September 2024
I am sure that many of us have been horrified by the recent rioting in many cities around the country.
On one of the Sundays when the rioting was at its height, I preached the following words, which one of the people present at the service asked me to share.
Our former Bishop of Bradwell posted on his Facebook page that his daughter had phoned him from abroad to say, ‘Dad, when you go out, remember you are Asian.’
What a sad indictment of the society in which we live.
As many of us know, Bishop John is now the Bishop of Liverpool, where there have been terrible racist riots. And this is just one of many places where these have been happening.
In contrast, in our Bible readings, we have had an extract from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, a book which can be divided into two main sections: The first part, Chapters 1 -3 are about Christ reconciling all creation to himself and to God. The second part, Chapters 4-6, stress the importance of living according to God’s will and challenge us to live in unity. And the following verses are key as to how to do that.
We are told in Verse 29. ‘Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up. Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice and be kind to one another… be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us.’
In contrast to the horrendous rioting, we have recently seen positive examples of people from around the world living together in unity both at the Olympics in Paris and, more locally, at the Essex Scout and Guide Jamboree near Chelmsford.
When I saw the scale of the rioting in the media, I said to my husband, Phil, ‘Where on earth have all these people come from?’
And, actually, it all started because of an angry and inaccurate post on social media. It made me think about how careful we need to be with our tongues whether that be with our spoken word or written word because one slanderous word of gossip can grow and have huge repercussions.
We are all called to be kind. To look for the good in one another whatever race, religion or sexuality. The list goes on.
I think I have shared before, the words on a postcard which I have up in my study. It says, ‘Love your neighbour, who doesn’t look like you, think like you, love like you, speak like you, pray like you, vote like you. Love your neighbour: No exceptions.’
It sound lovely doesn’t it, but the reality is that it is sometimes hard, because we gravitate towards people who are like us because that’s often where we feel most comfortable. It is a challenge for us as individuals, as a Parish and as the Church as a whole.
So, going back to the violence witnessed in our streets, where has Jesus been I wonder?
Well, I certainly don’t think he has been in the hearts of the rioters. They have clearly shut him out.
But I do think he has been in the hearts of those who, in the ‘Hope against Hate’ marches have stood bravely against the fascism and racism promoted at the riots.
Thankfully, most of us haven’t been involved in any of the public displays of aggression. But I think the rioting has highlighted what damage an ill thought word, email, or post on social media can cause.
We are all members of one another. And when we let our guard down and succumb to that nasty word, we are making room for the devil. Rather, we are called to use words to build each other up whether or not someone is like us, and to give grace to one another. And that also means walking away others say a nasty word.
Perhaps, before any of us loosen our tongues, let’s ask ourselves not just, ‘What would Jesus do? But, also, ‘What would Jesus say?’
Take care and God bless,
Sue