A letter from our Minister – Rev David Hood.
As I sit to type this article the weather is just rubbish. It’s the end of August and all we seem to have had is a long series of cold and very rainy days, with the occasional warm day or two pretending to be the start of ‘summer’. Summer will soon be technically over, though many of us are hoping for a late good spell. This magazine covers the period until the Spring with the journey through winter months of dressing up, fireworks, Remembrance, Advent, Christmas, New Year and then Lent. Although I recognise it is a sign of ageing, I am comforted by the fact that teenagers are commenting about how quickly the months are passing.
Modern living is full of ‘immediate and instant’ and we have an increasing number of automated machines and gadgets to make our lives easier – and yet it seems too many people are simply experiencing more and more stress and distress.
At a funeral planning visit a family member who does not attend any church but grew up doing so, stated, “I don’t understand how people cope with grief if they have no belief in life beyond this.”
At the recent communion services I was struck again but the sense of connection with all those who belong to Christ – past, current and future. The great mystery of connection through love and through our loving God is powerful and comforting. I don’t pretend to understand it all, but I believe that the sacrament connects us with loved ones waiting beyond this life and the anticipated reunion gives me comfort and strength.
This summer I ticked a holiday destination off my bucket list, with a week’s visit to Malta – a country I have always wished to visit due to my Dad’s respect for the Maltese people during WW2. Dad served in the Merchant Navy in his late teens and early 20’s during the war, and for many years after it. He was acutely aware of the loss of ships supplying the island, and of the resilience of the islanders who endured more bombs than any other area of land throughout the whole war.
The island has a simply astonishing number of churches and monasteries and four cathedrals. The majority are simple and local, but some are stunningly beautiful containing artworks, and sculptures within impressive buildings.
I was struck by the beauty and troubled by the opulence.
The gold leaf, the marble, the paintings and the church furnishings, as well as the silver and gold church artefacts past and current brought both responses. It has always been a challenge for the church – the desire to honour God and create places of worship which ascribed greatness to God, and yet the challenge to honour Jesus words which were all about serving others, justice, kindness, caring.
As I wandered round yet another magnificent building I felt a stirring of disquiet – as I asked myself what God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit might actually think of it all. It was also clear that a huge proportion of the investment and beauty was to honour people and not God. It was like a private club where the rich and powerful got to remember their family and friends by placing incredibly expensive statues and paintings in a place of worship.
Such questions are not restricted to Malta, or even to our time. They are universal within Christendom and relevant to all who claim to follow Jesus. How we spend our money and time demonstrates our priorities and points to the way we interpret our faith. Standing where the first soldiers in Malta were killed on the night of the first bombing raid to attack the island, there was a sense of the futility of war, and the fragility of life. Six young men on top of a look out tower gave their lives as they sought to protect their island and community.
We can feel so very powerless as the world has so many examples of war and violence and killing. As we remember all who have gone before us, in particular because of war, let’s remember the ultimate sacrifice of the One who came to declare in a new and powerful way, that God is love. And let’s try to be agents of his love, forgiveness, grace, generosity and hope.
Thanks for reading. I hope you find this Post interesting and inspiring.
David.