Tag: Heaven

Sixth Sunday of Easter

25th May 2025

Reflection with readings below

We live in a world that seems increasingly distant from the peace and harmony we associate with the idea of God’s kingdom. The world we live in is dominated by economic pressures, the pursuit of profit, aggressive demands for national security, the overriding influence of wealth and big business, the cult of the individual and the adoration of the dictator. The world we live in places limited value on nature – indeed nature is often pitched as the opposite of progress and wealth creation – and has little concern for the poor other than to tax them all the more because of their failure to boost the economy.

It is a world in which  we are reluctant to invest in the future unless we can do so on the cheap – or unless we’re building yet another flagship office complex.  It is a world in which we are reluctant to challenge greed, injustice, poverty and prejudice. It is a world in which we refuse to listen to the cry of the Earth, to recognise the damage we are wilfully inflicting on the environment in which we live and on which we rely for our survival.

Yet here we are in the season of Easter – the season of new beginnings, the inauguration of a new relationship between God and creation that is shaped by the power of the resurrection. 

Our first reading tells us Paul’s response to a vision where in response he takes the gospel to the people of Macedonia. This is a message that brings new life to those who are ready to receive it. This is a new way of life that is lived according to the values of the kingdom of God that Jesus has taught. Let’s imagine for a moment how different the world would be if everyone lived in that way, or (and this may be harder) if all of us in our church lived in that way. What if we, in the words of Lydia, might be  ‘judged to be faithful to the Lord’?

Both today’s Psalm and the reading from the Book of Revelation, tells us that God’s ways give rise to health and harmony: ‘Let your ways be known upon earth, your saving health among all nations’ and ‘the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit [whose] leaves … are for the healing of the nations.’ The implication is that if we live as physical beings in harmony with the physicality of creation, then we will experience this wellbeing. Such a lifestyles relies on us paying attention to the Earth – and when we do this will enable all the people to praise God. No more war and suffering, no more oppression nor prejudice – justice and love and mercy will overcome greed and selfishness and aggression.

And finally in our gospel reading, Jesus tells us to hear – to listen to – and keep his word, knowing that that word comes from God, and that it is the Holy Spirit that will teach us to understand that word. It is a word that will enable us to understand and address all the ways in which the way we live on Earth falls short of the ways of the Kingdom of God – the Easter Kingdom. We need, as Pope Francis wrote in Laudate Si, to listen to ‘the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor’.

It is with some relief that this week it seems as if our Government is finally responding to the cry of poor in Gaza. And that can be a further prompt to us to continue to pray for the people of Gaza,

to contribute financially to their need, and to write to our MPs to both thank them and press them for further action. 

May we all know Christ’s peace in our hearts and in the world around us.

Acts 16:9-15

During the night Paul had a vision: there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” When he had seen the vision, we immediately tried to cross over to Macedonia, being convinced that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them.

We set sail from Troas and took a straight course to Samothrace, the following day to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi, which is a leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We remained in this city for some days. On the sabbath day we went outside the gate by the river, where we supposed there was a place of prayer; and we sat down and spoke to the women who had gathered there. A certain woman named Lydia, a worshiper of God, was listening to us; she was from the city of Thyatira and a dealer in purple cloth. The Lord opened her heart to listen eagerly to what was said by Paul. When she and her household were baptised, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come and stay at my home.” And she prevailed upon us. 

Psalm 67

1 May God be merciful to us and bless us, *
show us the light of his countenance and come to us.

2 Let your ways be known upon earth, *
your saving health among all nations.

3 Let the peoples praise you, O God; *
let all the peoples praise you.

4 Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, *
for you judge the peoples with equity
and guide all the nations upon earth.

5 Let the peoples praise you, O God; *
let all the peoples praise you.

6 The earth has brought forth her increase; *
may God, our own God, give us his blessing.

7 May God give us his blessing, *
and may all the ends of the earth stand in awe of him.

Revelation 21:10, 22-22:5

In the spirit the angel carried me away to a great, high mountain and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God.

I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. Its gates will never be shut by day– and there will be no night there. People will bring into it the glory and the honour of the nations. But nothing unclean will enter it, nor anyone who practices abomination or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city. On either side of the river is the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. Nothing accursed will be found there any more. But the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him; they will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And there will be no more night; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.

John 14:23-29

Jesus said to Judas (not Iscariot), “Those who love me will keep my word, and my Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; and the word that you hear is not mine, but is from the Father who sent me.

“I have said these things to you while I am still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. You heard me say to you, `I am going away, and I am coming to you.’ If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you this before it occurs, so that when it does occur, you may believe.”

Feast of St Michael and All Angels

29th September 2024

Reflection with readings following on below

The Lord’s Prayer proposes that God’s will, God’s rule, should prevail on earth as in heaven. In other words the authority, the pattern of behaviour, that relates to heaven, should also relate to  earth in the same way.

Today’s extract from the Book of Revelation tells a story – maybe a parable – of Satan and his angelic ilk who having  gone against God’s will, are thrown out of heaven. Is the implication that likewise any spirit on earth that opposes God’s should be thrown out? Certainly we have many healing stories where Jesus does just that: unclean spirits that go against God’s will are thrown or drawn out of those possessed by them. Just as in heaven there is no space for evil spirits or dispositions that oppose God’s will; so there will be no space for them on earth. Where such opposition to God exists, there is both a need for, and the option for, healing. 

Heaven and earth are not separated. They are not dis or un-connected realms. Both the passage from Genesis and from John’s Gospel, tell of the interconnectedness of heaven and earth. Both use the image of a ladder with angelic messengers to describe the flow of communication between heaven and earth. It is a flow of communication that is now ongoing through Jesus Christ. 

If heaven and earth are not separate but interconnected, and if God intends that the divine rule and way of being should prevail in both domains, and if God has established a means of communication between the two – and with Jesus we have the most perfect means of communication – then we should be able to live and work as if God’s rule did apply on earth just as in heaven. But clearly it is something we do have to struggle for, whether we see ourselves following the example of St Michael who stands up for what is right, or the example of Jacob (who is constantly struggling with himself to do the right thing), or if we follow the way of Jesus and share the load of his cross. 

So may God bless us with the knowledge that Heaven and earth are not separate but interconnect realms where God’s love and mercy abound.

Genesis 28:10-17

Jacob left Beer-sheba and went toward Haran. He came to a certain place and stayed there for the night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place. And he dreamed that there was a ladder set up on the earth, the top of it reaching to heaven; and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. And the Lord stood beside him and said, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring; and your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south; and all the families of the earth shall be blessed in you and in your offspring. Know that I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” Then Jacob woke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place—and I did not know it!” And he was afraid, and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”

Psalm  103:19-22

19 The Lord has set his throne in heaven, *
and his kingship has dominion over all.

20 Bless the Lord, you angels of his,
you mighty ones who do his bidding, *
and hearken to the voice of his word.

21 Bless the Lord, all you his hosts, *
you ministers of his who do his will.

22 Bless the Lord, all you works of his,
in all places of his dominion; *
bless the Lord, O my soul.

Revelation 12:7-12

War broke out in heaven; Michael and his angels fought against the dragon. The dragon and his angels fought back, but they were defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. The great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.

Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, proclaiming,

“Now have come the salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God
and the authority of his Messiah,

for the accuser of our comrades has been thrown down,
who accuses them day and night before our God.

But they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony,

for they did not cling to life even in the face of death.

Rejoice then, you heavens
and those who dwell in them!

But woe to the earth and the sea,
for the devil has come down to you

with great wrath,
because he knows that his time is short!”

John 1:47-51

When Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him, he said of him, “Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” Nathanael asked him, “Where did you get to know me?” Jesus answered, “I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.” Nathanael replied, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered, “Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these.” And he said to him, “Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”

Proper 13 10th after trinity 

Interconnectedness of heaven and earth, of things spiritual and physical.

4th August 2024

Reflection with readings below

When we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we ask that God’s kingdom (or reign or rule) and God’s will be done on earth as in heaven – a request that assumes that the rules that are followed in heaven can equally be followed on earth; that what happens in heaven can happen on earth; that the way things are done in heaven as are equally the way things can be done on earth; that what is true in heaven can be true on earth. It is a request that presumes connection and communication – that we can know, can learn, what happens in heaven and can expect to apply that knowledge to the way we live on earth.

Our readings today in different ways show this certainty. 

The story from Exodus reveals that God’s desire to satisfy people’s hunger crosses over between the heavenly and earthly domains, such that God rains down bread from heaven for them to eat. Whether in heaven or on earth, it is God’s wish that all are fed. Here on earth that wish is sadly often waylaid by human greed and folly not because there isn’t enough food but because we don’t distribute fairly what is produced, because we allow some people to indulge in unsustainable diets, and because we fail to nurture the soil. 

The passage from the Letter to the Ephesians reveals how heavenly shaped gifts have been bestowed on us through our relationship with Jesus, how this flow of gifts from heaven to earth-bound beings has created a body that transcends boundaries and forming us into the one body we name as Christ. These gifts – humility, gentleness, patience, love, peace – are often overlooked or spurned by we the recipients. Often we are either too sure that we know better or too scared to risk using these gifts, that we are reluctant to pray the Lord’s Prayer in earnest. The world could be a radically different place if our behaviour was radically different. 

The reading from John’s Gospel equally tells us that it is through our oneness with Jesus – following his example, following his teaching – and feeding on what he gives us, that what can happen in heaven can happen on earth. 

It is hard to always take this on board, to live this way – to live this gospel. It is often hard to see how life on earth can become heavenly in character, that our human capacity to destroy the earth could be the capacity to heal the earth, to enable things to happen on earth as in heaven. But that is the gospel message which is our hope.

Exodus 16.2-4,9-15

The whole congregation of the Israelites complained against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness. The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the fleshpots and ate our fill of bread; for you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

Then the Lord said to Moses, “I am going to rain bread from heaven for you, and each day the people shall go out and gather enough for that day. In that way I will test them, whether they will follow my instruction or not.”

Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to the whole congregation of the Israelites, ‘Draw near to the Lord, for he has heard your complaining.’“ And as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the Israelites, they looked toward the wilderness, and the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud. The Lord spoke to Moses and said, “I have heard the complaining of the Israelites; say to them, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall have your fill of bread; then you shall know that I am the Lord your God.’“

In the evening quails came up and covered the camp; and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. When the layer of dew lifted, there on the surface of the wilderness was a fine flaky substance, as fine as frost on the ground. When the Israelites saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. Moses said to them, “It is the bread that the Lord has given you to eat.”

Psalm 78:23-29

23 So he commanded the clouds above *
and opened the doors of heaven.

24 He rained down manna upon them to eat *
and gave them grain from heaven.

25 So mortals ate the bread of angels; *
he provided for them food enough.

26 He caused the east wind to blow in the heavens *
and led out the south wind by his might.

27 He rained down flesh upon them like dust *
and winged birds like the sand of the sea.

28 He let it fall in the midst of their camp *
and round about their dwellings.

29 So they ate and were well filled, *
for he gave them what they craved.

Ephesians 4:1-16

I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all. But each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore it is said,

“When he ascended on high he made captivity itself a captive;
he gave gifts to his people.”

(When it says, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is the same one who ascended far above all the heavens, so that he might fill all things.) The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.

John 6:24-35

The next day, when the people who remained after the feeding of the five thousand saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus.

When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal.” Then they said to him, “What must we do to perform the works of God?” Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” So they said to him, “What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” Then Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.”

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

Lent Reflection

5th April 2022

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/en:Wheat_Field_with_Cypresses

The Mediterranean cypress – cupressus sempervirens – is an evergreen coniferous tree that grows to a height of 35m and can live for 1000 years and more. It is well adapted to the Mediterranean climate of hot dry summers and cool winters, and grows across a wide altitude range from sea level to around 2000m. The wood is fragrant and durable and is used for making harpsichords, coffins and furniture. It was also used to make the doors of St Peter’s basilica in Rome. In classic antiquity the cypress was associated with mourning and death. However when Van Gogh painted cypresses he saw them as trees that linked earth and heaven. 

And Jacob dreamed that there was a ladder set up on earth, the top of it reaching to heaven; and the angles of God were ascending and descending on it. Genesis 28:12

My soul can find no staircase to heaven unless it be through earth’s loveliness. Michelangelo