Humility

It’s been mentioned once or twice recently that when it comes to public service, whether in the King or Prime Minister, humility is an asset. Well, I think it’s an asset for all of us.

 I suspect that humility sometimes gets a bad press and is often interpreted as weakness. Yet, even the most principled advocate of a particular idea can surely benefit from an open mind and the concept that more light and insight can dawn on any of us.

 Uriah Heap, in Dickens’ David Copperfield mistakenly called himself ‘umble’. In truth, he was anything but; instead, he was a scheming and power-seeking individual hiding behind a false persona.

 Humility often lets the light in as we glimpse the possibility of another viewpoint or opinion other than our own. Humility creates space for dialogue and, for Christians, helps us see Jesus in others.

 None of this devalues our beliefs and convictions, but can end up deepening and expanding them.

Blog Holiday next week

October's View from the Pew

 

Here's October's View from The Pew

https://viewfromthepewsabbatical.blogspot.com/2022/10/

It's from the old we travel to the new

 

Last weekend a section of our morning congregation ‘re-created’ the procession of our forebears, 60 years ago, who walked from the site of AFC’s former building in Sycamore Road to the opening service at the new church here on Woodside Road.  It was a particular joy that three or four of our walkers last Sunday were part of the original group six decades ago.

So much has changed in that time.

Autumn, like all the seasons, is a time of change.  Keats called it a time of mists and mellow fruitfulness. Yet, less romantically, we might also point out it’s the time of year for plummeting temperatures, shorter daylight and falling leaves.  Animals are starting to grow thicker coats in readiness for winter, alongside squirreling away hidden food supplies for the days when nature’s cupboard will appear temporarily bare.

All of this begs a few questions in my mind about both the nature of God and faith.

We often say, and I suspect we find it a comfort, that God doesn’t change.  We say that, I think, believing it to be a good thing.  Indeed, there is even a biblical text describing Jesus as the same, yesterday, today and forever.

Well, even though there are other texts that hint of a God who does respond to situations in a more fluid way, such as the Old Testament story of withdrawing judgement on an infamous city because just a few people of faith were found within its walls, there is no doubt that the Bible presents us with a image of God which is utterly dependable and encouragingly reliable.  A God who always loves, always hears and always offers us grace, hope and peace.

The challenge is greater when we come to ourselves, because for most of us, faith is rarely consistent.  We go through dry times and seasons of doubt.  Yet, ironically, these moments often make us who we are and give us a deeper understanding of life and the part faith plays in it.

Change is all around us, and within.  Today we live at a time of immense transition at both the palace and in parliament.  We are entering a season when the colours, smells and temperature of each new day takes us just that little bit closer towards the ending of the year.

So, what were we about last Sunday, walking from the old to the new, replicating the procession of AFC church members six decades ago?  I believe we were both holding on to tradition – after all just like them we were walking to church, a place where, together, we gather to sing God’s praise and listen out for his word.  In that sense nothing has changed in 60 years.  Yet, within the tradition, within the lectionary and liturgy of our services, there is change every week.  We come, Sunday by Sunday, with different needs, different joys and at different stages of our lives.  And into all this continuous change we seek to discover afresh eternal truths and constant ideals that will help us make sense of the world.

Being a person of faith isn’t about having a fossilised set of rigid values, it’s about constantly exploring how the wisdom of the ages can touch our life and the life of our world TODAY.  It’s about being part of a living tradition.

Here’s how the American Presbyterian minister, The Revd Dr Mark Sandlin so helpfully puts it:  A healthy spiritual life is about constantly striving to grow into a more compassionate, more caring person who offers their unique gifts in the service of a larger whole.  That is impossible without change.  Change offers us the possibility of growing beyond our current limitations into the fulness of our divine potential.

So, for once I think we can, and indeed should, have it both ways.  We can be people of faith who, at one and the same time, love tradition and embrace change.

Happy Birthday AFC building

 

And so we have come to the last day of a momentous September.

Sixty years today, on 30^th September 1962 (which happened that year to be a Sunday) the then members of Amersham Free Church took possession of their new church building on the corner of Woodside Road.  They marked their momentous day by holding Morning Service in their old Sycamore Road chapel and then, at 4pm, they walked in procession from the old to the new.  That afternoon they met first in the church hall for a service of dedication, followed by a ‘cup of tea’ (although I think it was much more than that!), before finally entering the Sanctuary for the first time where they held Evening Service.  The next Sunday, once all the visiting dignitaries were no longer around, they held a Service of Infant Baptism in the morning and one of Believer’s Baptism in the evening.

These were obviously great days, full of hope.  So, this weekend we recognise their sacrificial giving in raising funds for the construction of the present-day AFC, alongside their faith to build bigger and embrace the future in a spirit of confidence.

We’ll celebrate on Sunday by re-creating that walk from the old to the new, holding morning service at which we receive in two new members and then having church lunch together.  This week Michael has assembled a really fascinating montage of pictures and leaflets from around 1962 charting that very special period.  It’s in the Carey Room and will stay up for all of October – if you get a chance pop in and have a look, it’s great!

And then there’s a cake -of course there is!  AFC loves a cake and we so appreciate Sara’s skill in baking them.  To celebrate our Diamond Jubilee in the building Sara has made a wonderful Bowl and Towel cake.  She has put so much thought into this and it reminds us that at the centre of our life together is the Lord Jesus Christ who once took a bowl and towel, washing his disciples’ feet, and now asks us to continue that tradition of service willingly and faithfully given.  It will be a shame to cut it on Sunday – but we will!  And as we do so, our prayer will be that with God’s help we will continue to be a servant church.

So, Happy Birthday AFC and thanks be to God for all our fellow disciples of Jesus who have loved calling this place their spiritual home.

View from the Pew post: Heemsen Lutheran Church, Lower Saxony, Germany

 

This week's Blog is a View from the Pew article all about our visit to Germany last weekend.

https://viewfromthepewsabbatical.blogspot.com/2022/09/17-heemsen-lutheran-church-lower-saxony.html

Praying for The King

 

It was a week ago this afternoon that the world heard the sad news of The Queen’s passing; and what a tumultuous time it has been since.  ‘Operation London Bridge’ has been very moving in so many ways and continues to be with the Laying in State currently in progress in the ancient Westminster Hall.

Along with the coins, banknotes and stamps, Service Books will eventually have to be updated with prayers for The King and his family.  Interceding for the monarch is a tradition we Christians share with our Jewish cousins, whose prayerbooks mention the sovereign or president of the particular country in which the congregation is based.

It's sometimes said The Queen never put a foot wrong, although I doubt if she herself would have agreed with such a blanket statement.  In reality, no monarch is ever infallible, and Elizabeth II never claimed to be, as ‘humility’ was a hallmark of her reign.

That’s the reason we pray for the King or Queen.  The national anthem is, in essence, a prayer. And it was good to hear the King make reference, on his visit to Northern Ireland, of the way his late mother prayed for that part of her kingdom.  It seems it was mutual; we prayed for her and she for us.

The British expression of monarchy is that of a Royal Family, and every family has its ups and downs.  None of us have every met a perfect family.  So, our prayers for the new King and his family surely need to be flavoured with kindness, compassion and understanding. 

The Media all too quickly, and gleefully, seem to rush to judgement when it comes to our leaders.  Yet the truth is that those in the public eye, from the Sovereign to local mayors, constantly try to do their best even in the goldfish bowl of intense scrutiny and knee jerk criticism. So, when they do make mistakes (as we all do from time to time) we need to hold them to account in a measured and just way.

Today the late Queen, so beloved by millions around the world, lays in state before her funeral on Monday in the Abbey Church where she was both married and crowned.  In watching the livestream from Westminster Hall, it has been touching to see folk pause by the catafalque to curtsey, bow, cross themselves or simply pray.  My hope is that as these sad days, naturally and rightly, fade and happier times come, that we will still pray for those who serve us in the public sphere; and what better prayer to utter for our new sovereign that that of God save the King.

Autumnus

 

If it’s true that Brits like nothing better than talking about the weather, perhaps it’s also fair to say the changing seasons always seem to catch us by surprise.  At home we have been remarking on how quickly the nights have been drawing in, as if this hadn’t been my experience every September now for sixty-one years!

Many people, and I’m one of them, love Autumn.  Last weekend I sat at breakfast looking out of the window on the mist hanging low in the garden, and it seemed like an announcement that summer was on the wain and the Fall was beginning.

Of course, to refer to this season as ‘The Fall’ seems so American.  I was, therefore, interested to discover that it was a common term in Britain until the end of the 1600’s.  Only then, a mere three hundred years ago,  did we finally opt instead for Autumn instead, based on the Latin Autumnus.

I find it both ironic and reassuring that nature ‘dies’ so slowly and beautifully during September and October.  To be honest I find a walk in the countryside, amid the golds and reds of autumn, so much more inspiring than the monochrome green of summer – but I know that’s just my personal take, so no Letters to the Editor please!

If our lives reflect the seasons, then many of us at AFC are in the autumn rather than spring of our years.  Yet, just like my countryside walks, I’m constantly impressed by the vibrancy of the colours that make up our church community.  I’ve lost count of the number of times people have shared with me how they’ve tried something ‘new’ in retirement and I’m constantly humbled by the continuing energy and faithfulness of so many ‘older’ folk in our congregation.

Autumn days can be good days, days of dignity and beauty; a season to inspire.

So, enjoy The Fall of 22!