Zimbabwean SCMers cleared amidst escalating attacks on civil society
14 June 2008
WSCF is pleased to report that all five Zimbabwean SCMers detained following the armed police raid and subsequent arrests on SCM Zimbabwe headquarters last Monday, have been released and cleared of charges.
At the same time, WSCF notes with increasing concern that the SCMers have returned to their homes in the context of escalating attacks on civil society, which through the past week that have seen numerous acts of violence, intimidation, destruction of property and illegal arrests directed towards civil society organisations across the country.
SCM Zimbabwe Vice Chairperson, Langelihle Manyani has told WSCF she and her colleagues are now living in fear as state agents in unmarked vehicles continue to follow and intimidate student leaders. Early this week SCMZ’s Gender Secretary Matsiliso Moyo and her baby were the first to be released from detention (on the evening of the raid) along with Gladys Mabuto, a senior staff member of the Christian Alliance.
SCM’s Zimbabwe’s General Secretary Prosper Munatsi was released from the police cells at Harare Central Prison on the night of Tuesday June 11, along with SCM leaders Langelihle Manyani, Precious Chinanda and intern Sandra Dzvete and the three other detainees from the Christian Alliance and Ecumenical Support Services. Seven of the arrested Harare Ecumenical Centre staff had charges made against them under the Criminal Law Reform and Codification Act, claiming they had published falsehoods and distributed subversive information.
According to defence lawyer and SCM member Jeremiah Bamu, the charges against the SCMers and other ecumenical workers have now been cleared after the Attorney General refused to prosecute. The Zimbabwean police have however refused to return property confisticated from SCM offices including, a minibus, two laptops, computer, 300 t-shirts and pamphlets. An urgent motion to have the property returned has been filed at the High Court in Harare.
WSCF continues to be concerned at the increasing threat to democracy-supporting civil society in Zimbabwe, as it receives reports of widespread incidents of armed police raids, destruction of property, attacks and illegal arrests of leaders and members of civil society.
According to the Zimbabwe National Students Union (ZINASU), students and other stakeholders in civil society are being accused by the Mugabe regime of supporting the opposition. This accusation has led to the suspension of operating licenses of all Non-Governmental Organisations.
The Federation has received reports of increased intimidation and violence against more than ten different national and local Zimbabwean civil society organisations situated in Harare, Bulawayo, Kwekwe, Bindura and Masvingo. The Zimbabwe National Students Union (ZINASU), the National Association of Non Government Associations (NANGO) and the Commonwealth Lawyers Association (CLA) have all released statements this week identifying members, leaders or officials who have come under attack from government forces and have been threatened, beaten, had property seized or destroyed or have been illegally detained by police.
WSCF continues to work closely with the international ecumenical movement and at UN events in Geneva to develop new ways of providing tangible support to ecumenical and civil society groups and the people of Zimbabwe. This Wednesday at the WSCF-YWCA organised Zimbabwe weekly focus meeting at the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, human rights defenders from the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights and Zimbabwe Doctors for Human Rights are expected to make presentations on Zimbabwean issues to resource the ecumenical movement on further appropriate actions to take in support of Zimbabweans in the current crisis.
Ecclesia has published a more detailed story about the situation with the ecumenical and church bodies in Zimbabwe and their report can be seen here.
The whole story struck me a lot the first time it broke. I spent 6 years heavily involved in SCM - 3 on the staff, 1 on the trustees and 2 as a student before that, and they helped shape who I am today. I was aware the whole time I worked for them that I was in a very honoured and privileged position as they have so many amazing things throughout their history. They have had a very interesting and inspiring collection of people pass through the membership both here and in other countries.
SCM made the world seem all the smaller and closer as it has links throughout the world. One year a new colleague arrived from the other side of the world and he, and his family, had moved because SCM meant a lot to them and they wanted to stick with it - even on the other side of the world. When the war started between Israel and Lebanon recently, that was challenging because the regional office is is Beirut and we knew the staff (including one my colleagues had met and got to know) were very directly affected. The first time I heard of the SCM being targeted in Zimbabwe I was shocked and struggled to think what it would mean...
One day, someone comes into the office where me and my friends work, and destroys or takes everything I've worked hard for. Takes the history and links we have, and arrests and threatens us for standing up for what matters to us. Not even for anything particularly radical - democracy.
The bond SCM creates is a special one for me - there is now a family united across the world and the news of what happened in Zimbabwe was like someone attacking my family. I do not know the staff personally but they are just people like me doing what we do because we hope we can play our little part.
My thoughts and prayers go to all in Zimbabwe, for all those with friends and families there. My thanks go to SCM for making this information known to me and giving me the opportunity to try and understand in some small way how difficult things are there, and how we're all linked with what goes on.
Zimbabwe news release from SCMZ - see entry for information. There's nothing more I can add.
(neverconforming, June 14, 2008, 2:03 pm)
As part of the ongoing onslaught on civic society organisations in Zimbabwe, the Ecumenical Centre, a conglomeration of faith based democracy organisations which house the Student Christian Movement of Zimbabwe (SCMZ), the Ecumenical Support Services (ESS), the Christian Alliance (CA) and Zimbabwe National Pastors Conference (ZNPC) and PADARE Men's Forum on Gender has been raided at around 1300hrs, Monday 09 June 2008 by heavily armed members of the police, central intelligence and military personnel.
The Student Christian Movement of Zimbabwe a chapter of the World Student Christian Federation (WSCF) based in Geneva Switzerland which stands for promoting justice and peace in Zimbabwe has received with great shock the subsequent raid, arrest and detention of some of its employees and executive members. In the process police ransacked the SCMZ offices and confisticated, computers, laptops, digital cameras, and a mini bus. The movement sees this as a move to incapacitate the movement since it has been fully geared towards sensitising Christian students and youth on their rights and responsibilities in the face of a break or make Presidential runoff pencilled for the 27 of June 2008. Those arrested are, Prosper Munatsi (SCMZ General Secretary), Sandra Dzvete (office intern), Langelihle Manyani (Vice Chairperson), Matsiliso Moyo (Gender Secretary), and Precious (Finance and Administration Officer).
SCMZ condemns such acts of intimidation directed to civic society players by the state security agents. SCMZ views the arrests and detentions as part of the broader campaign of intimidation orchestrated against defenceless citizens. The ZANU PF government is clearly displaying its degrees in violence. This is the time for the whole world to see and judge for itself the true characteristic of a government which has on many times tried to convince the world that it is not only legitimate but democratic. The government has abdicated its duties by declaring war on its own people and creating an atmosphere of general insecurity among the populace. It is our sacred duty as civic society and opposition forces to continue fighting for the opening up of democratic space and justice in Zimbabwe. To members of the ecumenical family the time has come for us not only to speak but also to act against injustice, oppression and corruption according to the standard of the word of God.
Psalms 72:1-4 "May he judge thy people with righteousness, and thy poor with justice! Let the mountains bear prosperity for the people, and the hills in righteousness! May he defend the cause of the poor of the people, give deliverance to the needy, and crush the oppressor!
I very nearly entitled this entry "What do you do in worship, and what does it do in you?" but thought I'd psyche myself up to the question...
To provide a little context, there is a person I know who responds to worship quite differently from those around him, and the way expected by convention. He often arrives in plenty of time before the service, doesn't rise or noticeably respond to any of the spoken prayers nor hymns, and even (I'm led to believe) will walk out when he feels he's benefited sufficiently from the time of worship. During the service he draws. He sits there, sketchbook in hand, and responds visually. He produces very challenging and beautiful images which, during a meeting, we were given the opportunity to explore. His images don't necessarily present the stories in the way you'd expect but can offer very interesting interpretations - far more striking (and debatably more relevant) than many sermons or sermon illustrations.
The group who were looking at these images consisted of many people, like myself, who are familiar with leading worship. We were challenged to think how we'd respond to someone in our own congregations acting in such a manner. I said that I'd like more people to do things like that in the services as it means they're engaging with, and having a direct response to, what is shared. It harks back to my desire, by choice, to lead services with interactive elements and another preacher said similar in our meeting. We talked about the way people are frequently very passive in traditional style services and what we can do about that. I said I'd like to knit (but then I'd like to knit in most places).
With all these thoughts and discussion in my mind I would like to ask anyone reading this to comment on the initial question - and also what (if any) interactive things they've done in worship and valued.
As many wibloggers are folkies I thought it would be interesting to share reflections from a very folkie month. Those who know me would know that I'm not really a folkie, and a reluctant one at that but in April the folkies have been out to get me.
Since Easter (give or take a day), I've managed to see:
and I'm going to see Billy Bragg and Chris Wood (and friends) this weekend. What has happened? I also went to see The Imagined Village which I blogged about here. I have to say that The Imagined Village was still by far the best of those gigs. I'm still not convinced I'm really a folkie despite the membership of the folk club and all, but there are worse things to do with an evening than spend it in a seedy looking pub with an extremely eccentric woman announcing people who play music not entirely to my taste. Or for that matter spend an evening with a good friend in a fascinating venue which isn't sure whether it's a cafe, bar, deli or garden centre.
It's been really lovely to have the excuse to have friends to stay, and to go and see others - the current pace of life suits me much better than madly travelling round the country. I will also confess that I'm particularly looking forward to the next gig, being a Billy Bragg fan (and having seen him several times before). I'm also intrigued as to what it's going to be like to see the act from behind - I've managed a ticket in the choir stalls. Always up for something different, I think it might just be that.
On the work front, things are going well. We've found our first community member in addition to me and so I'm sorting that out. Also I'm enjoying the opportunity to spend time in prayer three times most days, and finding silence particularly good. I'm back with the holy again this week as I'm preaching on Sunday and hope that it goes smoothly. I'm quite impressed - it's Monday and I've known what kind of things I want to talk about since last week - normally I work it out the weekend of the preaching. Now I just need to write it. So with that instruction in mind, I shall go off and do just that.
Why is it that on hearing that phrase, I expect something big and orange, with white lettering? When searching for a picture to use to illustrate worship I found this: "Easy Worship" and it conjured up very different images to what it was.
Hmm... I think I may have been corrupted by a budget service provider!
I also meant to say yesterday, a big sorry. Many fellow wibloggers and other readers of this site are occasionally in contact with me in Real Life™ however I've been really shockingly bad at keeping in touch with anyone over at least the last 6 months. If you've been affected by that, then huge apologies and I hope to do better soon. Particularly when I have a phone again.
In November I mentioned that life was moving on, and I'd hope to write a little more frequently during a short intermission. As it happened the intermission generally led to a greater lack of internet than the one I had in November. Life has moved on again, and with it my internet connection.
Way, way back many centuries, well months, ago... I got myself a new job. In fact, I got it around the time I last blogged but couldn't really say a lot. I'm now the Community Leader for an exciting new project in Birmingham at Carrs Lane, a well known local church. My role is going to involve setting up an intentional community and, now I've furnished the flat (rather very nicely), is to recruit members to join me. It is going to be interesting to see who comes forwards to be part of this community and where it will be going.
The new job meant that, after a stint as probationary co-hab, I returned, for the second time to this midland city - it's becoming a little repetitive. The returning, that is, rather than the city. My new job is going to involve spending a lot of time in this fair area. It seems a little entertaining that, given my last job required me to travel right across the UK, that my new one wants me to focus on a small(ish) area of just one city. It's good though.
Right then, this new job. The background to it, in a general sense, can be found here: Carrs Lane Developments and, if anyone's suitably interested, the document about applying for the community can be found here: Information for applicants. It's going to be a little of a challenge to have a wonderful fair trade shop immediately under where I live, the local markets 5 minutes walk away and not even that far to the stations. I fear I make be called upon to put people up from time to time, but at least I can get good and ethical food to feed them with.
With the return to Brummieland, came a little more certainty in life and thus I have returned to preaching. I should probably a) do some homework fairly (very) soon and b) blog some more sermons. Entertainingly enough, due to diary suggestions I'm booked up in November and December but not so much between now and then (not that I'm complaining in the least).
Over the next few weeks and months life will settle down into something of a very different way of life. Sharing in a community life in a very different way to previously experienced, and getting to know the inner depths of a city I've lived in for a fail while but never really got to know. This opportunity, for that's what it is, will (I expect) offer challenges, rewards, difficulties and many things I cannot predict. The first of the challenges will be to find the members but I'm interested to see who comes forwards and what they bring. It may not be easy but it should be worth it.
And all this marvelous journey (which has been kept rather quiet over the last few months), kicked off properly yesterday. A collection of my friends and family came to join me as I was commissioned for this role. It was a really lovely service and my thanks go to all involved (especially to those doing the catering - we were very well fed). The flat survived the guests - there were seven of us in total and there was even one bedroom with nobody sleeping in it and no one needed to sleep under the stairs. The kitchen survived well too, but slow cooking does indeed live up to its name! The sofas and kitchen knives went down well with all who saw them and the church members who looked round the flat seemed pleased with what I've done with it. Even with all this happening we still managed (just about) to mark two birthdays and mothering Sunday. Special thanks go to the Mrs and C for helping me get the place sorted: for the lifting of furniture; the successful wielding of power tools; the chopping of excessive numbers of vegetables and much, much more.
However great the service and the weekend was, I'm rather pleased not to be going through it again any time soon. It will be very nice to be settled and to have the opportunity to create and maintain a home, with a group of other people.
So, what else has happened over the last few month - I found more grey hairs and got another year older, we went to another wedding (which was very nice) and I averaged a 1000 miles a month in a wonderful little car which now has be passed on to a careful lady owner (maybe doing slightly less miles than me). I've spent a fair while on the M1, far too many hours in Ikea and a wonderful time with friends and family. It's been a great interval, and I'm very glad it's over.
Over the next few weeks I'll be settling into a new routine of prayers, frantically trying to get my local preaching homework done, preparing for a wedding (not mine, just to clarify), community members to find, holiday to have, Holy Week and Easter to mark and a new flat to settle into. Good to see life's slowing down a little. ;)
But for now I should wish my mother a happy birthday and acquaint myself (again) with the delights of the kitchen.
After only 3 months I reappear, this time. Life's been a little busy again lately - as the last post hinted.
Since last writing I've left my job and moved out of my flat - both of which are exciting but a little time consuming. Almost 4 years ago I started this blog to talk a little about what it was like to live in community (of the nun variety), then I moved on and eventually started working within another, very different community of people right across the country and the wider world. I met the most amazing people and had a great time but I'll write in more detail about that on another occasion. This is now going to be another turning point for both me and this blog, so between now and the next major step we'll have short intermission (during which time I hope to write more frequently).
So forgive me for talking little over the last year and indulge me in a short witter about the last few weeks since leaving SCM.
The first weekend the other half and I went to a wedding in the Far East (well, further east than we'd been before... East Anglia ish), and however nice that was it immediately proceeded some more exciting (for me) activities. In the week before I finished work a friend had phoned me up to ask my plans and on hearing I had a couple of days said "Can you help us move our boat?". This led to interesting mental pictures of picking up said boat and carrying it but fortunately that wasn't what was planned. So we arrived, late on the Sunday night, to a 62 foot long narrowboat and crew that appeared to have been in the wars and the friend then left us with his wife for the three of us to move the boat. I've never been on a narrowboat before but I certainly think it's an experience worth repeating! We cruised slowly down river and worked our way through the locks and got to know each other better. The minor confusion was that both my other half and my friend's wife have the same name... I'm sure there's a conspiracy where such people are taking over the world as I know far too many of them! Eventually, I got the opportunity to drive. :D In typically NC-styley, I managed to crash into the overhanging trees twice but steered very well under the narrow and low bridge, and round 2 very, very tight corners (the kind that would have been challenging in a car). We saw the most amazing scenary and wildlife - there were so many herons and kingfishers, and we even saw a water vole! The other half is all set to become a canal pirate now!
On the second day we stopped at a town and went ashore for lunch. During this time we realised we'd got suitably used to being on the boat that we still thought things were gently swaying. At the end of the travels we decided to nip by and visit a friend of ours who's currently imprisoned in a well known university. We kidnapped him, drove him out of the city limits and even out of the county. After such an achievement, we fed him top notch pub grub, then unfortunately had to return him once again. Having never been that far east before, I think we've both decided we're up for another visit (and getting to go on the narrowboat again is only a small incentive, honest).
After such a nice relaxing few days, gaining very good arm muscles, I then packed my flat up and moved out to become (for the short term) a probationary co-hab (bonus marks for getting the reference) but am looking for a new set of accommodation as I need somewhere to go until March then things change again.
But cutting a long time short, we get to this week which has been particularly nice. Starting with the Mrs' birthday, we went out with her friends for a nice night out but it marks us all getting old. After the meal, we went to the pub... for a cup of tea and we were all back home by 11! What's happened to us? We're all aging! This followed me getting my hair cut a lot shorter and now I can see many more grey hairs. Oh dear. ;) On Tuesday I took a brief tour of the country to go to a job interview south of here, and to a gig north of us. The gig was amazing - we went to see The Imagined Village. If you haven't heard about the project, you really should follow the link and look them up. A collaborative venture involving people like Martin and Eliza Carthy, Billy Bragg, Benjamin Zephaniah and Simon Emmerson it's bringing a new expression of folk that even appeals to a determined non-folky like me! It was really a top evening and it was great to catch up with some friends while abroad. Hearing England Half English to John Barleycorn was great, as was Scarborough Fair on the sitar and seeing Eliza Carthy bouncing around the stage. Billy Bragg was teased lots for his pearly king outfit, and Simon Emmerson for his dog film. For me the highlight over all that was Benjamin Zephaniah's reworking of Tam Lin. All in all it was a really excellent evening!
So yesterday concluded the nice week as C, the Mrs and I went all met up for lunch and then after the day we went out for a meal and a good evening was had by all. This was nicely concluded by a surprise phone call from Tractor Girl who had met up with Orthodoxy so I got to speak to them both! It was great!
With that, I'll had to bed and I'll try and write again soon. I owe my successor a leaving speech!
Wow, after only, erm... 9 months I prove I'm still alive!
Life continues, as it ever does, but I thought I should mention something that's been bubbling under for a while now. I'm leaving my job... if you want it you can find out more information here. As such I am looking for a new job, so if you want a soon-to-be ex-links worker or know of any jobs, please let me know. The decision is related to a lack of accommodation from November, so location isn't important.
As you can see, life's looking a little uncertain at the moment so I hope you will bear with me as I write as much as I ever do!
This is my most recent sermon. I'd like to thank an unnamed wiblogger for her help in getting this proofed and picking up the typos.
Readings - Hebrews 10:11-14,19-25, Mark 13:1-8
Sermon
When I was at university, rather like a good number of the students I now work with, I had a bit of a crisis. The crisis was of identity and where I fitted into this strange thing called life. I'd left all that I'd known, my family, my church, my friends, all the different communities I was part of. I didn't know where I was without them nor did I know where to turn for support when all that I was familiar with had crumbled down. In view of the world I saw and experienced at university I was changed, and more so than I could imagine or predict. It wasn't always easy but I couldn't go back from it either. I was alone in a strange city with nobody I'd known for more than a couple of day or weeks and hundreds of miles from home. Where could I go?
Well, I knew that I wasn't entirely alone no matter how much I felt I was. I had God with me. I had the security that I was not being left to cope alone and I also knew that I could go in search of other Christians too. With them I might, just might, have something in common and could find the community I was looking for. I found the support and love I needed in the student group and church I joined and in the new friends and spiritual family I found there. The church I went to at uni was about as different from the one I'd left as you could imagine but it wasn't the familiarity of the liturgy or the style of worship that were of supreme importance. More important to me was whether I felt I was part of an active Christian community remaining faithful to God and living out their faith honestly and sincerely. They were there for me in the difficult times and offered me the hope I needed to hold onto and a way of looking forward. They also offered me complete and unconditional love and encouragement. It was such a lovely place and through it I, and my faith, grew and developed. I was an active member of the church too, contributing back into the community that meant so much to me in the hope it would be there for others too. Building was a bit of a shocker though. Good thing I wasn't looking for a pretty church or awe inspiring building. Despite leaving university over three years ago now, I'm still in touch with many people from there and they are as close to me as the family I grew up with. It was the community of people of God that were faithful to God, aware of the needs of its members and loving to all who came into it.
The experience of losing all that you're familiar with is similar to what the disciples were being told about in Mark's Gospel. All that they were used to with was going to change. The temple symbolised the centre of religious and cultural life in Jerusalem, and was quite an awe inspiring structure – it was huge! It dominated the skyline of Jerusalem! It wasn't just the building that was huge – the influence it held over all aspects of life was equally as large. When Jesus predicted its destruction, the damage to the building was not entirely what he was referring to. He is speaking more broadly of the political, cultural and religious influence it had, and how that would end. How often do we hear people say 'something came crumbling down' and expect them to mean a physical thing? I've already used the phrase this morning and I certainly wasn't referring to physical destruction. Jesus is talking about the changes that come with the new order he is introducing. He has changed things, and will continue to do so through his death and resurrection and ongoing legacy – but that hadn't happened when the Disciples were discussing the future of the temple. Jesus was bringing peoples attention back to God, and in the process is removing the need to follow the old traditions of the Jewish laws. Like so many times in the Old Testament we read that the people were still undertaking religious duties but were neglecting God. We also hear this criticism repeatedly in the New Testament too. In the reading we heard this morning, Jesus was reminding the disciples not to get distracted by false teachers. The people were too distracted by the traditions and ceremonies to remember that God was behind them. God was lost in the face of religion and culture.
We still have those temptations now and are in danger of losing God again – through consumerism, the cult of celebrity, work, hobbies, family or even church, we can lose sight of God in our lives. We have our own rituals and routines. But how many of us allow time for God, let alone him being the focus of our lives. The false teachers we need to avoid are those things which distract us from remaining true to our faith and to God. Only we know what our own distractions are but we do need to overcome them. Mark's Gospel reminds us that even when Jesus was saying that, his disciples were getting distracted by concerns about how long they'd have to do that for. They are asking for a key to the signs so they will know when the end will come – when they won't have to worry about the distractions any more. Jesus doesn't answer this at all or maybe in typical Jesus style, answers the question that they didn’t ask!. He warns them instead that it's going to be a real challenge to follow him but that it will be worth it and we have to remain true to God. Being a Christian, he tells us, will involve wars, torment, earthquakes, destruction and more. Like the temple coming crumbling down earlier, it's worth considering these as symbols for the problems to be faced rather than actual literal predictions. When Mark's gospel was written, the early church was already being persecuted and it is with that view that we can approach the list of tragedies. Some of them would have been personal and some broader, but all the community would have been aware of the problems they were facing. In fact, by the time Mark's gospel was written the temple had been destroyed and I'd imagine that this fact would make Jesus' warning all the more relevant. It gave them something to hold onto when they were feeling oppressed – Jesus was there with them. He was going through it with them and they could hold true to their faith in him.
This is where we get to the second of our readings. Again, the community – this time not in Jerusalem, were being told to hold true to their faith and being reminded that Jesus had overthrown the old way of living. They are also encouraged to remain true to their faith and that Jesus will remain true to them. We, too, can hold onto this promise. If we remain faithful to Jesus he will remain so to us.
The second point we can take from the readings this morning is again something I found in my church at university. We can and do need to be part of a community. When I left for university the minister from my home church sent a letter to the chaplain letting him know I was coming and asked him to get in touch with me. During my first week I got a letter welcoming me to the university and letting me know there was a friendly chaplain I could go to should I want to. I did, and it was his church I got involved with. When I went to see him, he remembered he'd written to me and it was really lovely to think that there was someone looking out for me. This is just one aspect of the Christian community that we can see and appreciate from Hebrews. While the style and content was very different from the one I received from my chaplain, the idea of someone looking out for the interests of another remains the same. The letter writer is offering hope to a distanced community and emphasises the importance of consideration, love and encouragement for its members. He wants the readers to consider the needs and requirements of the wider community. He focuses on the relationship we have with Christ and God through Jesus' sacrifice but sets that reassurance within the context of a community. Like the Christians when Mark was writing, the Hebrews Christians were being persecuted for their faith. It was all the more important to remind them that they were not alone – the letter itself was one way of doing that, but also reminding the readers of their special relationship with God through Jesus, but we'll come back to that.
The letter to the Hebrews encourages them to focus on considering how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another. This was particularly relevant for a community under oppression because you'd never know what was going to happen next and who would be affected in what way. Meeting each other would have been important to check that everyone was okay or coming to terms with what it meant when someone wasn't. Encouraging with other, provoking good deeds and showing love would be particularly important as it must have been hard to deal with living in such conditions. Encouraging people to hold true to their faith must have been very difficult when that faith could very easily get them killed. While we are not in danger of being arrested and killed by the UK government or Birmingham City Council for our faith, the values the Hebrews were advised to consider would be well suited to the church here and in the wider circuit. I'm sure we do many of them anyway, but it is a good aim to hold to – to provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another.
As I found when I went to university those things are invaluable. It's also all the more relevant when people are having difficult times and that brings us back to the challenges suggested by Mark. When the world comes crumbling down, to know that you can find love and encouragement is all the more important. Each of us will need it at some time or another, and some more often than others. Each of us will also need to offer it too and if we all look out for one another we'll get a long way. Sometimes we need to do both at the same time and that's not always easy but through the community we can, and do, do it. When I first arrived at university it was certainly the case that I needed that support and when I got to the second year I was able to offer it to the freshers on their arrival. When I had bad days people were there for me and when they had bad days I was there for them. It was a real honour and privilege to do so – and also to know that there were people doing it for me. It really did, and continues to, show the love and hope of Christ lived out.
Hope is the final of the points we can hold onto from our readings today. It goes back to the special relationship with Christ we touched upon earlier. Jesus, over thrower of the old laws, source of our hope and love and foundation of our communities, also brings us to a unique relationship with God. Through his sacrifice we are made perfect and can enter into God's Kingdom. Hebrews talks of us no longer being separated from God – God is with us and each of us is with him. We are welcomed into his home and cleansed and purified. This is quite some hope. When we are feeling down and under pressure this is a hope we can hold onto. No matter how bad we are feeling in ourselves, how guilty we are feeling for the things we have and haven't done, for the hurt we experience and seeing those we love suffer, we can remember that each of us is perfected through Christ.
I can't even begin to imagine how important and liberating that would have been to the earliest Christians who received the letter. When dealing with people, as is the case within communities, we run the risk of hurting and being hurt by each other. Of letting people down and not doing what we should. Sometimes we do what's spot on, we get it right, we make a difference in a good way. We can and are there for other people and often find ourselves being there and offering hope when we're not expecting it. Even when we make mistakes and get things wrong, which I certainly did at university and continue to do so now, we are still pure and clean in the eyes of God. We are perfected through Jesus. We have the hope offered by our relationship with God, we have the hope and promise of the love of Jesus. We have the hope and support of the Christian communities we're in. We can and should share these hopes with the other members of the community. We can look forwards in the knowledge of this hope.
The readings this morning offer us many challenges – how are we to live our lives faithfully? How can we show love to all that come to us? Warts and all! How can we find hope? How can we live these things out in the community of God? Each of these things is possible through Jesus. By putting our faith in him we can receive and share his love and hope. By remaining faithful to him we will find ourselves on the receiving end of those things to and will be strengthened and nourished by them. By sharing together in a community we can see the best of these things at work and be there to support each other when we need it too. We can and will find ourselves living out the Kingdom of God here on earth.
I was planning to blog about knitting and sermons for a while. As you will be able to see by the fact that I've only blogged once in the last two months (before today), I'm kind of behind in my blogging. Life, it seems, gets rather busy at this time of year. My feet don't feel like they've touched the ground in a while, and it will still be a few months yet before they really do.
Despite feet not touching the ground, Jen and Sarah came to my trial service and this is the sermon from then. I think this is the one but I'm not the most imaginative or sensible when it comes to filenames so who knows...
Readings – Proverbs 9: 1 – 6, John 6: 51 – 58
Sermon
Communion! Bread rolls and grape juice or port and wafers. Communion! That's what sprung to mind the first, and every, time I read through today's Gospel reading! It's something familiar to Christians throughout the world, continues in a legacy started by the first Christians and follows a commandment from Jesus. While different churches have their different approaches and different styles, sharing bread and wine together is what many people, even outside the church, associate with Christianity. Communion is something very special to me and I have been fortunate to share in many different celebrations. From everyone sharing their lunch together at a Christian festival like the one I'm going to next weekend, or joining half a dozen elderly nuns and a priest in a convent to an integral part of a friends wedding or on a normal communion service on a Sunday morning, it is always a special experience. I was intrigued to know what, if any, insight could be gained from the readings. How could Proverbs bring understanding to a practice that hadn't even started, and why is John's account so different from his fellow Gospel writers? What challenges can we take from the experience and what reassurance, and how can we share this with others?
Proverbs may not seem the first place to turn but it presents many interesting ideas worth exploring when considering communion. We hear of the host preparing a feast and inviting guests – something that echoes the Gospel reading but we'll come back to that later. The host, Wisdom is a female representation of the Holy Spirit and the poet tells us that:
“She (Wisdom) prepared her meat and mixed her wine.”
as the New International Version translates the verse. This verse is later followed by the invite to the guests saying:
“Come, eat the food and drink the wine mixed. Leave your simple ways and you will live; walk in the way of understanding.”
The Spirit, in the form of Wisdom, has made a feast for all who want to gain in life and knowledge to join. I think it's fair to say that most, if not all of us, want to live in the ways of understanding and life – and that invite still applies to us! The Spirit invites all of us, from the beginning of time, to share in the feast and that legacy will be passed on to a new generation by us. Through sharing with each other, and with the spirit we will grow and be nourished by it. As we become more familiar with the Spirit we can begin to understand the role it plays in our own understanding and life. It is our ongoing connection to God, and the gift given to us by Jesus to help us.
To come to Wisdom's table requires us to admit our shortcomings – we will will always be unable to truly comprehend the nature of God. It also requires us to look at what we are being asked to share in – the feast itself. Wisdom has prepared meat and mixed wine. This is where the echo with the Gospel gets a little louder. It is the same flesh and wine we are invited to consume by Jesus. The Holy Spirit is inviting us to eat the flesh of Jesus and drink his blood. This is the feast prepared by Wisdom and talked about in Proverbs. By sharing in the feast we are entitled to taste the delights she has to offer. We learn more about ourselves and the nature of God through this relationship. It is through the involvement of the Spirit that the feast becomes more than the sum of its parts – it becomes Communion with God.
It is this communion with God that John is talking about. His account of Jesus' commandment to us is markedly different from those of the other Gospel writers. When Matthew, Mark and Luke offer the Last Supper as the setting, it is worth noting that John does no such thing. John doesn't actually mention the last supper at all – not in relation to this or any other story in the whole of his Gospel! He emphasises different aspects of Jesus' commandment and they can add to our understanding but we need to explore why John writes so differently.
The earliest Christians generally came from the regions where Jesus conducted his ministry and were primarily Jewish by background and culture. As the early Christian movement grew, it spread into new areas and reached people of different backgrounds. John, it is believed, was writing from Ephesus in modern-day Turkey around 70 years after the death of Jesus. The community he was living in was so different from those that Jesus visited. The culture, language, religion and lifestyle were completely different and he needed to find a way of getting his message across. He wasn't writing for people who were seated in Jewish traditions, he was trying to write for everyone. There is nobody who is excluded by the Good News and John tried to write for as many people as possible. As such he wrote with explanations of Jewish tradition for those unfamiliar with it, but also with ideas and images familiar to people from other backgrounds. It is with that in mind that we return to the reading we heard earlier.
John's exploration of Jesus' commandment is firmly set in traditions outside Judaism. Many religions of the time held the belief that you could achieve communion with a God by eating some of a sacrifice offered by a priest. The priest would offer the sacrifice and after everything else had been sorted, the believer would be given back a portion of the meat. It was believed that the sacrificed meat was transformed into the God. By eating the flesh, the believer was bringing the God into themselves and would become one with them. The consumption of any food, including meat, is a very intimate process. The food is taken in, absorbed, and becomes part of us. You are bringing something from the outside into you. If it is good, it will feed and sustain you. It will lead to growth and keep you going. The meat from the sacrifice nourished the person not only physically but also spiritually and emotionally – just as communion can and does for us.
By explaining Jesus' instructions in the way he did, John is giving people an understanding of the importance of Jesus. He is emphasising the Divinity of Christ. It says to the readers of the time, This man is God. By sharing in the feast, we are sharing with a man, but a man who is equally God and equally human. For us, he is our living sacrifice!
John makes it even clearer when he reports Jesus saying:
“Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me and I in them. Just as the living father sent me and I live because of the father, so whoever eats me will live because of me.”
By eating the bread of life, the flesh of Jesus, he is with and in us and each of us is in him. That's what communion is for us. A celebration of the eternal link between Jesus and each of us. But how is it that the bread and wine that we share become the spiritual foods spoken about by John, or hold the promise mentioned earlier by the poet in Proverbs? The answer is in the involvement of the Holy Spirit. If we were to carry on reading from where we left off in John's Gospel we would come to a passage about the importance of the Spirit. Jesus talks about the role of Wisdom, the Holy Spirit, when he says:
“The words I have spoken to you bring God's life-giving spirit.”
This refers back to the promise spoken about in Proverbs where Wisdom offers the guests a way to life. The Spirit is transformative. There are many accounts in the new testament of the work of the Spirit and the way it brings life. We are invited to receive guidance for our lives from the spirit, and it is the source of the gifts God gives to share life with those around us. When we share in communion the Spirit is with us and there is a transformation here too. The bread and wine are changed through the Holy Spirit to bring the blessings of life and understanding promised by Jesus and to which we were invited by Wisdom. In the moment of joining in communion we are united with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and by this union we are transformed. We may not always be aware of it but we will have been nourished. Through this small action on our part, we bring Jesus into our bodies and into our lives. Is is with us in all that we are all that we do. Sometimes that knowledge can be really unsettling but that is a good thing. We can be reassured and know that Jesus is alongside us and we are never alone. This is also where the challenge comes.
Jesus is with us in all that we say and all that we do, which means he is with us every time things go well, but also when things go badly. With that in mind, we should try our hardest to be faithful on all occasions. Through the guidance of the Spirit and the teachings of Jesus we can learn how best to act in each situation. We know that we are growing in life and understanding but how are we dealing with that responsibility? Wisdom tells us to leave foolishness behind as we feast and we need to live that out in our daily lives. Jesus tells us that he is the bread for the life world, but we know of so many parts of the world where life is restricted. With the transformative Spirit, we can take this challenge and embrace it. We can each play a part, however small, in the lives of those around us. Whether it's making a cup of tea, doing a night of babysitting, volunteering for a project or something entirely different we can share with those our lives touch. Maybe our actions will be as small as the pieces of bread we eat, or as short lived as the taste in our mouths but through the Spirit of God they may be changed into something amazing. When we share in or remember the sacrament of Holy Communion, may we feel encouraged to use our lives to share understanding and life with the people we meet.
From Rambling Folkie... Although she may post after me!
(neverconforming, November 21, 2006, 6:49 pm)
You Are Olive Green
You are the most real of all the green shades. You're always true to yourself.
For you, authenticity and honesty are very important... both in others and yourself.
You are grounded and secure. It takes a lot to shake you.
People see you as dependable, probably the most dependable person they know.
I think I meant to write something before now. Oh well, that's the problem when life gets in the way. It's been something of a busy month and I don't intend to go through it all but it's been good.
In my last post I threatened to tell you a little more about when Jen and Sarah came to stay. They came to stay about 5 weeks ago now and the date of the Sunday is somewhat imprinted on my brain. Jen recounts the weekend in this post. As she said, we had a good weekend and went to the science museum. She was suitably entertained that I could do about as well with the mechanical digger as my reputation (at times) would suggest. Digging is certainly one of those things in life that I'm quite good at, at times. It also appears that i'm not to bad at mending & fixing either at times but I'll come on to that.
The reason that the Sunday 20 August 2006 was somewhat imprinted in my brain was that it was the date of my trial service to go from 'on note' to 'on trial' as a local preacher, should I be successful. Those are the first two stages of training and I had to do the whole service myself. It was a challenging weekend because I was so nervous and was so grateful to Sarah and Jen for keeping me sane. When we got as far as Sunday morning, we went to leave my flat but couldn't get through the gate. It took 5-10 minutes before we could get the padlock to open. That didn't exactly help with nerves and when we got to the church I realised I'd not printed the order of service for the organist, then she wasn't up to playing so one of my assessors ended up doubling up to do that too! I was so grateful to her too. My mentor introduced me at the start of the service and was really lovely about it all. He said a few words to the congregation and I could feel the tears just welling up inside me. I decided that the start of the service wasn't the best time to burst into tears and fortunately managed to hold onto them but I was so, so nervous. I think it's probably fair to say that the feedback was rather good for the service and I am now 'on trial' following the local preachers meeting. Now I have to do lots of study. It was really great to have Jen and Sarah around though to give me lots of hugs. I think that's probably enough said about that really.
The week after that something rather exciting happened at work. Richard has already discovered what I'm talking about and Wood wrote for it (as did I, a little bit). We made a book and it's great. Check out Richard's review if you don't believe me but it really is fantastic. It's so amazing to have been involved with it since the beginning, before I joined the staff, and now it's real. It's so exciting.
I went to Greenbelt too and it was great to catch up with old friends and meet new ones. I went to my first wibmeet despite being on here for nearly 3 years now. Doesn't time go fast. Greenbelt was great and I think that it has been suitably reviewed by everyone else so I'll leave them to it. ;)
So eventually we get to this month and things are as busy as ever - hence the lack of blogging. I went to a brilliant conference and it was great to catch up with people I've met over the last couple of years. I also got to spend some quality time with a good friend during the week and we agreed to teach each other new skills. Scary eh?
Speaking of teaching. I understand from Jen that my teaching of relaxation techniques has been quite successful. It's really reassuring to know that it's been successful and now I think I probably want to take some of my own advice. This is where the fixing (of Jen, a little bit) has been coming in.
The mending is in relation to my teaching. I've been teaching a friend to knit, and she's teaching me guitar. This is a rather scary concept but exciting too. I've never tried teaching knitting before and it was a little daunting but my friend did very well. I was dead impressed and she learned to knit and purl, and cast on. She did really well and put me to complete shame because it took me about 15 years (not continuously, I hasten to add) to learn to purl. :$ At one point, as is perfectly understandable with newbie knitters she went wrong a little bit and I managed to fix it. It's the first time I've tried actually fixing it properly. Normally I'd just unpull it if it was mine, but it wasn't my knitting which meant I got to learn a new skill too. The guitar playing is a little more interesting. I'm not a very good student at all and I'm very nervous about it. She taught me 8 different chords and I need to practice them but the guitar went out of tune over night so I need to learn how to tune it too. My friend left me a tuner so it shouldn't be too hard but I'll give it a go when I get home. I need to practise more but hope to get there eventually. I've never been very musical so this is quite an undertaking! Oh well... if she's going to be doing so well with her knitting, maybe it's the incentive I need to practice my guitar playing. Wish me all the best with it.
Finally I should provide a little update on my knitting. I went to a knitting and stitching exhibition at the weekend. It was very good and I found some cool yarns made out of such exotic things as Bananas or at least their leaves and stems, Hemp and containing Soy Beans. It was very cool. I also got complimented on my knitting which was fantastic. The people who complimented me do the most exciting things and I've decided I want to go off and join them. They do giant knitting and recycling and it's so, so cool. I texted a friend saying that I'd fallen in love after seeing that stall - she seemed suitably entertained by the concept! I'm still going on with my second sock. I'll be done before I retire. I had a good crack at it last night but I think the tension might be a little tighter on this one. I'll have to have a look later and see whether it's too tight but it's good to be making progress. Hmmm... maybe I should be counting rows though. I'll show you a picture of my new bag (which was what the compliment was about) and my sock progress if I can.
Anyway, having not blogged for ages I think I've now written an essay so should call it a day. I'll try and write slightly more frequently, but I do say that worryingly often.
Never Conforming in a Surreal World 
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