The Perfect GiftAs I write this, it is the 11th November, Remembrance day. Yesterday in our churches, we remembered, lest we forget, the sacrifice of so many that we might know peace and freedom in our time. But as is always the way, the world is pushing us on, and we are being bombarded by Christmas adverts on the television and through social media. It seems hard to imagine, that we could ever forget that Christmas is coming. It is rightly an exciting time of the year, as Christmas draws ever closer, as more and more doors of the advent calendar get opened, as the advent candle burns lower and lower, that excitement mounts. If we have children, or grandchildren, nieces and nephews, old enough to be aware of what is happening, then the adverts will be doing their job, and the list of Christmas gifts they want will be growing by the minute. Conversely, for those of us who are fortunate to already have everything we need, possibly even too much. Then the answer to the question, ‘what do you want for Christmas?’ Gets ever harder to answer, or certainly does for me. Not having that much time to watch television, I haven’t yet caught many of the Christmas adverts yet, but I did catch sight of an advert for Sainsburys the other day, featuring Roald Dahls BFG (Big Friendly Giant) which spoke about how they are working with Comic Relief, to distribute over five million meals to families experiencing food poverty this Christmas. In our family we give alternative gifts, I have lost count of the number of goats, beehives, school bags and sewing machines I have ‘nominally’ been given over the years, but it is always makes me so grateful and happy to think of the people that will be receiving these gifts.Christmas is of course the time when we remember the perfect gift, a gift for everyone who willingly receives it. Jesus, wrapped in swaddling bands and laid in a manger. Foretold in Isaiah in these words ‘For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders, and he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.’ Or in the words of Simeon, as he held him in his arms at just 10 days old, ‘he will be a light to lighten the gentiles.’ At Christmas we remember the greatest gift of all, Jesus, the light in the darkness, through whom, we can have the assurance of salvation and life everlasting. May you know the fullness of the gift he offers this Christmas timeMay God bless youHeather
On Saturday 28th September, in St. Botolphs church, Colchester, Revd Emma Barr, who has served in our parishes since last summer as curate, was ordained priest, along with 5 other colleagues for the Colchester area. In a beautiful service, full of deep meaning, Bishop Roger, welcomed them into the priesthood, and Janet Nichols, the diocesan rural adviser and agricultural chaplain preached.Following her ordination, on Sunday 29th September, there was a special united service in Little Horkesley, with Emma presiding at her first communion. In token of our appreciation for all that Emma brings to the ministry in the 6 parishes, a small gift was given, and the service was followed by a splendid lunch and lots of cake in the village Hall.A fine weekend of celebrations, to mark this important step on Emmas journey.
Christ the King – Year B: Daniel 7:9-10; 13-14; Rev 1:4b-8; John 18:33-37Today, we come to the culmination of the church year. Next Sunday, will be the first Sunday of Advent, no sooner will Advent start, with its emphasis on waiting for the second coming of Christ, whilst also anticipating his first incarnation than we will be drawn inextricably to Christmas, and celebrating the birth of Jesus, and seeing how the circles of those who heard the goodnews, goes first to the marginalised, shepherds on the hillside, before being revealed to the outsider, the Magi from the east. … Jesus the King who came for everyone.We will journey through ordinary time … I always think that ordinary time, sounds so strange, when we worship a God of the extraordinary, we will hear the teachings of Jesus, wonder at his miracles, before being drawn throughout Lent, closer and closer to the foot of the cross on Good Friday and then his glorious resurrection, ascension, the coming of the Holy Spirit and then over the varying number of weeks of trinity, we will have a season for growth, for drawing deeper into the love of God, before all Souls, Remembrance and the feast of Christ the King.There is a familiar shape to the Christian calendar, some might argue it can feel constrained, but it all culminates, in recognising Jesus as the King of kings.The feast of Christ the King, is a fairly modern feast day, it was instituted in 1925 by Pope Pius XI. A day to remember the kingship of JesusAnd in a society which becomes more and more anti-establishment, perhaps referring to Jesus as King, might feel uncomfortable to some.But then we have to remember the kingship that Jesus offers could appear rather anti-establishment too, it certainly turns our understanding of Kingship on its head. In our Gospel reading this morning, Jesus is on trial, brought to Pilate, by his own people. Those that really should have recognised his true identity.But it is Pilate who is left to ask ‘are you the King of the Jews.’Pilate, representing the powers of the Roman empire, might be afraid of a ‘would be king’After all Herod, on hearing the Magi have come in search of the King of the Jews, orders that all boys under the age of two in Bethlehem be killed, so threatened was he. Joseph having been warned in a dream to get up and take Mary and the child had already escaped into Egypt.The King of the Jews, living the life of a refugee.As the conversation continues, between Pilate and Jesus, Jesus says ‘My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest from the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place.’The dialogue between Jesus and Pilate, terse though it may be, illustrates the clashing of worldly and spiritual kingship. One is the threat of raw and absolute power with which we are all too familiar and to which we are often subjected. It is the power that has called us to war as a legitimate, but seldom necessary, solution. The other is a power that comes from disavowing the power of strength and might and turning to the power of love and redemption. The two are not compatible. We have to decide which we uphold.And then Jesus says ‘You are right, I am a King, in fact, for this reason I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me. There is no lie here; there is no shading or twisting of fact. The truth is that God loves the world, all of it, and gave his only Son to redeem it from sin and death.You know of course that the Nazis firebombed Coventry during World War II and the cathedral was destroyed. After the war, a modern cathedral was rebuilt on the site, adjacent to which are the ruins of an apse in which an altar stands with a charred cross, and behind it on the wall are the words “Father, forgive.” This place is a stark experience of the two opposing powers and the hope of redemption in the new cathedral where Christ in Glory is depicted above the high altar.Images like this can help us in a time of discomfort and dread about what is happening. And the words of Christ himself remind us that to belong to the truth means listening to his voice, which may mean tuning out the voices of others claiming to have the truth.So, how do we live in this time as citizens of the Kingdom of Christ?We live as people of the truth, meaning we offer ourselves as ambassadors of the Good News to everyone. This does not happen by a sheer act of will. It happens by cultivating our attitudes and behaviour through regular worship, the reading and study of Scripture, and our prayers. The more we feed from these sources, the more truthful our lives become, and less vulnerable to falsehood.We live as servants of Christ the King. That means we find ways to serve him by serving others both within and without our faith community. If we think we can’t do that because of our limitations or fears, then we need to ask Jesus to show us what we can do. These actions replenish our depleted resolve and strengthen us for living in a chaotic world.We live as a people who see opportunity in the community of others. This includes embracing the stranger, the refugee and the homeless, those who have no helper. Just singling out one person in these categories and finding ways to help them are ways to honour Christ the King.We live as a people who hope in the life of the world to come. That doesn’t mean we discount this world altogether. It is God’s creation, given to us for our joy and benefit. But we know it is not where we are destined. Our hearts are restless as we await what is to come. Next Sunday, we begin a new church year and the season of Advent. As we sing, “O come, O come, Emmanuel,” we are challenged to bring that coming closer with our hearts and minds and strength.The people of Coventry saw their cathedral rise out of the ashes. They began a ministry of reconciliation, the Cross of Nails, now known around the world, as a vibrant mission of reconciliation and redemption. That vision calls us today to be people of hope and reconciliation, to pray and work for civil discourse and grace towards our neighbours, and especially those who differ from us.As we honour Christ the King today, remember that Jesus is relying on us to be partners with him in bringing the truth to a world that tries to shut it out, but desperately needs to hear it and embrace it. Amen.
