|
Today at the weekly Holy Communion our Homily focused on the two sets of worshippers. The first were the wisemen from the East who followed the star and came to worship, Christ the King. When Herod heard of this rival king, he searched diligently and asked the wisemen to report back so that he could go and worship Jesus, his rival.
The narrative resembles the Parable of the Pharisee and the Publican with differing intentions in prayer. One was penitent and the other self righteous. But the resemblance ends there. The intention of the Magi was to offer their Gifts and in it, themselves to King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Whereas, Herod the King had one singular objective in seeking to worship Jesus, which was to eliminate his potential rival. Is there a parallel to our reality in the church? Some come into Church to give of themselves wholly and unconditionally while others come to take what is there. Jesus called them thieves when he said, ‘The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.’ (John 10.10) How we wish He gave us some guidance on how to deal with the thieves and Herods of our day!
0 Comments
 The motto of the Christian Medical College (CMC) Vellore where I was born, brought up, studied and served, is "Not to be ministered unto, but to minister"
This phrase, derived from the words of Jesus and found in today’s Evening Prayer second lesson from Matthews gospel, emphasizes the Institution's commitment to service. It reflects the core mission of CMC Vellore to serve others, particularly in the field of healthcare, and to transform the health status of India through education, service, and research. CMC Vellore embodies its motto, "Not to be ministered unto, but to minister," in several impactful ways: Patient Care: CMC Vellore provides high-quality medical care to millions of patients, including those who cannot afford treatment. Surplus funds from paying patients are reinvested to subsidize and offer free care to the underprivileged Education and Training: The institution trains healthcare professionals who go on to serve in various parts of India and the world. This extends CMC's impact beyond its immediate reach, as these trained professionals carry forward the ethos of service Community Outreach: CMC Vellore runs numerous outreach programs to bring healthcare services to remote and underserved communities. These programs ensure that even those in the most marginalized areas receive medical attention Research and Innovation: The institution engages in cutting-edge research to improve healthcare outcomes. External resources are used to fund research and develop new programs, which in turn benefit the broader community Non-Governmental Funding: CMC Vellore operates without external funding from the government, relying instead on donations and grants to support its mission. This independence allows it to focus on its core values and mission Leadership modelled on Jesus Christ: It would be impossible to imagine the words of Jesus, ‘Not to be served but to serve’ out with his life in those who love and serve him. Ida Sophia Scudder was a pioneering American medical missionary in India, known for her dedication to improving healthcare for women. Born in 1870, she initially resisted a missionary life but was moved to action after witnessing the deaths of three women in childbirth due to the lack of female medical care. Her motto, "We treat, God heals," reflects her belief in Jesus, that while medical professionals provide treatment, ultimate healing comes from God. This motto guided her work as she founded the Christian Medical College & Hospital in Vellore, which became one of the premier medical institutions in India. Ida Scudder's legacy continues to inspire many in the field of medical missions and healthcare even today. By integrating these practices into its daily operations, CMC Vellore lives out its commitment to serving others, reflecting the spirit of its motto in every aspect of its work.  The plan of God and the framework of God’s Kingdom shall never align with the kingdoms of this world. The radical nature of the Gospel that turns the world upside down is a major problem for our Church which is so aligned to the natural world.
In January 2021 I experienced something extraordinary while saying Morning Prayer. The lockdown II just began on the Boxing Day. The brief period of freedom to celebrate Christmas with the loved ones was brought to sudden end. The evidence for justifying lockdown was less. The nations which practiced freedom and personal accountability proved to be more successful in limiting the spread of the Corona virus than those who preferred lockdown and fundamentally violated human freedom for the reason of health and safety. In that period of dilemma, our capacity to observe human personality traits, behaviour and conduct was intensified. It was then I entered into Mediation not fully knowing the culture behind it and the practice of it. It was a traumatic experience. Into this situation came this extraordinary experience. While standing before the collection of Icons at the centre of which was the Icon of the Virgin of Vladimir with the Christ Child and praying I noticed in the peripheral view of my left eye I noticed a big bird trying to stand on a small stick on the grass. It didn’t make any sense. Why would a large bird try to balance on the dry stick when it can comfortably stand on the grass. I was distracted. I stopped praying the words and started watching the big bird which turned out to be a kestrel. It was then I realised that it was holding down a sparrow. Given the context of my intense trauma with the three month long suspension and a Mediation that made no sense, this came as a revelation. I could hear the predator whispering into the ears of the sparrow, ‘it is ok. It is ok’, while the sparrow thinking, ‘It is finished!’. Four years later the sparrow can now say to the predator, ‘It is Finished.’ The words of the Lord makes sense only in this context, ‘So, the last will be first, and the first will be last.’ We say, Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. It was good to be reminded today, the words of Late Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi during her State Visit to the US in 1982 and responding to President Ronald Regan. Here is an extract. ‘We believe in freedom with a passion that only those who have been denied it can understand. We believe in equality, because many in our country were so long deprived of it. We believe in the worth of the human being, for that is the foundation of our democracy and our work for development. That is the framework of our national programs.’ I normally take a moment to say the words of our Liturgy ‘God is love and we are God’s children. There is no room for fear in love.' to sink in. I do believe, there is no room for fear in love. We can therefore affirm our faith and prayer with confidence, 'There is no room for fear in love.' There is no room for violence in love. There is no room humiliation of the vulnerable in love. There is no room for denying young women, their dignity, in love. There is no room for financial exploitation in love. There is no room for predators in love. There is no room for abuse of power in love. There is no room for gaslighting in love. There is no room for ambush in love. There is no room for hubris in love. Oppression will end. Abuse will end. Intimidation will end. Threats will end. This has to be taken apart, so that the People of God can pray. Exult, let them exult, the hosts of heaven,
exult, let Angel ministers of God exult, let the trumpet of salvation sound aloud our mighty King's triumph! Be glad, let earth be glad, as glory floods her, ablaze with light from her eternal King, let all corners of the earth be glad, knowing an end to gloom and darkness. Rejoice, let Mother Church also rejoice, arrayed with the lightning of his glory, let this holy building shake with joy, filled with the mighty voices of the peoples. Therefore, dearest friends, standing in the awesome glory of this holy light, invoke with me, I ask you, the mercy of God almighty, that he, who has been pleased to number me, though unworthy, among the Levites, may pour into me his light unshadowed, that I may sing this candle's perfect praises. Deacon: The Lord be with you. People: And with your spirit. Deacon: Lift up your hearts. People: We lift them up to the Lord. Deacon: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. People: It is right and just. It is truly right and just, with ardent love of mind and heart and with devoted service of our voice, to acclaim our God invisible, the almighty Father, and Jesus Christ, our Lord, his Son, his Only Begotten. Who for our sake paid Adam's debt to the eternal Father, and, pouring out his own dear Blood, wiped clean the record of our ancient sinfulness. These, then, are the feasts of Passover, in which is slain the Lamb, the one true Lamb, whose Blood anoints the doorposts of believers. This is the night, when once you led our forebears, Israel's children, from slavery in Egypt and made them pass dry-shod through the Red Sea. This is the night that with a pillar of fire banished the darkness of sin. This is the night that even now throughout the world, sets Christian believers apart from worldly vices and from the gloom of sin, leading them to grace and joining them to his holy ones. This is the night when Christ broke the prison-bars of death and rose victorious from the underworld. Our birth would have been no gain, had we not been redeemed. O wonder of your humble care for us! O love, O charity beyond all telling, to ransom a slave you gave away your Son! O truly necessary sin of Adam, destroyed completely by the Death of Christ! O happy fault that earned for us so great, so glorious a Redeemer! O truly blessed night, worthy alone to know the time and hour when Christ rose from the underworld! This is the night of which it is written: The night shall be as bright as day, dazzling is the night for me, and full of gladness. The sanctifying power of this night dispels wickedness, washes faults away, restores innocence to the fallen, and joy to mourners, drives out hatred, fosters concord, and brings down the mighty. On this, your night of grace, O holy Father, accept this candle, a solemn offering, the work of bees and of your servants' hands, an evening sacrifice of praise, this gift from your most holy Church. But now we know the praises of this pillar, which glowing fire ignites for God's honour, a fire into many flames divided, yet never dimmed by sharing of its light, for it is fed by melting wax, drawn out by mother bees to build a torch so precious. O truly blessed night, when things of heaven are wed to those of earth, and divine to the human. Therefore, O Lord, we pray you that this candle, hallowed to the honour of your name, may persevere undimmed, to overcome the darkness of this night. Receive it as a pleasing fragrance, and let it mingle with the lights of heaven. May this flame be found still burning by the Morning Star: the one Morning Star who never sets, Christ your Son, who, coming back from death's domain, has shed his peaceful light on humanity, and lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen. May the splendour of your majesty, O Lord, we pray, shed its light upon our hearts, that we may pass through the shadows of this world and reach the brightness of our eternal home. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen. Sing for joy, O heavens! Rejoice, O earth! Burst into song, O mountains! For the LORD has comforted his people and will have compassion on them in their suffering. (Isaiah 49.13 NLT)
The vision of prophet Isaiah outrageous call to heavens, earth and mountains to Sing, Rejoice and Burst into Song is beyond our imagination. What has he seen that he calls the whole of Creation to witness this wonder of wonders and calls them to do? And we hear this amazing prophesy in the context of the arrival of Magi at the Manger on this eve of Epiphany 2025. The singular reason for this rejoicing is that the Lord will have compassion on them (His People) in their suffering. It is a curious cause for rejoicing. There is no promise of redemption. There is no promise of healing and peace. There is no assurance of liberation. There is only ‘Compassion on them in their suffering’. Is there a resonance between the Prophesy of Isaiah and the Prologue of St John the Evangelist? ‘The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.’ (John 1.14) ‘Thy Almighty Word leapt down from heaven from thy royal throne, as a fierce conqueror into the midst of the land of destruction. (Wisdom 8.15) It is this supernatural leap of the Word that entered our home by ‘but emptied Himself, by taking the form of a slave, by being made in the likeness of men.’ (Philippians 2.7) is the cause for rejoicing. The benefits of this Homewards journey for the Almighty Word may yet to be realised. But each time this is made real in His beloved, it becomes a cause for rejoicing. This we celebrate tonight. Sing for joy, O heavens! Rejoice, O earth! Burst into song, O mountains! The spirit of the Lord God is upon me,
because the Lord has anointed me; he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to provide for those who mourn in Zion-- to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit. They will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, to display his glory. They shall build up the ancient ruins, they shall raise up the former devastations; they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations. (Isaiah 61) Ours was the first revolution in the history of mankind that truly reversed the course of government, and with three little words: ``We the People.'' ``We the People'' tell the government what to do; it doesn't tell us. ``We the People'' are the driver; the government is the car. And we decide where it should go, and by what route, and how fast. Almost all the world's constitutions are documents in which governments tell the people what their privileges are. Our Constitution is a document in which ``We the People'' tell the government what it is allowed to do. ``We the People'' are free. We are not free unless government is limited. There's a clear cause and effect here that is as neat and predictable as a law of physics: As government expands, liberty contracts. (President Ronald Reagan – Farewell Speech. January 11, 1989) Hubris, a term that originates from ancient Greek and refers to extreme pride or overconfidence, often combined with arrogance has a personality trait where an individual has an exaggerated sense of self-importance and a belief in their own invincibility or superiority. In classical Greek literature, hubris was often depicted as a dangerous flaw that led to the downfall of characters. It was seen as a violation of the natural order, where individuals overstepped their human limitations and challenged the accepted ethos and common-sense conduct to advance their dominion. However, this excessive pride would provoke retribution from the victims, serving as a moral lesson about the consequences of overreaching ambition without substance in knowledge and discernment. Hubris Syndrome is a complex personality disorder. It can affect people in positions of power, such as politicians, church leaders, and artists. It can be difficult to treat because people with hubris syndrome often lack self-awareness and don't recognize they have it. They can cause irreparable damage to individuals and communities. Due to distinct lack of self-awareness, someone suffering from this syndrome can never be brought to sense. Removal from position of power is the only safe option for the Common good. Failure to act would leave a permanent damage on the system. We find the healing power of Jesus when faced with situation in the Temple. We find him, not preaching, teaching or healing but simply drive them out, so People of God, can pray again. It is in this context we hear the Suffering Servant say, ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me … The glory of Lebanon shall come to you,
the cypress, the plane, and the pine, to beautify the place of my sanctuary; and I will glorify where my feet rest. The descendants of those who oppressed you shall come bending low to you, and all who despised you shall bow down at your feet; they shall call you the City of the Lord, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel. Whereas you have been forsaken and hated, with no one passing through, I will make you majestic for ever, a joy from age to age. You shall suck the milk of nations, you shall suck the breasts of kings; and you shall know that I, the Lord, am your Saviour and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob. (Isaiah 60.13-16) The Voice of Prophecy will never be silenced. A Prophet is never wrong, not once. Things have to be taken apart that People can pray again. Our contention is with the Lord and it will be the Lord who shall deliver us from this oppression and corruption. We pray, O Lord, to end the violence in your church. When shall we see the fulfilment of this prophesy? How long O Lord? How long? Come thou Redeemer of the earth and manifest thy self to us, your blest. We shall know that you, the Lord, our Saviour and our Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.  My Daily Prayer Walk through Forrester Hill and Cornhill praying for those in our Hospitals was delayed today as I wanted to carry the Sacraments with me as a sign of God’s presence among God’s people. This daily ritual is like touching the five wounds of the Lord and claiming the promise, ‘by His wounds we are healed.’ (Isaiah 53.5) I am glad it was nearly the midday by the time I commenced my walk.
The last leg of the walk through Victoria Park and the Westburn Park is normally quiet apart from the tweets of a bird or two. Today it was different. The parks were like Carnival in the winter wonderland. People of all ages and colours were celebrating life in this natural phenomenon. The atmosphere was a joy to behold. I could feel a spring in my steps thanking God for this wonderous gift of joy in the most simple and profound gift of God in Creation. The Christmas Festive period somehow carried a shadow. There were people in our hospitals, care homes, prisons and some lost their loved ones. These realities are inevitable. But the burden of Christmas with expensive gifts and the expectation of joy at everything somehow casts a shadow that most of us dread quietly. However, I saw no shadow today in the sunshine and snow because it cost nothing to enjoy this experience. The joy is brought home to us in Aberdeen. It made me thank God for the goodness in life which costs me nothing. The joy of Family and friends. The blessings of the People of God coming together for prayer and the sharing in the tokens of love. Our wellbeing and the delight of serving those in our communities, especially those in the margins for any reason. The free gifts of God are the ones that we enjoy most. Greed for power and position can rob us of this joy. By the grace of God we shall recover all. The first lesson at the Morning Prayer today has an extraordinary exchange between YHWH and Abram. God appears to a 99 year old man and asks him to walk before him and be perfect. There is very little reality about this whole ‘appearance’ event. Appearance has a greater status in the context of the Jewish faith than prophesy.
The core of the ‘Appearance’ is the Covenant of Abram where impossibilities and uncertainties dominate the deal and Abram has no other choice but trust. The only comfort is that the covenant is between two unequal parties with God holding all the cards. Abram is bound to be worse off in this covenant. Yet his trust in YHWH is beyond reproach that trust and obedience was greater than Abram’s hopes and dreams. There ‘appears’ to be something greater in the Covenant than the circumcision. God’s compassion for Abram had greater purpose than Abrams immediate reality of a barren life. Trust in God appears to be the watchword in this encounter as we embark on year 2025. Quarter of a century is past since our last existential crisis at the Millennium. We have faced and conquered an epidemic and at least two financial crisis in the first quarter of this century. Two wars continue but none in the scale of the first half of the last century. We may not know what lies ahead of us but we do know that the one who promised to be with us will be. We shall go forward with confidence and joy into the second quarter of this century. Today the Church gives thanks for the life and witness of John Wycliff. It would be right to call him a Saint although the Church of his time rejected him and his reforms as heretical. The derogatory term used in reference to those who supported the teachings of John as Lollards would carry a very different meaning if the social media language of today is applied – Lol-erd the one who laughs out loud. However, John’s associated were called Lollards to mean heretics or uneducated. Lollards were anything but uneducated heretics. The vision of John to make the Scriptures accessible to every human being with little or no learning so that they too can discover the love of God recorded in the Scriptures through reading the Saints in their own language. There is no doubt that the impact of the life and witness of Wycliff remains alive and well to this day.
John was a realist. It meant that reality exists independent of human mind and human understanding. The virtual reality and the artificial intelligence of today is possible, thanks to John courage to challenge the evil and corruption in the Church of his time. John laid the foundation and Martin Luther and his associates built on this solid foundation. The core dispute between the Church and the Reformers is the acceptance or the rejection of the corruption of power. Church’s desire to control wealth and the commercialisation of sin and salvation seem to have been at the heart of dispute and conflict between the two sides. The issue remains to this day albeit in a difference form. The Self Regulatory process in the Church fails to serve the purpose it is designed to. Safeguarding has become a major issue for the Church today, as the Church has deliberately or carelessly created a two tier system of governance which gives immunity to one level while being punitive with the other. Reform in our Church today is inevitable and very urgent because the society and the law has moved forward with standards of conduct in high office expected to be linked to the Office. The higher people aspire to in authority and power and expected to their conduct to be aligned. When this becomes incompatible, people are put at risk. We pray the coming year and the coming quarter of the century will impact the church in ways it had not prepared for so the Kingdom of God can flourish the world God loves finds healing and Peace. |
Come and See Us
|
|
