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Angels of the Impossible

24/12/2014

This Christmas Eve, I invite you find a moment of quiet and read through the first chapter of Luke through to Luke 2 verse 21. It really won’t take too long. If you don’t have a bible at home, use www.biblegateway.com . The story of the birth of John the Baptist is one that is often overlooked. His parents too have quite the journey into parenthood, just as Mary and Joseph do. In fact, our first encounter in the New Testament with the angel Gabriel is not with Mary, but with Zechariah, John’s doubting father. Luke describes this encounter and the wonderful song of praise that Zechariah is finally able to sing, once he gets his voice back after the baby is born. There is the wonder filled exchange between his wife Elizabeth and the pregnant Mary, who sings out her amazing song of joy, the Magnificat. We have the description of the birth of Jesus and once again the appearance of an angel, this time to the shepherds.

In all of these stories there is a common thread. The angel appears to announce something impossible or unbelievable. In all three situations, there is the phrase “Do not be afraid” before the good news is revealed. All the humans in these encounters are afraid (wouldn’t you be!), yet Zechariah and Mary both seem to have quite good conversations with Gabriel, challenging what the angel is saying, not believing it can be possible. With the shepherds, the angel seems to pre-empt any discussion by telling them what they will find – a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger. In all three situations the news that the angel brings then comes true in the lives of those involved, with praises being sung to God for all that has happened.

As some of you are aware, I am a ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ fan. One of the celebrities was talking about her time on the show. “You come into rehearsal on the Monday and you are told what you are going to be doing. You think ‘That’s impossible’ but by Saturday you are performing that dance in front of a live audience.” Just take a moment to reflect on all the ‘impossible’ things that you have done, or we have achieved together as a faith community in the past twelve months. God has been at work in us and through us. It may not be easy to imagine all the ‘impossible’ things that God has planned for your life in 2015. The Christmas story reminds us that God uses ordinary human beings, you and me, to make the impossible possible. Doubting Zechariah, young Mary and the shepherds were all good enough for God to bring us the good news – Emmanuel, God with us. God has and will do wonders through us too, so that we can bring the good news of Jesus to others.

God bless

Cecilia

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Overcoming Evil

18/12/2014

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One of the stories that follow on from the birth of Jesus is the “slaughter of the innocents”. In Matthew, chapter 2, it describes how Mary, Joseph and Jesus flee to Egypt, after King Herod commands that all boy children, aged two and younger in the vicinity of Bethlehem, should be killed. Herod feels threatened by the story that the wise men tell of a new king that they have come to visit. He destroys all these young lives to protect himself and his position. In a similar way, we read in the Old Testament (Exodus 1 and 2) about the story of the birth of Moses. The Israelites had moved into Egypt at the time of Joseph to escape the famine all around them. Over time, they had become very numerous and so the Pharaoh (the Egyptian king) commands that all boy babies born to Hebrew mothers must be killed.

When we read these stories from long ago, it is tempting to think that in the twenty first century that we know better, that such evil does not exist or that we can control it somehow. This week, at least 132 children and 9 staff were killed when terrorists cut through the wire fence surrounding a school in Pakistan and moved through classrooms and halls, shooting at all around them. Over a hundred people were injured. The whole community is traumatized and we are left to wonder how this could still happen. How could anyone plan to destroy so many young lives and then carry out the raid, continuing to shoot at children in room after room? The gunmen were suicide bombers and killed themselves at the end of the attack.

Today, some of the pupils put on their school uniforms and marched up to the school building, which is badly damaged and riddled with bullet holes. They know that the school is closed, but they want to re-claim their right to education and to show that they have not been intimidated by the evil that was unleashed against them. This is a remarkable act of courage and sets an example to those adults who are responsible for bringing peace into the many places of war and unrest around the world. Adults, including us, also have a responsibility to teach children the difference between justice and revenge. If we do not, then the cycle of violence answering violence will continue. Evil will always be with us. It is our response to it that matters. Praying for peace sometimes can seem so futile and yet it is the best gift that many of us can offer those around the world. After that, we can also put our money into those organisations which are actively working to bring peace, education and the basics of human life to those who are struggling. Evil can be overcome.

God bless

Cecilia

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Section 28, Stonewall and Shepherds

10/12/2014

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Advent is a time of waiting and preparation. From today, same sex couples who have had a Civil Partnership can convert this to a legal marriage. In the 1980’s, I was marching on Downing Street with many other activists to protest against Section 28 brought in by a Conservative government. This part of the Local Government Act 1988 prohibited local authorities in England and Wales from "promoting" homosexuality. It also labelled gay family relationships as "pretend". It never entered my head then that a Conservative government would oversee the legal recognition of same sex marriages. It would have seemed ridiculous and farfetched. In those days, having any protection in law at all would have been extraordinary. Times have changed so much in our country and in many places around the world. Attitudes are shifting in Christian circles too. These changes are certainly not universal and there are still too many places where being LGBT is to be persecuted by the state, not protected by it. But today, in England and Wales, it is an amazing day.

The organisation, Stonewall, was set up in 1989 as a reaction to the introduction of Section 28. After years of lobbying and pressure, the law was finally taken off the statute books in 2003. Those who set up Stonewall, and many others, had a vision of what life should be for LGBT people. They worked away and continue to work to make the seemingly impossible become reality. They used a mixture of waiting – for the right moment, for the right people, for the right turn of events, and preparation – researching, gathering support, planning and organising, to achieve their goal. Underneath all of this was faith in their cause – belief that the seemingly impossible would become reality.

In the letter to the Hebrews 11:1, faith is described in this way: ‘Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.’ During this Advent time of waiting and preparation, it is good to remind ourselves of the faithfulness of God. We may recall the times in the past when we have trusted God and waited for answer to prayer, perhaps for some things that seemed impossible at the time. We may be able to see where our heartfelt prayers were answered and take a moment to give thanks. There may be situations now, personally and globally, where we need to have ‘confidence in what we hope for’ and ask God how we might work with God’s Spirit to be part of the answer to our own prayer. This is what turns a vision into reality, the kingdom of Jesus thriving on earth. From “pretend family relationships” to legal marriage – almost as unlikely as angels and shepherds!

God bless

Cecilia

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Redeeming Grace

3/12/2014

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It is hard work trying to keep the season of Advent alive, when all around us Christmas appears to have already started. The traditional ‘Twelve Days of Christmas’ run from Christmas Day to Epiphany on 6th January. Instead we do our partying and wishing each other “Happy Christmas” in Advent. By 26th December, it all seems to be over. In true curmudgeonly style, I was not best pleased when our voice coach at the Pride and Joy singing workshop suggested that we sing a Christmas carol on 22nd November. A great deal of internal hurrumphing was going on, on my part, as we started to sing ‘Silent Night’. This is my favourite carol, and we did sing part of it in German, which started to cheer me up.

However, in the midst of the working out which bits we were going to sing in which language and the ironing out of some bad singing habits, something remarkable happened. I started to really notice the words of the carol. Most of us can sing ‘Silent Night’ by heart, without thinking. This time, I really noticed the content of the words and what they meant to me. The phrase that stood out was “redeeming grace”. How marvellous is that? Redeeming grace. If you read the verse out loud as a sentence, rather than sing it, you get a sense of what is being said: ‘Son of God, love’s pure light radiant beams from thy holy face, with the dawn of redeeming grace.’

Grace has several meanings. In this instance, it is the grace that God is offering us – the free and unmerited favour of God. Jesus shines with the unconditional love of God and offers us redeeming grace, the free and unmerited favour of God. We don’t need to do anything to deserve it or earn it; God offers it to us freely. Because we are offered this grace, we are redeemed. That is, we are not left to our own devices. We are not left without guidance or direction in our lives. We are called into active relationship with God by following Jesus. We might not be able to describe grace, but we know it when we see it or feel it. The dawn of redeeming grace that comes with the birth of Jesus offers us a new and intimate experience of God.

As we continued to sing the carol, it was as though I was hearing the all words and their meaning for the first time. When it came to the last verse, describing the shepherds quaking and the angels singing, I was almost bursting with the feeling of God’s presence and grace for me. With the heavenly hosts I sang out a heartfelt “Hallelujah”. This year, I remember why the Saviour was born.

God bless

Cecilia

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Angels of the Impossible

Overcoming Evil

Section 28, Stonewall and Shepherds

Redeeming Grace

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