Sunday 24 February 2019

Consistency, continuity, and God as our Creator & Sustainer


Consistency, continuity, and God as our Creator & Sustainer 



By William Lyon Tupman. Sermon for the Eucharist at Christ Church Chelsea, on February 24th 


2019 (2nd Sunday before Lent) 

Bible readings: Genesis 2:4b-9, 15-end; Psalm 65; Revelation 4; Luke 8:22-25. 

May the words of my mouth, and the meditations of all our hearts, be acceptable in your 


sight, O Lord our strength and redeemer. Amen. Please be seated. 

Good morning everyone! It's wonderful to see you all here at Christ Church Chelsea again. I'm very grateful to Mother Emma, Father Brian and Father John for inviting me back to preach today. For anyone who I haven't yet met, I worshipped and sung in the Choir here while I was studying for a Master's degree in Biblical Studies and Theology at King's College London, last academic year. 

Today, I'd like to focus on the themes of consistency and continuity. As many of you will know, I'm on the journey to hopefully becoming a priest in the Church of England. This is a very exciting journey for me, and it's a time of both discernment and formation. When talking about exploring a vocation to ordained ministry in the Church of England, it is easy to follow the traditional understanding of what discernment and formation is - that you are in the Discernment Process from when you start meeting with your incumbent or chaplain to talk about the possibility of being ordained, until you attend your Bishop's Advisory Panel or BAP (the selection conference I'll be attending in less than three months from now, after which I will learn if I'll be training for the priesthood) - after which, you then start the Formation Process, which sees you through your training at theological college and beyond. 

While this is presented both logically and helpfully by the Church, I think to confine these terms like that may risk being too narrow an interpretation and understanding of them. We are always discerning what God is asking of us; we are always being formed in the ways He wants us to be, in accordance with His will. We are always learning; and we are always making progress, however much or not we may consciously feel that at times. What underpins this, to me, is continuity - something which has been a significant characteristic of my journey in faith, discernment and formation so far. 

Continuity - what is it? It can be something that is unbroken, and it can be something which is consistent; but it still allows for change and progress. Here's an analogy for any car enthusiasts like me here today. Take the Jaguar XJ, as it was produced from 1968 to 2009. While the car was occasionally updated and modernised over time, the core design was left relatively unaltered; if you saw the 1968 and 2009 models stood next to each other, you would doubtless observe their strikingly similar appearances – hence, there is much continuity between them. Most significantly, the same character is still present in both, and in all the models in between. But at the same time, progress had been made over the years - the newer models were more energy efficient; they were faster; they were modernised; and they were better for the environment. But they were still, unmistakably, the Jaguar XJ. (For anyone who's wondering, the car is still produced today, but it was completely redesigned in 2010!)! 

This concept of continuity is something which underpins and characterises much of my journey in the Church so far. I've had a lot of change in my life so far. I was home educated; I'd lost both my parents by the time I was thirteen; I then started school; I lived in two different foster homes; I went to university, and I loved it there so much that I went on and did a Master's; and more. Some of these changes have been, as you can imagine, quite challenging to me, such as my bereavements; whereas other changes have been both positive and exciting, such as pursuing my studies, and meeting more friends. Much change, therefore; but an equal level of continuity, too; if not more. The Church has always been there for me; the Church has always been here for me. In all of my sorrows, and in all of my joys - the Church has, is, and always will be, here for me. And the same is true for each and every one of us. 

Here's some more continuity. I've not moved too far away from Christ Church; as the priests here all know, I now serve as a Lay Pastoral Assistant just a few miles away at St Michael's Church, Croydon - and the parish priest there is good friends with Fr Brian. Moreover, one of the reasons I came to King's to do my Master's was because our director of music, Gareth Wilson, recommended both King's and Christ Church to me, having also been my choir director at Girton College Cambridge where I did my BA. Now how's that for continuity! It is a placement which I love very much, and it is giving me a whole range of different experiences. I work six days a week, mostly serving and being with the community in my Church, but as part of this placement I also volunteer once a week at the chaplaincies of the refugee day centre at West Croydon Baptist Church, I run the chess club at Croydon College, I visit the patients and staff in Croydon University Hospital, and I also currently volunteer once a week at the Croydon Churches Floating Shelter for homeless people, which is currently at Croydon Minster; I'm on the overnight shift there tonight. All in all, and especially at my young age of twenty-four, my placement at St Michael's Croydon is equipping me with many valuable experiences, and a great variety of different aspects of service - both Sacramentally and pastorally - and both inside and outside of the immediate Church setting. I am truly grateful for this. 

And we can see this theme of continuity in today's readings from Scripture, since it is God who is both our Creator and Sustainer. God is continually bringing about His creation, and sustaining us. Psalm 65 is a helpful reminder of God's continual involvement and faithfulness in creation, even when we transgress. He is making and shaping the world as we know it, and brings order about from chaos. This is brilliantly illustrated by Luke in today's Gospel reading, when Jesus – who, being fully divine as well as fully human - calms the storm, and displays authority over the waters, bringing them from chaos into a state of peace and order. In the Hebrew Bible, watery storms are symbolic of chaos - and God conquers them and brings about order, as we can see for example in Genesis 1, and also in Psalms 29, 106 and 107. Jesus doing exactly the same thing in today's Gospel reading is therefore a reassuring reminder that God still brings order where there is chaos. 

In our first reading from Genesis 2 today, we read the Yahwist creation account; the second of two accounts of creation at the start of Genesis (the other one, spanning Genesis 1, being known as the Priestly account). In Genesis 1:26-28, humanity is created and is given "radah" in Hebrew - that is, dominion or stewardship over all the created world and its inhabitants. But there is a very different balance of power in these two words, dominion and stewardship - can both be correct? Are there two different interpretations on offer here? And if so, can both be connected? 

Let's consider the beautiful and majestic description of God in Revelation 4. Can you imagine having the same level of dominion as that? I can't. Both this reading and our first reading suggest that God appoints us to be stewards of the earth; He still has ultimate authority, as the creatures who sing God's praises in Revelation 4 recognise and acknowledge in their worship of Him. Creation is a gift by and from God to us, and we are given ultimate responsibility for looking after it. That's a kind of calling in itself; we all have a responsibility - a vocation - to look after our created world. Do we still have a special, superior ranking in the order of creation? Yes, we do; but this means we have a particular degree of responsibility, in accordance with how God has equipped us more than other created beings. 

The remainder of today's first reading tells us about the creation of Eve; in Genesis 2:18, God states that it is not good for humans to be alone, and thus creates for Adam his wife. Does this suggest that everyone should get married? Are we all called to marry? Some of us are (I feel called to marry when the time comes); while others are not. It is another example of vocation. Let's remember two of the most prominent Church leaders from the New Testament; as far as we know, Peter was called to marry (for Jesus heals Peter's mother-in-law in Matthew 8:14-15), while Paul tells us that he remained unmarried (1 Corinthians 7:8), presumably for his whole life. 

Sometimes being alone is good - especially if you want to go on a relaxing run, or if you need to finish an essay perilously close to a submission deadline (these being a couple of scenarios I often find myself in!). But I don't think it's good to be permanently alone. And we are not. Marriage is a beautiful and wonderful thing, but of course it isn't the only way of being in company; many of us here will have a network of friends, be it from Church, from work, university, school, college, neighbourhood or otherwise; and those living the religious life in monasteries or convents are unmarried but living together in a community. 

Whatever our vocations are in these areas, God is always with us. He is consistently with us; again, that theme of consistency comes up again, no matter how changeable our lives can sometimes be. God is unchanging, infinite, and eternal. He is omnipresent (that is, present at all times and in all places) and especially when we meet with Him and receive Him in the Sacrament of the Mass. Thus, we are never alone. How comforting! 

Psalm 65 also reminds us of God's forgiveness. Even when our transgressions "overwhelm" us (verse 3), we all still have the assurance of God's forgiveness. If we carried on reading just a bit further beyond our first reading today, we'd see how valuable that is when Adam and Eve sinned by eating of the tree of knowledge of good and evil! 

This is guaranteed forgiveness, thanks to the salvific work of Christ in His passion, death and resurrection - the Paschal Mystery. It is everlasting, since Christ's one, eternal sacrifice for us is perfect and complete. This forgiveness is, thus, consistent. If we weren't to accept this, we wouldn't be fully appreciative of the scale of what exactly Christ achieved for us on the cross, and in the whole Paschal Mystery - something we will soon contemplate in further detail, as Lent quickly approaches. 

And that's certainly something I'm grateful for! In my journey, sometimes in the past I've felt unworthy to even consider the concept of being called to the priesthood. But I've come to realise that God still counts us all worthy to live the lives we are being called to – and for me, I feel, hope and pray that that is the Anglican priesthood, if it is in accordance with God's will. He will never ask us to do something we cannot do; and even if He does, He will equip us. And not just adequately at that, but fully and beyond fully. He counts us worthy - because, since He has made us worthy, we are worthy. 

We are all on a journey, as we pursue our various callings - our primary, common vocation in Baptism, and any other vocations God is calling us to. A nurse, a doctor, a teacher, a priest – these are just some of the many vocations people can be called to. And, no matter how changeable things may at times be, there is consistency and continuity in our lives - in small ways, in bigger ways, and in perhaps the greatest way possible - that God is always here with us. Let us give thanks for His presence with us now, and in all our lives, especially as we now come to receive Him in the Eucharist. In the name of God, who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen. 

Thursday 21 February 2019

Hymns for Passiontide: "Cheerful He to Suffering Goes?"


Hymns for Passiontide: “Cheerful He to Suffering Goes?” 
By William Lyon Tupman. For a Catechesis class at St. Michael's Croydon, 21st February 2019. 
Focus texts: New English Hymnal, Passiontide hymns; Apostles' Creed; Julian of Norwich, Showings

Hymns, such as “My Song is Love Unknown” by Ireland and Crossman, are a beautiful and important feature of our Christian worship. They allow us to put two of the many gifts God has given us (music and words) to a perfect use – to aid our worship of Him, giving Him glory. How fitting. But hymns are also able to teach us more about aspects of the life of Jesus Christ, His ministry and our theology, and often reiterating Christian orthodoxy over heresy. I will now examine four hymns for Passiontide from the New English Hymnal; if you have access to a copy of the hymnbook, having it to hand now will be very helpful, but otherwise you can find all the words and tunes to these hymns online (including rolling scores on YouTube). 

Hymn 82, "Drop, drop, slow tears," is a well-loved devotional hymn. Being very short (with only three relatively short verses), it is both simple and effective in its devotion to our Lord. 

It is a hymn which emphasises Christ's agony and anguish throughout; all three verses focus on the tears of Christ. Verse one opens with the line "Drop, drop, slow tears". The repeated "drop" comes in a major third higher than the first instance of the word (F to A), immediately fixing the focus on Christ's tears. It seems doubtless that Christ's suffering is the focus, here; the words "tears" in verse one, together with "eyes" in verse two and "floods" in verse three (all occurring at the end of the first line of each verse) are all set to the note C in the soprano part; the highest pitch of note heard in the hymn. 

However, it is not only Christ's passion which is in the spotlight; so is our hope and salvation in Christ. The tonality is firmly settled in F Major (with major keys or chords generally signalling positive emotions in music), which hints at reassurance. Furthermore, this hymn is usually sung slowly and moderately quietly; a real sense of peace is implied. For wider context, the beautiful and peaceful 'Spiegel Im Spiegel' by Arvo Pärt is written in a similar way. And it is indeed peace which equally prevails in this hymn; Christ is the "Prince of Peace" (verse one), and He brings us peace by drowning "all" our "faults and fears" (verse three) - through and with the tears of Christ. 

Hymn 84, "It is a thing most wonderful," is longer and has a more elaborate tune than "Drop, drop, slow tears." The hymn expresses the awe of the worshipper at the love Christ showed us, by how He Himself came to save us from our sins. 

In last term's Catechesis sessions at St Michael's, we explored many aspects of the Incarnation of Christ; this term, we are focusing on the Paschal Mystery (Christ's passion, death and resurrection). This hymn showcases the union of Christ's Incarnation and Passion, as seen in verse one, where we see how "God's own Son should come from heaven, and die to save a child like me". A sense of awe is felt strongly here; E-flat is the highest note heard in each verse, and it is set to the word "Son" in verse one. Yes, it really is God's own dear Son who came from Heaven to save us from our sins. Is it "almost too wonderful to be"? Maybe - but this is the decision God has made for us, to come as God Incarnate to save us from our sins (as the worshipper sings in verse two). The Incarnational words "come from heaven" is creatively word-painted to a falling melodic line in verse one; Christ freely chose to stoop down from Heaven, in order to save us. 

Throughout, this hymn evokes awe at Christ's death because of His love for us, with the worshipper singing of seeing His death in verse three. This is almost like Julian of Norwich, who prayed to suffer so she could experience something of the suffering of Christ, as an act of devotion and love. And this is the key-note of the whole hymn - love. As well as it being written in the key of love and union with God (E-flat Major), love underpins the whole text of the hymn; Christ's love for us in verses one, two and three, and the worshipper's love for Christ in verses four and five. While the love Christ shows for us is still infinitely more than we can possibly express (perhaps symbolised to a degree here by the three-two verse ratio), we still do our best to love Him; the word "love" in verse five is, again, on the highest note of the verse (E-flat). The hymn concludes eschatologically, with the worshipper looking forward to when they see Christ "as thou art" in verse five. 

Hymn 85, "Jesu, meek and lowly," is again emphatic of the love Christ has for us, and of our gratitude at His salvific actions. The suffering of Christ is not as pronounced in this hymn as it was in "Drop, drop, slow tears"; here, the emphasis is more on the salvation won for us by the powerful, triumphant Christ. 

On the surface, it would seem that Christ's meekness is emphasised (in verse one); but this refers more to His character than any notion of Him being weak, and it perhaps also reminds us of His Incarnation (as seen in verse one of "It is a thing most wonderful"). Verse one introduces the crying theme also seen in "Drop, drop, slow tears"; but this is the worshipper's tears here, rather than Christ's. Jesus is predominantly portrayed as being powerful and triumphant in this hymn; He is the "Prince of life and power" in verse two, and our "salvation's tower" who still calls sinners to follow Him - even while He is on the cross. Christ is, here, clearly in control of His passion; just as the Gospels of Luke and John explicitly emphasise (and Mark and Matthew, albeit more implicitly). Indeed, his display of power on the cross inspires the worshipper to bend "low" before the Lord in adoration in verse three - just as we do at Benediction in front of the Blessed Sacrament. 

Christ's passion and suffering is, of course, still remembered in this hymn; His "red wounds streaming... blood" in verse four are a testimony to this. But the wounds stream with "life-blood" which is "gleaming," "flowing" and "bestowing" pardon freely. Thus, the focus remains firmly on the salvation Christ has won for us, His followers, by his death through love for us, uniting us with God. Moreover, the tonality of the hymn maintains this positive focus, again being in E-flat Major - the key of love and union with God. In addition, the eschatological direction of verse six brings the hymn further into the present context; Jesus's salvific actions in the past have guaranteed for us a safe future, and now we may be continually accompanied, guided, directed and protected by our Lord. 

Hymn 93, "Were you there?," is as well known as an anthem as it is a hymn. It is a Spiritual song; in its traditional form, the melody is an American Spiritual designed to be sung in unison throughout, and the words are a Negro Spiritual (the choir version and adapted anthems feature various harmonisations). It is in some ways quite different to the other three hymns seen so far; but it also shares much in common. 

The hymn unmistakably resonates with the Creed, in a way much more so than the other three hymns; yet all four of these hymns promote orthodoxy over heresy. Let us consider how Christ was, as the Apostles' Creed states, "crucified, died and was buried... On the third day He rose again from the dead." In this hymn, Christ was crucified (verse one); Christ died (verses three and four); Christ was buried (verse five); and Christ rose (verse six). 

The way in which the Creed is set here invites us to ask, "do we realise what Christ has done for us?" And also, "do we know what this means for us?" Every verse is composed of one Credal line, repeated once, and using a similar melodic contour but at a higher pitch in its repetition (and once again, like two of the three other examples of Passiontide hymns I've analysed here, it is written in the key of E-flat Major – the key of love and union with God). And each verse – whether being about Christ's crucifixion, death, burial or resurrection - evokes the same response from the worshipper, in the chorus - three-fold trembling (repeated), followed by a further repetition of the content of the verse. To me, this emphasises how Christ's passion, death and resurrection are all parts of Christ's one, complete, eternal and perfect salvific event. 

Together, these hymns for Passiontide show both the suffering and triumph of Christ, in His passion, death and resurrection - the Paschal Mystery – and how we respond in devotion, awe and love. While some hymns may emphasise either the suffering or the glorification of Christ more, the hymns are united - directly or indirectly - in their recognition of Christ's motivation of love for why He performed His salvific actions - and our love for Him. 

Thursday 7 February 2019

Walsingham: my first pilgrimage to England's Nazareth


Reflections on Adoremus – my first pilgrimage to Walsingham 

Just over a couple of months ago, I made my very first visit to the Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham - a particularly sacred place in Norfolk affectionately known as England's Nazareth, and where many Christians frequently gather to worship the Lord. Many parishes and other groups make their pilgrimage there, and my first encounter was with Adoremus (a pilgrimage for young adults, aged eighteen to thirty-five). I thoroughly enjoyed my first time at Walsingham, and as soon as our weekend there ended, I found myself looking forward to my next pilgrimage. 
During the weekend, we had a series of workshops where we discussed various aspects of Christian living, vocation, and practising evangelism. As well as finding such a chance to openly discuss the Christian faith with other like-minded people in this way particularly valuable, one of the most significant things I was reminded of was how all Christians have a common vocation in our Baptism. This is then supplemented by our distinct vocations (such as to academia, priesthood, teaching, nursing, foster care, a combination of these, and many more). What a great joy, to be united with Christ and my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ by our common Baptism, as well as in the wide variety of ways in which God's gifts are manifest in us and our lives. 

We spent many hours together in worship, and our first visit to the Holy House is an experience which I will always remember. The stunning altar and statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary was most striking to me; no amount of searching for pictures of the Shrine on Google Images could have prepared me for the experience of actually visiting the Shrine and praying there! Some of us returned there the following evening spontaneously to say Evening Prayers together there. The Mass at St. Mary's Parish Church was also very moving, together with a procession of the Blessed Sacrament afterwards. But perhaps my favourite service we all attended was on the Saturday evening - after a beautiful Mass, we received the liturgy of Reconciliation (including the anointing by the priests), and we then prayed for a while afterwards in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament in the Shrine Church. With no time limit, and no need to think of anything else at all at that time, we could easily keep our eyes focused on Jesus (Hebrews 12:2) - something we should always aim to do throughout our lives, at all times and in all places, as best as we can. 

On the Saturday afternoon of the pilgrimage, we had some free time. Many walked the Holy Mile to the Slipper Chapel (something I would like to do on my next pilgrimage to Walsingham); others stayed at the Shrine; and some of us went for a nice and relaxing walk by the sea in Wells. I was in the latter group, taking photos of the beautiful seascape as I went. Especially since my first Walsingham pilgrimage, I now often pray when I go to the beach. I'm often in Church when I pray; certainly, I find it especially easy to focus on my prayer when I'm in a magnificent building like St. Michael's Croydon. But I also feel very lucky indeed to be able to pray anywhere - for God created all things, and He is omnipresent (that is, present at all times and in all places). To pray somewhere where the natural beauty of His creation is so powerfully evident, such as at the beach, for me is always a wonderful and moving experience. 

In many ways, the Adoremus weekend felt to me like a retreat. A different context; a different set of surroundings; a different setting. Only the previous weekend, I'd been on a wonderful retreat at Cumberland Lodge (Windsor) with the Chaplaincy of King's College London; again, a weekend of interactive classes and other activities, fellowship and worship, and in a different setting. This was also very helpful to my process of discernment. But I think that while a pilgrimage has all of these characteristics of a retreat, it is also distinct from being a retreat; we make our pilgrimage to a particular place, and - in the case of Walsingham - to a Shrine where Marian apparitions have occurred, and to a place where Christians from all around the country are drawn to see - and drawn to be. 

Over the past couple of months, I've observed the positive impact my first visit to Walsingham has had on my journey in the discernment process, my devotion (especially when praying the Angelus and the Rosary), and my faith as a whole. Together with the experiences of my time so far at St. Michael's, I feel I now have a much greater understanding and appreciation of the person and role of the Blessed Virgin Mary. To take a couple of further examples, I often think of that feeling of awe when I first visited the stunning Holy House in the Anglican Shrine - especially as I say Morning and Evening Prayers in Church. Moreover, whenever I serve at Low Mass, I am usually either near or facing the statue of Our Lady of Walsingham - a comforting daily reminder to me of how a candle is lit in the Shrine Church at Walsingham, where St. Michael's is prayed for there every day, together with many other Churches. 

One of the things I loved the most about the pilgrimage was meeting the community with whom I stayed there; like-minded people, new friends and Church family, and we all had a wonderful time together. In pilgrimage, in worship, in prayer, and of course in fellowship and friendship during our free time at meals and at the pub! I will continue to keep in touch with all those I met there, as we journey onwards together in the Christian faith - and I'm hugely looking forward to my next pilgrimage to Walsingham.