The Transformed Church

This week we are thinking about the Transformed Church, and the Bible Readings are:

Matthew 17 vs 1 - 8
Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. 2 And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white. 3 Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. 4 Then Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." 5 While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, "This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!" 6 When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. 7 But Jesus came and touched them, saying, "Get up and do not be afraid." 8 And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone.

1 Peter 2 vs 9 - 10
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

1PE 2:10 Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people;
once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

All readings are from the NRSV and copyright © 1989 National Council of Churches, USA

OK, I’ll break the habit of a lifetime (well the last six weeks), and I will actually base the Blog on one of the Bible readings. I love the story of the Transfiguration, it is a glorious story that once you get beyond the imagery actually tells you so much about the way that the world really is. Let me just list a few points to begin with:

• It highlights how God is revealed through the person of Jesus Christ, and the law and the prophets. This reminds me that I need to spend time with my Bible.
• It shows that the disciples had no idea what was going on. I like this – it is where I live most of my life, and the fact that Jesus’ constant companions had missed something as obvious as who he was makes me realise that there is hope for me yet.
• In Peter’s reply it shows that his immediate response is to try to bring it all back down to a level that he understands. Whether this be, as some suggest, by constructing tabernacles because many people of the time believed that after the Son of Man had come, the children of Israel would all live in tents again, or whether this was just the babbling of a confused man trying to be practical, who cares. Peter has no idea what he is saying, but he feels that he needs to do something – great, I make this mistake as well.
• It all happens on a Mountain Top. We all need Mountain Top experiences of God to affirm us in our faith from time to time. If you don’t go there, then you start to run dry. I need to be reminded of this – it is not all about me and what I do.
• And so on . . .

But there is another point, a point that goes back to why we are asking “Which Way?” and why we are wrestling with what the buildings are that we need to support us in the project that we are undertaking, and it is to ask the question, why did Jesus glow?

And the answer goes back to Moses, and what happened when Moses went up Mount Sinai to speak to God. For when he came down, he glowed – he glowed because he had been in the place where God was and is. On the Mountain Top, in the Transfiguration, the veil between Heaven and Earth became so thin, that the disciples who were looking on caught a glimpse of the big picture – and the world became dazzling white – it glowed. Surely, this must be our hope and our dream for our new building. That through all the activities that happen within it, whether they be worship, or community based activities, that those who are gathered are given a glimpse of heaven – a glimpse of the world as God see’s it, and that they will glow, maybe not literally, but through having a new found joy in their hearts that affirms who they are before God, and that they matter, just like the disciples. The disciples understood all that they saw, through the characters of Jesus Christ, Moses and Elijah; but what those three characters represented was a world view that was very different from the predominant view that was around them, and through gazing upon that different world view, they saw a different set of values and understandings, and these revealed a glimpse of heaven – God’s world view.

And to the disciples, just that glimpse was life changing. Surely this must be our primary goal for what we going to do. That it be a place that gives those who enter a glimpse of heaven, a glimpse of a different way of viewing the world, a glimpse that will change them forever, as they meet with the risen Christ who comes to them, and who tells them not to be afraid, because he is with them.

And just in case you think that I am being a bit too ethereal in laying this out in this way, then answer me this; what are we doing in church every Sunday morning, if it is not adding our praises to the worship that goes on around the throne of God, and not spending time listening for God to speak to us?

On March the 7th we will Catch the Vision, and in a full day we will try to hear what God is saying to us. Please be there and be part of the journey that is only just beginning, as we gaze upon the Mountain top, and through reflecting upon Jesus Christ, the law and the prophets, we will attempt to see what God is saying to us, and catch a vision that will change us all, forever.

In our groups on Wednesday and Thursday there were five questions to stimulate the discussion, based on the bible readings quoted at the start – these have been re-produced by permission of the publisher:

1. In the light of our exploration over the last five weeks, what is our dream for our worship space? How can it be re-arranged to speak more clearly of the glory of God, of our life together, and of our concern for those outside?
2. In particular, how should the liturgical foci of font, ambo and altar be so arranged as to do justice to who we are and what we have to offer? What is the liturgical sequence that is best for us?
3. How urgent a priority for us is the re-ordering of our worship space and building?
4. What are the obstacles to the implementation of a re-ordering scheme?
5. How can we best share “good news” about the formative process of re-ordering and liturgical renewal?

Taken from “Re-pitching the tent – Third Edition, by Richard Giles ©2004 Canterbury Press, an imprint of Hymns Ancient & Modern Ltd. Used by permission.

The Teaching Church

This week we are thinking about the Teaching Church, and the Bible Readings are:

Numbers 21 vs 8
And the LORD said to Moses, "Make a poisonous serpent, and set it on a pole; and everyone who is bitten shall look at it and live." So Moses made a serpent of bronze, and put it upon a pole; and whenever a serpent bit someone, that person would look at the serpent of bronze and live.

John 12 vs 32
And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself."

All readings are from the NRSV and copyright © 1989 National Council of Churches, USA

Firstly, sorry that this is so late. Secondly, sorry that this is coming so close to the Blog entry for week 6.

I have to confess that I think that of all the areas that we fall down as a church overall, it is in our teaching that we can fall down most seriously. I get very seriously concerned about how many Christians commit themselves to Christ, and yet that is as far as it goes. In spiritual terms, I am concerned as to whether they have ever left kindergarten. The notion that their faith commitment is the entry of a lifetime’s work of wrestling with scripture, and applying the teachings of Jesus Christ to each new situation and discovery, is something that we can often fail to mention. I could, of course, simply blame Paul and his doctrine of justification by faith, since this is often taken to mean that simply having faith is enough, but Paul himself is quick to point out in his letter to the Galatians

“We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; 16 yet we know that a person is justified not by the works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ. And we have come to believe in Christ Jesus, so that we might be justified by faith in Christ, and not by doing the works of the law, because no one will be justified by the works of the law. 17 But if, in our effort to be justified in Christ, we ourselves have been found to be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Certainly not! 18 But if I build up again the very things that I once tore down, then I demonstrate that I am a transgressor. 19 For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; 20 and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not nullify the grace of God; for if justification comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing.” (Galatians 2 vs 15 ff)

Even stronger than this is James’s comments in chapter 2 of his first letter:

“What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, "Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill," and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? 17 So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.” (James 2 vs 14 ff – this continues for the rest of the chapter).

So, if we take this on board, then we need to take seriously both our study as Christians, and our thoughts about how we put our faith into practice. Likewise, when issues arise, answers of “well we have always done this” are simply not acceptable, as they point to a lack of re-evaluation and testing that needs to be a constant part of our life as a church. Circumstances change, and the world around us changes as well, this means that we should be constantly re-evaluating our practices against scripture and the latest understandings of the contexts that surrounded the scriptural texts being written. But in order to do this, we need to be educated in the ways of our faith, so that we don’t just know what scripture says, but so that we can take it, and use it, in a way that is relevant and consistent with what it originally meant, not least by getting beyond the fact that we work with it in English!

Let me give you a simple example. The Internet. What does the Bible say about the Internet? Well you could argue that it says nothing, and that therefore as a church we should not make use of this, because we have survived 2000 years without it – you could, but I would argue that you would be wrong. In fact, scripture talks a great deal about the ways that we communicate the Gospel and the importance of communicating the good news in any way that we can. It also gives us examples of the early church communicating in the equivalent new ways of their times. Paul, in his sermon delivered in the Areopagus, doesn’t quote scripture, but instead he quotes two Pagan poets – Epimenides – Greek philosopher who argued against the Stoics (600 BC) and Aratus, a Cicilian poet of about 300BC. Why? Because he was communicating in a place where he needed to use the people’s own terms of reference in his argument – rather than quoting things that they would have not understood, such as the Jewish scriptures. We need to speak to our society in the same way – using terms of reference that are common currency to them, and communicating via modern media such as this Blog. Likewise, we need to be a church that is constantly seeking new input to challenge us, and to lead us into ever deeper faith in Christ, as we discover that his words, spoken 2000 years ago, are still as relevant to us today, as they were back then, and that they speak to the Internet generation, in the same way that they spoke to those coming to terms with the industrial revolution, and so on.

In our groups on Tuesday and Wednesday there were five questions to stimulate the discussion, based on the bible readings quoted at the start – these have been re-produced by permission of the publisher:

1. What sign or symbol dominates your worship space, or is it a jumble of confused visual images? What symbol would you like to predominate? How should it be incorporated into the space?
2. What impression of your community and its worship is given by the arrangement of the principal pieces of liturgical furniture? E.g. is your altar table accessible or distant, on the floor or up steps, open or fenced? Make a similar assessment of lectern/pulpit and font.
3. Is there duplication in the liturgical furniture? Is there more than one altar or font in your worship space, or more than one place for the reading and preaching of the word? If so, what should be done about it?
4. What impression of your community and its worship is given by the seating plan? Does the seating plan suggest active participation or passive observance? How do the seats for leaders and specialists (e.g. singers) relate to those for the rest of the assembly?
5. Is the font like a “spring of water welling up to eternal life” or a dried up well stuck in a corner? How might water be made use of, at the point of entry into the liturgical space as a sign of God’s life-giving generosity and of our baptism?

Taken from “Re-pitching the tent – Third Edition, by Richard Giles ©2004 Canterbury Press, an imprint of Hymns Ancient & Modern Ltd. Used by permission.

The Hospitable Church

This week we are thinking about the Hospitable Church, and the Bible Readings are:

Luke 19 vs 1 – 5
He entered Jericho and was passing through it. 2 A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was rich. 3 He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way. 5 When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today."

Acts 16 vs 14 – 15
14 A certain woman named Lydia, a worshiper of God, was listening to us; she was from the city of Thyatira and a dealer in purple cloth. The Lord opened her heart to listen eagerly to what was said by Paul. 15 When she and her household were baptized, she urged us, saying, "If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come and stay at my home." And she prevailed upon us.

Revelation 19 vs 6 – 9
REV 19:6 Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty thunderpeals, crying out,
"Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
the Almighty reigns.

REV 19:7 Let us rejoice and exult
and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
and his bride has made herself ready;

REV 19:8 to her it has been granted to be clothed
with fine linen, bright and pure"--
for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.

REV 19:9 And the angel said to me, "Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb." And he said to me, "These are true words of God."

All readings are from the NRSV and copyright © 1989 National Council of Churches, USA

At the risk of more comments regarding definitions, the word hospital, actually comes from the rooms monasteries historically used to offer hospitality to passing travellers. This hospitality was offered not only to pilgrims and patrons of the monastic establishment, but also to the poor and the sick, who would be cared for by the brothers and sisters of the community. Hence why we use the word in the way that we do today.

Since the role of binding up the sick, and caring for the destitute now falls to the medical profession and the state, and is funded from our taxes, this leads me into asking - what is the role of the church in the 21st Century in regards to offering hospitality? Since our historic role of caring been taken over by others, is offering Christian hospitality now solely about making people feel welcome when they come through our doors, and serving good (fair trade) coffee and nice (fair trade) biscuits whilst we chat politely to them after the worship? Well, I think that it is a great deal more than this.

Let me place my cards on the table. I am a firm believer that part of MY role is to be what the Rev’d David Rice calls “a professional non-professional”. It is to do all the different areas of my role professionally, but to recognise that I am not a professional at any of them. This means that I try to value other professionals to whom we should do refer when the circumstances require it, and rely upon them as required. This means that I need to recognise that I am not a Social Worker and so I work in partnership with Social Services, in the same way that I know that I am not a medical professional, and so, as required, I work in partnership with the medical providers. I still consider it a sign that we were getting something right, when I received a phone call from a local GP who asked me to work with him in caring for one of our members who was struggling with issues regarding the death of her friend. This recognition that we both had a part to play and had something to offer was, I felt, was a good thing, and showed that we were professionals working together for the good of those we are called to serve and care for

I think that as a church, we should be thinking in the same way. This means that whilst we offer hospitality, not only in terms of the friendship that hopefully everyone who comes through our door encounters, but also in accommodating other agencies within our walls that we could work in partnership with, to provide a complete solutions to some of life’s problems. This means that rather than being the ones who try to offer everything, instead we are the ones who enable the professionals to do their job, whilst recognising that we have a part to play within that mix. This, I believe, is part of what it means to offer hospitality.

Someone I used to know, used to have a big problem with MAYC that he voiced widely to anyone who would listen; he used to argue that MAYC thought that by giving someone a balloon and singing a bouncy song it made the world’s problems go away. Whilst I may not totally agree with this very cynical attitude, I know what he meant. We are called to be alongside the weak, and the poor, and the vulnerable, and that does not just mean talking about issues, or even collecting money for people, I believe that it is to offer true hospitality, to be a companion on the road, going where we are sent, and journeying with those that God brings to our door. We need to be ready to receive those that he brings, and to be able to offer solutions in a professional manner, recognising that we are the non-professionals that we are.

For examples of the sort of thing that we might feel called to, please have a look at:
• The Healthy Living Centre, Bournville, Weston super Mare - http://www.forallhlc.org/ (this is the estate where I did a year’s placement as a student – before this was built)
• West London Mission caters for inner city needs, much like our own Victoria Hall http://hindestreet.org.uk/Groups/99397/West_London_Mission.aspx
• Bolton’s Victoria Hall which Mark brings his experiences of on Sunday http://www.boltonmethodistmission.co.uk/projects.html
• For an example from across the Atlantic; this is the church that I used to attend in the US http://www.trinityberkeley.org/index.htm

The needs of our community are different to the needs addressed here, but the concept I believe remains valid.

In our groups on Wednesday and Thursday there were five questions to stimulate the discussion, based on the bible readings quoted at the start – these have been re-produced by permission of the publisher:

1. The enjoyment of a meal, of a party, is a constant New Testament theme. How does the experience of coming to visit our community of faith measure up?
2. How might we redesign the entrance to our building to make the experience of encountering our community an easy and happy experience for the newcomer?
3. Do we have the basic facilities e.g. a kitchen and a toilet, to make our hospitality more than a smile and a handshake? If not, what are we going to do about it?
Supplementary question from me: What are “the basic facilities”? Does this mean, the kitchen and the toilet, or does it also include things such as a private and safe counselling area where conversations can be held that cannot be overheard, or a safe place where children can play freely and from where worship is observed?
4. What is the first thing that people see when they enter our worship space? What dominates it visually? What should dominate it, if warm and open hospitality is to be the message?
5. What are the obstacles to putting these things right?

Taken from “Re-pitching the tent – Third Edition, by Richard Giles ©2004 Canterbury Press, an imprint of Hymns Ancient & Modern Ltd. Used by permission.