Reflections from the Three Churches magazine
August 2010
The month of August promises to be something of an improvement on the same month last year—we all remember the rain! All-in-all this year’s summer has been quite agreeable and most welcome after what proved to be a very long wintry spell. As a nation we do tend to be preoccupied with the weather. But we speak of harnessing that weather too—whether it be the rains and the filling of reservoirs or with an increasing number of windmills all designed to provide electricity.
All this serves to remind us of the need to look at the world around us and to see how we can utilise the resources it affords us in a responsible manner. In any case, more and more of us are developing environmental and carbon awareness. I find myself looking carefully at what I eat, knowing full well that for far too many years I ate things that were too refined. I need to think about the amount of driving I do—perhaps I should cycle more, and walk more, too. Parishioners may be interested to know that we are giving serious thought to the ways in which we might harness energy in and around our churches. Frankly, the cost of heating and lighting our churches is enormous—and not always effective. We burn thousands of pounds worth of gas in an attempt to heat St Mary’s—and not a double glazed window in sight! (I don’t think we stand much chance of persuading the authorities to allow us any such home improvements). But we might be able to utilise the very extensive roof surface to harness the sun’s energy and provide electricity. In addition we are considering the possibility of geo-thermal heat recovery, albeit that any initial costs are likely to be high. But the savings, long term, might be immense.
So here we are thinking of the generations that come after us. It will not do for us just to think about ourselves; we need always to be thinking of the world in which we live and the generations yet to come. And what about Christianity?
I really do wonder what thinking we are doing in relation to a Christian world and a generation of Christians to come. The evidence is that we are doing very little. In the past month I have encountered any number of younger people who not only know nothing about the Christian Gospel, but whose lives are incredibly wayward—twelve year olds regularly engaging in sex; a twenty one year old who has had a fifth abortion; teenagers whose family background has dissolved into chaos and the development of attitudes which are often framed in anger and addiction.
I know I need to tell these people about Jesus—but I cannot do it alone.
We need to work together!
July 2010
BBC Radio Wales Sunday Worship programme, Celebration, was recently recorded at St Mary’s for broadcast on St Benedict’s Day, Sunday, July 11. All but the regular 8 o’clock congregation at St Mary’s will have the opportunity of listening to that programme and, indeed, to a second programme to be broadcast in the Autumn.
There was something a little un-real about recording these services, but the Producer of the programme was at pains to encourage us to ensure that no matter how many times we had to stop, and re-record a hymn, or a prayer, nonetheless this was an act of worship. Some 70,000 people regularly listen to the broadcast—a rather larger congregation than that which we are used to, even in Abergavenny! I don’t think there is any real chance that we shall be winning a radio broadcast award, but I hope we shall have been able to convey the hopes and aspirations of an increasing number of people in these parishes—a developing group of churches and congregations faced with a considerable number of challenges in a world which is so clearly turning away from the Christian Faith.
The Church at large has very many anxieties in these days— not least those arising from diminishing income and falling numbers of regular worshippers. The maintenance of buildings and the real prospect of the discontinuing of any public funding towards church restorations, even of the most important buildings, means that we are in for a very stormy future.
Faced with these threats any number of initiatives will come to the surface. But few seem to tackle the need for Christians to establish themselves as a community focussed on a rule and way of life in which stability and purpose is achieved through discipline, prayer, worship and endeavour.
The Rule of St Benedict has, for fifteen hundred years, provided such a model for the Christian community worldwide. As a lens through which we can view the Gospel and the breadth of the Christian tradition it brings into focus the need for stability and holiness. Some will mistake this for a call to remoteness and monk-ish behaviour. It is not. On the contrary, everything that we are facing requires the strength of a community of Christian believers who must abandon faction, jealousies and territorialism, in favour of reconciliation, co-operation and love. No one knows better than me how difficult that is likely to be! But the alternatives are unacceptable. We have to pull together. We have to embrace the spirit of a way of life and a rule of life in which we can simply love God and love our neighbour. It isn’t rocket science! But it does require us to leave selfishness behind, and to seek the common good. If we don’t, where are the peoples of this town and villages to discover the Kingdom of God?
June 2010
Increasingly, we seem to be living in a world of alarming uncertainties. Across the globe there are anxieties concerning developments in the Korean peninsula, Thailand, the Caribbean, and vast swathes of Africa. In the Middle East disputes and tensions remain unresolved. The once unhurried pace of environmental deterioration has been dispatched by the catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico that seems to defy man’s ingenuity. Added to all this, seismic activity appears to be on the increase with earthquakes and unrelenting volcanic activity in the north Atlantic disrupting air travel—as many of us are now aware. The focus of world trade has begun to move from West to East, and the once smart-suited sophistication of European economic stability appears to be falling apart at the seams! Our new coalition government will have its work cut out in addressing the immensity of the problems which it is likely to confront. Unemployment seems likely to rocket and those expected expansions in the provision of health and education may well be found to flounder before very long. For those who have prudently saved for the future, that future now looks bleak. Several of us, who have served as clergy all our adult life, have discovered that our modest provision for retirement is likely to prove insufficient. What is more the provinces of the Church of England and the Church in Wales are having to address anxious questions concerning the number of paid clergy. Only this last week I heard a bishop mention the prospect of redundancies. Whoever would have imagined it!
These gravities are all the more alarming because of the lack of faith amongst us. Those who, as Christian people, once found the practice of their religion to be sustaining and affirming, are discovering that there is a cost to that religion which, hitherto, was unimaginable. Increasingly, our faith and belief is being marginalised, undermined and rejected. Efforts from within the Church often have the effect of weakening, rather than strengthening, and so many find themselves cast adrift, uncared for, unvisited and unloved. Family life, as we once knew it, crumbles away—and we look with regret at un-baptized grandchildren, the broken marriages of children, or those ‘modern’ arrangements when it comes to relationships which deep within we know to be awry. What should we do, and where should we turn?
In a world where so much has been built on sand we need, again, to turn to the Lord of our Life, Jesus Christ, whose unchanging love embraces the cosmic and the intimate. Trusting in him and building our house on this rock we can begin to establish that community which, though small and frail, becomes the stability and foundation upon which our wider community and world may find hope and fulfilment. Let his grace be sufficient for us all.
May 2010
It isn’t every day that I find myself with the opportunity of addressing elected members of local government. But at a recent St George’s Day Scout Service I was able to voice some frustrations concerning the lack of a rubbish collection at the Vicarage. This is largely due to the inaccessibility of the house when it comes to refuse lorries, indeed, to any large vehicle, albeit that the local Fire Service assures me that they would find a way of getting to the Vicarage should it be ablaze.
But the issue of the environment in general, and my rubbish in particular, has been playing on my mind. After all, we are more and more aware of the dangers associated with the irresponsible treatment of what we waste. At the same time we discover that so much of what we purchase comes with packaging, cardboard, plastic and cellophane. Too many people add to the mountain of plastic in purchasing milk from supermarkets, which all adds to a substantial environmental hazard. The human race may well be the dominant intelligence when it comes to life on earth, but it is tragic that in being domineering we have so blighted the glories of God’s creation.
Understandably, the matter of the environment has been widely politicized. People who feel so passionately about the future of so many species, let alone the level of the world’s oceans, find the frustration of not being heeded to be so infuriating. But the cause célèbre of the environmentalists is not the exclusive domain of an alternative political scheme. The truth is that we all need to be more passionate about the world. We fail when our lives become merely hedonistic and self-satisfying. But when we wake each morning and offer prayers of thanks to God, and when we settle down at the end of the day, once again to say thank you to him for all the past blessings, it is then that we begin to feel truly passionately about the world, about the abuse of that creation, and about the increasingly long list of injustices and inhumanities which so blight our planet.
The glory of the Christian Gospel is that in the waters of Baptism we are made a New Creation. The first new man of that Creation is Jesus Christ, the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep. Therefore we have the choice between living in the old and fallen creation, one in which, I am afraid to say, all too many people continue to live—a world of selfishness, greed and thoughtlessness. Or we may live as members of his new Kingdom where being self-less and generous, merciful and compassionate, strike at the very threat of world destruction. Lives that are transformed by this new life of Christ can only make things better—for the sake of the whole earth.
April 2010
Most political observers have been suggesting that the General Election is likely to take place on May 6, even though the Prime Minister may choose to go to early June. Much will depend upon the opinion polls whose results are taken rather seriously by the political party leaders. But there can be little doubt that the election, whenever it comes, will prove significant.
There is much speculation about a ‘hung’ parliament. But the likelihood is that very many people will be utterly disinterested in a system that has very much been called into question of late. In reality it is not the system that has failed us but those who, in one way or another, have taken advantage of the privileges which the system affords. In addition there has been a good deal of indecision when it comes to the constitutional arrangements for governing the country—indeed countries! We have seen more power devolved to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland; we have witnessed a substantial degree of confusion when it comes to the House of Lords, where even the future of the Church of England bishops seems to be in the balance, and we are discovering that the economic future of our country seems inextricably related to political activities far removed from these islands.
The temptation, therefore, to step back from the political process is a very real one. Indeed, it is quite possible that the forthcoming General Election will see one of the smallest turn-outs in history.
In all this there will be those who question the whole democratic process. But in so doing we open up the possibility for extreme groups to make progress politically. Where there is a low poll in some constituencies it is conceivable that extreme right wing or extreme left wing candidates will win. In better times we would consider this unimaginable. But the truth is that very many communities up and down the length of Great Britain are increasingly hostile within themselves.
All the more reason for people to take the privileges of democracy seriously. In a world where all too many people are subject to tyranny, to cruelty, to political fanaticism and to token democracy, the opportunities available to us at the ballot box are precious. Very many will wag their heads at politicians, or scorn their contribution. But we would be wiser to pray for them. In a world where there are so very many evils such representatives need all the help they can get, both to withstand temptation, and to address so many pressing issues. But there again, perhaps we need to be praying rather more than we have been, in any case.
March 2010
Politics continues to be at the forefront of our daily lives at the present time. Most assume that the General Election will take place on May 6th—although there is still some suspicion that the Prime Minister may pounce sooner. The choice is narrowed, somewhat, by a convention that would avoid Holy Week and Easter. The business of General Elections may well prove tiresome, but we aught really to take pride in a system which affords people a democratic opportunity to choose. After all, in all too many countries the process of government is determined by altogether more draconian criteria. However, several contemporary political commentators warn that the business of representation is in danger of overwhelming the populace.
Here in Wales we are represented considerably at all levels— in Europe, at Westminster, in the National Assembly, at County and Community Council levels, too. This is all very well, but when the elected bodies don’t come-up-to-the-mark we tend to despair and lose interest in the democratic process altogether. Sadly, vast numbers of people do not bother to vote—they are just not interested.
Interestingly, the democratic process has come to be represented in the government of the Church—certainly so in Anglican circles. In the Church in Wales this is so at all levels, even when it comes to electing our shepherds, the bishops. We understand that the Church is essentially a ‘theocracy’ rather than a ‘democracy’, but we have also come to appreciate that the Holy Spirit touches the life of a community of believers and is able to urge that community forward in ways that are just and true.
Sadly, the electoral opportunities available in the Church also receive little attention. At a Deanery and Diocesan level we often find difficulties in getting people to stand for committees and bodies which really do play an important part in the Kingdom of God. So, too, in our parishes it is important for us to consider deeply the democratic process and to provide opportunity for the life of Church people to be represented. Those who stand, and those who are elected, have surely to be people who can by their example and way of life help others in the ways of the Gospel. They have to be people who can unite the fellowship, working with the clergy and the other church officers to accomplish the growth of the Kingdom to the greater glory of God. This may well sound daunting! It isn’t. To serve God in his church is to find grace and strength beyond our greatest expectations. But when we seek office for other reasons, all hell breaks loose.
So at a time when we may well all have had rather too much of the political diet, nationally, there comes an opportunity for us to consider how best our churches and parishes can be represented, remembering always that to those to whom much responsibility is given, much is indeed required.
Please pray at this time for those seeking election to office in all our parishes.
February 2010
The Haiti earthquake appears to have killed some 200,000 people. There are huge numbers of orphaned children, thousands who have had limbs amputated, and innumerable people who have lost everything—family, houses and jobs.
That such a terrible disaster should overwhelm the poorest nation in the western hemisphere makes this an even greater catastrophe. The process of restoration has begun, amidst extraordinary and moving accounts of rescues so long after the initial devastation. International aid agencies were quick on the scene, although being able to set about distributing relief proved so difficult at first.
Soon, the world’s attention will have turned from Haiti, even so. Soon, there will be other disasters, wars, famines and grave injustices, all of which in some measure capture the attention of the world media. But for the moment we have to note that this is the greatest loss of life following an earthquake since 1256 when the countries of the Eastern Mediterranean were subject to a colossal earthquake of vast scale. Some will find such seismic occurrences to be merely matter-of-fact. Along the edge of the world’s tectonic plates, such disasters appear to be waiting to happen. Others will think such events to be acts-of-God. Indeed, some rather pathetic theories have arisen about God’s disapproval of Haiti’s traditional Voodoo practices. Others, of course, will cite the disaster as proof of an indifferent God, or of no God at all. But the real answer is that we know such disasters can occur, that they are the result of an active world environment, and that tragedy and agony is enhanced by the disgraceful poverty and the shoddy buildings, so inadequately constructed, and yet which came tumbling down, thus entombing so many men, women and children.
I cannot come to believe in a God who willed this to occur, anymore than I can conceive of a God who distributes diseases and cancers willy-nilly. But human beings have been given many gifts, and have developed those gifts, understandings and skills to such an extent that buildings can be constructed to withstand even the greatest earthquakes; drugs are available to wipe out very many of the world’s life threatening and life shortening diseases; science has progressed to such a degree that we may soon comprehend the beginnings of the universe.
Tragically, so much of this is owned by the privileged and the wealthy who, quite scandalously, take it all for granted. Our eased western daily lives, our conceit in believing we are right, and the inwardness of our own developing society is the greatest disaster of all. Set against this is the teaching of Jesus Christ—a teaching with which we seem more to toy, than embrace. But when we do embrace that teaching wholeheartedly, life changes—for us, for our communities, for the nation, the civilization, even for those people of Haiti.