I'll confess it up front ... I'm guilty of diverting from my stated aim. This blog doesn't specifically refer to an everyday article, theme or circumstance. Instead, I'm hoping my illustration will prompt a parallel thought in the minds of my readers that will, in turn, focus their minds on the fundamental point.
One of my great hobbies is bell-ringing; I've been at it for fifty years or so, off and on, and - as I admitted to someone recently - I find it difficult to appreciate what it's like not to know things that to me are, after that length of time, second nature. If you've never tried, it may surprise you that one of the most difficult aspects of learning to ring is the language! If you visit a foreign country, aware that they speak a different language, you might well seek out a good dictionary and do some homework in advance. This isn't a different language, however, it's all English ... but a lot of everyday words have different from everyday meanings.
To make things worse, there are instances where the same thing is known equally by two or more different words: had you ever considered that both 'over' and 'to' could mean 'after'? Or that 'in', 'down' or 'to the front' could actually mean 'earlier'. And then there are normal English words, that not only preserve their 'proper' meaning, but also have a specific and totally different one as well, such as 'lead': it appears in its literal meaning as in 'take the lead in doing something'; but a lead (pronounced in exactly the same way) is also the name given to the basic unit of a method, or pattern, of ringing.
Two intelligent learners who trained with our local band last year focused my attention on this problem ... one that I'd never really appreciated before. In the days when I learned to ring, a beginner remained largely silent and absorbed these things rather by osmosis than by being told. Not so in today's world ... and all the better for that!
This isn't a new phenomenon, of course, and one that is far from confined to bell-ringing. Most hobbies and interests have a jargon all their own that has to be understood by newcomers in order to gain the most satisfaction from them. We can take encouragement from the example of St Paul. In about AD 50, he visited Thessalonica in the north-eastern part of what today is Greece. As a result of a riot, his friends sent him to nearby Berea for safety but the trouble followed him there, so he went further south to Athens, and waited for his friends to join him there later.
Making good use of his time while he was waiting, he chatted to Jews and Greeks in the market place. There he was overheard by some Epicurian and Stoic philosophers who enjoyed the challenge of debating with him. Some called him a babbler; others didn't understand what he was saying about Jesus and the resurrection, and thought he was talking about two foreign gods. It was a far cry from Paul's intended message about the One True God! (You can find the whole story in Acts 17:10-21).
During the autumn, I took part in a ringing outing, and overheard a conversation between our organiser and the man who had met us at one of the churches we visited. He was explaining about a young learner he'd taught a while ago. "He just didn't get it," he said, "He couldn't see how we knew which bell to follow when we were ringing a method. Then one day, he realised what we meant, what we'd been trying to explain one way or another for ages. He suddenly shouted, 'I get it!' and then there was no holding him. In a few months he was ringing stuff I could never master!"
Just like that trainer, and St Paul, those explaining the Christian faith are faced time after time by folks who simply can't grasp the fundamental but far-reaching simplicity of faith. We don't have to earn our salvation ... it's already been won, once for all, by Jesus on the Cross. All we have to do is accept that, for what it is ... a gift.
At Christmas time, we celebrate the gift of Jesus arriving on earth in the form of a tiny, vulnerable baby, born to a humble family in the Middle East. Each year our church is transformed for a living tableau illustrating 'The Christmas Journey'. Over the course of a week hundreds of primary school children, along with their teachers, pass through our doors to see a portrayal of the real story of Christmas. It's surprising how many of them had no idea what this great festival time is all about ... and sometimes quite moving to witness their emotional reaction!
If you have been trying for years, whether in terms of Christmas, Easter or purely in everyday conversation, to explain your faith to someone close to you, take heart from the example of Paul. Think how many thousands - millions, even - owe their faith to his determination not to give up.
Sunday, 15 December 2019
Sunday, 1 December 2019
Give us a King!
Squabbles over gender equality and gender superiority are nothing new. I learned as a child a little rhyme, "Patience is a virtue, possess it if you can: Often in a woman, but never in a man!" Depending who used it and their strength of feeling, those adverbs 'often' and 'never' could be exchanged for 'seldom' and 'always' to reverse the meaning completely. My cousin and I would argue to and fro about this, until our attention was diverted by one wise mother or the other. As an adult, I don't believe patience is gender-specific, but it is one of the facets of the 'fruit of the Spirit' that Paul lists in Galatians 5:22 (sometimes disguised as 'long-suffering' or 'forbearance').
Although it's elusive, patience is essential in many areas of life. I understand, for example, that the early opening of the oven door to see whether the cake is cooked can lead to its ruin and, in carpentry, cutting the wood without careful measurement and marking is equally disastrous. I once had a friend whose decorating skills were in great demand; he always said that a good job was 90% preparation and 10% application.
The same is true in politics, it seems. One of our leaders has repeatedly stated his aim to 'get Brexit done' so that attention can be focused on matters that are vital to our nation's livelihood. Many sources agree, however, that parliamentary approval of a deal will be not the end, but the beginning of several more years of negotiation to secure trade deals to replace those we will abandon.
When encouraging me to be patient, my father used to say that on his school exercise books was written, "If a job is worth doing, it's worth doing well." Another of our leaders seems to have used the same books. He advocates (another) re-negotiation. When asked for his personal view, he seems to evade the question and argue that the reason for doing this is simply that 'it's what the people want'... or at least what they wanted a few years ago.
If you read 1 Samuel, chapter 8 (it's not that long), you will see that the people of Israel asked Samuel to give them a king. In his wisdom, Samuel knew this would be a bad move but, after prayer, words of caution and more prayer, he gave in and did what they wanted. It didn't end well. In the centuries that followed, one disaster seems to have followed another and the one thing that was missing was what the people had given up ... following God's ways.
I've recently been reading from the penultimate book of the Old Testament and discovered this verse. "Then I broke my second staff called Union, breaking the family bond between Judah and Israel." (Zechariah 11:14). This was part of one of the prophet's many visions of the future. A few lines further on, I read of "a [foolish] shepherd over the land who will not care for the lost, or seek the young, or heal the injured, or feed the healthy, but will eat the meat of the choice sheep, tearing off their hooves." (v.16).
It seemed to me that the first of these parallels Brexit, breaking the family bond between this country and the rest of Europe, and the second underlines the way that our country has been neglected by its 'shepherd' as those in authority have focused all attention on Brexit, to the exclusion of wise government in many areas.
I'm reminded of my father once more and on this occasion, as a comparatively uneducated man, of his correct use of the subjunctive. I had done something wrong and was being interrogated as to my reasons for this. Trying to pass the blame onto someone else, I pleaded, "... because (my friend) told me to." My father dismissed my excuse, "And I suppose if he were to tell you to jump in the Mere, you'd do that, too?" (The Mere was the lake in the middle of our town, in which many have drowned over the years.) My defence having failed, I was duly punished.
So, what do we learn from all this? Two things, I suggest. Firstly, if we really want Brexit, we have to be patient and realise that it won't 'get done' quickly, but will mean many more years' uncertainty in addition to the last three-and-a-half. Secondly, that 'what the people want' is not sufficient justification for poor judgement on the part of government. St Paul wrote, "I will show you the most excellent way." (1 Cor. 12:31). In the often-quoted chapter that follows, he defines the meaning of love. Two verses jump out. "love is patient, love is kind ... it does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking" (1 Cor. 13:4-5).
Zechariah's 'foolish shepherd' met an unpleasant end because of his irresponsible conduct; Samuel saw the hazards involved in giving the people what they wanted. If we get what (it appears that) we want, it may well not be to our advantage. Applying these truths to our individual lives, the moral seems to be 'have patience, seek what God wants.' Maybe we should ask ourselves where we lack patience.
Although it's elusive, patience is essential in many areas of life. I understand, for example, that the early opening of the oven door to see whether the cake is cooked can lead to its ruin and, in carpentry, cutting the wood without careful measurement and marking is equally disastrous. I once had a friend whose decorating skills were in great demand; he always said that a good job was 90% preparation and 10% application.
The same is true in politics, it seems. One of our leaders has repeatedly stated his aim to 'get Brexit done' so that attention can be focused on matters that are vital to our nation's livelihood. Many sources agree, however, that parliamentary approval of a deal will be not the end, but the beginning of several more years of negotiation to secure trade deals to replace those we will abandon.
When encouraging me to be patient, my father used to say that on his school exercise books was written, "If a job is worth doing, it's worth doing well." Another of our leaders seems to have used the same books. He advocates (another) re-negotiation. When asked for his personal view, he seems to evade the question and argue that the reason for doing this is simply that 'it's what the people want'... or at least what they wanted a few years ago.
If you read 1 Samuel, chapter 8 (it's not that long), you will see that the people of Israel asked Samuel to give them a king. In his wisdom, Samuel knew this would be a bad move but, after prayer, words of caution and more prayer, he gave in and did what they wanted. It didn't end well. In the centuries that followed, one disaster seems to have followed another and the one thing that was missing was what the people had given up ... following God's ways.
I've recently been reading from the penultimate book of the Old Testament and discovered this verse. "Then I broke my second staff called Union, breaking the family bond between Judah and Israel." (Zechariah 11:14). This was part of one of the prophet's many visions of the future. A few lines further on, I read of "a [foolish] shepherd over the land who will not care for the lost, or seek the young, or heal the injured, or feed the healthy, but will eat the meat of the choice sheep, tearing off their hooves." (v.16).
It seemed to me that the first of these parallels Brexit, breaking the family bond between this country and the rest of Europe, and the second underlines the way that our country has been neglected by its 'shepherd' as those in authority have focused all attention on Brexit, to the exclusion of wise government in many areas.
I'm reminded of my father once more and on this occasion, as a comparatively uneducated man, of his correct use of the subjunctive. I had done something wrong and was being interrogated as to my reasons for this. Trying to pass the blame onto someone else, I pleaded, "... because (my friend) told me to." My father dismissed my excuse, "And I suppose if he were to tell you to jump in the Mere, you'd do that, too?" (The Mere was the lake in the middle of our town, in which many have drowned over the years.) My defence having failed, I was duly punished.
So, what do we learn from all this? Two things, I suggest. Firstly, if we really want Brexit, we have to be patient and realise that it won't 'get done' quickly, but will mean many more years' uncertainty in addition to the last three-and-a-half. Secondly, that 'what the people want' is not sufficient justification for poor judgement on the part of government. St Paul wrote, "I will show you the most excellent way." (1 Cor. 12:31). In the often-quoted chapter that follows, he defines the meaning of love. Two verses jump out. "love is patient, love is kind ... it does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking" (1 Cor. 13:4-5).
Zechariah's 'foolish shepherd' met an unpleasant end because of his irresponsible conduct; Samuel saw the hazards involved in giving the people what they wanted. If we get what (it appears that) we want, it may well not be to our advantage. Applying these truths to our individual lives, the moral seems to be 'have patience, seek what God wants.' Maybe we should ask ourselves where we lack patience.
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