Celebrating baptism

Tonight I am teaching the final session of our course on Christian baptism. We are looking at the spirituality of baptism. Earlier today, our staff team heard about the recent national survey of biblical literacy, and we were shocked to hear how little knowledge of the basic biblical stories is retained, not just by the population at large, but even more by people who call themselves Christians and who attend church regularly (at least twice a month).

One of the things I think we could do to bring these two things together that would provide a real witness throughout the Diocese of Oxford would be to have a week of celebrations of baptism across the diocese, maybe next year when we are looking at how we 'sustain the sacred centre' of our lives as Christians. We could publicise events that our churches would run in which people could find out what that christening that they had as a baby was all about. It wouldn't be too expensive to produce a leaflet that gave some of the Bible stories which are integral to baptism. We could include interesting factual information and some gorgeous pictures of baptisms. Maybe we could give one to every family that had had a baptism in the past year, if the local church took this project to their hearts. And we could invite everyone in our communities who had been baptised at the local church to a great party, with a creative act of worship as part of it.

Perhaps later we might even have another diocesan Convention, with an emphasis on the theme of the sacraments, and amongst other things, to include an exploration of evangelism through the new Christian initiation rites, through the Biblical themes around baptism, and through nurture groups like Emmaus that have an element of the catechumenate about them. All this would equip us to help people who come with their children and say that "Granny wants him or her 'done' properly", which I take as 'code' for "We would like to have our baby brought into the kind of relationship that will help him or her grow up to find out something about the God who we think exists, but who we are to scared to ask about, or who we don't have the language to talk about."

What about it? Or maybe, even a national celebration of baptism? I don't think 'inherited church' has run out of steam yet in terms of mission and evangelism and this could be one way to help people hear the good news of Jesus Christ.

New start

Back to the new term with a new group of ordinands. We spent Saturday together looking at the Diocese of Oxford's Living Faith strategy, thinking about what it means for the mission and ministry of people who are training to be ordained and who will be encouraging the mission of all the people of God in their churches. We had an interesting discussion and there was clearly energy for thinking through practical applications for churches which are from the liberal, anglo-catholic and traditional ends of the Church which essentially were what the students represented.

Once again, I am drawn to the view that when people are mobilised by the Holy Spirit, they are ready and eager to talk about their faith to anyone around. The problem may be that they then get sucked into the kind of church-based activity that reinforces the old paradigm of attractional church rather than getting out there in incarnational mode, to use Frost and Hirsch's language.

I think there are key elements of the Christendom paradigm that still provide a vital platform for mission and evangelism; for example, the Weddings Project takes this view, and by all accounts, may very well be onto a good thing. But, at the same time, if we in the church can't be open enough to get out there where people are, who are we going to attract in?! I don't want to see just Back to Church Sunday projects. I also want to see Out of Church Sunday experiments! What about commisioning 20% of the church folk to be out in the communities and neighbourhoods on one Sunday a year, with the rest of their church praying for them? Anyone out there tried it?......

More on Street Pastors

I've learnt this week that Street Pastor schemes are being planned for some of the towns in the Diocese of Oxford, notably, Reading and Oxford. Come on, churches in High Wycombe and Slough!

Street Pastors

Street Pastors Schemes are a relatively new introduction in towns and cities across Britain. Begun in 2003 in response to knife crime in urban areas, teams of trained street pastors are available in some places from 10 pm to 4 am to help or to listen to young people (mainly) when they emerge from pubs and clubs. It's an effective form of practical Christian mission. I learned about them from a friend who is a Street Pastor in London, and I have recently discovered that they exist in many towns not too far from us, including Salisbury and Weymouth. I'm not aware if they have arrived in the Diocese of Oxford yet, but if not, it would be great to get something going!

http://www.streetpastors.co.uk/Home/tabid/255/Default.aspx

How to Pray

 

Evagrius of Pontus

Chapter 3

Prayer is a mental conversation with God; obviously then, one's mind needs tranquility, so that it may be quiet and stand attentively before the Master of the household without distraction, and discuss matters with him with no-one interrupting. Translated from the Greek by John de la Tour Davies.


Comment
Evagrius was alert to the power of distractions to interrupt our prayer. For him, distractions arise from anxieties; so it is necessary to arrive at a state of tranquility if mental prayer is to be possible. In this analogy, God is the Master of the household and the one who prays is like God's steward, who as a good servant would put aside his own concerns and agendas, and come daily before the householder to listen carefully and to receive his instructions. The steward would not act until he had heard his master's wishes. Nothing and no-one would come before that meeting of the steward and the master: it might be the only opportunity that day for the steward to receive his briefing, and if he missed it, the master's plans and purpose could not be effectively carried out.

Anglican Diocesan Missioners conference 2009

I spent the last week in June at the annual Anglican Missioners conference, held in Merville, France. The theme was 'How do we sing the Lord's song in a strange land?' and was focused on the subject of exile. In a post-modern world, the church (often still in Christendom mode, and expecting to draw people in and therefore to Christ through occasional offices such as weddings, christenings etc) is 'in exile', and its song is a strange one to the people of the 'land', whilst our experience of 'singing' it is often of not even speaking the same language any more.

So how do we communicate the good news of Jesus Christ in today's world? How do we achieve cross-cultural mission and evangelism? Things talked about were:

1. Spirituality: people are attracted to things which offer an experience of the 'spiritual dimension'. How do we ensure it is Christian spirituality they turn to?


2. Discipleship: we are called by Jesus to make disciples, not to build churches, so why do we so often start the other way round? Perhaps, I thought, because we focus first on spirituality, offering what we consider to be attractive worship where the presence of God may be 'felt'? Or perhaps, because we feel constrained to stick to what we know: Alpha; house groups; liturgies; structure and order?

I kept saying, "But what about the Holy Spirit?"

I think that I was wondering if we were rather missing the point a bit and getting sucked back into evangelism by works rather than grace.

What I was trying to say was that if the mission is God's mission, the Spirit has gone before us and is already making a home in the land of our exile. To be exiled is to become marginal, and the places where people are marginalised are where God is always at work. So all we need to do is presence ourselves with the Spirit where the marginalised are to be found, and hang out with them.

That's the way all my best evangelistic opportunities happen - when I am alert, and available, and somewhere on the margins. For example, waiting for a bus or at a train station, in transit, people will randomly speak to me and we will have an in depth conversation that has evangelistic undertones. What I find helpful in such situations is to pray in advance of my journey and ask the Holy Spirit to open my eyes to the ones who are searching for God, so that when they speak to me, I will be ready to listen.

Dog walking

Dog walking is a great way of meeting people and enjoying getting to know them. This weekend, our labradoodle Sophy met another labradoodle, a cream one called Skippy, in Albert Park in Abingdon. Bertie, our 'Jackschund' thought Skippy was great; Sophy, being by nature 'Grand' wasn't much interested and soon raced off to chase squirrels. Skippy's owner was happy to chat to Julian and I all round the park. And next time, maybe ...

Limitations...

Having just had a few weeks recovering from being knocked out for about 5 minutes and the resultant concussion (beware, the hatchbook of a Picasso is dangerous if accidentally slammed down on someone's head!), I had the opportunity for part of that to just sit and be, enjoying time in contemplation of God and God's creation. I had nothing to do except keep the dogs company, as I couldn't even read for some of that time. It was like being on an involuntary retreat, and all the better for that! It caused a lot of re-organising for my colleagues at work, unfortunately, and now I am back to contacting people and re-scheduling appointments.

It reminds me that nothing is certain, all is provisional, and may change. We live in a fragile world. It also reminds me of the first few lines from T.S. Eliot's poem, Burnt Norton.

How to Pray by Evagrius of Pontus

Chapter 2

A soul which is full of virtue and therefore pure has a mind which is habitually free from distractions and can receive the tranquillity it seeks.

Translated from the Greek by John de la Tour Davies.

Comment

Counsels of perfection!

Evagrius' second chapter connects with his first, and again, notes the importance of the virtues for the life of prayer. Being in balance, emotionally, psychologically, even physically means that we are less likely to be distracted by the 'cares and riches and pleasures of this life' (Luke 8.14), for we are centred in Christ, rooted in the ground of God, rather than struggling to bear the fruit of tranquillity amid the thistles and thickets of our anxieties.

However, it seems to me that the issue is that for many people today it doesn't really help to encourage them to put their fears and concerns in a mental 'box', and try to be centred and serene. This is rather like saying '"Peace, peace!" where there is no peace.' It simply puts a plaster over a deep seated wound, and when you do that, problems can go on for ages!

What Evagrius is trying to do, I think, is refocus us on the virtues, and in particular, to encourage us to recall the words of Micah 6.8: 'And what does the Lord require of you, but to act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with our God.' So maybe if we ask, "What is the most just thing I can do?", and do it, then distractions won't be such a problem in our prayer.

Evagrius of Pontus on prayer

Chapter 1

If anyone wishes to prepare sweet smelling incense, he will, according to the Law, mix together equal amounts of myrrh, aromatic shell, galbanum and pure frankincense. These correspond to the four virtues, for if they happen to be overflowing and in balance, the mind will not have been opened up to the enemy.
Translated from the Greek by John de la Tour Davies.

Exodus 30.34; Wisdom 8.7; 4 Maccabees 1.18; Rev. 5.8 and 8.3

Evagrius is refering to the composition of incense as laid out in the Book of Exodus. Galbanum is an umbellifer, the resin being obtained from its crushed stems and roots. It is used to enhance the effect of other perfumes.

The word translated 'aromatic shell' is onycha, which is actually the shell of a mollusc which, when burnt, gives off a sweet fragrance.




Incense is associated in the Bible with prayer, rising with the prayers of the saints, according to the Book of Revelation (see above).




The four virtues, of course, are those classically known as the cardinal virtues, derived by Saints Ambrose and Augustine from Plato's descriptions. They are

Prudence - able to judge between actions with regard to appropriate actions at a given time
Justice - proper moderation between the self-interest and the rights and needs of others
Restraint or Temperance - practicing self-control, abstention, and moderation
Courage or Fortitude .

Evagrius may have been thinking of Plato's original writings. Interestingly, Evagrius notes the importance of 'balance', with each of the virtues having its place, being neither in excess or deficient, much as Aristotle defined the 'golden mean'; while 'overflowing' seems to indicate that the virtues are noteworthy in such a person, and that they are communicable to others.

What Evagrius seems to be stressing in this his first of 153 short chapters on prayer, is that when a virtuous person prays, his or her mind is opened up to God, and not to the devil, who is the 'enemy'. Then, like Christ, such a person is able to listen to what God shows them, without being confused that such guidance may have another source.

So, if we want to grow in our ability to pray, and to listen to God in prayer - to discern the voice of God in our minds, we need also to be growing in the virtues.

Theology of education

The link leads to my latest thoughts on different approaches to a theology of education, written for my doctorate in theology and ministry. The picture shows me trying to get some wisdom!

Serious holes and how we handle them

Workmen arrived today, out of the blue(!), to put in a water meter. They dug a huge hole just by our gate. While they were digging the hole, they managed to fracture the gas main to our house. So they rang the gas board, got someone to come, and before he arrived, the water workmen drove off, leaving a barrier round the hole half blocking the entrance to our house. The gas man mended the pipe, but the hole in the footpath was seriously big, and as it was open to the elements, with the gas main visible, I was concerned that it could get broken again, and we could even have a gas leak or an explosion! (yeah - I know - worst case scenarios don't often happen in real life!) Anyway, eventually, after several hours and numerous phone calls later, including comments to the water board about damage to county council highways (my husband works for the council), an emergency team arrived to temporarily fill the hole, until they can come and connect a water meter properly.

Reflecting on this, it occurred to me that 'holes' can appear in our lives too, leaving us damaged and exposed. The death of a loved one can tear holes in us, as can other major losses, which aren't always acknowledged by friends and colleagues. It seems to me that such 'holes' needs careful handling if we are to avoid an 'explosion' of emotion, of anger or anguish. But do we really want them just filled in? Isn't that just like putting a plaster on an unhealed wound, leaving it vulnerable to infection? Sometimes, that's all we can do. But perhaps, there needs to be a safety valve too. Exploding to God seems to me to be one very apt way of handling grief - the way of Job, perhaps. After all, God is big enough to take it! Having a trusted spiritual director, prayer partner, or close friend to 'vent' to can be hugely valuable. We ministers need such outlets too, for our grief.

I guess the worse thing I could have done today would have been to pretend there was no hole there.

Nativity plays and their theology

The latest essay for my DMin is just finished! I've done a cultural studies type analysis on nativity plays and their embodied theology. I learnt so much, but only scratched the surface of all the reading I could have done, even though that meant over 25 references in the bibliography. It left me realising 2 things:
1. To do this DMin, I am having to get up to doctoral standard in at least 6 theological disciplines, with a bare 3 months to do so for each. I'm looking forward to the end of this year when my 6 assignments are done, and I can focus more in one area.
2. It's very clear that there is a dearth of empirical research in many areas of church life, and practically none at all about nativity plays.
Would I have chosen to look at these if I hadn't attended two last Christmas? Mmm - probably not. (see below)

Still, it was all good fun, and very mentally stimulating, so much so that now I feel as if my mind has turned into goo. One of my colleagues suggested that I start an Abingdon mystery play cycle since I had to learn so much about them for the essay. What an exciting idea! Then reality kicked in - perhaps I should start gently by finding a mystery play cycle to attend before tackling such a mammoth enterprise!

Getting your message across.

The freedom of speech dance continues. Christians are officially free to proselytise in the UK (see blog posting below) and now, the latest from The Guardian website is that atheists have raised £140,00 to pay for an advert to go on bendy buses in London and other places, saying that "There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life". Interesting. It looks as if even atheists aren't certain of their position. It seems to me also that the people who designed the ad (atheists themselves?) are showing a tendency towards the kinds of things they criticise Christians for, in this case, telling people what to do! Mm. I wonder if a bendy bus communicates a distorted message?

Christmas stamps

I saw a letter in the Church Times from one of my students today. Helen Chamberlain was writing about trying to get religious stamps for her Christmas cards. She had the same problem that my husband Julian experienced - the Post Office said they didn't have any. On enquiring further, Helen discovered that her local PO did have them, but hidden away under the counter. She bought some, but was told by the counter assistant not to tell anyone else that she had the 'Jesus' stamps. She went out thinking that what she wanted to do was tell everyone she had Jesus, and not keep quiet about it. Quite right too! What Christian minister can keep quiet about his/her reason for being?!!

Coincidentally, the same copy of the Church Times (19th Dec. 2008) had another article that said that the Charity Commission accepts that evangelism is OK, stating that 'proselytising is of benefit to the public'. So Christians aren't meant to keep quiet about Jesus - it's official!

I wonder if we all wrote to the PO and complained, that they would take us seriously for a change? After all, the Church is a seriously big lobby if we exercise our moral muscle.