St Mark Mark 1: 1-15 It’s a wonderful feeling when you start a new novel and the first page absolutely grabs your attention. Maybe it’s an interesting character who intrigues you, a shocking or inexplicable event, or a captivating description of somewhere you would love to go. It’s the work of a skilled writer to engage the reader’s interest in the crucial first page, when there is a danger they will put the book down and choose something else. Well the opening lines of Mark’s Gospel are certainly attention grabbing ‘The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.’ Imagine for a moment you’ve forgotten everything you’ve ever learnt at church or Sunday School. Imagine you are reading this book for the first time. Imagine someone is reading it aloud to you for the very first time. The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Well hang on a minute you might say, what sort of opening line is that? Who? The Son of God? What good news? And the beginning of it? What happens next? These are the questions that Mark addresses throughout his gospel, and most importantly the question of who. Who is this person Jesus? Mark skips over the nativity story and begins with John the Baptist, foretold by the prophet Isaiah, who baptises Jesus. Who is Jesus? A voice from heaven tells us. ‘You are my Son, the Beloved.’ The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. And what is the good news? Jesus himself tells us as he begins his ministry in Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God and saying ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent and believe in the good news.’ Thus in the first half of the first chapter Mark lays out clearly who Jesus is and what he is doing. What is not clear is how this will all work out, what happens next and whether the other characters understand this too. This is only the beginning, there is much more to come. Mark is the first of the four gospels to be written, dated sometime between 60 and 70 AD, the first to tell the story of Jesus’ life. Mark writes in the Greek of the ordinary street people of the Roman Empire. His language and style is smartened up by Matthew and Luke when they use Mark’s gospel as a source for their own. Marks uses short sentences linked by ‘and’ or ‘again’ and there is a sense of breathless urgency to the way he tells the story, things happen ‘immediately’ or ‘as soon as.’ It’s almost like he’s got a lot to say about this person Jesus and is trying to fit it all in before he forgets. Mark is preoccupied with this question of who Jesus is, but Mark’s Jesus is mysterious and does not openly reveal his identity. Jesus actually silences the demons who know who he is. When he performs a miracle he tells people not to say anything to anyone about what he has done. He takes the disciples off into a corner and teaches them privately so that others won’t hear and understand. But the poor disciples, of all the gospel writers, Mark is hardest on the disciples. Their failure to understand who Jesus is and what he is doing only worsens throughout the gospel. In fact it is the outsiders who recognise who Jesus is; the woman with the haemorrhage of blood, the Syro-Phoenician woman, the people who bring the little children to see Jesus, blind Bartimaeus and the woman at Bethany who pours perfume over Jesus’ feet. Perhaps this is because Jesus asks more of the disciples. It’s easy to respond generously to Jesus initially but when difficulties come its’s not so easy. Mark stresses faithfulness in the face of persecution and dignity and humility as opposed to status seeking. He is trying to prepare them for what is to come. This is the beginning of the good news and Jesus is trying to tell them what will happen at the end. After all he prophesies the passion three times and each time the disciples fail to understand. Perhaps they couldn’t. Jesus was trying to tell them something more about himself, something they could never imagine or believe. Until it happened. Mark’s gospel focuses on the person of Jesus from the opening sentence to the cry of the Centurion at the foot of the cross ‘truly this man was the Son of God.’ His gospel is the working out of what that cry means. And as for that opening line, Mark might well have put it at the end, right after the crucifixion and resurrection; the beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Amen.
Sunday 21<sup>st</sup> March 2021 Passion Sunday Jeremiah 31: 31-34 (NIV) “The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. <sup> </sup>It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to<sup> </sup>them, declares the Lord. “This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the Lord. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” Hebrews 5: 5-10 So also Christ did not glorify himself in becoming a high priest, but was appointed by the one who said to him, “You are my Son, today I have begotten you”<sup> </sup>as he says also in another place, “You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.” <sup> </sup>In the days of his flesh, Jesus<sup> </sup>offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. <sup> </sup>Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered; and having been made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him,<sup> </sup>having been designated by God a high priest according to the order of Melchizedek. John 12: 20-33 Now among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greeks. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and said to him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.”<sup> </sup>Philip went and told Andrew; then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. <sup> </sup>Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. <sup> </sup>Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honour. “Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say—‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. <sup> </sup>Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” The crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not for mine. <sup> </sup>Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. <sup> </sup>And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people<sup> </sup>to myself.” He said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die. Unless a grain of wheat dies it will not bear fruit – this part of the gospel reading led me to the picture of a passionflower via the Maori symbol of the Kora. The Kora – silver fern frond – a loop or a coil which depicts New Life, New Growth and Strength – perpetual movement and Peace and then it returns to its point of origin…an eternal loop… Death and new life – the Passionflower draws us into the invitation to the seed of the Passion of Christ himself. The Old Testament reading for today Jeremiah 31: 31-34 – A New Covenant – law within us – write it on our hearts. Remember our sin no more. Iniquities forgiven…the seeds of new life…blossom from the ground of our faith which is a gift to us…that is the core of this passion. John 12: 20-33 – Grain of wheat dying to live and be fruitful… and nourishing. Passion is a glorious word – whichever way we speak it, it expresses what it means? The word however has a number of expressions of meaning.. Strong and barely controllable emotion – i.e. a person of impetuous passion – like us losing our temper. A state or outburst of strong emotion – speech in which a person gradually works themselves up into a passion – public oratory from the heart. Intense physical love.– their all consuming passion for one another….and in this last couple of weeks we have seen passions rise over the violent death of Sarah Everard and the importance that all people are valued and protected from harm so they can flourish and grow. An intense desire or enthusiasm for something – what passions still make us burn for truth and, justice and new life? The passion that never leaves me in all the conversations of those who I have listened to over time. Those moments when they have shared the journey of facing their own mortality. Very often they described the facing of their own death and the whole of life taking on a new vibrancy and urgency. The gift of life itself realised in a new way. Reflections on regret and purposefulness to be reconciled with nearest and dearest. Also the sharing of troubled souls. These are transformational moments. Those moments take me to the Gospel of Jesus in the steps of his Passion. Here we see Jesus working through the imagery of natural life and death and giving up our selves to experience the fullness of life. Then he admits his vulnerability that his soul is troubled and that he might be saved from this hour of passion – but no – ‘glorify your name my Creator’ and God says that it already has as Jesus gives up his soul and body to the transformational will of God. The suffering and death of Jesus – meditations on the passion of Christ – includes the gospels and the musical settings of the biblical account of the Passion of Christ… we can be high and lifted up…with Christ himself in all the offerings that come at this time of year. Passion is from the middle English – from Old French, from late Latin passio and Pati which means to suffer…… Passion Sunday – the fifth Sunday of Lent is where we are invited to enter Passiontide….it is a change of gear, going deeper into the mystery of Christ’s passion ….it is an opportunity to be ready, rather than unprepared for Palm Sunday and Holy Week…..covering the crucifix….to enhance the impact of Good Friday…..so, for forty days those trying to follow the way of Jesus Christ are invited both to explore what it means to be in the desert and, in the words of my mentor Michael Perham ….”Please God, finding it to be not just a place of testing but a place of growth and grace and also to be on a journey that is moving steadfastly towards Jerusalem and the events that changed the world and have the potential to transform the lives of those who share the journey…….” (The Way of Christlikeness……2016……) This time of pandemic is part of our journey of passion. I have a story of the passion flower – the gift from a lady patient who wanted to say thank you to the Chaplaincy team who had cared for her as she faced up to terminal illness, giving a gift of her propagated passion flowers…..she lived for another year and saw the covering of the Chaplaincy Chapel wall with stunning flowers – the passion wall which meant a lot to many – identifying where suffering and creativity meet. She knew through her experience of facing up to her mortality what was important and to rediscover the essence of her life in her reflective times. Her whole life and its quality changed because everything became more vivid and vital and not taken for granted. Our times of Covid give us this insight when we have seen what is most important to us again and again when we have seen so much loss around us. *The La Mortella Gardens on Ischia off the Amalfi Coast – Sir William Walton and his wife Susan……this where the picture of the passionflower was taken – the six-tiered garden with a concert auditorium overlooking the Amalfi coast…a high perspective…For those of us who love the music of William Walton it was a surprise to us that he wrote the music for the film Richard 111 with the lead taken by Laurence Olivier. Six years on since his re interment. This brought a whole different perspective to the passionflower on the beautiful island of Ischia! An intense desire or enthusiasm for something – the English have a passion for gardens…! When I had a fresh look at this passionflower I had imagined to myself. The five petals were for me the five wounds of Christ, four by nails and one from a lance. Then I looked it up on the Kew Gardens website and traditionally the outer tendrils represent the whips used for the flagellation of Jesus. For me the three stigmas in the centre represent the trinity and the Crown (the Corona) represent the crown of Christ as well as the Crown of Thorns which is also the tradition of South America where the flowers originate. As we reflect upon Passion and the Passionflower may we be transported more deeply into the fullness of life as we walk the steps of the passion of Jesus the Christ in the Passiontide. A truth that can be seen – we are high and lifted up with Him – a covenant - write my law on their hearts-and I will be their God, and they will be my people…..forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more. Transformation indeed. Seeing life and a landscape of suffering in a different way, whether from a high place….or a low place in these days wherever… What makes us burn for justice, truth and new life? So, we arrive back to the Passionflower and the Kora – the spiral of eternal truth……we come full circle together at the start of Passiontide…Amen Canon Edward Pogmore
SERMON 28<sup>th</sup> FEBRUARY 2021 2<sup>nd</sup> SUNDAY OF LENT Mark Ch. 8 v 31 – end Jesus says, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things”, to Peter, which must have been a humiliating rebuke. How much of your life is concentrated on worldly things rather than divine things? When you have lived a few years you accumulate so many things, and to be honest most of them are quite peripheral to our lives. During the past year, which clothes have you worn? There has been no need to dress up when the government tell us to stay at home for our own good and for the good of others, so we mooch around in our old but comfy clothes. Yet I expect all of you have got a pretty full wardrobe of clothes for all possible occasions. Getting our priorities right is a problem for all of us. Most of us try our hardest to be unselfish and try to “Love our neighbour as ourselves”, but we fail pretty miserably, because of our inbuilt desire for security and our suspicion of people who are not quite like us – which, if you hadn't noticed, is the vast majority! Jesus in our Gospel passage today is at the crossroads of his ministry. After his teaching, healing and miracles he tells the Disciples what it means to be the Messiah. “The Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again”. Peter, my favourite disciple, openly rebuked Jesus, because Peter loved the Lord, and could not bear to think that anything like that should happen to Jesus. That was when Jesus replied “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things”. Peter, as so often when following Jesus, gets it wrong, and I would say, “just like all of us”. Jesus is trying to prepare the Disciples for the final act of his Messiahship in Jerusalem, when he knows that the Pharisees and the Chief Priests and Scribes will want him dead. Messiah, means “appointed by God to deliver his people”, and the Jews basically were looking for a strong military leader with God's might behind him, to unite the Jews against the Roman Empire. Another King David, to return their country to what they thought it was like hundreds of years before. Sometimes we have illusions today that someone will turn up as Britain's economic saviour, without realizing that our economic salvation comes from within us all, and the past cannot be relived. Jesus was doing his best to explain what true Messiahship was and how it was meant to fulfilled. He was delivering God's Kingdom for us all, but it was not a kingdom of our world but one of eternal life in the presence of his heavenly Father. He was not a Messiah who told people to take up their swords, but told them to take up their cross. In 1979 I was exploring the possibility of ordination when I started to have serious doubts. The more senior members of our congregation may remember that it was the year that “The Life of Brian” by Monty Python was released. I was a great fan of Monty Python and there was a great outcry by religious leaders from many denominations saying that the film was blasphemous. I went to see it and thought that it was very funny. It was very satirical about organised religion, politics, the British class system and the public school system, but it was not critical of Jesus. I really could not see what all the fuss was about and started to have misgivings, not about Jesus but about the Church. I did talk to one or two clergy about my thoughts and came to the conclusion that they were perhaps more worried about cynicism towards the Church than any blasphemy. That year there was a television debate between Malcolm Muggeridge and Mervyn Stockwood, the Bishop of Southwark on one side and John Cleese and Michael Palin on the other concerning the film. This led to Malcolm Muggeridge describing it as a ‘miserable little film’ which would soon be forgotten, since it was only ‘tenth rate’. Michael Palin said that they rejected the idea of doing a ‘Life of Jesus’, because the more they researched the topic, the more they realized that there was very little to ridicule in the life of Jesus himself. John Cleese criticised institutionalised religion that insulted his intelligence and must have realised that the publicity given by these two rather pompous men, was probably the best thing that could have happened for their box-office takings. It was then that I almost changed my mind about possible ordination, but somehow God and one of his clergy talked me into seeing that a Church that was intolerant and pompous was still God's Church, and maybe I might change it just a little by being part of it. It would take too long to describe the plot of film if you have avoided it over the last 42 years, but I believe it is not blasphemous, but it did highlight the Jewish desire for a messiah without seriously considering the consequences. A highlight of the film is Brian's mother (Terry Jones) telling the crowds to go away saying “He's not the messiah, he's a very naughty boy”. Brian's life runs parallel to that of Jesus, but all Brian wants is to get through life in a very confused world, and to be with Judith the woman he pursues throughout the story. If you have seen the film you will probably also remember the parody of 1970's left-wing politics when “What have the Roman's done for us” is debated. We are also left with the song, “Always look on the bright side of life”, which my brother-in-law, who was one of the most cheerful and funniest men I have known, chose for his funeral. The Life of Brian is a very funny film, but I would not say that it gives any serious theological insights, however it includes great perspectives concerning human nature and society. It has been the subject of an academic debate at Kings College London in 2014, a book based on the conference and several academic papers. It is a film, which if made today, would probably be banned because of its portrayal of Pontius Pilate's speech impediment (he couldn't pronounce his “r”s), rather than any fun it has at the churches' expense. We have the Gospel to tell us of Jesus's agony in taking the road of the cross to fulfil his Messiahship and we have Peter's confusion and Jesus's rebuke to consider today. Remember what following the true Messiah means – concentrate on the divine rather than worldly things. Fr. Terry I always like to include a joke in my sermons as you know, but I couldn't figure out how to include this one, but here it is anyway. An old lady was being tailgated by a stressed out man on a busy road, when suddenly, the light turned amber, just in front of her. She did the right thing and stopped, even though she could have beaten the red light by accelerating through the crossroads. The tailgating man hit the roof, and the horn, screaming in frustration as he missed his chance to get through the lights. As he was still in mid-rant, he heard a tap on his window and looked up into the face of a very serious police officer. The officer ordered him to exit his car with his hands up. He took him to the police station where he was searched, finger printed, photographed, and placed in a holding cell. After several hours, a policeman approached the cell and opened the door. He was escorted back to the booking desk where the arresting officer was waiting with his personal effects. He said, I'm very sorry for this mistake sir. “You see, I pulled up behind your car while you were blowing your horn, giving rude gestures at the old lady in front of you, and shouting obscenities at her. I noticed the 'Jesus Loves You' sticker in the rear windscreen, the 'Love Your Neighbour As Yourself?' bumper sticker, the 'Be At Church This Sunday' bumper sticker, and the chrome-plated Christian fish emblem on the boot.” “Naturally, I assumed you had stolen the car.”
Reflection: Ash Wednesday Ash Wednesday marks the first day of Lent. The day derives its name from the ceremonial imposition of ashes on the foreheads of worshippers in the liturgy of the day, a rite that dates from at least the 10<sup>th</sup> century. It was also seen as a time of penitential devotion and confession to be observed by all Christian people. Penitence is an essential part of the Christian life, for none of us can measure up to the vocation that is ours as Christians. We are in constant need of the mercy and forgiveness of God. I remember when I was being schooled in the ministry and beliefs of the Church of England many years ago, prior to my being confirmed, hearing those words during an Ash Wednesday service; ‘Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return. Turn away from sin and be faithful to Christ’. Every year since I have listened to and read those words and been reminded of our mortality when I received ashes on my forehead. We need to remain stead-fast in the faith, to be penitential believers, and trust in God. But in these days of virus lockdown and Zoom services in our churches how might we manage such important services as Ash Wednesday that undoubtedly pose ministerial and practical problems about imposition of ashes? I remember a film starring Alec Guinness from the 1980s entitled Monsignor Quixote, a catholic priest, who one day knelt before the altar alone in his Parish Church to worship and receive communion. He did not consecrate a bread wafer or wine in any physical way. Rather, he conducted worship and communion in spiritual ways. He brought himself before God, on behalf of himself and his congregation in a prayerful and penitential way that he believed was real and theologically appropriate. Reflecting on such and how we might engage with an important service as Ash Wednesday with imposition of ashes, let us spiritually present ourselves before God as penitents and pray for our ourselves, for our nation and world, and for all to be reconciled in God through Christ. May this season of Lent inspire and lead you into deeper realisations of the reality of God and God’s wish and love for all. God bless, Fr Graham
