Author: Alan

Dear Friends                                 

                                                                       

 

The great preacher William Sloane Coffin once said, “On Good Friday we crucified Jesus, the best among us, because we had crucified the best within us, and did not want to be reminded of it…”

 

Now there were probably many reasons why Jesus was crucified, but the reason that William Sloane Coffin highlights is the one I want to invite us to reflect on. 

 

Isn’t it true that when we are reminded of something within us that we have      ourselves forsaken or betrayed we are prone to respond with defensive denial and sometimes even vicious anger?  When we betray something we hold dear within us there is a strong temptation to begin to see the world, others and ourselves in a way that justifies our self-betrayal as it becomes too painful for us to face and    admit to.  One way to stop the pain is to get rid of that which is reminding us of our self-betrayal. 

where to download sherlock holmes

 

Jesus reminded the religious class of his day what true religion is meant to be about—namely, loving God and neighbour—which had long been forsaken but not quite forgotten—so to eradicate the memory altogether they called for his blood.  Jesus reminded the ordinary people of his day that they were born free and equal and should therefore live free despite the political persecution from those in power—but they were locked in fear—so they too called for his life.

 

The question is what have we betrayed and forsaken in our own lives that is   sometimes revealed to us by others?  Do we call for their blood?  Or label them and refuse to engage with them—a form of relationship crucifixion?!  Alan

 

Dear Friends                                                                                            

 

Today is Palm Sunday—the start of Holy Week.  Holy because of how Jesus love for the world was RAISED to Crucifying heights. 

 

Each evening this week we will be reflecting on “The Way of Forgiveness”. 

 

What exactly is forgiveness?   Do we always have to forgive?  Is there a time when we say: “enough is enough”? How do we forgive if we are still hurting?   How do we forgive if the person is no longer alive?  What have I got to gain by forgiving and what have I got to loose?  What other choices do we have besides forgiveness?

 

In the next few days we will be reflecting on these and other questions regarding forgiveness.  The Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday teachings will be building on each other so it will benefit you to   attend them all.  On Thursday we share in foot   washing and Holy Communion.  Starting 7pm.

 

We start tonight with the screening of the wonderful movie: The Widow of Saint-Pierre.  A movie that explores the depths of forgiveness and love with daring     sensitivity.  We start tonight at 6pm followed by a brief discussion.

 

Peace,  Alan

 

Dear Friends                                                                                                  

 

“If  you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, but make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise;

 

If you can dream – and not make dreams your master;
If you can think – and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster and treat those two imposters just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken, and stoop and build ’em up with wornout tools;

 

If you can make one heap of all your winnings and risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings and never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew to serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you except the Will which says to them: “Hold on”;

 

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings – nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute with sixty seconds’ worth of distance run –
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it, and – which is more – you’ll be a Man my son!”

 

A poem to ponder.  “If” – by Rudyard Kipling.     

Peace, Alan

 

Dear Friends                                                                                            

 

I thought I would give you a heads up on a couple of things coming up in the life of CMM that I want to encourage you to put in your diary.

 

Palm Sunday: 28 March [6pm]

Movie: The Widow of St. Pierre (Staring Juliette Binoche) followed with discussion.

 

Holy Week: 29 March—1 April [7pm]

Theme for the week: The Way of Forgiveness

 

Good Friday: 10am Service followed by Three Hour Service starting at 12noon

 

Camps Bay outing: 11 April

Lunch and afternoon by the sea

 

Manna and Mercy: 23– 26 April

This is an opportunity to journey through the whole bible in one weekend.  An  awesome opportunity to get into the scriptures.  Cost R60

 

Diversity Engagement: 14-16 May

A journey to unpack the bias and prejudice that lurks within us—be it sexism,    racism or other forms of bias.  This is truly life changing.  Maximum 20 participants.

 

Church Camp: 8-10 October

Theme: The God of Surprises.  Rocklands Centre Simon’s Town.  Cost R270 for adults and R240 for children. 

 

With great expectations, Alan

 

Dear Friends                                

                                                                                     

 

I am always intrigued by what sermons generate a surprisingly large and interactive response.  Last week’s sermon on the Two Tones of Truth was one of them.  From the amount of conversations, emails and sms’s I have received it seems to have touched a nerve of many.  The overwhelming response has been: “That sermon was about me!”  So it seems many of us participate in the dance between faith and doubt.   The cry: “I believe, help my unbelief” is the cry of many of us.  This is what led me to voice that strange sentence that I invited you to wrestle with:  “I am still searching for what I have found”.  I have no more light to shed on this but I can’t get away from its ring of truth for me.  I would be interested to find out your reflections on this!

 

The psalmist may have spoken in the tones of bold declaration and doubting distress, but amazingly s/he longed for just one thing: the Lord’s presence and beauty. 

 

To witness a life lived willing only one thing is hugely compelling.  The psalmist’s desire drew me to a deeper truth of my own.  It went like this:  “I yearn for one thing.”  Then I thought, “No that is not fully true.  I long to yearn for one thing”.  Then I thought some more, “No that is also not fully true.  I am not even sure I long to yearn for one thing, but I know I need to and I know I need help to.”  So I turn to Jesus—the one who has found me– and I search again for him.

 

I really want to encourage us all to read and reflect on the Psalms—the psalms that are better prayed than preached—the psalms that help us recognize our true selves.   May you be blessed with both peace and disturbance.  Alan.

 

Dear Friends,

 

I watched a documentary this past week on Howard Zinn – a long time historian and peace activist who recently died.  As a young man he participated in the Royan bombing (dropping napalm for the first time in Europe) just weeks before the end of WWII: “And we don’t know how many people were killed or how many people were terribly burned as a result of what we did. But I did it like most soldiers do, unthinkingly, mechanically, thinking we’re on the right side, they’re on the wrong side, and therefore we can do whatever we want, and it’s OK.” said Zinn.

 

Only afterward did he learn the human effects of bombing, mostly harming civilians – including children, women, and the elderly. He flew at “30,000 feet, six miles high, couldn’t hear screams, couldn’t see blood. And this is modern warfare….soldiers fire, they drop bombs, and they have no notion, really, of what is happening to the human beings that they’re firing on. Everything is done at a distance. This enables terrible atrocities to take place.” And it’s happening now in Iraq and Afghanistan.

 

“And that while some societies can rightly claim to be more liberal, more democratic, more humane than others, the

difference is not great enough to justify the massive, indiscriminate slaughter of modern warfare.”

 

He asked shouldn’t the real motivations for war be examined. Shouldn’t the claim of fighting for democracy, liberty, a just cause, and human rights be questioned. Wouldn’t it be clear that all nations fight for power, privilege, wealth, territory, supremacy, national pride, and dominance of one side over others, the notions of freedom, righteousness, and innocent victims never considered. Tyranny is in the eye of the beholder when one side is as bad as the other.

 

“War isn’t inevitable”, said Zinn. “It doesn’t arise from an instinctive human need. Political leaders manufacture it, then use propaganda to justify it to the public and mobilize them to fight.  War is the moral equivalent of the worst kind of terrorism.”

 

Toward the end of his life he wrote:  “Wherever any kind of injustice has been overturned, it’s been because people acted as citizens, and not as politicians. They didn’t just moan. They worked they acted, and organized to bring their situation to the attention of people in power. And that’s what we have to do today.”

 

Alan

 

 

Dear Friends                                                                                                  

 

As we begin our service, they begin their trial

As we meet to support Ecclesia they meet to judge

As we meet in solidarity they meet in legality

As we begin in prayer, so do they

We are us and they are them

Yet we are one

We are them and they are us

As a body within Your body

We feel and see Flesh parting – from a flogging

The paschal range is played out before us

Hasty trials

Expedient decisions

Multiple denials

Bystanders from a distance

Courage

Some help to carry the cross

Mocking, hate, rejection,

Many victims

The state watches, bemused

Blood and water flow, separated

The water no longer offering the eternal welcome of Baptism

We trust You Lord to have the last word.

AMEN

   

[This is a prayer written by my colleague Rev. John Wessels.  John prayed this prayer at a service that was held in support of and in solidarity with Rev. Ecclesia de Lange.  The service of solidarity took place at the exact time as the Church appeal court met to decide on  Ecclesia’s future as a Methodist minister as a result of her   marrying her partner Amanda on the 15th December 2009.  This past Wednesday we heard that Ecclesia had been discontinued as a  Methodist Minister.  If you would like to know more about Ecclesia you can collect a copy of “Ecclesia’s Story” from the back table.  In grief, Alan]

 

Dear Friends                                                                                                                           

 

It is a special occasion to have Stepping Stones Pre-School joining us in  worship this morning.  Today we salute the wonder-full work of all those involved in this amazing school.  During the service we will have the        opportunity to support the staff of Stepping Stones as they seek to            re-dedicate themselves to the awesome task of caring for young lives and educating fertile minds.  Thank you for being among us today! 

 

 

Today is Valentine’s Day.  A day on which our “Cardies culture” encourages us to risk telling another of our love for them with cards, flowers and  chocolates.  And this week is ASH Wednesday that marks the beginning of Lent—the long journey of Jesus to the Cross—the culmination of Jesus risking his life to tell us of his love for all the world. 

 

A Cross—not a card—is the real sign of love.  Let us bare this in mind that when Jesus commands us to love—both neighbours and enemies alike—he is not referring to a soppy or romantic feeling.  He is referring to the       constant commitment to pursue, promote, preserve and protect LIFE in and for the other.  Cross-shaped love is for LIFE.  Cross-shaped love will even give up its life for the sake of saving another’s life.  Cross-shaped love will choose to be killed rather than to kill.  Cross-shaped love continues to  treasure the sacredness of life in both neighbour and enemy. 

Peace, Alan. 

 

Dear Friends,                                                                                                                                     

 

Today is Harvest Festival.  Today we celebrate the life sustaining goodness of God.  We declare our gratitude for God’s generosity for providing an abundance for all of God’s creatures. 

 

In response to God’s generosity we are invited to consider our own.  Today each of us is given an opportunity to commit ourselves to a way of generous living and giving.  Inside this bulletin there is a pledge form.  We are invited to anonymously write down the gifts we commit to offering God.

 

Please note that at CMM we do not believe giving to God should ever be reduced to giving to the Church.  We “believe the world is our parish”  and so we trust that every gift of generosity given to anyone or any organization anywhere at any time is a sacred offering to God to take and use to mend this broken world that God so loves. 

 

The aim of today is to encourage us to become thoughtful and deliberate about our generosity in partnering God to make a Gospel difference in the world. 

 

Please be reminded of my role at CMM.  I am not here to fund-raise for the Church—as pastor I am here to remind us that we are called to grow in generosity just as we are called to grow in love and mercy and truth.  Please also note that our aim is never to become a rich church but rather an enriching church.  

 

Peace,  Alan.

 

Dear Friends,                                                                                                                                 

 

At 6am this past Wednesday I was canoeing—doing my usual 10km stretch between 3 Anchor bay and Clifton.  It was slightly drizzly without a breath of wind.  The water was like glass.  A few hundred meters out I came across a seal enjoying an octopus for breakfast (the octopus was not enjoying!).  A little further out I saw two Southern Right whales and paddled right up close to them.  They were around 15m in length.  Huge animals—gently floating—powerfully blowing—and one waved at me with a vertical show of its enormous tale.  A few minutes later I saw some other whales that were slightly smaller and finally on my way back again as the sun was breaking through the morning cloud I almost bumped into the original two whales who were now swimming only about 150m off shore. 

 

This magical moment reminded me of psalm 19 that tells us how the beauty of God’s creation is ”day to day and night to night” preaching and proclaiming about God’s glory.  According to the psalmist, God’s creation/creatures preach loudly yet silently:

 

“There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard; yet their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.” [Ps 19:3].

 

There were no words spoken in my encounter with the whales YET I was surrounded with a sense of God’s glory and the pure and rich gift of just being alive.   With gratitude, Alan.