Only 'humans' welcome

I read this morning, on Facebook admittedly, that some people are planning to boycott Tesco because their Christmas advert includes pictures of Muslims. My friends response was less than helpful: “FANTASTIC!! Now we won't have to rub shoulders with quite as many ignorant Islamophobic bigots while we queue to buy our sprouts! RESULT! :-)”  Contrastingly Tesco’s campaign is entitled ‘Everyone Welcome!’

To me this raises massive questions of identity and how we define ourselves. Are we a ‘Christian’ country? Are those who object to Muslims (interestingly they seem to ignore that Sikh’s were also depicted in the ad!) regular church goer’s, and thus bastion supporters of the Christian faith? I doubt it, or more accurately I really hope not. Worshipping God should teach us of love and respect for each person whatever their beliefs and wherever they are from, as fellow citizens made with God’s image within us. Sadly I fear that too often we define ourselves by what we are not, ‘like them’ rather than who we are and what we value and love. Jesus taught that we should love our neighbour and even our enemies, as we love ourselves, he indicated that ‘the poor’ were people who would possess the kingdom of God. His rule was that we are never ‘good’ or ‘righteous’ because we are not like ‘them.’ Real goodness (dare I say Christianity) is discovered by finding ways to treat other as we would like to be treated ourselves. It can’t work if in Frampton and Coalpit Heath we define ourselves as happy simply because we don’t live in say Yate, or that we don’t want a huge new building development on our doorstep, or even dare I say that we are not from one of the ‘fairground families,’ we are not refugees, we want to be out of Europe, we are not like America, and we really really are not ‘terrorists’ or Muslims. (I place the words Muslim and terrorist close together as I wish to highlight the foolishness of thinking that these two words may be equated together.)

I am a natural optimist, and I hope I’m right in detecting that younger generations are struggling against some of these old stereotypes. I detect a healthy desire for communal solutions that include the ‘other’ with initiatives which offer hope to all.  Although this generation does not seem to be turning back to the church, I certainly believe that the church needs to learn from this development, and indeed repent of some attitudes towards those who were once seen as different. I admit I am no fan of huge corporations like Tesco, I do suspect that they have their finger on an important pulse with their slogan, ‘Everyone Welcome.’

A more careful look at the Christmas story may be helpful. Mary was almost certainly an unmarried, albeit betrothed pregnant teenager. She arrived in the wake of a huge influx into Bethlehem as practically a refugee. Does the refrain, ‘there is no room’ ring any bells when we consider the housing situation in our country, with housing accounting for vast swathes of personal wealth and yet where increasing numbers are either homeless or living in poor quality rented accommodation. As a Christian I believe this is the story of Messiah, the liberator. I cannot operate with the idea that those who are different from me are not welcome, because if that is the case, I have no room for a homeless poverty laden Jesus. Even his first guests are from the wrong side of town, night security staff who had seen visions of angels and left their post to find a baby. Can you even imagine the scorn that their HR department would have given in the disciplinary that followed!

I recently prayed for myself that I might become more righteous. (Those who know me will recognise this is a prayer long overdue for a ‘Man of the Cloth.’ Even my wife never believed I was going to be a minister when I first met her!) But then I realised what do I mean by that prayer? Do I want a righteousness that somehow thinks of myself as better than others, defined by all the things I am not! Or do I want a shining love that always draws others up seeing the potential in everyone whoever they are, whether they are Muslim or Atheist, rich or poor. Oh Lord, give me the latter and help me to rid myself of the former. And thank you that Christmas really proves that everyone is welcome.  

Stephen

PS There are of course other supmermarkets… and indeed many other Christmas Ad’s oh that there weren’t and we’d all learnt the contentment of shopping locally, with ethically sourced Fairly Traded goods…. But that’s another thought all together!

Back to Basics

There is nothing I like better than a little project. I am writing today with a sore finger, because I hit it with a hammer. (No one said anything about being good at my little projects!) Still the shed is standing proudly at the bottom of the garden, and although it isn’t watertight yet it has survived its first night in the wilds! Hopefully the felting and the battening will happen soon, once the wood’s had a chance to dry out.

              The practice of our Christian Faith is not a little project. It is not something we can do, or perfect and then it is finished. The Christian faith, or discipleship as I often call it, is a whole life adventure. It is the nurturing of a relationship which in turn will influence the whole of your life, your thoughts, actions and practices. As such it is more akin to a committed marriage than to an exciting, albeit often destructive fling. Christianity is not something that we ‘hammer’ (ow) home rather it is a love that is always surrounding us, which we can invite to seep into our hearts and minds, so that we are increasingly immersed in that love, and it thus becomes a key to our very identity. 

              How does this happen? Well I have been struck lately that in order for this way of life to take root, we may need a bit of a clear out. There is probably some thinking and attitudes that need throwing out before we then get back to some of the basics.

              I have found reading through one of the oldest books in the New Testament, Thessalonians very helpful. The basics are all there, God’s love for us and our loving one another, but I’ve realised there are challenges as well. Most of us have grown up or inherited an idea that we don’t really talk about our faith, that faith is a private affair. A bit like a hidden fling, this is a disastrous idea. I’m struck in Thessalonians just how public and open Paul is. The other fascinating reality is the way Paul focuses on relationships. He is not interested in maintaining an institution. Although there probably was a ‘church’ in Thessaloniki, Paul is maintaining relationships, he is loving, and cajoling and teaching, ‘people’ that he clearly loves. Everything is personal, and in that sense real.  Too often my thoughts equate faith with an institution, in my case Zion. Don’t misunderstand me, I love Zion and feel privileged, with the trust that I have been given, but Zion is people and our relationships together and with God. Rather than to ‘fight’ or ‘labour’ for an institution, we need to relax and enjoy and love one another. This is the real basics of our discipleship, knowing we are loved we are relaxed and learning to love. Or as Jesus said, come to me if you’re tired and weary. Worn out on religion, take my yoke, my calling to love one another into your heart, for it fits perfectly and will give you rest for your souls. (Matt 11:28-30 Paraphrased by me!)

              May God bless us as we relax, and allow God’s love to seep into our hearts.

Stephen

PS It is OK to talk about this stuff with others, our experience is of value. 

May you live in interesting times!

There is apparently a Chinese curse which says ‘May you live in interesting times.’ Although the background of this saying is not clear, Albert Camus and Robert Kennedy certainly believed in it. The inference is, according to another Chinese Proverb, that it is better to be a dog in peace than a man in anarchy! Certainly the times that we are living through are ‘interesting.’ What ultimately will BREXIT mean, will the Scots get another chance at independence, and will they take it, and of course how will other world players such as Trump or Putin eventually be remembered?

The reality is that society is constantly changing. But what type of society do we want to see? With the NHS, social care and education squeezed of funds do we want a society where all are expected to fend for themselves or where we all have a societal responsibility to one another? Are we comfortable in a free for all market of opportunities and pitfalls, or do we envisage society as a family where over time each plays their part? Even after Brexit or possible Scottish independence, the reality of Global Trade means the massive question of who is in, or who left out of any society we imagine will remain. Climate change and the reality of mass economic migration from areas of either deprivation or instability are other undeniable realities. Have we indeed been cursed to live in ‘interesting times?’

Gandhi said we must become the change we wish to see for society to be transformed. For me that means becoming a person who treats each ‘other’ that I encounter as someone of divine worth. My rationale for this comes from understanding a God who ‘shows no favouritism.’ I live in Frampton, England, however God is not tribal pro one group and against another. Many misunderstand this. We may hear that God calls and chooses particular individuals and we mistakenly understand this as an elitist calling out, a separation FROM others. People even speak of their country as ‘God’s own country.’ I believe this is a fundamental error. God’s calling is FOR others. God chooses and calls with a purpose to release our potential to bring blessing to others. To be called is not to be special but it is to have a purpose. A mother is called to love and nurture, an engineer to imagine and build safely things that help others to flourish. A friend is called to stand alongside in times of need. Our truest calling and purpose is always discovered through serving others.

So we live in ‘interesting times!’ I do not believe this to be a curse, we do not need to be in fear of those who are different. Rather their difference is an opportunity for us to rediscover our purpose. We have been chosen for this time and we can demonstrate this calling by treating others as we would love to be treated.

With Easter approaching this concept of calling is reinforced. However else Jesus’ mission might be understood it was not so that he could show how separate and great he was. You would find Jesus with the outcasts of his time. His calling always for others: good news for the poor, freedom for the oppressed and sight for those who were blind. If your times were ‘interesting’ he was exactly the sort of person you wanted beside you. Christians believe even his sacrificial death is somehow for OTHERS. Even in interesting times he was a man of the people and for the people.

Stephen Newell