YOUR KINGDOM COME?
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YOUR KINGDOM COME? Pope Benedict XVI has just completed a state visit to the United Kingdom and one of his central points was against aggressive secularism. Which raises the question as to how we got here both in Britain and the rest of Europe? A recent television programme in Scotland was about the “Church in Crisis”. The programme made the point that in the past the church provided education, welfare support, leisure, and many other services besides the basic message of the Gospel. In a nutshell the issue is that large portions of our communities simply believe the church is irrelevant and I tend to agree with them. But the church being irrelevant is not saying that Jesus or God being irrelevant; in fact many people believe that Jesus is relevant. I was at a conference recently and the New Testament scholar Marcus Borg was the speaker. He gave staggering statistics that in the USA 48% of those who have left the church have sited religious literalism as the prime reason for leaving. In other words the message they were hearing did not stack up against reality and knowledge that we have available to us. When we pray ''Your Kingdom Come", what do we mean? Local neighbourhoods everywhere are affected by global changes, including the death of a single religious vision, shifting work and family patterns, and widespread scepticism. Violence and tension are rising. Is there a way forward? Can churches make a contribution to community cohesion and transformation? Recently I have had a number of meetings with leaders from other faith communities and I have had the privilege to addressing some of their meetings. It is clear to me that we all share much in common and if we work together along with our community leaders and remain faithful, the future is full of hope. As Churches remaining faithful to the 'Kingdom' ideal of Jesus we can affect every area of community life. From housing to healthcare, from citizenship to crime prevention, as ordinary Christians we have a vital role to play. Jesus’ manifesto as seen in Luke 4: 14-21 calls for radical transformation. I believe EuroChurch along with its partners can make a difference across Europe and inspire church leaders with Jesus’ vision for the world. When we pray “Your Kingdom come on earth as in heaven”, we are being inspired as followers of Jesus to cooperate with God to establish his kingdom on earth in terms of felt change in our communities and our world. Prayer is never passive and should always lead to good practice. It is also about allowing the gospel to permeate our hearts and minds that it shines through our everyday lives in moments full of love and hope and beauty. Faith that we read about, talk about, think about, but do not live is useless. It is the living, embodied link to hands and heart and eyes and ears that make it real, empowered, and of use. Read 1 Corinthians 13 again with this in mind. Life is local and it is in the local church that life’s challenges are met. Our lives, our ministries, our congregations and the work we share together can make all the difference the world needs. The future does not have to be continued decline and eventual extinction as the BBC programme “The Church in Crises” seems to imply. If we remain faithful the future can be re-imagined. As we analyse the big challenges of our day and consider how we might meet them, understanding and engaging with the realities of life in our neighbourhood community with honesty and hope, may yet prove to be the local church’s finest hour. EuroChurch conferences and hopefully as our website develops we can share good news stories, good practice, and ways of serving across Europe. As I move around my community listening to members of my congregation and community I am inspired by the inspiring stories which encourage and influence my thinking, believing, doing and behaving because of its biblical base, clear theology and wealth of ideas for the future mission of the church. The transformation and renewal of my community and eventually Europe is an expression of God’s coming kingdom. Followers of Jesus, whatever our theological, liturgical, structural differences and preferences are, each part of his church in Europe has been given the privilege and power to live as people of this kingdom, demonstrating its power and purpose in our lives, in our community and indeed throughout Europe and the world. Chris Vermeulen Scotland, United Kingdom 24 September 2010 |
