Homily preached at the funeral of Major General George Lewis.
2.30pm on Thursday 9th September 2010, at St Mary’s Lapworth, followed by burial in the churchyard at St Michael’s Baddesley Clinton.
Reading: Luke 2: 27-33
The scripture reading that the family have chosen for this funeral comes from the story of the presentation of the Jesus is the temple. The baby Jesus, 40 days old, is brought to the temple by his parents. In the temple there is the holy man, Simeon, who has be promised by God that he will not see death before he has been The Lord’s Messiah. When Simon sees the baby Jesus he takes him in his arms and says the hymn of praise to God which we call the Nunc Dimittis, “Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace…”. This canticle, the Nunc Dimittis, we use at Evening Prayer and funerals. Those opening words, “Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace” as especially appropriate for funerals.
But re-reading these words in the context of this particular funeral I was very struck by the word Servant. “Lord lettest now thy servant depart in peace”. I only met George once, but I was struck by his attitude of service. He unquestionably held high office, both in the Army and in industry, but it seemed to me that he believed that the high office had to be held and administered as a service to God and to other people; above all as a service to the nation. This is what gave the roles value and made them important and relevant.
Now sadly servant leadership seems somewhat out fashion in our nation at present. People nowadays seem to seek high office to secure high pay, or personal power and influence. It is my hope that we will look to people like George to remember the importance of leadership as a service to God and to others.
The other thing that is striking when you read the Nunc Dimittis in the context of a funeral is that Simeon describes the baby Jesus as “The light to lighten the gentiles”. Jesus is the light for everybody, for all the nations. George’s coffin stands before the Pascal Candle, which is the symbol of Christ’s risen life in the church. And that light of the risen life of Christ is what we are all about in a Christian funeral. We are reminded that Christ conquered death. He has an eternal life that is stronger than death, and which renews everything. Jesus wants to share this new resurrection life with each of us, we are all called to share in it. And this is what gives us hope.
But how do we do that in practice? How do we come to share with Christ in that resurrection life? Well, in my opinion, anything that we do to build shared life with Christ makes a contribution here, and is important. Above all our baptism is important. We are baptised into the death and resurrection of Christ. We seek to be joined with Christ through the experience of earthly death, and by this we can also hope to be joined with him in the experience of resurrection life. Receiving Holy Communion is important; Christ shares his own body and blood, his very life, with us. Living according to God’s word is important. Jesus says that those who hear and keep the word of God are his mother and brother and sisters, they are his family, the people with whom he shares his life.
So as we say good-buy to George, let’s give thanks for his witness of servant leadership and life lived in accordance with the purposes of God. Let’s give thanks for the example that Graham spoke about earlier. And let’s also give thanks for Christ who always wants to share life with us. And like George, let’s seek to build a shared life with Christ, because the life that Christ shares is stronger than death. Amen.
Showing posts with label eternal life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label eternal life. Show all posts
09 September 2010
07 February 2010
Living out the Word of God
Short sermon preached at the 8am Eucharist at St Helen’s Church, Solihull
Sunday Second before Lent, RCL readings:
Isaiah 55: 10-13 1 Corinthians 15: 51-58 Luke 6: 39-49
Our readings today include two important similes help us to understand the Word of God and the effects that it has.
First of all we had the beautiful image from Isaiah of God’s Word being like the rain. In the water cycle the rain falls from the sky and eventually it returns to the sky, by evaporation. But this does not happen without the rain watering the earth, so that plants sprout and our food grows. God says that in the same way his Word (and we think of God’s word as God’s message, especially in the coming of Jesus) goes out from God and returns to God, but this does not happen without the Word accomplishing the purposes of God and succeeding in the thing for which God sent him. And just as the rain gives life to plants and makes them grow, so Jesus brings life, eternal life to us, and makes it grow within us. Thanks be to God!
Then in our gospel reading Jesus emphasises the importance of living in accordance with his teaching, his word. He complains that we cry to him “Lord, Lord” but don’t do the things he tells us. He tells us the parable of the house built on rock and the house built on sand to show how his teaching provides a firm foundation for our lives. It is the solid rock on which we can build. Looking from the outside, focusing on the external appearances only, they probably does not seem to be much difference between the house built on rock and the one built on sand. But when the flood rises and the river bursts against them then the crisis separates what is enduring and true from what is transitory and passing.
So the words of Jesus are the secure foundations for our lives and the word of God is like the rain that allows plants to grow. So we must nurture ourselves on the word of God and allow eternal life to grow within us. It is not enough just listen to the word of God, or just read the bible, we have to put the teaching of Jesus into practice in our everyday lives. Now sometimes we struggle to link the teaching of Jesus with our everyday lives. After all Jesus did not leave clear instructions about how often we should vacuum the carpet or the best route for getting to the office in the morning, but Jesus did teach us to love. He taught us to love everyone, even the very least in society, not excluding anyone (Matt 25: 40). He taught us to love even our enemies (Matt 5: 44). He taught us to be the first to love, not waiting for the others to love us, but rather taking the initiative in love (Matt 5:46). And I think when people think about love they sometimes think about pink fluffy bunnies or a liberal sprinkling of rose petals. But these are not helpful images in helping us understand what love is all about. A better image is Jesus on the cross, dying because he has given everything for his brothers and sisters. Another image is the good shepherd, searching after the lost sheep. Another image is the father running to meet the prodigal son and forgiving him. Another image is Gandhi, seeking the good of the British, whilst insisting on Indian independence. Love is about seeking the good of the other, it is about wanting to share the life of heaven with the other person. It is about giving time, attention and resources to help the other. It is about nurture, and patience and gentleness, all the things described in 1 Corinthians 13.
So as we try to put the word of God into practice in our everyday lives, the key opportunities occur every time we encounter another person; every time someone is standing or sitting near us. What is our attitude to that person? Do we ignore them or resent them or experience them as a threat? Do we want their good, seek to help them, serve them, listen to them? It’s a real challenge, but practicing love helps us to grow in love. This is how we grow into eternal life, like plants watered by the rain. This is how we build our lives on firm foundations; foundations that will withstand even the great crisis of death. Let’s pray for the grace to practice and grow in love. Amen.
Sunday Second before Lent, RCL readings:
Isaiah 55: 10-13 1 Corinthians 15: 51-58 Luke 6: 39-49
Our readings today include two important similes help us to understand the Word of God and the effects that it has.
First of all we had the beautiful image from Isaiah of God’s Word being like the rain. In the water cycle the rain falls from the sky and eventually it returns to the sky, by evaporation. But this does not happen without the rain watering the earth, so that plants sprout and our food grows. God says that in the same way his Word (and we think of God’s word as God’s message, especially in the coming of Jesus) goes out from God and returns to God, but this does not happen without the Word accomplishing the purposes of God and succeeding in the thing for which God sent him. And just as the rain gives life to plants and makes them grow, so Jesus brings life, eternal life to us, and makes it grow within us. Thanks be to God!
Then in our gospel reading Jesus emphasises the importance of living in accordance with his teaching, his word. He complains that we cry to him “Lord, Lord” but don’t do the things he tells us. He tells us the parable of the house built on rock and the house built on sand to show how his teaching provides a firm foundation for our lives. It is the solid rock on which we can build. Looking from the outside, focusing on the external appearances only, they probably does not seem to be much difference between the house built on rock and the one built on sand. But when the flood rises and the river bursts against them then the crisis separates what is enduring and true from what is transitory and passing.
So the words of Jesus are the secure foundations for our lives and the word of God is like the rain that allows plants to grow. So we must nurture ourselves on the word of God and allow eternal life to grow within us. It is not enough just listen to the word of God, or just read the bible, we have to put the teaching of Jesus into practice in our everyday lives. Now sometimes we struggle to link the teaching of Jesus with our everyday lives. After all Jesus did not leave clear instructions about how often we should vacuum the carpet or the best route for getting to the office in the morning, but Jesus did teach us to love. He taught us to love everyone, even the very least in society, not excluding anyone (Matt 25: 40). He taught us to love even our enemies (Matt 5: 44). He taught us to be the first to love, not waiting for the others to love us, but rather taking the initiative in love (Matt 5:46). And I think when people think about love they sometimes think about pink fluffy bunnies or a liberal sprinkling of rose petals. But these are not helpful images in helping us understand what love is all about. A better image is Jesus on the cross, dying because he has given everything for his brothers and sisters. Another image is the good shepherd, searching after the lost sheep. Another image is the father running to meet the prodigal son and forgiving him. Another image is Gandhi, seeking the good of the British, whilst insisting on Indian independence. Love is about seeking the good of the other, it is about wanting to share the life of heaven with the other person. It is about giving time, attention and resources to help the other. It is about nurture, and patience and gentleness, all the things described in 1 Corinthians 13.
So as we try to put the word of God into practice in our everyday lives, the key opportunities occur every time we encounter another person; every time someone is standing or sitting near us. What is our attitude to that person? Do we ignore them or resent them or experience them as a threat? Do we want their good, seek to help them, serve them, listen to them? It’s a real challenge, but practicing love helps us to grow in love. This is how we grow into eternal life, like plants watered by the rain. This is how we build our lives on firm foundations; foundations that will withstand even the great crisis of death. Let’s pray for the grace to practice and grow in love. Amen.
23 August 2009
Receiving eternal life
Sermon preached at St Alphege Church, 9.15am Eucharist
Sunday 23rd August 2009, Trinity 11, Proper 16, Year B
Readings: Joshua 24: 1-2a & 14-18 Ephesians 6: 10-20 John 6: 56-69
One of the great themes of John’s gospel is "Eternal Life". In John, chapter 10, Jesus says, “I have come that they might have life, and have it abundantly” (John 10:10). And this great theme resonates throughout John’s gospel (indeed it resonates throughout the whole New Testament), but it is especially intense in the passage that we heard as our gospel reading today.
But before we look at the gospel let’s pause for a moment to reflect on what John means when he talks about eternal life. Certainly he is looking at life that goes far beyond the 70 or 80 years that we might hope for as an earthly life. He speaks of eternal life, the life that survives death, the life that endures for ever. And we are not talking here of a life of monotony, a dreary life, like a prison sentence to be endured. We are talking of the fullness of life in all it beauty and all its wholeness. Elsewhere in the gospel he describes it as the life that is the light of humanity (John 1: 4), the life which is like a rich harvest (c.f. John 4: 36), the life free from condemnation (John 5: 24), the life which never perishes (John 10: 28), the life that comes with the knowledge of God (John 17: 3). Perhaps by “knowledge of God”, we might understand, “full relationship with God”.
And today’s gospel reading is especially concerned with how we receive this eternal; life that Jesus wants to share with it. It is concerned with where it comes from and what we have to do to get it! And we need to be careful to understand what it means to receive this life. Eternal life is something that comes to us from God. It is something we share in when we abide in God and God in us. It is not something that we can ever own in our own right, independent of God, as though we held legal title to it. Rather it is something that God continually gives to us, continually tops us up with, like water being poured onto a garden every evening, throughout a long dry summer (not that we have had much experience of long dry summers recently!). We receive this life from God by grace, as God’s own free gift to us. When our relationship with God is strong we can gain a sense of assurance that God will pour out this life for us, but it always remains God’s to pour out.
So if that it means to receive eternal life, then how do we do it? What can we do to help to help the process, to receive this life that God wants to pour out to us. Well, in the short passage of scripture that we read for our gospel today Jesus gives us at least three direct descriptions of where this life comes from.
First of all Jesus says, “Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me and I in them. … The one who eats this bread will live forever.” Well there are many different interpretations of what Jesus means here, and probably, to a greater or lesser extent, many have truth within them. However, it seems to me very natural and obvious to think that Jesus is talking about the Eucharist at this point. Certainly it is true, coming to the Eucharist is a practical and very physical way of receiving the life of Christ within us. And it is important to come regularly. Just as a garden needs to be watered regularly if it is to grow and bear fruit, so we need to come regularly to the Eucharist to be refreshed in the eternal life, and to grow and bare spiritual fruit.
The second description of where eternal life comes from occurs when Jesus says, “It is the spirit that gives life, the flesh is useless.” This is a reminder that we all need to be born again in the Spirit. Just as, physically, we are born as babies and need to grow up into mature human beings, so, spiritually, we must be born of the spirit and grow up to be mature spiritual being, saints, ready to lay aside our earthly flesh and to live the life of heaven. We associate being born in the spirit with baptism, when we receive the Holy Spirit and begin our journey of faith within the Church.
“It is the spirit that gives life, the flesh is useless.” This phrase also reminds us to give proper attention to our spiritual lives, setting aside time for prayer and meditation. Devoting time to our spiritual life may appear to be unproductive use of time, but it is the spirit that gives life. We might manage to stay alive in the flesh for seventy or eighty years, but sooner or later the flesh passes away and at that point we depend completely on our spiritual life.
The third description of where eternal life comes from arises when Jesus says, “The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.” We have to receive the words of Jesus and if we receive them then we receive both spirit and life. How do we receive the words of Jesus? Well we have to listen to them prayerfully, and allow them to sink into us, and to challenge us and transform us. Above all we have to allow them to affect our attitudes and behaviours, so that we live our lives in accordance with the words of Jesus. At the heart of the words of Jesus we must remember the commandment that he gave us which he described as new and as his own. “Love one another, as I have loved you”. This is the characteristic attitude and behaviour of people who have received the words of Jesus. Inwardly we seek to receive the words of Jesus, and outwardly we practise the behaviours of love. By this we receive the spirit and life of Jesus. Jesus grows within us, and we move towards maturity in the spiritual life.
[There is in fact a forth description of how eternal life come to us comes when Peter says to Jesus, “You have the words of Eternal Life”. There is much that could be said about this wonderful acclamation of peter, but in a way he is not adding very much to what Jesus has already said. Jesus has just said, “The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life,” So let’s focus on the three descriptions made by Jesus; there is already more than enough there.]
So, to summarise. Jesus wants to share his eternal life with us. He wants to give us this gift. How do we receive it? Well first in the Eucharist we receive Christ’s life within ourselves, his very body and blood. Secondly we receive eternal life from the Spirit. We give thanks for our baptism, but we must also take good care of our spiritual lives, making sure that we set aside time for prayer and meditation. Thirdly we receive eternal life from the words, the commands, of Jesus, when we let them enter into us and transform our ways of thinking and behaving. [And the most central word or commandment of Jesus is “Love one another as I have loved you.” This should grow to become our central attitude, our characteristic behaviour.] And although eternal life is entirely God’s free gift, as we grow in this way we can start to hope for a sense of assurance, a profound knowledge and trust, that God is indeed sharing his life with us, and that he will indeed continue to do so for all eternity. Amen.
Sunday 23rd August 2009, Trinity 11, Proper 16, Year B
Readings: Joshua 24: 1-2a & 14-18 Ephesians 6: 10-20 John 6: 56-69
One of the great themes of John’s gospel is "Eternal Life". In John, chapter 10, Jesus says, “I have come that they might have life, and have it abundantly” (John 10:10). And this great theme resonates throughout John’s gospel (indeed it resonates throughout the whole New Testament), but it is especially intense in the passage that we heard as our gospel reading today.
But before we look at the gospel let’s pause for a moment to reflect on what John means when he talks about eternal life. Certainly he is looking at life that goes far beyond the 70 or 80 years that we might hope for as an earthly life. He speaks of eternal life, the life that survives death, the life that endures for ever. And we are not talking here of a life of monotony, a dreary life, like a prison sentence to be endured. We are talking of the fullness of life in all it beauty and all its wholeness. Elsewhere in the gospel he describes it as the life that is the light of humanity (John 1: 4), the life which is like a rich harvest (c.f. John 4: 36), the life free from condemnation (John 5: 24), the life which never perishes (John 10: 28), the life that comes with the knowledge of God (John 17: 3). Perhaps by “knowledge of God”, we might understand, “full relationship with God”.
And today’s gospel reading is especially concerned with how we receive this eternal; life that Jesus wants to share with it. It is concerned with where it comes from and what we have to do to get it! And we need to be careful to understand what it means to receive this life. Eternal life is something that comes to us from God. It is something we share in when we abide in God and God in us. It is not something that we can ever own in our own right, independent of God, as though we held legal title to it. Rather it is something that God continually gives to us, continually tops us up with, like water being poured onto a garden every evening, throughout a long dry summer (not that we have had much experience of long dry summers recently!). We receive this life from God by grace, as God’s own free gift to us. When our relationship with God is strong we can gain a sense of assurance that God will pour out this life for us, but it always remains God’s to pour out.
So if that it means to receive eternal life, then how do we do it? What can we do to help to help the process, to receive this life that God wants to pour out to us. Well, in the short passage of scripture that we read for our gospel today Jesus gives us at least three direct descriptions of where this life comes from.
First of all Jesus says, “Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me and I in them. … The one who eats this bread will live forever.” Well there are many different interpretations of what Jesus means here, and probably, to a greater or lesser extent, many have truth within them. However, it seems to me very natural and obvious to think that Jesus is talking about the Eucharist at this point. Certainly it is true, coming to the Eucharist is a practical and very physical way of receiving the life of Christ within us. And it is important to come regularly. Just as a garden needs to be watered regularly if it is to grow and bear fruit, so we need to come regularly to the Eucharist to be refreshed in the eternal life, and to grow and bare spiritual fruit.
The second description of where eternal life comes from occurs when Jesus says, “It is the spirit that gives life, the flesh is useless.” This is a reminder that we all need to be born again in the Spirit. Just as, physically, we are born as babies and need to grow up into mature human beings, so, spiritually, we must be born of the spirit and grow up to be mature spiritual being, saints, ready to lay aside our earthly flesh and to live the life of heaven. We associate being born in the spirit with baptism, when we receive the Holy Spirit and begin our journey of faith within the Church.
“It is the spirit that gives life, the flesh is useless.” This phrase also reminds us to give proper attention to our spiritual lives, setting aside time for prayer and meditation. Devoting time to our spiritual life may appear to be unproductive use of time, but it is the spirit that gives life. We might manage to stay alive in the flesh for seventy or eighty years, but sooner or later the flesh passes away and at that point we depend completely on our spiritual life.
The third description of where eternal life comes from arises when Jesus says, “The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.” We have to receive the words of Jesus and if we receive them then we receive both spirit and life. How do we receive the words of Jesus? Well we have to listen to them prayerfully, and allow them to sink into us, and to challenge us and transform us. Above all we have to allow them to affect our attitudes and behaviours, so that we live our lives in accordance with the words of Jesus. At the heart of the words of Jesus we must remember the commandment that he gave us which he described as new and as his own. “Love one another, as I have loved you”. This is the characteristic attitude and behaviour of people who have received the words of Jesus. Inwardly we seek to receive the words of Jesus, and outwardly we practise the behaviours of love. By this we receive the spirit and life of Jesus. Jesus grows within us, and we move towards maturity in the spiritual life.
[There is in fact a forth description of how eternal life come to us comes when Peter says to Jesus, “You have the words of Eternal Life”. There is much that could be said about this wonderful acclamation of peter, but in a way he is not adding very much to what Jesus has already said. Jesus has just said, “The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life,” So let’s focus on the three descriptions made by Jesus; there is already more than enough there.]
So, to summarise. Jesus wants to share his eternal life with us. He wants to give us this gift. How do we receive it? Well first in the Eucharist we receive Christ’s life within ourselves, his very body and blood. Secondly we receive eternal life from the Spirit. We give thanks for our baptism, but we must also take good care of our spiritual lives, making sure that we set aside time for prayer and meditation. Thirdly we receive eternal life from the words, the commands, of Jesus, when we let them enter into us and transform our ways of thinking and behaving. [And the most central word or commandment of Jesus is “Love one another as I have loved you.” This should grow to become our central attitude, our characteristic behaviour.] And although eternal life is entirely God’s free gift, as we grow in this way we can start to hope for a sense of assurance, a profound knowledge and trust, that God is indeed sharing his life with us, and that he will indeed continue to do so for all eternity. Amen.
01 December 2008
Deakness and light
Editorial for the December Parish Magazine
In terms of weather it was a disappointing summer. It already feels to me as though we have had a long, dark winter, and we haven’t really started yet! I find that I am looking forward to that magical moment in December when the days start to get longer again.
According to the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, this year’s winter solstice occurs at 12:04 on 21st December. This is the moment when the tilt of the earth’s axis of rotation is exactly in line with the sun. Each year the winter solstice occurs about six hours later than the year before, and then every fourth year we put 24 extra hours into our calendar (on 29th February), so the time of the solstice jumps back about 18 hours. This ensures that the winter solstice always ocurs on 21st or 22nd December.
On 21st December sunrise in the Midlands will be 08:18 and sunset will be 15:53. This gives us 7 hours, 35 minutes of daytime. London will get 10 minutes more daytime that day, because it is nearer to the equator, but Glasgow will get 43 minutes less.
There is a saying that, “The darkest hour is the one before sunrise”. For Christians in the northern hemisphere it feels more like, “The darkest day is the one before the great light.” Just four days after the winter solstice we celebrate the birth of Jesus; the coming into the world of the true light, that enlightens everyone (c.f. John 1: 9); the light of the world (John 8: 12).
We can understand what it means to say Jesus is the light of the world if we think what it is like to exist in the dark. In the dark it is hard to move around the house. It is hard to find things. It is hard to do the simplest thing. We are clumsy and prone to accidents, and we find it easy to get lost or confused. But then when the light comes, suddenly everything gets easier. It is much easier to achieve things, to make progress and it is much safer too. Jesus has exactly this effect on our spiritual lives. Without Jesus the spiritual life is very hard. We can’t see where we are going or how to get there. Helping each other is difficult, and it is easy to make damaging mistakes. But the teaching and example of Jesus is our light and shows us what to do. We need to grow in love for God and love for one another. We need to follow God’s will for our lives, trusting that God’s path for us will bring us fulfilment, even if there are great difficulties on the way.
But then there is an even bigger problem with trying to exist in darkness. Light is essential for plants to grow. With no light we have no plants and no food to sustain our lives. Just as light gives life to plants, so Jesus gives us eternal life (e.g. John 5: 21, 24, 26). Jesus is light in the sense that he gives us life.
So in the dark month of December we have a wonderful consolation in the great light that is given to us at Christmas. Let’s use Advent to prepare well, so we are ready to welcome the great light when he comes.
In terms of weather it was a disappointing summer. It already feels to me as though we have had a long, dark winter, and we haven’t really started yet! I find that I am looking forward to that magical moment in December when the days start to get longer again.
According to the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, this year’s winter solstice occurs at 12:04 on 21st December. This is the moment when the tilt of the earth’s axis of rotation is exactly in line with the sun. Each year the winter solstice occurs about six hours later than the year before, and then every fourth year we put 24 extra hours into our calendar (on 29th February), so the time of the solstice jumps back about 18 hours. This ensures that the winter solstice always ocurs on 21st or 22nd December.
On 21st December sunrise in the Midlands will be 08:18 and sunset will be 15:53. This gives us 7 hours, 35 minutes of daytime. London will get 10 minutes more daytime that day, because it is nearer to the equator, but Glasgow will get 43 minutes less.
There is a saying that, “The darkest hour is the one before sunrise”. For Christians in the northern hemisphere it feels more like, “The darkest day is the one before the great light.” Just four days after the winter solstice we celebrate the birth of Jesus; the coming into the world of the true light, that enlightens everyone (c.f. John 1: 9); the light of the world (John 8: 12).
We can understand what it means to say Jesus is the light of the world if we think what it is like to exist in the dark. In the dark it is hard to move around the house. It is hard to find things. It is hard to do the simplest thing. We are clumsy and prone to accidents, and we find it easy to get lost or confused. But then when the light comes, suddenly everything gets easier. It is much easier to achieve things, to make progress and it is much safer too. Jesus has exactly this effect on our spiritual lives. Without Jesus the spiritual life is very hard. We can’t see where we are going or how to get there. Helping each other is difficult, and it is easy to make damaging mistakes. But the teaching and example of Jesus is our light and shows us what to do. We need to grow in love for God and love for one another. We need to follow God’s will for our lives, trusting that God’s path for us will bring us fulfilment, even if there are great difficulties on the way.
But then there is an even bigger problem with trying to exist in darkness. Light is essential for plants to grow. With no light we have no plants and no food to sustain our lives. Just as light gives life to plants, so Jesus gives us eternal life (e.g. John 5: 21, 24, 26). Jesus is light in the sense that he gives us life.
So in the dark month of December we have a wonderful consolation in the great light that is given to us at Christmas. Let’s use Advent to prepare well, so we are ready to welcome the great light when he comes.
09 November 2008
Remembrance Sunday
Preached at the Civic Remembrance Day Service at St Alphege Church, Solihull following the 11am Act of Remembrance at the War Memorial.
Remembrance Sunday, 9th November 2008
Why is it that we feel such a compelling need to remember those who have been killed or injured by war? Why is it that this annual time Remembrance in November is so important to us?
Well these are deep questions. But, we need periodically to remind ourselves of the great sacrifices made for us by other people. We need to remind ourselves of our history, and how we came to be the people we now are. We need to show our respect for the fallen and to give thanks for what they have won for us. And this annual reflection in November is not simply about looking back. It has profound implications for the way we live our lives and for the future that we seek to bring about.
I would like to share with you a story about Remembrance Sunday 1999 and about the changes that that it brought about for me personally. 1999 was before my priesthood days. I was working for British Gas on Homer Road, here in Solihull. We lived in Shirley, and we worshipped at St James the Great in Shirley where Fr Michael Caddy is the Rector.
Some weeks beforehand, Fr Michael had asked my wife Elaine to sing a song at the 9.30 service on Remembrance Sunday. The song was “Green Fields of France”. The song recounts the words of a weary traveller who sits down beside the gravestone of a Great War soldier and starts talking to the dead Soldier.
In the days building up to Remembrance Sunday Elaine was practising her singing around the house. As this went on I began to find it more and more annoying! It’s not, I am sure you understand, that my wife is bad at singing; quite the opposite in fact, but I realised it was a particular line from the song which was annoying me. The line was “I hope you died quick and I hope you died clean.” I pondered this line, “I hope you died quick and I hope you died clean” and I realised that the reason I did not like it was because it seemed to me that to hope for a quick and clean death, is rather a limited hope. Certainly I found that my own hope for the dead soldier was much bigger than that, much fuller than that.
First of all I found that I wanted to hope that the soldier was now enjoying eternal life. I wanted to hope that as he died on the battle field he was met by the angels and saints and led away to a heavenly reward in Jesus’ eternal kingdom.
Then I wanted to hope that the value of his sacrifice was properly recognised. Surely, his sacrifice makes up for a multitude of sins, and helps humanity to be reconciled to God. Surely his sacrifice contributed towards the winning of the war, and the securing of freedom for this nation. I found I wanted to hope that it also contributed to reconciliation between nations, and towards the building of peace and justice in the whole world.
Then I found I wanted to say thank you to the soldier for the great contribution he has made. To thank him for his sacrifice, to recognise and value the great cost that was paid. To recognise and value the loss borne by others; by the parents who mourn, by the sweetheart who perhaps lost a future husband, by friends and comrades and those who had lost a brother.
As I said, I pondered these things and wrote them down and discussed them with Fr Michael. Fr Michael invited me to share these things with the congregation after Elaine had sung the song. I did that, and I suppose, in a way, it was one of my first ever sermons.
In my reactions to the song I said that “I wanted to hope”. And I think that this is the situation for many of us on Remembrance Sunday. We want to hope in these things. We profoundly want them. At the same time, we have to admit that it can be difficult. In this day and age it is hard to have faith. It is hard to see value in suffering. It is hard to have hope that the world is guided by a God who is good, that it is getting closer to a destiny that is good.
And that was the strange thing; the truly remarkable thing. As I worked through the Remembrance process in 1999, I discovered that despite all the difficulties, despite all the suffering, I really did believe in these things. I really did hope for the eternal life of the soldier. I really did value his sacrifice. I really did believe that it brought closer the peace and unity of the world. I really was thankful for the difference the dead soldier made. I did feel some real empathy with the great cost that was paid.
After the remembrance service of 1999 my wife asked when I was going to get ordained; that is to become a priest. I laughed it off, but just seven weeks later I had an extraordinary dream. I realised that ordination was indeed the way forward for me, the way that God calls me, personally, to make my own small contribution.
So the process of remembrance in 1999 made a huge difference to me. It is my hope that in 2008, and indeed in every year, the Remembrance process that we go through will make a difference. I hope that it will remind us of the blood, sweat and tears, and above all the many, many lives that have been invested in the freedom of our nation today. I hope that it will encourage us to value that freedom, and to give thanks for it. Above all I hope that it will give us courage to face the future, not bowed down by fears and disappointment, but with hope, because through the extraordinary horror and suffering of the world wars, a new and better world was born.
Remembrance Sunday, 9th November 2008
Why is it that we feel such a compelling need to remember those who have been killed or injured by war? Why is it that this annual time Remembrance in November is so important to us?
Well these are deep questions. But, we need periodically to remind ourselves of the great sacrifices made for us by other people. We need to remind ourselves of our history, and how we came to be the people we now are. We need to show our respect for the fallen and to give thanks for what they have won for us. And this annual reflection in November is not simply about looking back. It has profound implications for the way we live our lives and for the future that we seek to bring about.
I would like to share with you a story about Remembrance Sunday 1999 and about the changes that that it brought about for me personally. 1999 was before my priesthood days. I was working for British Gas on Homer Road, here in Solihull. We lived in Shirley, and we worshipped at St James the Great in Shirley where Fr Michael Caddy is the Rector.
Some weeks beforehand, Fr Michael had asked my wife Elaine to sing a song at the 9.30 service on Remembrance Sunday. The song was “Green Fields of France”. The song recounts the words of a weary traveller who sits down beside the gravestone of a Great War soldier and starts talking to the dead Soldier.
In the days building up to Remembrance Sunday Elaine was practising her singing around the house. As this went on I began to find it more and more annoying! It’s not, I am sure you understand, that my wife is bad at singing; quite the opposite in fact, but I realised it was a particular line from the song which was annoying me. The line was “I hope you died quick and I hope you died clean.” I pondered this line, “I hope you died quick and I hope you died clean” and I realised that the reason I did not like it was because it seemed to me that to hope for a quick and clean death, is rather a limited hope. Certainly I found that my own hope for the dead soldier was much bigger than that, much fuller than that.
First of all I found that I wanted to hope that the soldier was now enjoying eternal life. I wanted to hope that as he died on the battle field he was met by the angels and saints and led away to a heavenly reward in Jesus’ eternal kingdom.
Then I wanted to hope that the value of his sacrifice was properly recognised. Surely, his sacrifice makes up for a multitude of sins, and helps humanity to be reconciled to God. Surely his sacrifice contributed towards the winning of the war, and the securing of freedom for this nation. I found I wanted to hope that it also contributed to reconciliation between nations, and towards the building of peace and justice in the whole world.
Then I found I wanted to say thank you to the soldier for the great contribution he has made. To thank him for his sacrifice, to recognise and value the great cost that was paid. To recognise and value the loss borne by others; by the parents who mourn, by the sweetheart who perhaps lost a future husband, by friends and comrades and those who had lost a brother.
As I said, I pondered these things and wrote them down and discussed them with Fr Michael. Fr Michael invited me to share these things with the congregation after Elaine had sung the song. I did that, and I suppose, in a way, it was one of my first ever sermons.
In my reactions to the song I said that “I wanted to hope”. And I think that this is the situation for many of us on Remembrance Sunday. We want to hope in these things. We profoundly want them. At the same time, we have to admit that it can be difficult. In this day and age it is hard to have faith. It is hard to see value in suffering. It is hard to have hope that the world is guided by a God who is good, that it is getting closer to a destiny that is good.
And that was the strange thing; the truly remarkable thing. As I worked through the Remembrance process in 1999, I discovered that despite all the difficulties, despite all the suffering, I really did believe in these things. I really did hope for the eternal life of the soldier. I really did value his sacrifice. I really did believe that it brought closer the peace and unity of the world. I really was thankful for the difference the dead soldier made. I did feel some real empathy with the great cost that was paid.
After the remembrance service of 1999 my wife asked when I was going to get ordained; that is to become a priest. I laughed it off, but just seven weeks later I had an extraordinary dream. I realised that ordination was indeed the way forward for me, the way that God calls me, personally, to make my own small contribution.
So the process of remembrance in 1999 made a huge difference to me. It is my hope that in 2008, and indeed in every year, the Remembrance process that we go through will make a difference. I hope that it will remind us of the blood, sweat and tears, and above all the many, many lives that have been invested in the freedom of our nation today. I hope that it will encourage us to value that freedom, and to give thanks for it. Above all I hope that it will give us courage to face the future, not bowed down by fears and disappointment, but with hope, because through the extraordinary horror and suffering of the world wars, a new and better world was born.
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