Swallows by Patricia Rennie
Squaring the Circle
The Universal Prayer of Self-Righteousness!
Poem "Eating Out"
Poem "The Mighty Moose"
Flower Poem "Forget-me-Not
Sermon on "The Feeding of the 4000"
Photos and youtube links from the recent Summer Concert in June.
Article on "Church unity within the wider Church"
Swallows
By Patricia Rennie.
Each year,
compelled by inner urge
to travel north,
and leave the sun,
you fly day and night,
stars guiding you,
over deserts,
mountains, seas,
and men with guns,
who wait to mow you down.
Helpless,
we, who love you,
know the perils
of your journey home…
Our joy is full,
to see you again,
as you float and dip
on English skies,
wings shining blue
while you cut the warm air
like scythes,
or dive unerringly
to remembered nests
beneath the eaves…
Craving freedom,
space, infinity,
courageous birds,
how many more summers
will you come?
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| Squaring the Circle by Tony Inwood |
Universal Prayer of Self-Righteousness!(only to be used in Church on Sundays when feeling especially pious!)
*Please delete as appropriate.
O Lord, I thank you for giving me wisdom and discernment in shed-loads, so that I am able to live a holy and righteous life before you and my fellow human beings. Thank you also that I am not like those misguided Anglicans/Baptists/Methodists/Catholics etc* who suffer from grievous errors in doctrine. I praise you that in your infinite wisdom you have granted me the capacity to be humble enough to forgive them all their appalling wrongs and to think of them no more. (Except on those infrequent occasions when I get annoyed with them!)
In your mercy please enlighten all those who are foolish enough to believe in The Virgin Birth/Gay Rights/The Resurrection/Women Bishops/Heaven and Hell/The sanctity of Marriage etc* Please look upon their stupidity with compassion and feel tenderness of heart towards them despite the fact that they are obviously completely insane!
Finally, Lord I thank you that you are abundant in mercy and are able to repeatedly forgive all wrongdoers. And I am so utterly glad and grateful that in my life there is so little to forgive.
Amen.
Eating out.
Have you heard the latest news?
Everyone has got their views,on the latest eating place,
replacing what was such disgrace.
From ghastly pub
to Gastro Pub,
a new exciting
social hub,
where glitterati meet to eat
(usually romantically),
their egos bumping
frantically.
They’re the coolest cool,
which makes us drool.And if you look
you cannot miss
that special, empty,
famous kiss.
Just made for people
such as this.
The champagne flows
and the owner knowsjust how much his
income grows,
as each exotic course appears
from smooth head waiter
of tender years,
surrounded by his entourage
of ladies with bold
décolletage.
And if you’re feeling
very hip,the smooth head waiter
loves a tip,
so a twenty in his
pocket slip
and you will have him
in your grip!
And all in the name
of exquisite pleasure.So savour the flavour
at your leisure,
then the memory will
be your treasure.
And it’s yours
for a lifetime
in full measure.
© Tony Inwood.
The Mighty Moose
There once was a moose
who was handsome and boldand wanted to go to the top.
And although he was brave
and enjoyed a close shave,
he never quite knew when to stop.
Then one day he saw
a goose on the floorand watched as she took off and flew.
He was very impressed,
but would never have guessed
what this goose would
get him to do!
Oh mighty moose,
majestic moose,he could not stay aloof.
When he spotted the goose
his love was let loose.
And he pawed the ground
with his hoof.
(Well he was a rather odd moose!)
Oh gorgeous goose!
Beautiful goose!With feathers so shiny and sleek.
And her slender neck,
and tender peck
was matched by the curve of her beak.
So this gorgeous goose
whose charm she could usewith such devastating effect;
found a sight to behold,
a moose she could mould,
her own vain soul to reflect.
So this poor moose was hooked
and his goose it was cooked,as all reason flew out of his brain.
He could only express
his feelings of excess,
by galloping hard on the plain!
Said the goose to the moose,
“Why can’t you fly,cause it’s terribly easy you see?”
But the moose looked dumb-founded,
for he knew he was grounded,
but started to go out of his tree!
Now a moose has no wings
and knows not of such thingsas thermals and currents of air.
And although he had horns
from the day he was born
to be wingless seemed very unfair.
So he climbed up a hill
and said “For the thrill,I will throw myself off at the top”.
But when he got there
he could only but stare,
cause it was such a terrible drop.
The Goose circled round
and said, “Have you foundthe courage to take a big leap?”
But the moose looked disturbed
and said to the bird,
“But it’s really so terribly steep”.
But the glum moose was haunted,
as the goose the moose taunted,and told him, “It’s just like a game.
Go at a run, for it will be such fun,
and a wonderful way to get fame!”
So after an hour
he summoned up powerto do what he thought he should do.
He took a deep breath
and although scared to death,
threw himself into the blue.
Now the look in his eyes
as he fell through the skieswas a sight that was sad to behold.
And the poor creature’s terror
as he realised his error
made the blood of the goose
run ice cold.
Oh what made her make
that poor moose takeadvice that was clearly so wrong.
So wracked with remorse
she cried until hoarse,
till someone to help came along.
Then a stroke of good luck!
A large flock of duckflew over to see what was wrong.
And when they spied the poor deer,
it all became clear
and the plan to save him was on.
So they formed a great squadron,
but what were the odds onthem flying en masse to the moose!?
And breaking his fall,
he was huge after all
and his folly so very abstruse.
In formation they flew,
as a gust of wind blew,and a platform they made underneath.
So the moose now relaxed
on the kindly ducks backs,
and was saved by the skin of his teeth.
Oh the moose’s relief
as they flew underneathcannot be put in to words.
And who’d have believed
that he’d be retrieved,
by a flock of incredible birds!
So the moral of this tale
I feel bound to regaleis don’t ever behave like a goose!
And don’t try to fly,
for it’s pie in the sky,
if you happen to be shaped
like a moose!
© Tony Inwood.
Forget-me-not as thyme passes,
for I have
such violet feelings
for you, my sweet rose.
I hope our love will blossom,
for you have tulips I’d love to kiss.
I canna conceive of life without you,
and however you treat me
astilbe
in love with you.
I know you love sweet William,
but he is such a pansy
and I’m cyclamen that
keep pursuing you.
I will buy you
the finest fur foxgloves.
Please don’t leave me with a
bleeding heart
.
You are a shooting star.
You are my morning glory,
you foxtail-lily you!
Why can’t you be a good girl
and become my little primrose.
When the snowdrop,
I do freesia in my lonely room.
Especially when I see all
the men that phlox to your door.
Don’t cause me to rue the day
I met you, or force me to say
goodbye to you
and hyacinth or daisy.
For I’d go completely lupin
without you.
Perhaps I should just be like narcissus
and fall in love with myself!
© Tony Inwood.
The Feeding of the 4000.
Reading: Mark 8.1-10
In our Gospel reading today we hear the old, old story about the feeding of the 4000. Like you, I expect, I have heard or read this miraculous story many times and did not expect to glean much more from it than I had in the past. However, it may be that having to prepare a homily on this subject helps to focus the mind more clearly.
To my surprise and delight I have found that four separate strands of thought now occur to me about this narrative and I shall explore each one with you, but let me outline them first:
1. The extreme bounteousness and generosity of God.
2. That he wants us, his disciples, to be involved in his work.
3. The extraordinary magnetic nature of Jesus - that people were willing to follow him into the wilderness and go without food for three whole days.
4. The testing of his disciples’ faith.
Firstly then the bounteousness of God. This is so because he is generous enough to want to provide for people. He didn’t have to do this after all. But perhaps more significantly, the fact that having fed them there was so much food left over. In other words, he didn’t just want to provide enough to sustain them in their hunger, but wanted to fill them to the brim. It also demonstrates that it is a small matter for him, the Lord God to perform what for us is a miracle. He created us after all and gave us a beautiful world in which to live. He also made the plants of the earth and the fishes of the sea to sustain us, so it is logical that he can do it “out of the blue” when he wants to do so.
The second point is that he wants us to be involved in his work in the world. In this case it was to feed the hungry. He could do all this by himself, but another extraordinary part of his generosity is to want us to share in his work, to give us a sense of fulfilment and purpose. Otherwise we would merely be bystanders and simply get bored if it were all done for us. He shares with us in so many ways. Take the miracle of procreation. We play a very significant role in the birth of children and have huge responsibility in bringing them up. This is both a great joy and a privilege. But God didn’t need to include us in that. He could have by-passed us altogether and found another way for the human race to replicate itself. God’s nature is to share. Relationships are about sharing – giving and receiving - and that is what makes then so worthwhile.
So getting us to be involved in his work is not simply an obligation or duty, but a joy as well. Only God, I believe, is able to do something like this. Just imagine for a moment those people who work in famine areas such as we have at the present time in East Africa. Once the food and medical supplies have come through, just think of the delight and sense of achievement that come with saving a baby’s life; of seeing starving children being able to satiate their appetites and slowly recover and regain their strength. To have a hand in that must be immensely satisfying.
Of course, it is a diabolical tragedy that a situation like this should ever be allowed to develop in the first place, but given that we live in a fallen world, they clearly do and we must do something about them. We are called to be God’s hands at work. I consider that his part is responding to all our prayers by influencing matters from behind the scenes.
Maybe he inspires people to give of their time or money. Maybe he finds ways to circumvent obstructive or malevolent authorities in these areas who seek to prevent supplies from getting through. Sadly, it may well be that there will still be horrific suffering and death, but if some can be ameliorated by our actions and God’s answers to prayer, then that has to be a source of thanksgiving and satisfaction.
We are sometimes tempted to ask “Where is God when these terrible tragedies occur?” By offering to share with and empower us in the way that he does, he is responding by saying “Where are we?”, and thereby giving us a direct challenge to help out.
Our third point is the extraordinary power and magnetism of Jesus; that he was able to appeal to a crowd of 4000 hungry people and then hold that attraction or interest over three whole days in a wilderness. How did he do this?
Well we know from other parts of the Gospel that he was healing the sick and raising the dead. He spoke of a new kind of philosophy or way that we should treat each other; one that defied the conventional outlook and that must surely have struck a chord with them. They must have been completely bowled over by this man both through reputation and for some, through first-hand experience of his teaching and miracles.
Now something else very important strikes me from reading the Gospels and that is the fact that we Christians have this power too, because he gives it to us. He has not only shown us how to live, but empowers us to live it out through the strength of his Holy Spirit. It is interesting that in John 14 Jesus says he that we will do even greater things than he has done and I quote,
“...at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves. I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.”
So just imagine what could happen if we were to live so closely to Jesus in spirit that we could become channels of that power which could then be unleashed through us into a suffering world. God is only able to work though us to the extent that we are prepared to co-operate with him.
Our final point is the testing of his disciples’ faith. Let us just picture for a moment the situation with Jesus and his close disciples. They have been travelling with him for months or years on a daily basis. They have talked with him. They have seen the miracles that he performs, so they have substantial direct experience of the Son of God; God in human form with all the love, and warmth and power that he embodies. So when he says to these men that they must feed the crowds, I reckon he is telling them that this power that he, Jesus, has, can be used through them to perform a miracle.
This is surely a direct lesson to them and us that we can and should be involved in his ministry. But to achieve it all, what he is really asking of them is their trust in the power that they have already seen demonstrated by way of him. So whilst this is a leap of faith that is required on their part, it is not such a massive one in terms of what they themselves had already experienced.
I reckon this is also the way in which God works in all of us. He does not expect us to suddenly have great faith out of nowhere and do mighty acts, but he builds our faith up gradually. Each time we trust him for a small thing he can then give us another test that is more demanding. Ultimately he can achieve really great things in our lives if we continue to serve and obey him. What he requires is for us to take the first step and then we get a result.
Just consider some of the wonderful things achieved by famous Christians even in the relatively recent past. Take the birth of the Salvation Army and all the magnificent work that they do in so many areas. Think of Barnardo’s and NCH Action for Children. What about William Wilberforce and the abolition of slavery. And then Florence Nightingale and her supreme work in war torn Crimea, and even latterly from her sick bed when she devised new plans for healthcare. All of these things have come about by trust in Almighty God. And today we see the wonderful work of TearFund, built from very small beginnings in the late sixties and also Christian Aid and many other worthy organisations.
So when we read of the miracles that Jesus performed, perhaps we should not be tempted to feel that they are all very remote from us and our lives today. The same conditions and circumstances that brought about those miracles are the same ones that are prevalent now. All it requires is for us to step out in faith and draw upon the power of our invincible God to make significant changes in the world about us.
Amen.
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| Daniel Keane |
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| Sofa Explosion |
See them in action:
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| Interval Drinks |
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| The Rad Orchestra |
See them in action:
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| Reyes Trio ****************
Church Unity.
Readings: Matt. 22 v 34-40 and 1 Cor. 1 v 10-17.
Following on from the above readings, I should like to explore two issues in this article, both of which are very important, but also very tricky to tackle. The first is how we deal with wrongdoing in each other’s lives and the second is division within the Church.
Perhaps if we were to sum up our role as Christians in one sentence, it might be: “A Christian is one who should love God and his fellow human beings, (especially Christian brothers and sisters), do good in the world and spread the good news of the Gospel to all”.
I wonder, is this something we do successfully and if not, why not?
Perhaps it might be helpful to examine the issues surrounding all this before we try to give an answer.
That we should love God and love one another is without question. Jesus said this is the greatest commandment and that all the law hangs on this precept. That is an extremely powerful and significant statement.
Put simply this means that all aspects of the law or moral codes, vital as they are, arise from and are secondary to this greatest of commandments. So it is clear that this is how individual Christians and indeed the wider Church should run their lives and operate within society.
Is this something that we do? Well obviously I cannot answer for individual Christians, but as far as I can see the wider Church far too often, does not and I believe that this is because we have a wrong reaction to God’s commands.
Let me try and qualify that statement. There are perhaps many ways in which we can express and demonstrate our love for God and each other and I cannot explore them all within the context of this article, but one aspect that I should like to focus on today is how we deal with people who we believe are not living up to the law. Our first reaction is very often one of horror and judgement. This is perhaps understandable, because when we try to be good Christians we want to see the law of God upheld in our own lives and that of others too. But should we react in that way. Is it right to do so and indeed is it helpful?
I feel that we should express not judgement, but compassion at wrongdoing. I say this because I not only think this is a right way to deal with such matters, but a much better way too. This is especially so in as much as we all fall short of the glory of God every hour of every day for all our lives. So none of us is ever in a position where we can justifiably cast the first stone at someone who has transgressed. What we should do is to try and offer kindness, understanding and if possible, our support. We know this is true because our Lord Jesus himself did the very same thing to the woman caught in adultery and interestingly whilst he further said go and sin no more, he was able to do this only because he himself was perfect and therefore the only person in history qualified to give that command.
As Christians, we often worry about sin and rightly so. That is to say, sin within ourselves, within the Church and the wider community. We see the terrible effects of sin and just how destructive it is. I think it is precisely because of this that we tend to over-react to it and create even more problems and hurt by doing so. It is my belief that the best and most creative way to deal with sin is to ask for forgiveness for ourselves and for others and then leave it to the Lord himself to deal with the transgressor in his own way and timing. The only exception to this must be when the law of the land is broken and then, of course, civil justice must be maintained.
I believe it is important to do this because by so doing we are obeying God’s greatest commandment and at the same time obeying the moral law as well. But there is also crucially, another precept that we follow by doing this and that is that of avoiding division.
St Paul says in our first reading that there should be no division among us. Now division can happen for a number of reasons, but perhaps the most significant for us Christians is in differences of belief or nuances of belief, which can cause bitter division and strife.
Let there be no mistake, this is pure poison. St Paul obviously believed this too which is why he took pains to warn us about it and just look at what has happened to the divisions within the Church over the centuries and what is happening today.
Just consider the upheavals caused by Henry 8th as he broke away from Rome and then proceeded to dissolve the monasteries. Then take the Puritans and how Christians disagreed so violently over whether or not to have statues and stained glass windows in Churches. Some decided these were wrong and carried out a mass programme of Church desecration as a result. Then look at how William Tyndale was strangled and then burned at the stake; His crime? - translating the Bible into English. I guess that makes us all heretics for having read and listened to the Bible in a language other than Latin!
In more recent times there have been the awful sectarian clashes in Ireland, which still have a legacy today in football matches, most notably in Scotland and all having precious little to do with Christian values. These are just a few examples among many that have been the sources of terrible discord in the Church on a whole range of issues, and bring great shame on it and dishonour the name of our Lord Jesus. It also makes a mockery of that well known and much loved Hymn “The Church’s One Foundation”: “One Lord, one faith, one birth”.
It is estimated that there are about 33,000 different Christian denominations throughout the world today; all of them presumably believing that they are the only true representatives of Jesus Christ. If the consequences of this weren’t so serious it would be laughable! Surely all of us are Christians pure and simple. It matters not whether we are Roman Catholic, Anglican, Methodist or any other denomination. The Church of God is made up of men, women and children who have given their lives to Jesus Christ. Perhaps there are dark forces at work here to bring such hatred and division amongst us Christians – the Children of God.
So what is the best and most Christian way to deal with our differences?
Again, let’s look at the issues surrounding this problem before we try to answer it. Today, we Christians, just as our forebears did, seek to follow in the footsteps of Jesus by reading the Bible, trying to understand and interpret what is being said and then attempting to follow it - so far, so good. The trouble is we often have different interpretations of what the Bible is saying on a whole range of issues and let’s be honest it is a very difficult series of books to try and understand. Great scholars over the centuries have disagreed on many things, and they still do so today.
Perhaps, if we are really honest with ourselves, we must admit that ultimately it is only God or the Holy Trinity who actually knows the full, final and objective truth about everything there is to know. It goes without saying that we human beings are massively fallible and massively lacking in knowledge. So given that this is the case, might it not be wise for us to read our Bibles, pray and reflect, and hopefully come to some sort of decision as to what we see as being right, and then try to set the course of our individual lives by those perceptions? And at the same time have the humility to admit that we may be wrong. As I see it that is honest, upright and workable. If we have truly examined our consciences on any issue and come to a conclusion that we hold to be right, then we must follow that course wherever it lead us.
Now this brings us to the real nub of the issue which is this. What do we do when we have done this and someone else has done the same and we find that we then hold a different point of view? How do we move forward and move forward in harmony then? Again, I can only speak for my own way of dealing with this over many years of being a Christian, of having read the Bible from cover to cover three times, and the New Testament more than this, and having prayed and reflected on various issues.
My conclusion is that we must in the first instance respect the fact that the Lord God Almighty gave us free will. And I am a passionate believer that when he did this he really meant free will. We can do exactly what we like, regardless of others, and without any thought for the inevitable consequences of these actions. Sadly we see every day some terrible things happen in the world because of this.
So if God has given us both the right and the capacity to choose for ourselves, why do we spend so much of our time trying to deny that capacity in others because they take an opposing viewpoint? I would suggest that by doing this we are not only doing great harm, but we are actually trying to over-ride God’s will.
One more thing; Jesus tells us in the “Parable of the Weeds” that we should let the wheat and the tares grow together, for if we try to uproot the tares we risk doing damage to the wheat. So even if it transpires that we are right about a certain belief, we should still tolerate the opposing viewpoint as far as possible for that reason alone. We may rest assured that Jesus can and will sort out the tares at the end of the age.
Jesus also said that a house divided against itself cannot stand. As a Church it is vital that we stand, and stand together if we are to have any chance of spreading the love of God to each other and to the world around us. If we in the wider Church are seen to be squabbling amongst ourselves, what kind of message does that send to the outside world about Christianity and the love of God? If we appear to be judgemental, then we shall alienate those very people who need the love of Jesus the most.
So whilst it may be right for the Church to continue to preach the traditional values held for centuries and continue to teach our children “in the way they should go”, we must allow for those who cannot, or will not, go along with these beliefs, otherwise there is the constant danger of a witch-hunt mentality being developed.
God says in Ezekiel, “I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak” and I believe he does this very largely through our co-operation. When we get to heaven, wouldn’t it be fantastic if we met other souls who were there as a result of our efforts at evangelism?
So let us love one another in spite of our differences. Let us respect our God given right to believe whatever we choose to believe and let us therefore be a united force against the powers that seek to sabotage and undermine our efforts to spread the good news of the Gospel. For it is only by doing this that we stand any real chance of successfully fulfilling that other vital commandment of our Lord Jesus Christ - the great commission. “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
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