Vigil Eucharist for Jeremy Suter RIP

 

Thurs 23^rd October 2014 7pm  (Gospel: John 6:35-40)

It is fitting that we gather as God’s people in God’s house for Jeremy’s funeral.  We begin with this Eucharist, the time where we share in the eternal bread of life.  Jeremy was at home here in the house of the Lord – we saw him grow up here.  It will seem odd in the future, processing out past the Suter family in the pew halfway down on the left without Jeremy smiling away whilst bellowing out one of his favourite hymns, such as ‘Guide me, O thou great Redeemer’, with its chorus ‘Bread of Heaven, Feed me now and evermore’.  He is a great loss both to our church family, but our corporate loss is as nothing compared to the Suter’s loss and we gathered around them to offer what support we can, together with our love and prayers.

But there is more, that we can offer – and that is our Christian hope.

At every Eucharist - but especially when God’s people gather around someone who has died in the faith - we experience one of those ‘thin places’ where heaven and earth are brought closer for a moment.  This is a moment when heaven and earth meet as we share the spiritual food and drink that is eternal.  The one whom God has called home connects the saints here with the saints in heaven.  For the saints of God hold vigil on both sides of the River of Death, that metaphorical River Jordan through which we must pass to enter the promised land.

On this side, everything we see will pass away – it is temporary.  We sing hymns of faith in Christ as we trust in his conquering of death for us, even though we can’t see across to the other side.  But that is only half of it.  On the other side, our songs are received with a resounding echo.  For that’s where the saints in heaven sing their songs to welcome Jeremy into eternity.  Jesus’ promise to both us and Jeremy is that He would not lose him, but raise him up at the last day.  Jesus is true to His Word and the Father’s will.

Jeremy is now in glory with all the saints who have preceded him, including Margot’s parents.  Jeremy is now having a heavenly reunion, where pain, suffering, sorrow, and tears are no more.  The only tears we see being shed now are ours.  They are the tears we cry as we grieve Jeremy’s passing, but in heaven there are also be tears of joy as they rejoice at his eternal victory, won for him in Christ.

2,000 years ago, Jesus’ dead body was placed in a tomb of death.  On the third day, Jesus left that tomb, showing that death could not hold Him.  And since death can’t hold Jesus, it can’t hold those whom He calls His own, including Jeremy.  As Jesus says, “I will raise him up on the last day.”  Right now, Jeremy’s soul is with Jesus and we look forward to that last day when we will see Jeremy’s resurrection body which replaces this mortal body, as plainly as Mary saw Jesus resurrection body on that first Easter morning.

The cross of Christ has spanned the River of Death to take those who trust in Him to the other side.  As we will sing tomorrow:

When I tread the verge of Jordan,

Bid my anxious fears subside;

Death of death, and hell's destruction

Land me safe on Canaan's side:

Songs of praises, songs of praises,

I will ever give to thee;

I will ever give to thee.

Jeremy has now crossed that river, albeit much earlier than any of us would have hoped or expected.  But we can trust Jesus to look after him, to feed him now in this Eucharist and for evermore.

Jesus said: “All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away.  I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day.”

Even during that fateful weekend just a dozen or so days ago, God was holding Jeremy in His hand.  Jesus never drove him away or lost him.  That is the Father’s will and Jesus promise to us.  On this side of the river, that is our hope.  On Jeremy’s side, it is the everlasting reality.  Amen.

The Spirituality of Running

Sometimes you have to get away from it all, for a bit of space and silence.  As I mentioned in our Growing Leaders Course on Monday, my Rule of Life includes going for a run.  For me, it is not just the natural high of the endorphin rush, but a chance to clear the mind and get closer to God in his creation, even in these darker and damper days of autumn.  Having encouraged others to explore their shadow sides, I decided to reflect with my mood in a bit of poetry, inspired by a 10 mile run around Burnham Beeches:

Running through the forest in rain,

Grounded to earth of ancient paths.

Gradient, traction, each step placed

With pace, breathing and heartbeat fast.

Leaf canopy, oxygen tent:

In a bubble, a womb all mine.

Now fully alive, heightened sense,

Alive to fragrance: fern and pine.

Invisible wind of spirit blows

Confetti of sycamore seeds:

Potential for a whole new wood

Abundant grace for those in need.

My September article for our Parish Magazine

See www.beaconsfieldparishmag.org.uk for the full magazine...

September… new schools; new uniforms; new sports kits - new labels to be sewn (or glued) on.  Even if the name remains the same, it is the external labels which change: Nursery, Primary, Secondary and then perhaps 6^th Form and University.  And then what - do we ever stop learning and maturing?

As a curate, I’m in a recognised training role.  I need to provide evidence towards 46 learning outcomes during my 3+ years here.  This follows the three years at theological college, but that will not be the end of my study - all Anglican clergy are involved in regular reviews and “Continuing Ministerial Development”.  Indeed, during our ordination we are asked, “Will you be diligent in prayer, in reading Holy Scripture, and in all studies that will deepen your faith and fit you to bear witness to the truth of the gospel?”  We answer “By the help of God, I will”.  As someone who is not naturally ‘bookish’, it is reassuring to know that God helps me – indeed, his mission is my motivation.

Such promises ought not to be limited to the clergy.  I would hope that all Christians would want to deepen their faith so that we may witness to the truth of the gospel.  There are many ways to do this, including:

1)      For those who are relatively new to the faith, the Alpha Course provides a safe environment to explore the questions of life and some of the answers that Christianity provides.  We will be hosting a small group this autumn.

2)      For the more experienced, Cursillo provides “a short course in Christian Living” during a residential weekend at Douai Abbey and a method to continue in a life of prayer, study and action.  I would describe this as a course for the heart as much as the head.  See www.oxfordcursillo.co.uk for more information, including the next weekend from the evening of Thurs 30^th October to Sunday 2^nd November.

3)      We have a wide variety of house groups providing fellowship, support, learning, prayer and deepening faith.  I would encourage all church members to join an existing group or add your name to a waiting list for a new group.

If you would like to discuss where you are on your spiritual journey and what your next step might be, then I’d love to help.  But whatever you do, don’t stop learning!

Pause to Pray:

“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”  (Romans 12:2)

Lord God,

open our minds to the light of your truth,

that mystery may unfold before us,

that knowledge may

shine around us

and that understanding may grow within us

in Jesus Christ our Lord,

who is alive and reigns with you

in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and for ever.

(Collect for Education - the Church in Wales)

A PCC trustee guide for F1 fans

“The function of the PCC includes complete co-operation with the incumbent” says a helpful Parish website for anyone who is interested.  At the same time, all members are primarily responsible as individual trustees under the prevailing charity law.  Are we acting as individuals or as a corporate body and are these two in conflict?  Well, it all depends on what you understand by “co-operate”.

The first definition means “to work together for the same end”.  When more than one person is needed to achieve a task, e.g. a pitstop as seen in F1, then they are all co-operating.  If one of the pitcrew notices a problem, it is his [or, if you prefer NASCAR, her!] duty to flag it up before releasing the car otherwise the wheels might fall off and the mission fails...

In this case, the black flag signalled the disqualification because someone failed in their individual responsibility: the whole team suffers, because they are in breach of the governing law.  Similarly, individual trustees of charities must not neglect their personal responsibilities.

As we approach Pentecost, think what Paul may have said (in 1 Cor 12:12-31): "there is one pitcrew, but many team members ...and we can't all be the lollipop man, otherwise who is going to operate the jack?"

The other meaning of co-operation seems to have more to do with coercion: the Google dictionary uses the example: "his captor threatened to kill him if he didn't cooperate".  This model is not recommended for a PCC!

Why Resurrection?

I was somewhat amused at the news reports last week that eating more fruit and vegetables “would reduce the risk of death”.  Somehow I think the risk is still 100% certainty, and it won’t go down to 99.99% no matter how much fruit and veg you eat!

Eating at least seven portions of fresh fruit and vegetables a day was linked to a 42% lower risk of death from all causes. Photograph: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images

  As Benjamin Franklin observed: "In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes".  But what of the other world, the Kingdom over which Jesus presides?  What does this week’s gospel reading, the death and rising of life of Jesus’ friend Lazarus have to do with us?

The thing that most struck me is that Lazarus death and “reawakening” doesn’t seem to be as a result of Jesus’ love for his friend but for bringing glory to God.  I would like to think that Jesus hugged his newly-restored friend Lazarus at some point, but we are not told this.  Of course, Lazarus would die again - if I was Lazarus, I might have been a bit disappointed that I had awoken to the same life as before, rather than the eternal life that is promised.  Indeed, this whole episode wasn’t really for his benefit at all.  I’m sure he wasn’t ungrateful for his new lease of life, as people who have faced death often seem to have a greater capacity not to waste their remaining time – perhaps he even enjoyed being a local celebrity that the bigwigs from Jerusalem came to see so that he could testify what Jesus had done for him.

But Lazarus was not the main player in this drama.  Instead, this all happened as Jesus had originally said: “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.”  Jesus knew that Lazarus would die but it would not be a definitive death.  It was to reveal God’s glory in his Son.

If Lazarus' resurrection reveals God’s glory in Christ Jesus, then our resurrection will too.  Whilst I’m sure that God’s offer of salvation is motivated by love (because it says so in John 3:16), have you ever considered that God might want to give you a resurrection body and eternal life because it rewards our faith by glorifying his Son?  In the same way as the original creation was good, maybe our re-creation is as pleasing to God, if not more so.  If we doubt that we are worthy of eternal life, then consider that God wants to do it anyway for his own joy and pleasure as a response to our faith in Jesus.  Your resurrection, my resurrection, the resurrection of the person who may come to him through our witness, all these resurrections will delight the Father because in doing so his Son is glorified.

Jesus doesn’t want us to have a vague hope for eternal life, perhaps as a disembodied soul or ghost.  Even though we all die, Jesus tells us that this is not the end.  We don’t know the nature of Lazarus’ life-threatening condition, but whatever it was, Jesus can say, “This sickness will not end in death.”  So, it is with whatever conditions threaten us: “This cancer will not end in death”; “this heart attack will not end in death.”  Whatever it will say as the cause of death on our death certificate, Jesus’ response is to tear it up and say, “This will not end in death”.

Instead, he says: “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die.”  As he asked Martha, so he asks us: “Do you believe this?” and, if we still need further motivation: “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”  Being selfish, eternal life has always been immensely attractive, but to know that my resurrection will glorify Jesus seems like a stronger reason for God to make it happen!