Acts 2.42-47, Psalm 84
A New Church
Are you getting used to the new normal? This form of worship where we listen and pray but can’t see each other, can’t say psalms and sing praise together, can’t kneel and receive bread and wine together.
We know that the church is not the building, it’s all of us, but let’s be honest Seal Parish has a cracking church building, in which we love to gather, so there’s no shame in saying that we miss being able to do so. There’s no shame in admitting that, for many, this deprivation is getting difficult and is made no easier by the uncertainty as to when it will be wise to resume our previous patterns of worship.
I hope that acknowledging these facts doesn’t make us feel down, but lets us review where we find ourselves from a point of realism, and then continue to innovate, try new things and find strength to persist in each other.
Consider Psalm 84 which is written from the perspective of one denied the opportunity to worship in the temple, the Psalmist is clear when he says’ my soul longs…for the courts of the Lord’. He envies even the small birds which are free to nest in the buildings.
The Psalmist longs to be in the symbolic place of God’s holiness and we should hope that this is because he comes away nourished, encouraged, loved and motivated to make God’s love known rather than because he misses empty ritual.
Our buildings where we gather to worship should not be places we go to escape the outside world but places where we reflect, seek guidance and prepare for our role in the outside world.
If the Psalm were rewritten for today would it be different? Perhaps something like I yearn to be among my brothers and sisters in Christ but the pain is eased a little by these podcasts and other initiatives. Also I hope you don’t mind God, that sometimes I have a cooked breakfast on a Sunday now and worship you a bit later in the day!
The Psalmist acknowledges his need for spiritual nurture and it’s no different for us. As we acknowledge how place can enhance our feeling of closeness to God we have been forced to find new ones where we celebrate our worship. For some it will be a quiet corner of the house in a comfortable chair, others may walk as they listen and even entire households gather around the player in scenes reminiscent of wartime broadcasts.
I will admit that much of my worship takes place as I listen to podcasts and pray in my greenhouse. There’s a sense of Easter hope all around me as new life springs forth from various pots and I’ve tied a couple of bits of broken bamboo together to make a cross. Last week as I listened to Philip playing ‘Morning has broken’ a Blackbird even appeared right on cue.
As we find new ways to worship God together we also acknowledge that it is more difficult for some than others. Those living alone or without good access to technology are particularly worthy of any support we can offer.
The Valley of Baca which the Psalmist spoke of is taken by many as a symbol of drought and dryness, spiritual or physical. But those who are bound for Jerusalem, the Holy City, inspire us as they are determined to find a way through the challenge, discovering water and rather than tiring they are going on ‘from strength to strength’ as they realise more and more how God is journeying with them.
In our reading from The Acts of the Apostles we join Luke’s account immediately after around 3000 people are baptised on the day of Pentecost. In short something big, wild, joyous has just taken place.
The very same Holy Spirit which is alive and with each one of us today brings this early version of church together as people enlivened and excited to learn more about what God has promised to them go on a voyage of discovery through study, prayer and communion.
Does that bring back memories? Perhaps the time we first had that sense of awe in the same way we heard that those early Christians did or the yearning to know God’s presence that heightens our senses to all around us and strengthens our determination to complete our journey to him, in the way the Psalmist spoke of.
Remember those early days when we yearned to know more of how it could be possible that each one of us could be loved so much by God, just as we are? Enthusiastic reading whenever we had a spare moment, questions and affirmations shared with others, learning from those who had journeyed ahead of us and a new sense of security that we will never be abandoned.
For most of us this still continues in a less frenetic way though has found it’s meaning in the way we live our lives and relate to each other and the world.
The early Christians place of worship was important as they gathered together in the temple but they had also become much more than this, a body of people united in their new found identity and purpose. From now onwards the real temple is the body of the Risen Christ.
A colleague of mine who lives in a busy area of south London told me a couple of weeks ago ‘how he could now hear the birds in the morning and the leaves on the trees seemed sharper, the air cleaner and the sunlight brighter’, he finished by saying’ it makes you realise the damage our way of life causes.
There will be a time when we are able to move freely again, to gather to worship, celebrate and commiserate together.
In the meantime let’s make the most of this slowdown to gratefully breath the air which is cleaner and heighten our awareness of the beauty around us.
We need to follow the apostle’s teaching to form habits of prayer, study and fellowship which sustain our faith through challenges and look for the positive in each day as we witness acts of selflessness, service and sacrifice by the people of all faiths and none in our Health Service and many other areas of our lives.
We need to draw strength from our unity of purpose to make God’s love known and there is much inspiration to draw upon as acts of kindness and support abound.
Remember, the way those early Christians cared for and shared with those in need didn’t go unnoticed by others around them and we heard how their numbers grew.
Amen
Kevin Bright
3rd May 2019
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