Two steps forward..
Things about being part of the church and living life
Holy Spirit
Monday 19 February 2024
Back to Synod - February 2024
Monday 13 November 2023
Tell me a story...
Friday 7 July 2023
General Synod 2023
Saturday 1 April 2023
Singing
It is well known and intermittently discussed that singing is good for us. It good for our mental health. It helps folks with dementia. It's good for your social life if you join a choir (or become a regular at the local karaoke night).
Singing is physically good for us too - all that huffing and puffing. I remember quite some years ago having my joining assessment at a local gym. The trainer insisted on checking my lung capacity 3 times. I was quite obviously unfit - but my lung capacity reflected the goodness singing did for me despite this.
Tonight I'm listening to a local ladies choir and just wanted to share the impirical evidence of this goodness. They're not a huge choir but they make a good sound together and they are literally glowing. The joy of making music is shining from this diverse group of women. I wasn't looking forward to this evening but it's lovely and I am always up for some joy.
This week I hope to get some singing in as my church observes Holy Week. The making and sharing of music, in harmony with our liturgy, scripture and sacrament. Together they will take us through the joy of Jesus arrival in Jerusalem, hailed as King, bringer of longed for liberty. They will take us to an upper room and the familial intimacy of a meal shared, to a garden charged with tension, intense prayer and treachery.
We will sing of the sacred head surrounded with torturous thorns, and of the drop drop of our slow tears as we weep for Jesus pain, betrayal and suffering.
And when Easter Day comes I hope as I sing the wondrous story of the Christ who died and rose again for me,every note is embued with the deep human joy which I have witnessed shining in the faces of tonight's singers.
He came down that we might have joy - alleluia for evermore.
Monday 16 January 2023
Rock Mass 2023
Last night I was delighted and moved to be the guest president and preacher for the relaunch of Rock Mass. Is it a fresh expression? Is it a youth thing? No (well maybe/could be/yes-ish). But mostly it's a rock mass. Ronseal all the way.
There was prayer and incense and God's invitation to all to come to God's banquet. And rock. Lots and lots of rock. If you like rock, and prayer, and incense, and sacramental worship, and rock - it happens once a month and they have interesting guest preachers ;-) For those of you who were there and have been kind enough to ask for a copy of my sermon - here it is. I'm less funny on paper - you don't get the terrible Les Dawson impressions - but glad to be asked and glad to share. If you want to read the sermon - please click the link and read the scripture reading first - it will make more sense.Abundance is offered – co-operation is needed. The Kingdom is like……..
So we’re back – Rock Mass is back – the thing that was happening – or one of the things that was happening (whispers 'pandemic') – is mostly over and we are getting forward to the Kingdom. Or up to the Kingdom. I haven’t decided yet – I like forward – but I absolutely love the idea that our life with God is something we are getting up to together.
Whatever we’re doing – we’re not getting back to normal.
For two reasons.
1. One because there’s no such thing as normal and there never was – and this really shouldn’t come as a surprise to followers of Jesus. Sometimes I think the whole purpose of Jesus ministry was to combat the delusion of normal. The fantasy that there is some place where all our defensive, closing down, restrictive, safety seeking, excluding, scarcity focussed human instincts put us in the right place. I think Jesus showed us a way of being where with our trust in him, creator, saviour and spirit, we might just dare to breathe in and out and know that we are not the same as we were before we took that breath. That change is the only constant and we do not need to be afraid for God is with us.
The second reason we’re not going back to the thing that doesn’t exist? The trajectory of the planet the good God sent spinning into space is unidirectional – by which I mean it’s going one way – only one way, and that’s forward. There is no going back – just ask Don Henley and the Boys of Summer. (80s reference).
So what we’re doing, as a community,
as Christians, as the church here in Mixenden and Illingworth, as the church
wherever each of you happens to be the savoury flavour or the head torch of
truth – as the body of Christ - what we’re doing is getting forward - re-orientating ourselves to Christ’s way. We're checking to see how the ground beneath our feet feels –
and what we’re getting forward to – or maybe getting up to – what we’re getting up to is the Kingdom. The Kingdom that wasn’t what
people thought was normal when Jesus first told this parable – and the Kingdom
that doesn’t feel like what the world around us now calls normal. The Kingdom
that is breaking through.
I think we’re spending this year
hearing from lots of lovely guest preachers like me about what the Kingdom we
pray is coming might be like – and there are so many places this reading could
have taken us tonight – but I’d like us to focus on three things – adulting (sorry!) - invitation
and abundance.
So this isn’t a parable for the faint
hearted – it does not say that whatever you do everything is going to be
absolutely fine cos God’s just lovely. It’s more like God is lovely AND just.
This life is more than a game. I am a
parent of teenagers – and the bit of info I keep trying to crowbar into my kids
heads – is that our actions have consequences – and we have to deal with those
consequences. It’s not so much that you make your bed and you have to lie in
it. More that once you’ve made it, you
might have to unmake it, repent of it, respond to your invitation, and try again.
You can choose to ignore your
invitation. You can even turn up and then change your mind and walk away. But
you can’t really blame God for that decision. We have been given the freedom to
make the choice, a huge risk that our God takes out of love for us - and we have to take responsibility – we are
not playing good daddy bad daddy games with God.
Wisdom has set her table. The God of
all time and space has sent us gold-plated invitations. We need to adult on up there to the banquet
and join in with what God is doing.
And let’s think about that gold plated
invitation. I think this has a particular kick for us post-pandemic. I know this parable is telling us a story
about God and God’s people through history – that those to whom Jesus was sent
would not recognise him – the people you might have expected to be the a-list
invitations would not come to the party table.
But it feels, as parable so often do, that it’s telling us a story of
now too. You are invited. The challenges of the last three years have
left us I think desperately needing to respond to God’s invitation, needing in
faith to step out and offer God’s invitation in turn to others, but feeling
like we want to curl up in a corner and sleep too.
But we’re the ones who know God is
good, we’re the ones who have come to baptism, who have chosen to be here, who
have glimpsed the coming kingdom in our friendship, in what we can do for the
communities around us, in the goodness that flows from being together like the
father, son and holy spirit are together.
God has sent you a gold plated
invitation to come to the banquet and join in with what God is doing.
Has God done that Rachel? - you might well ask - really? I don’t remember getting that invitation, you
might be thinking. But you’re standing in it, next to it, listening to it,
dancing to it. Your gold-plated
invitation tonight is played by a rock band and crafted with love to help you
connect with God.
Your gold plated invitation is at the
lunch club, at the community pantry, at the scouts, in the creating, making and
being real community which exists here and is growing. Your gold-plated invitation is people being
who they are, throwing their gifts and skills into the pot together to do
things God’s way. An invitation to be just like you, the best, transformed in
Christ’s image you, being in God’s service.
Come, all you vagabonds,
Come all you
‘don’t belongs’
Winners and
losers,
Come, people like
me.
Come all you
travellers
Tired from the
journey,
Come wait a
while, stay a while,
Welcomed you’ll
be.[1]
And what you are welcomed to is abundance. Rather marvellously the idea of abundance came up in the midweek zoom bible study at my church this week – we were reading the Isaiah reading from the Feast of Epiphany which says
the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you,
the
wealth of the nations shall come to you.
A multitude
of camels shall cover you,[2]
I know – weird right? We got briefly
caught up in the weird – but then realised that when those bible guys tried to
communicate what God was saying about abundance, they had to use ideas that our
imaginations could reach for. Wealth,
seafood, camels, - exotic, unfamiliar, next level. The wedding banquet –
probably the most sumptuous, delicious, wonderful feast anyone would experience
in a lifetime – and even then not that often.
Wisdom has set her table, she has poured her wine[3], and we are invited to the banquet.
We have to choose whether to go. God will not force us, we are not playing games here – we are given the choice whether to respond and we are given fair warning that our choices have consequences that we must take responsibility for.
But if we choose to go to the feast we
will find that the banquet we are invited to is beyond our imagining because
the abundance which flows from God isn’t stuff that God gives us – the
abundance is God. God is the
banquet. The things that overflow from
the baskets and bowls on the table are the things we really need to be whole in
our humanity and transformed in it too. They are the abundance of the
Kingdom. For the banquet table of the
Lord overflows with justice and mercy, compassion, patience, equity, respect,
dignity, hope, wisdom, prophecy, serving, teaching, encouraging, giving – we
are invited to gorge ourselves on this goodness that is the Kingdom and brings
the Kingdom, that transforms us into Kingdom people.
O taste and see how gracious the Lord is – blessed is the one that trusts in the Lord.[4]
We thank God tonight for our
gold-plated invitation. I hope we will
commit ourselves to try to respond and take responsibility for that choice as
best we can in this coming year - and I hope too we will remind ourselves often
that the abundance we need is not of this world, but can be found at a
banqueting table overflowing with all that shows the Kingdom breaking into our
community of faith and our world.
Amen.
Thursday 15 December 2022
Why don't people speak out more?
"Scathing
report condemns UK police for 'victim blaming' in rape cases".
Undercover journalist pretending to be
drunk followed to hotel by man
This morning I am raging and devastated. It is the first link
above that left me sat at my kitchen table in tears at 7.30am. When I told my
husband why I was upset he said "but did you see....(link 2)", and as
we were talking the third story came up on the radio news. And that's
just a random Thursday in December.
I consider myself to be a feminist. I always have
done. Because feminists were the ones who were speaking out for equality
- and equality makes things better for everyone. It always seemed to me that
equality was a significant part of the Gospel I was baptised into as a child,
and educated in by people who have always lived with kindness, generosity and
respect for others. I don't know when and how I noticed the world I lived in
was unequal for men and women, I just always knew - and the priest who prepared
me for confirmation at age 11 was highly amused by my take on the creation
story in Genesis as a result.
I am also a middle aged priest who might be said to be 'doing
alright' for herself. I have been affirmed, encouraged and supported by
senior staff in the 14.5 years since my ordination. I am particularly grateful
to a wonderful Archdeacon, an Area Bishop who listened to her, and a Diocesan
Bishop who makes time to be fully present and fully engaged, encouraging my
ministry and encouraging me to grasp the challenges it brings. I have a
positive portfolio of roles which sit alongside my parish ministry. I could
be on the poster for the belief we have equality in church and world (or this
corner of it), that gender is no longer an issue when it comes to male and
female, that there is no bias, there are no barriers and it's meritocracy all
the way.
But this morning I want to ask all the well meaning, equality
purporting folks out there - if we have equality, if our church, our society
and our culture respects our equal humanity - why?
Why are men being released from prison who have a record of
violence against women as long as your arm, only to reoffend within days?
Women did not make this happen - but women pay the price with their lives.
Why can't a woman walk down a street, looking drunk or otherwise,
without some predator thinking their luck is in? Women did not make this happen
- but women pay the price with their bodies, minds and lives for this.
Why do women who advocate for issues and challenges that face
women still get told, often by their allies not to speak too
loud, not to be a one trick pony, not to 'bang the drum' too loud? Why
have I heard the words "well it's obviously not impacting on you, Rachel,
so I don't really get your point?" - when all around the treatment of
women gets worse - visibly, clearly, uncomfortably, painfully, devastatingly worse.
Why am I pleading, arguing, persuading, as though it is both my
job to convince you that women shouldn't be treated like this, and my job to
communicate this in such a way as you wont feel offended or threatened? Perhaps
because the imaginary you in my head is male, and the arbiter of what is and
isn't acceptable in our society, and has the right to dismiss my concerns if
not expressed in a way acceptable to you. This is why we call it the
patriarchy - because we are trapped in the system - the game not of our making
- and women need men to put their egos down and see what we are so clearly
seeing if this is to change.
I think people in my daily sphere have found it easier to see that
there are systems that need dismantling when we talk about race. If our
systems and social structures have been built by white culture for the benefit
of white people, then inviting people of different racial and cultural
identities to be part of those intrinsically white systems and structures isn't
what equality looks like. We clearly need to create systems and structures
together, for everyone, that reflect everyone involved. But I find myself
asking if we are ever going to take the real work this endeavour needs
seriously when our attempts to move to an equal society for women and men have
failed us so deeply.
Equality isn't just "letting" women do the things that
up until relatively recently only men have done.(And there I am framing the
male as normative and decision maker again, aren't I?) In my sphere women
can now wear the pointy hats. And sit at the tables. And follow the same
shocking example of terrible work life balance that we are told is the only
real model of leadership possible. We are told that because there are women at
the table now, women's voice is represented. Then the women at the table will
be told that they are there not tokenistically to represent women, but because
of their wider skills and role. However sincerely any of this is meant - we
have a seat at the table only to be told that we do not have permission to talk
about the continuing challenges women face.
And why are we still asking permission? Because in a church which
has enshrined the right to believe women priests to be delusional fantasists in
law - our presence can feel highly contingent, even when many of us are
affirmed, embraced and welcomed. We’re still
being welcomed to someone else’s party, not welcomed home. We are operating in
a system and structure which was not of our making and does not reflect us, and
asks us to bend ourselves to be something else. Perhaps that is why our
leaders are sometimes disappointed that we are not more dynamic, inspired and
creative? "We're going to wrap you up in the same chains we carry
and then accuse you of not being able to fly."
Because power, because patriarchy. People don't speak out more
because it is not rewarded or appreciated. It is labelled, avoided, shunned,
blamed, managed. Put in the corner with its pony and its drum and its
role that can't do any harm (by which I mean, actually influence change for the
better). I am genuinely sorry that this sounds so accusatory. I accuse myself of not doing more as I listen
to these news stories. I am sorry for every
time I have swallowed the “you only get to join in if you don’t talk about that
stuff” line. I am sorry for every time I have colluded with things that are wrong because I
imagined if I did one day I would be given permission to help put things right.
Between my feed, my radio choices and my family - I came across
these three stories within half an hour this morning. I am glad that these
stories are being heard - but I'm reminded of the work of @CountingDeadWomen -
and of the words of Desmond Tutu about pulling people out of the river.
To paraphrase - there comes a point where we need to stop counting dead women
and do something about why they are being killed. There comes a point where we
have to accept that a rise in violence against women, a rise in inequality in
workplaces and homes, the persistent silencing of women's voices, an internet
full of misogyny, does not reflect a society that has cheerfully achieved a
holistic human equality in which our systems and practices respect all human
beings in their God-made integrity. We have got something terribly wrong and it
will take something more intentional than a faith in meritocracy and the
assumption that equality is letting the girls play with the boys' toys to put
it right.
Wednesday 23 November 2022
Advent Update - God rest ye merry Advent wreath
I've just been updating this. I've tweaked it so it's more obvious how it scans to the tune (God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen). I've also updated the Christmas Day bit to reflect a little something of what the Christ-light might mean. It works if you're doing patriarchs/prophets/John/Mary in your themes. I even popped in a little peace/joy/hope/love in the final verse if those are going to be your themes. I'll try something jolly for death/judgement/heaven/hell another year.
As always if this would help your church please use it, but please do credit where it comes from.
We
light an Advent candle now to show us all the way
to
find the Christ child waiting in a manger on the hay.
The
mothers and the fathers of our faith all point the way.
Refrain: O glory to God in heav’n and peace,
peace on earth, O
glory to God in heav’n.
Advent 2:
We
light an Advent candle now to show us all the way
to
find the Christ child waiting in a manger on the hay.
The
prophets foretold long ago that bright and glorious day
Refrain: O glory to God in heav’n and peace,
peace on earth, O
glory to God in heav’n.
Advent 3:
We
light an Advent candle now to show us all the way
to
find the Christ child waiting in a manger on the hay.
“The
Kingdom now is close” said John, “Believe, repent today!”
Refrain: O glory to God in heav’n and peace,
peace on earth, O
glory to God in heav’n.
Advent 4:
We
light an Advent candle now to show us all the way
to
find the Christ child waiting in a manger on the hay;
For
Mary mother of our Lord her “yes” to God did say
Refrain:
O glory to God in heav’n and peace,
peace
on earth, O glory to God in heav’n.
Christmas Day:
We light our Christ-light
candle now
to show us all the way
And we have found the Christ
child
in a manger on the hay;
And now we raise our voices
with the angel host to say
O glory to God in heav’n and
peace, peace on earth
O glory to God in heav’n.
We carry now the Christ
light
for this day and every day.
In homes and hearts we
celebrate
the Christ who is our Way.
In peace, in joy, in hope,
in love
Christ help us always stay
O glory to God in heav’n and
peace, peace on earth
O glory to God in heav’n.