Close your eyes for a moment and reflect on the word ‘prophet’. What comes to mind? Hair shirt? Desert? Angry beardy bloke? Visual images are really important. Our fabulous crew, Charlotte N, Naomi, James and Carly all find and create images for our worship and website. Often they have very little guidance from me about what is required, yet come up with fantastic images, that encapsulate perfectly what is in my tiny brain. This is one of my greatest joys in ministry – marvelling at the giftedness of others in our congregation.  Charlotte has provided the image for our current worship theme – ‘Stories from the Prophets’. It conjures up those moments of revelation that are found often in the wilderness times in the lives of our prophets, and perhaps, in our own lives too.
 
In the heady days before powerpoint, church leaders understood the power of image. They conveyed the message of the season using colours on the altar, the priest’s vestments and other hangings around the church. At a time when most people could not read and the church services were only offered in Latin, anyone could tell immediately what liturgical season they were in by looking at the colours in the church. At Northern Lights MCC, we also use these colours – purple for Lent and Advent, red for Pentecost, white and gold for Easter and Christmas, green for times of the year when there are no special occasions or seasons. We are also creative in decorating our altar for the church events we celebrate, such as Pride, or the worship themes that we develop for ourselves.
 
Troy and Margaret dress the altar every week. I asked Margaret what colour she associated with the word ‘prophet’. She thought for a moment, then said ‘Red’, which is exactly the colour that I had thought of too. So during this worship theme, ‘Stories from the Prophets’ the altar cloth and the stole at communion will both be red. In our culture, red can stand for danger, for anger, for love and passion. In the liturgical colours, it symbolises the blood of martyrs and the fire of the Holy Spirit. All of these associations seem very apt for the prophets – people who could see how God’s people were going astray. They must have felt frustrated and angry sometimes, as they tried to give a message that no-one wanted to hear. They certainly encountered danger for speaking God’s truth and were seen as dangerous themselves. They were inspired and filled with the passion of the Holy Spirit to proclaim their message, and some of them, like John the Baptist were killed by their enemies. Which prophets, past or present day, inspire you?

God bless,
 
Cecilia

As you may recall, I am currently using ‘May I have this dance?’ by Joyce Rupp as my reflection book at the moment. I am hoping to lead a monthly discussion and reflection group using this book in the new year. One of the reasons that I like the book is that it has one chapter and theme for each month. October’s theme encourages us to learn lessons from the season of autumn. I love the colours of the autumn leaves and seeing the mist swirl early in the morning, as the dew covers the cobwebs with gemlike splendour. The berries on the trees and bushes provide rich pickings for wildlife and humans alike. Soon folk will be carving lanterns out of pumpkins and roasting chestnuts. Rupp talks about autumn as being a time of letting go, of dying even. Each leaf that falls to the ground represents a small death. It can be really hard to let go of things and places that have been part of our lives, perhaps for many, many years.
 
When I was clearing out the house prior to moving, it was interesting to me to notice what was easy for me to give away and what I still clung onto. Six months on in my new home, there are still boxes that I haven’t unpacked and items that I couldn’t bear to part with at the time, that remain untouched and unused. I realise now that I probably will let go of many more things before my next house move. Some of my oldest pictures look faded and tatty in this new environment. I think that this will be the last home that I hang them in. Others are hung in new places and have a fresh feel to them. It is like looking at them for the first time.
 
The reason that we see the fantastic autumn colours in the leaves is that the tree is also letting go. The green pigment in the leaf, chlorophyll, starts to break down, as the tree prepares for winter. The beautiful reds, oranges and yellows that we see now are present in the leaves all year round. These colours are just hidden by the chlorophyll. Once the green has gone, these other colours can be seen in their full beauty. Sometimes we need to let go in order for something else to be revealed, either in ourselves or in our experience of God. In Nature, nothing is wasted. Each dying leaf falls to ground. As it crumbles and rots, it provides nutrients for new life to grow again. It takes time for this transformation to happen and for the new growth to appear, yet all the while Nature is at work, recreating and renewing. I find this helpful to remember when I am waiting for God to act in my life. God is already at work, creating and making new. I just can’t see it yet. This week I invite you to ask God what you might need to let go of, in order for another aspect of your own beauty to be revealed.

God bless,
 
Cecilia

Metropolitan Community Churches as a denomination has four Core Values, which are reflected in our local churches around the world: inclusion, community, spiritual transformation and social action. These four interact with each other and form the basis of our identity together, wherever we are. Inclusion is always a ‘work in progress’. MCC congregations met in accessible buildings and produced worship materials in large print long before this became a legal requirement or even good practice for many organisations. One of the reasons that we are looking for our own church building is that our current church home has no accessible meeting rooms. In order for all our activities to be open to all, we use the main church or the church hall – not ideal venues sometimes.
 
I came across a new term recently in some training sessions offered by our Office of Formation and Leadership Development (OFLD). The facilitator used the term ‘microaggression’ to describe the endless small but repetitive ways in which we can be isolated, alienated, put down or devalued by the world around us. She was using it in the context of being LGBTQ, however I immediately thought of someone I know who has certain access needs and is constantly battling just to do the most basic things – get into a building, use the toilet, have a lift that works. I have a friend who uses a wheelchair and he endlessly encounters difficulties; in one shop, he couldn’t reach the card reader and so the shop assistant asked him for his PIN so she could put it in herself. Understandably, he didn’t want to disclose such personal information, so he didn’t make his purchase. My sister uses a wheelchair. It is fascinating to see how she is treated or ignored by people. It is very rare to find people who speak directly to her and not to the person standing behind the wheelchair.  When I go and visit, I am often sent on ahead to get a table in the café etc. whilst my sister gets out of the car. In many places, even though the staff are very helpful, they will talk about where the wheelchair will fit. I correct them and say ‘This is where my sister will be able to sit’.
 
None of this is new news to anyone who has a disability or knows someone who has. The point is this; I want my sister and my friend and anyone else who has access issues of any kind, to be able to do easily  what I take for granted. Therefore, I need to use my voice and my understanding to also raise the issues. This is not to disempower others, nor to take away their voice. It is to show that I care and it matters. I also hope it means one less microaggression for someone else to encounter and expend their energy on. Inclusion is a ‘work in progress.’ We can each do our bit to make a difference.

God bless,
 
Cecilia