Lent III. Message of The Psalms. The Chorus of Christians. Ps:111. Praise the Lord. I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart, in the company of the upright in the congregation. How often have you heard people say: “I don’t go to church. You can be a perfectly good Christian without going to church”? Rubbish, rubbish, rubbish. You can’t be perfect, or good or a Christian on your own. Jesus gathered his disciples and chose them one by one, they didn’t remain isolated, separate individuals. They became a group, a congregation. Jesus gathered the most unlikely group of followers, and moulded them together into one body of followers, the body of Christ. From that group came leaders, to carry the message forwards. But Christians have always been in groups, for their own protection, for strength and mutual support. Even at the darkest moment, after Jesus’ crucifixion, they stayed together. They could be happy together, they could be terrified together because they all shared their belief in Jesus. Remember the story of them in the upper room, scared out of their wits, scared that there would be a knock at the door and that they would be arrested. Then Jesus appeared among them. The early church clung together, often in hostile conditions, and supported each other, shared with each other. Today the Communion Service draws heavily on this idea, from the letters of St Paul, at the Peace we say together: we are the body of Christ. In the one Spirit we were all baptised into one body. Let us then pursue all that makes for peace and builds up our common life. You may remember when the Peace was re-introduced into our church services, after a break of many hundred years. We were all used to sitting on our own, looking straight ahead and not acknowledging people sitting on either side of us, and the thought of speaking to them was out of the question. Certainly not very British. The early embarrassment of having to speak to our neighbours has long gone. Now the Peace is one of the happiest parts of the service. I can tell you that sharing the Peace at communion services at theological college was such an intense and happy moment for us. We were all studying together, going through the same stresses of study and having to get essays in on time. The relief of being able to share in the Eucharist together, and share our happiness as part of one family was intense. There is strength in worshipping together, praying together, that you can absorb and recognise. And there is much greater strength when we act together. Here’s an example from nature which can teach us a great deal. I don’t know if you have heard the scientific observations made about migrating geese. They’re worth repeating. These are the naturalists’ findings. When geese fly on their migrations, they fly in a “V” shaped formation. There’s science of physics behind this natural shape. As each bird flaps its wings, it creates an aerodynamic uplift for the bird flying immediately behind it. The result is that the whole flock can fly 71% further than if a bird was flying on its own. The lesson for us is that people who share a common vision and sense of direction go further, faster, by supporting each other. When a bird falls out of formation, it quickly feels the resistance of trying to go it alone and quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of flying with the flock. If we have as much sense as a goose, we will work with others who are going the same way as we are. Then, when the goose leader gets tired, he falls back and lets someone else take over. The geese know that it pays to take turns in taking on critical roles in the group. The geese at the back honk from behind to encourage those in front to keep up their speed. The goose in front never wastes energy on calling. The lesson: encouragement and recognition are important to anyone who takes on a difficult task. Finally, if a goose weakens, is hurt, or falls out of formation, two geese fall out and follow him down to help him and protect him. They stay with him until he is able to fly again, or dies, before they set out on their own or with another formation until they catch up with the group. When life gets difficult, people need to support one another. And one other lesson, the migrating geese don’t waste time complaining about each other, or forming little cliques, which are self-destructive. Humans could learn a lesson from the natural world. The history of the church recognises the power of acting together, praying together. In the monastic age, people lived, worked and prayed together. St Benedict wrote his rule in sixth century Italy, and the monks of the Middle ages lived a life with prayer and common worship at its heart; a daily round governed by ritual, and regular prayer five times during different hours of the day. The monastic influence extended into the local neighbourhood, where they supported the community with shelter, medicines, providing care for the sick and the poor. St John Chrysostom, the fourth century theologian and writer, who became Bishop of Antioch, left a large body of writings, including the prayer repeated in the Book of Common Prayer Mattins and Evensong. The prayer takes it for granted that we pray together as a body, and that praying together makes the prayers more powerful: “when two or three are gathered together in my name, thou wilt grant their requests as may be most expedient for them”, we read. So we ought to recognise the strength in ourselves as the church, the body of the church. But here’s a vital question to ponder. What happens when we leave the church? Is that it for another week, or another month? Do you forget the Sunday effect when the alarm clock sounds on Monday? It shouldn’t be so. The question before us is: How do we take our Sunday fellowship out into the week? Should we be thinking of weekday activities, groups, in the church? We certainly should take some of the love of God into work, groups, clubs, or organisations we belong to, and encourage members to join us. There are some thoughts to ponder during the week. Remember and be encouraged by our strength, not our weakness as God’s people, God’s church. A prayer of St John Chrysostom: Almighty God, who hast given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplications unto thee; and dost promise, when two or three are gathered together in they name, thou wilt grant their requests: fulfil now, O Lord, the desires and petitions of thy servants, as may be most expedient for them; granting us in this world, knowledge of thy truth, and in the world to come life everlasting. Amen |