It’s a beautiful morning in York. I’ve just opened my windows to clear blue skies and lovely sunshine. As long as it doesn’t get too hot in the Chamber we should be ok. My thoughts and prayers are, of course, with the group of 50 people from Southwark Cathedral taking part in London Pride. It’s a big day for us. After having for so long been talking about the place of LGBT+ people in the life of the church and being encouraged by our Archbishops who have called for a ‘radical Christian inclusion’ we decided that we needed to walk with people.
That walking with people is something that we see in Jesus. One of the things I love about the Gospels is the way in which so much of it takes place on the road, not in buildings, not where the rich and powerful were, but out there where the people were and walking with them and encountering them. People came out to meet him where he was – leaders of synagogues, centurions, the distressed, the sick, the curious, the joyous, everyone.
Present and engaged
One such occasion was the meeting with Bartimaeus and we are told in St Mark’s Gospel
‘As Jesus and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside.’ (Mark 10.46)
That huge crowd, marching with Jesus down the road and then finding someone who needed him. Out on the road, out on the march we can meet people we would not stumble over in any other way.
One of the things we will be thinking about today, along with sexuality on the day of London Pride, will be the programme called ‘Presence and Engagement’. That basically means, as I understand it, being there, being out there, doing the Jesus thing of being with people, of all kinds. It seems strange that we have, as a church, to make this explicit as a policy. After all, as I was taught when being formed for priesthood, this is what the church is, out there, reflecting the real presence of Jesus, reflecting the engagement of God with the whole of creation, outside of the church, in community. Sadly, in many places the church has retreated into its buildings, concerned about ‘internal’ issues rather than the ‘external’ world where we find God.
There is a wonderful poem by R S Thomas called ‘The Empty Church’ which speaks to me of this.
They laid this stone trap
for him, enticing him with candles,
as though he would come like some huge moth
out of the darkness to beat there.
Ah, he had burned himself
before in the human flame
and escaped, leaving the reason
torn. He will not come any more
to our lure. Why, then, do I kneel still
striking my prayers on a stone
heart? Is it in hope one
of them will ignite yet and throw
on its illuminated walls the shadow
of someone greater than I can understand?
We can hide away in the ‘stone trap’ or be out there, present and engaged, with people of all kinds, of all faiths and none.
I hope that in all the debates today I will have pride in the church – but I wait to see.
God, ever present with us,
ever engaged with us,
where we are,
may I know your presence now
and be engaged
with all my sisters and brothers.
Amen.
Andrew Nunn's reflections from General Synod 
You must be logged in to post a comment.