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Counting on day … 151

19th August 2024

If we embrace the definition that humans are as much a part of nature as any other living thing, how does that prompt us to understand humans as contributors to the natural environment?

As hunter gatherers, were early humans any different from other creatures in their interaction with the natural environment?
Like other creatures they would have found ways of getting food – hunting and gathering – and water, finding shelter from the elements and protection from dangers, evolving ways of rearing their young, learning and passing on knowledge about what was safe and what was dangerous in their environment, developing forms of communication to share knowledge, to give warning of danger, and to build social cohesion. They would have developed patterns of living that optimised their survival – and on an ongoing basis adapted these as and when the environment changed around them.

Proper 15, 12th Sunday after Trinity

Reflection with readings below

It is with Wisdom that God created world. Wisdom is following God’s commandments. It is with Wisdom that people gain understanding. But Wisdom is still about choice. We are not automatically filled with Wisdom, we are not programmed to unvaryingly follow Wisdom. There is always the opposite figure, that of Folly which we may pursue. Indeed later in chapter 9 of Proverbs, we come across Golly inviting people to step aside into her house!

Throughout the Bible there is alway choice. The choice to follow God or ignore God. To do what is right or to do what is wrong. To choose what is life giving or what is life-defeating. Adam and Eve make choices. Noah makes a choice. Abraham makes a choice. The people of Israel make a choice. Those who hear the cry of John the Baptist make a choice. Those who believe in Jesus make a choice. Yet the choices we make are not unalterable. If we find we have made a bad choice, we can repent, turn round and make a better choice – as the parable of the prodigal son so colourfully explains.

In today’s first reading we have a dinner invitation. The description of Wisdom preparing the meal, and sending out her invitation to would-be guests sounds very similar to a couple of Jesus’s parables about people preparing sumptuous feasts and then sending out the invitations to the guests. How one receives the invitation becomes the process of judgement. Those who seek a good life, who seek peace and happiness – who seek God’s kingdom – are the ones who accept the invitation positively. Those who turn aside to enter Wisdom’s house have made the right choice; by eating and drinking the meal she has prepared, they internalise Wisdom.

The psalmist also reminds us to make the right choice: “Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.” And suggests that our approach to God should be one of fear – or as we might phrase it – one of awe. Both awe and fear can sharpen our senses, prompting us to seek out and make the right choices – and not to be lackadaisical. The writer to the Ephesians suggests ways in which we can live our lives wisely and fully – singing songs and praises, giving thanks for everything in the name of Jesus. In other words responding positively to all that God offers us – and thus we will be filled with the Holy Spirit.

It all sounds so very simple and yet we can find it such a hard discipline to stick to. Is being wise simple or complicated? Is shaping our lives according to God’s will straightforward or difficult? Is becoming one with Jesus easy or ever so tricky?

If we look back over John’s Gospel we see that for some people the decision to follow Jesus was so simple. Andrew realises straight away that Jesus is the Messiah. Philip too follows him without any hesitation, and when Nathaniel meets him, he straightway recognises him as the Son of God. But then we have people like Nicodemus, teacher and leader of the Jews. He cannot get his intellectual mind around who Jesus is and how one might enter the kingdom of God. Nicodemus cannot understand how things can be both earthly and heavenly, how there might be such a fluid interconnection between heaven and earth.

Spiritual food cannot be separated from physical food. Physical food cannot be set aside from spiritual food. We cannot just be satisfied by eating physical bread – we need to understand it spiritually. There is nothing we eat that does not ultimately come from God who is the creator of all things. We need to acknowledge that in giving thanks to God. But neither will we be satisfied with just an intangible spirituality. When we seek the spiritual we need the groundedness of things physical. Baptism comes in the medium of water and the spirit. The Eucharist comes in the medium of bread and wine as well the medium of Christ’s flesh and blood.

And we can chose to accept Jesus’s invitation to share the bread that is his body and the wine that is his blood, as a simple gift – or we can choose to convert it into a complicated conundrum, one which then allows us to create barriers and exclude others.

As we prepare to eat and drink the gift of Jesus, we will remember that all that we have – both physical and spiritual – is a gift from God and that is is only with what God gives us, that we can return our thanks. And this perhaps brings is back to where we began – with Wisdom. Through choosing that invitation, by entering that house and following that way of life, we can live the way God wishes – Wisdom that calls us to care for the earth, for all that God has created, to use and share it wisely with one another, to live simply so that all may simply live.

Let us take that wisdom into every aspect of our lives this week and see how it changes the way we treat others, the way we buy and sell, make and take, give and share, teach and listen, sing and give thanks – to the glory of God the Father and in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. He

Proverbs 9:1-6

Wisdom has built her house,
she has hewn her seven pillars.
She has slaughtered her animals, she has mixed her wine,
she has also set her table.
She has sent out her servant-girls, she calls
from the highest places in the town,
“You that are simple, turn in here!”
To those without sense she says,
“Come, eat of my bread
and drink of the wine I have mixed.
Lay aside immaturity, and live,
and walk in the way of insight.”

Psalm 34:9-14

9 Fear the Lord, you that are his saints, *
for those who fear him lack nothing.

10 The young lions lack and suffer hunger, *
but those who seek the Lord lack nothing that is good.

11 Come, children, and listen to me; *
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.

12 Who among you loves life *
and desires long life to enjoy prosperity?

13 Keep your tongue from evil-speaking *
and your lips from lying words.

14 Turn from evil and do good; *
seek peace and pursue it.

Ephesians 5:15-20

Be careful then how you live, not as unwise people but as wise, making the most of the time, because the days are evil. So do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but be filled with the Spirit, as you sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts, giving thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

John 6:51-58

Jesus said, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” So Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day; for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink. Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like that which your ancestors ate, and they died. But the one who eats this bread will live forever.”

Taste and see – God is good!

17th August 2024

O taste and see that the Lord is good Psalm 34:8a

You Lord, are the source of all good things:

We praise you.

You call us to tend and care for your creation:

May we strive to do your will.

You have made us as brothers and sisters with all that lives:

May we live together in peace.

A reading from Isaiah 55:1-3 (The Message translation)

Hey there! All who are thirsty,
    come to the water!
Are you penniless?
    Come anyway—buy and eat!
Come, buy your drinks, buy wine and milk.
    Buy without money—everything’s free!
Why do you spend your money on junk food,
    your hard-earned cash on cotton candy?
Listen to me, listen well: Eat only the best,
    fill yourself with only the finest.
Pay attention, come close now,
    listen carefully to my life-giving, life-nourishing words.
I’m making a lasting covenant commitment with you,
    the same that I made with David: sure, solid, enduring love.

A response:

Listen; attune your ears – what do you hear?

The excited chatter of children,

and the chatter of jackdaws,

wind rustling the leaves,

and feet tapping the road.

Or the drone of cars – too much!

Or the whine of planes – too many!

Look; focus your vision – what do you see?

a lacework of branches against the sky,

and curvaceous clouds,

tawny shades of fallen leaves,

and the tight curl of a snail shell.

Or traffic crawling bumper to bumper – too much

Or discarded tatters of plastic – too many!

Stretch; bare your skin – what do you feel?

The warm caress of the sun,

the chilly nip of the breeze,

the prickle of grass,

the textured bark of a tree

Or the rasp of exhaust in your throat – too much!

Or the scratch of particulates in your eyes – too many!

Sniff; breathe deeply – what do you smell?

The aroma of fresh coffee,

and the zest of orange juice,

the fragrance of the last rose,

and the warmth of ground spices.

Or the reek of petrol – too much!

Or the sting of pesticides – too many!

Savour; let it linger on your tongue – what do you taste?

The fresh acidity of an apple,

and the earthy satisfaction of bread,

the squashy sweetness of banana,

and the melting delight of chocolate.

Or the fake sweetness of green wash – too much!

Or the gall of climate injustice- too many !

Merciful God,

bring us to our senses.

Help us rebuild a world

of right experiences.

Amen.

Counting on … day 150

16th August 2024

There is a movement called ‘We are Nature’ (1) which aims to redefine the word ‘nature’. Dictionary definitions of nature define nature as being other than what is human. This setting apart appears assumes that that which is human is superior,more important, than nature, and thus to undervalue nature. The definition this group is looking to introduce would be along the lines of “The living world comprised as the total set of organisms and relationships between them. These organisms include bacteria, fungi, plants and animals (including humans). Some definitions may also include non-living entities as part of nature – such as mountains, waterfalls and cloud formations – in recognition of their important role underpinning the web of life.” This one comes from The Conversation – https://theconversation.com/a-new-campaign-wants-to-redefine-the-word-nature-to-include-humans-heres-why-this-linguistic-argument-matters-229338

If we see humans as being integral to, and not separate from, nature then how will that affect our understanding of what is a natural environment? For surely by this new definition a natural,

environment is not necessarily an environment free from a human presence or influence? Might a natural environment be better defined then as an environment in which there is a harmonious – long lived? – numerically rich biodiversity?

(1) https://wearenature.org/our-story/

Counting on … day 149

15th August 2024

Rewilding describes the process of recreating or restoring natural environments where nature is given a helping hand – for example by introducing a small number of pigs or cattle to replicate the activities of their wild forebears. In this way the hope is to allow the natural environment to recover the form it would have had before being reshaped by humans. Notable examples include the Knepp Estate but also less well known ones such as Ennerdale in the Lake District and the Sussex Kelp Recovery Project – ocean and sea beds are just as much in need of restoration as natural environments.

Counting on … day 148

14th August 2024

Whilst not pristine, are there other environments where the impact of humans is minimal such that we can consider them to be natural? Perhaps here we mean a landscape or ecosystem shaped by nature not humans? Perhaps we mean a landscape that was once shaped by humans but has now reverted to one free of human contact?

One such example would be Monks Wood Experimental Station – a four hectare arable field next to a research station which was ploughed after the last crop had been harvested and was then abandoned. It was left without any human interference to see what would happened. Kenneth Mellanby, the then director of the Station, wrote “It might be interesting to watch what happens to this area if man does not interfere. Will it become a wood again, how long will it take, which species will be in it?”

Sixty years later and the results can be seen – “a structurally complex woodland with multiple layers of tree and shrub vegetation, and accumulating deadwood as the habitat ages. This complexity offers niches for a wide variety of woodland wildlife, from fungi and invertebrates in the dead logs and branches, to song thrushes, garden warblers and nuthatches which nest in the ground layer, understorey and tree canopy.” https://www.positive.news/environment/rewilding-sixty-years-ago-scientists-let-a-farm-rewild-heres-what-happened/

Counting on … day 147

13th August 2024

How to define a natural environment

Is it an environment untouched by human influence? This is typically referred to as a pristine environment. Are there any such places on earth?

On the one hand, given the way that, for example, the effects of climate change are universally felt across the earth, or the presence of micro plastics which are now to be found in the depths of the ocean, on mountain peaks, in icecaps, and even in the blood of living creatures, the answer would be no. If in the other hand we mean free from the physical presence of humans and their impact, then yes – a few.

And it is that second approach that allows many researchers to agree with “a definition of pristine that includes habitats free from obvious signs of human activity. Those places should also contain plant and animal species that experts would expect to be there in the absence of hunting, logging, habitat loss, invasive species and other human-driven threats.”

And yes in parts of north eastern South America, in parts of Indonesia, in parts of the Congo, in parts of the polar regions, there are still some pristine environments.

(1) https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20160208-theres-no-such-thing-as-truly-pristine-nature-anymore

Counting on … day 146

12th August 2024

The so called ‘Glorious Twelfth’ marks the start of the shooting season for grouse. Over the next few months some 700,000 red grouse will be shot on moors across the UK. These birds, whilst they remain wild, are husbanded by the owners of the grouse moors using methods that involve burning heather and shooting predators and competitors such as foxes, crows and magpies, and birds of prey. The burning of the moorland heather is intended to maximise the new shoots which the grouse feed on, but at the same time it damages the underlying peat and reduces biodiversity, killing insects and small mammals, and by inhibiting the growth of a wider range of native plants.

Grouse-moors are an artificial construct and do not equate with maintaining a ‘natural’ environment.

“Grouse are charming, sensitive birds who can survive as far north as the Arctic circle and are devoted parents to their chicks. They deserve better than being killed in cold blood for someone’s twisted idea of entertainment.” https://www.peta.org.uk/blog/grouse-shooting/

Proper 14 11th Sunday after Trinity

11th August 2024

Reflection with readings below

Elijah has been so courageous. He has challenged the authority of the priests of Baal and by so doing, the authority of the king himself. He has kept up his challenge all day long and finally risked all by placing all his trust in God as he asked God to bring down fire from heaven to burn up his soaking wet pyre. There must have been there a moment of fear when he doubted whether God would respond and confound all expectations. Then on top of that, he kills the 450 priests of Baal. This is not an action we would in anyway countenance but would surely have been an action that required immense physical strength and endurance.

Elijah has committed everything in his service to God and yet now he is fleeing for his life. He doubts now whether his efforts have achieved anything. How exhausted and drained he must have felt? It is no wonder that he asks to die where he is lies under the broom tree.

God hears Elijah’s cry for help and sends him food and water. God understands that what Elijah needs first is physical sustenance and then rest. Only then will Elijah be ready to be revived spiritually. And in the next part of the story, Elijah will encounter God in the silence of stillness.

In today’s gospel, Jesus is still talking with the people who had been overwhelmed by the feeding of the 5000. They cannot move on from that experience of being fed their full of bread and fish. They can only understand this as a physical action by Jesus and not as a part of the mission he has from God to share the good news of salvation. For Jesus the physical and the spiritual are intertwined. People are healed physically and spiritually. Temple worship is to be reformed physically and spiritually. People are born both of the flesh and the spirit for such is the will of God.

So now Jesus is trying to explain to the people that just eating the bread he provides but not feeding on the spiritual food he offers – ie his teachings – will not bring them the salvation, the peace of mind and union with God, that they seek.

Earth and heaven are interwoven. You can’t engage in spiritual tasks without also engaging with the physical realities of life. You can’t go out on a mission for God without first eating and sleeping. But equally you cannot be fully the human God intends if you only partake of physical food and do not also seek the spiritual nourishment that comes from being in communion with what is of heaven.

St Francis lived a life in which he was constantly torn between wanting to spend all his time in a silent isolation focused on contemplative prayer, and wanting to spend time out and about sharing the gospel with everyone – and that not limited to just humans. He was pulled back and forth between things spiritual and things physical. In reality he could not have done either without the other.

He famously had a fear – an utter revulsion – of lepers. In his youth, he like his contemporaries, would steer clear of any lepers, for fear of infection and fear of the way in which the disease destroyed once appearance and led to social isolation. But as Francis grew in his spiritual life, he found one day the Spirit prompting him to reach out and touch and hug the leper before him. And in that moment he found himself overwhelmed with love for the other, and kissed him, all fear and revulsion gone.

This week we have seen horrendous scenes of anger and hatred – often based on ill-founded and misinformed fears. We have also seen outpourings of compassion and courage in the face of danger. At one point a Muslim leader in Liverpool reached and hugged one of the protestors. Elsewhere people on both sides of the conflict sat outside a cafe as they listen to what the other feared.

If we want peace we need to be able view everyone with compassion. We need to be able to reach out with an openness that will allow us to hear, and hopefully understand, where the other person is coming from – what it is that troubles them.

We have seen people coming together to clear the streets, to clean things up. We have seen people fund raise to enable others to replace damaged property. I hope we will see the government come forward with funds and policies that will properly address the loss of living standards that so many have endured over the last 15 or so years. Only by ensuring justice for all, can peace be found.

As Christians and faith communities we can draw on spiritual strengths that come from God, and we can be inspired the vision of God’s kingdom being established in earth. And we can use our physical resources of property, money and influence, to ensure that such justice is pursued. For truly things spiritual and physical, heavenly and earthly, are entwined and together will glorify God.

1 Kings 19:4-8

Elijah went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a solitary broom tree. He asked that he might die: “It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life, for I am no better than my ancestors.” Then he lay down under the broom tree and fell asleep. Suddenly an angel touched him and said to him, “Get up and eat.” He looked, and there at his head was a cake baked on hot stones, and a jar of water. He ate and drank, and lay down again. The angel of the Lord came a second time, touched him, and said, “Get up and eat, otherwise the journey will be too much for you.” He got up, and ate and drank; then he went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb the mount of God.

Psalm 34:1-8

1 I will bless the Lord at all times; *
his praise shall ever be in my mouth.

2 I will glory in the Lord; *
let the humble hear and rejoice.

3 Proclaim with me the greatness of the Lord; *
let us exalt his Name together.

4 I sought the Lord, and he answered me *
and delivered me out of all my terror.

5 Look upon him and be radiant, *
and let not your faces be ashamed.

6 I called in my affliction and the Lord heard me *
and saved me from all my troubles.

7 The angel of the Lord encompasses those who fear him, *
and he will deliver them.

8 Taste and see that the Lord is good; *
happy are they who trust in him!

Ephesians 4:25-5:2

Putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to our neighbours, for we are members of one another. Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not make room for the devil. Thieves must give up stealing; rather let them labour and work honestly with their own hands, so as to have something to share with the needy. Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with which you were marked with a seal for the day of redemption. Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you. Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

John 6:35, 41-51

Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”

Then the Jews began to complain about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” They were saying, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” Jesus answered them, “Do not complain among yourselves. No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day. It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

Love overcomes hate

10th August 2024

Love never fails. 1 Corinthians 13:8

You Lord, are the source of all good things:

We praise you.

You call us to tend and care for your creation:

May we strive to do your will.

You have made us as brothers and sisters with all that lives:

May we live together in peace.

A reading from Matthew 5:43-47 (The Message)

“You’re familiar with the old written law, ‘Love your friend,’ and its unwritten companion, ‘Hate your enemy.’ I’m challenging that. I’m telling you to love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the supple moves of prayer, for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves. This is what God does. He gives his best—the sun to warm and the rain to nourish—to everyone, regardless: the good and bad, the nice and nasty. If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus? Anybody can do that. If you simply say hello to those who greet you, do you expect a medal? Any run-of-the-mill sinner does that.

Hate or love?

Hate smoulders and burns.

It reduces cheer to ash and clinker..

Love soothes the flaming rage,

And untangles twisted thoughts.

Hate rides roughshod over compassion.

It disregards the truth.

Love reads between the lines,

And hears the hidden words of hope..

Hate erects rigid boundaries.

It ring-fences every option.

Love sees beyond the corner,

And stretches out new horizons.

Hate casts an evil guise over every action.

It masks every sign of joy.

Love lifts the veil,

And finds the hidden virtue.

Hate feeds on anger.

Its rapacious appetite knows no limit.

Love expands with humility,

And grows with easy care.

Hate is all consuming –

Till nothing true remains.

Love is all consuming –

Till only truth remains.

Prayers

Holy God of love,

Heal the wounds where hate festers.

Renew our trust in one another.

Holy God of love,

Remove the log that blinds the eye.

Restore our vision of the world aright.

Holy God of love,

Open the ears that are stopped.

Retune our understanding of forgiveness.

Holy God of love,

Cut through warfare and vengeance –

In streets and cities in the UK.

In Palestine and Isreal.

In Lebanon.

In North Sudan and Darfor..

In Nigeria and the Sahel.

In Haiti.

In Kenya.

In Ukraine and in Russia.

Cut through war and vengeance –

wherever it is found.

Replant the seeds of peace,

Water them with love,

with compassion,

and feed them with vigorous determination.

The Lord’s Prayer