links too. If we had read a few verses further in Matthew’s gospel this morning we would have heard Jesus explaining that John the Baptist has the role of Elijah, the prophet who comes before the Messiah. So Elijah’s presence at the transfiguration can be compared to John the Baptists presence at the Baptism. Moses was present at the Transfiguration. He was not present at the baptism, although passing to new life through the waters of baptism always reminds us of Moses leading the Israelites through the waters of the Red Sea.
There are also things about the Transfiguration that make us think about the very last moments of Jesus’ ministry on earth; the Ascension. The account of the Ascension in the Acts of the Apostles (acts 1) is also set on a mountain; Mount Olivet, near Jerusalem. Jesus is hidden by a cloud and two men in white robes appear to the disciples and talk to them.
So the Transfiguration reminds us of the Baptism of Christ at the start of his ministry and it reminds us of the Ascension at the end of his ministry. It also reminds us of the Most Holy Trinity. God the Father speaks, God the Son, Jesus, is transfigured and God the Holy Spirit is often associated with the bright cloud that envelops them all.
And it seems to me that it is very helpful for us to have this image of Jesus in Glory and to keep this image before us. As Christians we are on a journey towards heaven. We aspire to eternal life, and this life is in Jesus (1John 5:11, 2Timothy1:1). We aspire to share in the holiness of God (Hebrews 12:10), to share in the glory of Jesus (2 Thessalonians 2:15, Romans 8:17) and we don’t necessarily really know what this means or what the experience might be like. And perhaps the Transfiguration starts to give us a glimpse of what it might be like to live in heaven, to dwell permanently close to Jesus with his face shining like the sun and with his clothes dazzlingly white. The disciples seem to have found this experience completely overpowering. Probably there is part of us that wants nothing more than this, that longs for it and waits for it. A yet probably there is also a part of us that finds the idea very exposing, very exhausting, very threatening. We all have our saintly tendencies that rejoice in the presence of Christ, and will all have our sinful tendencies which want to turn from Christ and to hide in the dark. The Transfiguration reminds us that we need to develop and practice and grow in our saintly tendencies that are of Christ, and that rejoice in the presence of Christ and that want to bring us to Christ. Similarly it reminds us that our sinful tendencies have to be left behind. We have to be ready to lose them and to let them die and wither away. We know that it is the pure of heart who will see God. Our impurities might be very hard to live with in the intense light of the glory of Christ.
This is what Lent is about. It is about reminding ourselves anew that we must turn from sin and to follow Christ. This means following in the commandments of Christ and seeking always to grow in love for God and grow in love for our neighbour. Of course we can only do this by the grace of God, but we can pray for that grace and we can make sure that we make the best possible use of the grace that God gives us. Growing in love means living according to our saintly tendencies, it means be generous to others, serving others and wanting their good. It means forsaking our tendencies towards greed and selfishness; our desires to reject, dominate or manipulate others.
So let’s choose to always live in our “saint” so that our saint can grow and develop and come to maturity. Let’s be ready to let our “sinner” wither away, because we know that when we come to encounter Christ in his glory, our “saint” will rejoice to share in the life of heaven, but our “sinner” will find it quite impossible.
12 February 2008
Funeral Homily - Abide with me
Preached at Robin Hood Crematorium 1pm on Tuesday 12/02/08.
Reading John 6: 52-59
In a few moments we will be signing ????’s favourite hymn, “Abide with me” and it seems to me that this is a particularly appropriate hymn for her funeral. The words of the first two verses in particular seem to express the sadness of life slowly ebbing away. The darkness deepens, the helpers fail, the comforts flee, joys grow dim, glories pass away and change and decay is all around. Perhaps this is a description of the last decades of ????'s life, as various difficulties became more and more pressing, taking their toll, and causing tremendous problems for friends and relatives. ????'s quality of life was reduced to a very low level until it finally fizzled out. And this might be very depressing.
And yet, paradoxically, "Abide with me" is a hymn of hope. The hymn is a prayer asking the Lord to aside with us, through all the suffering and decay of life slipping away. The hymn expresses a profound trust that through the cross of Jesus we can hope for a new life in heaven, beyond the gloom of our earthly death. “Hold thou thy cross before my closing eyes; Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies; Heaven’s morning breaks, and earth’s vain shadows flee”. It was precisely because of the suffering and death of Jesus on the cross, that the new life and hope of his resurrection was revealed. And this is our Christian hope which even in these sceptical and agnostic times, we dare to sign about, dare to trust in.
And it seems to me that ????, in particular has grounds for hope. We know that she was deeply involved in the church community; we know that she was a regular communicant, sharing in the bread and wine of Holy Communion; sharing in Christ’s Body and blood. In the reading that we read a few minutes ago we heard Jesus’ promise that those who share in the body and blood of Jesus, share in his eternal life, he abides with them, and he will raise them up on the last day.
So let us give thanks for ????. Let’s us hold up before the Lord the many sufferings of her last years, both those endured by her and those endured by others. And let us trust in the promise of Jesus, that he will abide with her, and raise her up on the last day.
Reading John 6: 52-59
In a few moments we will be signing ????’s favourite hymn, “Abide with me” and it seems to me that this is a particularly appropriate hymn for her funeral. The words of the first two verses in particular seem to express the sadness of life slowly ebbing away. The darkness deepens, the helpers fail, the comforts flee, joys grow dim, glories pass away and change and decay is all around. Perhaps this is a description of the last decades of ????'s life, as various difficulties became more and more pressing, taking their toll, and causing tremendous problems for friends and relatives. ????'s quality of life was reduced to a very low level until it finally fizzled out. And this might be very depressing.
And yet, paradoxically, "Abide with me" is a hymn of hope. The hymn is a prayer asking the Lord to aside with us, through all the suffering and decay of life slipping away. The hymn expresses a profound trust that through the cross of Jesus we can hope for a new life in heaven, beyond the gloom of our earthly death. “Hold thou thy cross before my closing eyes; Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies; Heaven’s morning breaks, and earth’s vain shadows flee”. It was precisely because of the suffering and death of Jesus on the cross, that the new life and hope of his resurrection was revealed. And this is our Christian hope which even in these sceptical and agnostic times, we dare to sign about, dare to trust in.
And it seems to me that ????, in particular has grounds for hope. We know that she was deeply involved in the church community; we know that she was a regular communicant, sharing in the bread and wine of Holy Communion; sharing in Christ’s Body and blood. In the reading that we read a few minutes ago we heard Jesus’ promise that those who share in the body and blood of Jesus, share in his eternal life, he abides with them, and he will raise them up on the last day.
So let us give thanks for ????. Let’s us hold up before the Lord the many sufferings of her last years, both those endured by her and those endured by others. And let us trust in the promise of Jesus, that he will abide with her, and raise her up on the last day.
06 February 2008
Funeral homily for Ash Wednesday
Preached at Robin Hood Crematorium Chapel, 1.30pm 6th February 2008: Ash Wednesday
Reading John 14:1-6
Now today is Ash Wednesday. It is the start of Lent, the 40 day period of penitence and fasting that prepares us for Easter. And Ash Wednesday is a very appropriate day for a funeral. One of the things we remember on Ash Wednesday is our dependence on God; as human beings we were created from dust and our human bodies return to dust and ashes and the end of our earthly lives. In church this morning we were marked with the sign of the cross on our foreheads with ash to remind us of our own mortality. Perhaps you can still see the cross of ash on my forehead. Now we have come to a funeral and this too is a poignant reminder of our mortality.
Being reminded that we will one day die can be quite unpleasant. It makes us question what we are about, what we value. Death can feel like a dark shadow looming somewhere over the horizon. Sometimes it is easier just to not think about it.
And yet the Christian Faith teaches us not to fear death. It teaches us that our true life comes from God, and that bodily death changes this life, it does not take it way. The essential part of us, our soul, survives death and goes to be with God. In the scripture reading that we heard just now Jesus was comforting his disciples before he died. He tells them that he goes to prepare a place for them, and that later him will come and take them to be with him so that they can be together. Jesus says this to his disciples, but the New Testament is very clear that we are all called to this shared life with Jesus in heaven. And this is a source of great hope. This allows us to hope that our relationships can survive death and can be restored and renewed in Jesus. It allows us to have hope for ???? and for his wife. It allows us to hope for ourselves when our own time comes.
And the scripture reading is very important because it also tells us how this hope can be realised. Thomas says the Jesus, “We do not know where you are going, how can we know the way,” and Jesus assures him that he, Jesus, is the way the life and the truth. So let’s look to Jesus and have hope. Let’s bury ???? in confidence that we will see him again after our own death. Let’s base our life on the life of Jesus; the life that is more powerful than death.
Reading John 14:1-6
Now today is Ash Wednesday. It is the start of Lent, the 40 day period of penitence and fasting that prepares us for Easter. And Ash Wednesday is a very appropriate day for a funeral. One of the things we remember on Ash Wednesday is our dependence on God; as human beings we were created from dust and our human bodies return to dust and ashes and the end of our earthly lives. In church this morning we were marked with the sign of the cross on our foreheads with ash to remind us of our own mortality. Perhaps you can still see the cross of ash on my forehead. Now we have come to a funeral and this too is a poignant reminder of our mortality.
Being reminded that we will one day die can be quite unpleasant. It makes us question what we are about, what we value. Death can feel like a dark shadow looming somewhere over the horizon. Sometimes it is easier just to not think about it.
And yet the Christian Faith teaches us not to fear death. It teaches us that our true life comes from God, and that bodily death changes this life, it does not take it way. The essential part of us, our soul, survives death and goes to be with God. In the scripture reading that we heard just now Jesus was comforting his disciples before he died. He tells them that he goes to prepare a place for them, and that later him will come and take them to be with him so that they can be together. Jesus says this to his disciples, but the New Testament is very clear that we are all called to this shared life with Jesus in heaven. And this is a source of great hope. This allows us to hope that our relationships can survive death and can be restored and renewed in Jesus. It allows us to have hope for ???? and for his wife. It allows us to hope for ourselves when our own time comes.
And the scripture reading is very important because it also tells us how this hope can be realised. Thomas says the Jesus, “We do not know where you are going, how can we know the way,” and Jesus assures him that he, Jesus, is the way the life and the truth. So let’s look to Jesus and have hope. Let’s bury ???? in confidence that we will see him again after our own death. Let’s base our life on the life of Jesus; the life that is more powerful than death.
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