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Sermon preached
at Bradford Cathedral
10.15 Holy Communion 20th September 2009 |
“Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, ‘Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.’ Why does he do that? Why take a child and say that if you welcome one such child you are welcoming Him? Jesus was very good at visual aids and he didn’t need technology to help him. His closest friends, the ones who were supposed to understand what he was about didn’t get it. They were just like us. Arguing with each other about who was the most important. Jesus is close to God – we are close to Jesus – therefore we must be pretty special. Yes, you are says Jesus, but it’s not about looking good or position or status. You are special because you are loved by God. Look let me show you. Here is a child. He has no position or status in the community. Yet, he is loved for who he is. And as far as God is concerned, because this child has no status, and holds a weaker position in the community that he especially needs caring for. Children are vulnerable and so deserve to be valued more not less. And in another conversation Jesus makes this even plainer and says: “Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs.” Later on we will pray as we do every time, ‘may your kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.’ How would we know if that prayer had been answered? What would it look like for the Kingdom of God to be seen on earth? Just imagine we found some great gates, marked ‘KINGDOM OF GOD’ and walked through, what might we see? Well if, the kingdom of God belongs to such as children, it must have something to do with the way children are treated. So probably not much like this then… Sadly, in the kingdoms on earth children live in great poverty …or in tough conditions working long hours in hard conditions rather than getting the education they need … or are alone – orphaned, or abandoned by their parents, or worse still sold into child slavery by their parents out of desperation. And sometimes turned into child soldiers, instruments of war, trained to kill. Ah Yes, we say, we know that in other countries children suffer greatly. We pray for them and support them through charities. But that’s not Britain is it? No. This is…(Picture of Shannon Matthews, Victoria Climbie and Baby Peter) Yes, these are the most tragic cases that hit the headlines. But we cannot ignore the findings of research. Several pieces of research have concluded that Britain’s children are amongst the least happy of children in Europe. That was the conclusion of the Children’s Society. Their widely researched report ‘A Good Childhood’ was published earlier this year. Peter Powell referred to it in March when he preached on Mothering Sunday, and its conclusions are disturbing. Children under pressure to succeed without the consistent loving support of available parents… Children under pressure to conform, to spend and be consumers, to grow up too quickly and miss out on the freedom of a good childhood. This is just a flavour of what the report said… “Our children and young people suffer from higher incidences of mental and physical ill-health than their European contemporaries.” “As a society we share a damaging ambivalence towards children: preoccupied with protecting our own children from harm, we often fail to reach out to those who need our attention most.” “Most of the obstacles children face today are linked to the belief among adults that the prime duty of the individual is to make the most of their own life, rather than contribute to the good of others. A Good Childhood, says excessive individualism is causing a range of problems for children including: high family break-up, teenage unkindness, commercial pressures towards premature sexualisation, unprincipled advertising, too much competition in education and acceptance of income inequality.” There is that phrase again: ‘Excessive individualism’. Frankie spoke of this a few weeks ago. She referred to another major piece of research from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation into Contemporary Social Evils. Among its central conclusions are that we are now suffering from a rise in selfish consumerism together with a decline in a sense of personal responsibility and family commitment.’ What was it James wrote in his letter: Vs 16 “For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness of every kind” And again: “And you covet something and cannot obtain it; so you engage in disputes and conflicts.” So we’re back to the conversation Jesus had with his disciples, trying to turn upside-down their way of thinking as they argued about who was the greatest. I wonder if James had this in mind when he wrote: “But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish.” By contrast Jesus tells us: ‘Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.’ This kind of approach needs the heart to be changed, not just the mind. But like us, the disciples were slow to catch on. His talk of sacrifice was lost on them. ‘The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed, he will rise again. But they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him.’ But it is only through sacrifice that change comes about. This is how the Kingdom of God comes to earth. It’s no good us condemning the greed of bankers and financiers if we haven’t examined our own desires, our own coveting, and our own selfish ambitions. It’s not easy, but temptation can be resisted: “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you”. This is the wisdom of heaven which turns upside-down the wisdom of earthly thinking: “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy.” Change on earth MUST begin in the human heart. How does that happen?
Where there is love… joy, peace, patience, faithfulness, gentleness. So how can we make this world more like the Kingdom of God? As it happens, This is the Year of the Child, marking the 30th anniversary of the United Nations' International Year of the Child. We are invited to be part of this and we ALL can be. This is an ideal opportunity for the Church to adopt 2009 as a celebration of children and childhood by: - reviewing our work with children and young people. - celebrating their contribution in the life of the Church and of wider society. - challenging the Church to fresh vision and expression, inspired by the spirit of the child. In this diocese there will a BIG celebration for children with a praise party, food, & fun workshops. And it is going to happen here in the cathedral on Saturday 21st November: (See Flyer.) Can I leave us with a challenge? If we care about our children, we are caring about the Kingdom of God. In this year of the child can we turn that attitude into action? It’s not for me to say what, but God will bring something to mind if we submit to Him and are prepared to make a sacrifice. We have a long way to go yet before we are offering what we want to for children and young people here in the cathedral. We need more people to offer some time to teach and nurture. We need to listen to our children. And we need people to pray regularly for them and for parents and for all those who work with them. “Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, ‘Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.’” May His Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven. Amen. |