‘The Church is the body of Christ…. In baptism, the whole Church is summoned to witness to God’s love and to work for the coming of God’s Kingdom.’
Words from the ordination service.
Surrounded by so much, the war in Ukraine, economic turmoil, the impact of the pandemic, it is easy to find ourselves adrift, unsure of our place or our purpose. For times such as these, I find it so helpful to return to the purpose of the Church as set out so succinctly in the ordination service. This is not just for those who are ordained but as is made clear, for the whole baptised people of God.
For those of us who seek to follow Jesus Christ, this will always be rooted in our worship and our study of the scriptures and particularly in the breaking of the bread as we celebrate the Eucharist together. In the Eucharist, we are gathered and through our worship are changed, transformed to be sent out in service ‘to love and serve the Lord’. In the sharing of bread and wine the love of God is made visible, in our transformation, we are propelled to work for the Kingdom, for justice, mercy, peace, inclusion. It is this that has shaped so much of the church’s commitment to social action, the work of Christian Aid, TEAR Fund, churches locally establishing food banks, on the streets, feeding the hungry and so much more.
More recent ventures often come in partnerships many of which will recognise that working for the Kingdom is a common task that flows over into the whole of God’s creation and that there will be people of goodwill who would share many of our values, even if they would not themselves share our faith, with who we can share a common cause.
Might this be part of our Lenten challenge this year, surrounded by a world that is increasingly divided, to return to our purpose and to learn to be God’s people once again, to look to those with who we may partner for the common good that we might be a focus of unity and light in the darkness?
What partnership might we make as a sign of our hope in the crucified and risen Lord?
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Thank you, Bish: encouraging stuff, which we all need in spades right now!
All my best, and every blessing,
Chris H