Second Sunday after Trinity – evening
Sunday 30th June 2019
Trinity 2 – Proper 8 – evening Communion
Galatians 5. 1, 13-25
Luke 9.51 – end
Revd Preb Maureen Hobbs
It is that time of year again… Facebook and Twitter and Instagram is full of priests remembering their own ordinations (me included!) And this weekend will see great numbers of Deacons and Priests celebrating outside of Cathedrals and Parish Churches all over the country. Last week I went to an ordination service where three of our Deanery Curates were priested – which means that they have been busy this week getting used to presiding at the Eucharist for the first time – always exciting and humbling and deeply, deeply fulfilling. Men and women who are metaphorically “putting their hand to the plough” and I hope not looking back.
There is no doubt that Ordination is a great privilege – the service is likened to a sort of wedding – one where you are tying your future irrevocably to the service of Christ and his church. And it is joyous as these things should be… But there may be mixed feelings for some and particularly for the spouses and families of those involved. Pride I am sure that after all the soul-searching and hard work they can see their loved one fulfilling a long-held dream. But also some apprehension and sadness as they realise that they now will have to share their husband, wife, mother or father with future congregations and parishes. It isn’t always easy, and some relationships sadly do not survive the pressures of one partner having the sort of occupation that does not conform to ‘office hours’ – realising that one may be called upon at any hour of the day or night, regardless of rest days and holidays and family needs. It is only when you ditch the collar and head out of the parish or away from the chaplaincy that you can truly be ‘off-duty’. And I do get a bit worried about certain colleagues who insist on wearing their clerical uniform – their ‘badge of office’ as it were, even when they are supposedly on holiday!
So what do you do when you get that nagging sense that God wants you to do something? That in order to fulfil your own potential – to be the person God truly intends you to be, – you have to be prepared to give up whatever it is you have been doing up to that point and find out the nature of this calling. It may be a path that will lead to Ordination. But there are many, many other ways of finding your calling – both inside and outside the Church. Vocation is something that all of us may aspire to.
But, … human beings are very good at discovering excuses as to why they cannot do something or commit to something. Take the Samaritans in our Gospel reading. They could not forget the past. They could not welcome Jesus and respond to him because “his face was set towards Jerusalem”. They refused to acknowledge Jerusalem as the legitimate place for worship – having their own sacred mountain instead. Yet Jerusalem would be the place of the cross and resurrection, the heart of Christ’s ministry. They could not let go of past hurts and arguments so they could not receive the future God had for them.
Next comes the first would-be disciple. It seems he had not counted the cost. Jesus brings home to him that a life of ministry involves being prepared to move around. To not be too tied to possessions or place… I remember the Principal of my theological college telling us – remember you arrive in a place in order to leave it! Putting down roots is not really possible. So the Son of Man has nowhere permanent to lay his head? (Well most of us are luckier than that – we do have a roof over our heads and moderate security – but still there is always the prospect of moving on…) And for Jesus even the city that ought to embrace him will actually murder him on a cross. The call to follow Jesus is cross-shaped and costly, both then and now.
The second man had a different problem. He was trapped by other duties. It is doubtful that his words mean his father had just died… he would have been at home in that case. More likely it means that his father is getting on in years, so this means – “Let me wait till he’s gone, and then I will follow you.” It is the ‘and then’ which is the problem!
The cross will not wait. If the man wants to follow, he must do it now. The call to follow Jesus is urgent if not positively inconvenient! Today there are too many of us who want to follow Jesus – when it suits us! I sometimes get the distinct feeling that church is now an activity that people do if they have nothing better in the diary! Harsh perhaps, but maybe more true than we care to admit.
Such simple things, yet they can stop people responding to the call of Christ. – Not being able to let go of the past, not counting the cost, wanting to wait for a more convenient time, not putting Christ and God first. Have times changed? Probably not! “For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.” And that is what most of us would like to avoid. ..
Please pray for our new priests and deacons this coming week. But also please pray that you too will be open and receptive to hear Christ’s call, whenever and wherever it comes. Amen.