Rosemary Rutherford: East Window at St Peter's Nevendon

On Sunday I led my first service at St Peter's Nevendon, which has a significant - being her first - stained glass window by Rosemary Rutherford. My sermon from this service on the Good Samaritan can be read here.

The East Window at St Peter’s Nevendon is an important stained glass window by Rosemary Rutherford. It illustrates the Transfiguration with the central figure being Christ flanked by Moses on the left and Elijah on the right. St Peter kneels in the centre with St John to the left and his brother St James to the right.

Rutherford studied art in Chelmsford and at the Slade in London in the 1930s. She also trained in the art of true fresco. She was a VAD (Voluntary Aid Detachment) Red Cross nurse during the second world war and created a large portfolio of sketches and paintings of all she observed in hospitals, both at home and in Sri Lanka.

She learnt stained glass making and created 40 windows, including four in Broomfield church, where her father was Rector, to replace those shattered by bombing. She was deeply religious and her spirituality guided her artworks. Her fresco at Broomfield church shows ‘Christ Stilling the Storm’ and was surely intended to give people hope during the frightening turmoil of wartime.

Rutherford is perhaps most widely known for her stained glass windows, mostly in churches, throughout East Anglia and further afield from Yorkshire to Sussex and even in New Zealand. The exhibition features a montage of many of her windows showing her versatility of style and subject. Her love of bright, bold colours is evident both in the east window of Broomfield church, in her earlier figurative designs and in the more abstract compositions at Boxford and in windows made posthumously to her designs at Hinderclay in Suffolk.

Project Rutherford at St Mary with St Leonard Broomfield centres on the preservation and conservation of Rutherford’s special mural in the Norman round tower, St Mary’s unique 20th century fresco. Its protection within the tower and its promotion has involved replacement of the spire shingles, repair of the spire’s wooden framework, repointing of the round tower, conservation of the fresco itself and outreach to all church users and to the wider community in bringing the fresco, and Rosemary Rutherford, ‘out into the open’.

To bring the life and works of this remarkable but largely forgotten artist to the attention of the wider community, a permanent exhibition was opened in 2023. This exhibition summarises Rosemary’s life and extraordinary artistic achievements. Models reveal how fresco and stained glass are made. Some of her remarkable range of drawings and paintings are shown, including wartime artwork and flower paintings. Her spiritual, caring nature and brilliant artistry shine through.

This permanent exhibition can be viewed during church opening times, currently Tuesdays and Thursdays 10:30 to 12:30 and after Sunday services.

Broomfield in Essex became a village of artists following the arrival of Revd John Rutherford in 1930. His daughter, the artist Rosemary Rutherford, also moved with them and made the vicarage a base for her artwork including paintings and stained glass. Then, Gwynneth Holt and Thomas Bayliss Huxley-Jones moved to Broomfield in 1949 where they shared a large studio in their garden and both achieved high personal success. My poem 'Broomfield', part of my 'Five Trios' series, reviews their stories, work, legacy and motivations.

For more on the artists of Broomfield, all of whom are commemorated there with blue plaques, see here, here, here, here and here.

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Benjamin Britten - A Boy Was Born.

Evelyn Underhill - total transfiguration of the created order

Here's the reflection and prayers I shared today during the lunchtime Eucharist for St Martin-in-the-Fields:

Evelyn Underhill was born on 6th December 1875 in Wolverhampton. From an early age she described having mystical insights, and her deep interest in spiritual matters continued throughout her life. Between 1921 and 1924 her spiritual director was Baron Friedrich von Hűgel, who encouraged her to place Jesus Christ more centrally at the heart of her reflections. After his death in 1925 she began taking on a prominent role in the Church of England, leading retreats at Pleshey and elsewhere, and as a spiritual guide to many. Amongst the books she published are ‘Mysticism’ (in 1911) and ‘Worship’ (in 1936). She was one of the first women theologians to give public lectures at English universities, and was the first woman allowed officially to teach Church of England clergy.

Evelyn Underhill is one of the most important Christian mystics of the twentieth century. While not as well-known as Thomas Merton, Simone Weil or Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, nevertheless her contribution to Christian spirituality is as great. Evelyn Underhill’s biographer Dana Greene has called her an Artist of the Infinite Life. For Underhill, Christian mysticism is shaped by two key characteristics: artistry and ordinariness.

Underhill was one of the first important figures to champion the humility, ordinariness, and indeed “normalcy” of the mystical life. The subtitle of one of her best books, ‘Practical Mysticism’ is “A Little Book for Normal People.” She worked hard to dispel the notion that mysticism only belonged to the super-holy, the super-religious, the super-pious. On the contrary, the contemplative life is the ordinary state for Christian maturity. (http://evelynunderhill.org/three-evelyn-underhill-anthologies/)

In her letters she describes her own mystical experiences: ‘The first thing I found out was exalted and indescribable beauty in the most squalid places. I still remember walking down the Notting Hill main road and observing the landscape [which was extremely sordid] with joy and astonishment. Even the movement of traffic had something universal and sublime about it … one sees the world at those moments so completely as “energized by the invisible” that there is no temptation to rest in mere enjoyment of the visible.’

In her book called ‘Mysticism’ she continued this understanding that mystical consciousness transforms our view of everyday existence writing that: ‘A harmony is thus set up between the mystic and Life in all its forms. Undistracted by appearance, he sees, feels, and knows it in one piercing act of loving comprehension….The heart outstrips the clumsy senses, and sees – perhaps for an instant, perhaps for long periods of bliss – an undistorted and more veritable world. All things are perceived in the light of charity, and hence under the aspect of beauty: for beauty is simply Reality seen with the eyes of love….For such a reverent and joyous sight the meanest accidents of life are radiant. The London streets are paths of loveliness; the very omnibuses look like coloured archangels, their laps filled full of little trustful souls.’

Todd E. Johnson has written that Underhill’s writings on what we now call “spirituality” are bracketed by two works, Mysticism (1911) and The Spiritual Life (1937). Mysticism, can be understood well by reflecting on its subtitle, A Study of the Nature and Development of Man’s Spiritual Consciousness. This book described the human potential of ascent to the divine. Underhill used a five-step process of conversion, purgation, illumination, surrender, and union. The process begins with conversion, or a threshold of awareness of the ultimate reality (God) existing outside oneself. She also emphasised the fourth step, surrender, which she drew from many mystical writings, but St. John of the Cross in particular. This stage was the “dark night of the soul,” that period of dryness that tests one’s ultimate commitment to the spiritual journey. Underhill’s goal was to demonstrate the universal human capacity for mystical accent to “reality,” that is, the more real supernatural world that is the goal of human existence.

The small later volume ‘The Spiritual Life’ focused on Christian spirituality and used a threefold pattern of the spiritual life: adoration, adherence and cooperation: ‘This was an approach to the spiritual life that began with God’s initiative and resulted in a life conformed to the cruciform posture of our Lord. It also involved community and service to others.’

She writes that the Christian revelation is in its very nature historical and incarnational – ‘God coming the whole way to man, and discovered and adored within the arena of man’s life at one point in time, in and through the Humanity of Christ.’ Therefore, she writes that: ‘Arising from its incarnational character, and indeed closely connected with it, is the fact that Christian worship is always directed towards the sanctification of life. All worship has a creative aim, for it is a movement of the creature in the direction of Reality; and here, the creative aim is that total transfiguration of the created order in which the incarnation of the Logos finds its goal. Christian worship, then, is to be judged by the degree in which it tends to Holiness; since this is the response to the pressure of the Holy which is asked of the Church and of the soul. The Christian is required to use the whole of his existence as sacramental material; offer it and consecrate it at every point, so that it may contribute to the Glory of God.

This ‘double orientation to the natural and the supernatural, testifying at once to the unspeakable otherness of God transcendent and the intimate nearness of God incarnate, is felt in all the various expressions of genuine Christian worship. The monk or nun rising to recite the Night Office that the Church’s praise of God may never cease, and the Quaker waiting in silent assurance on the Spirit given at Pentecost; the ritualist, ordering with care every detail of a complicated ceremonial that God may be glorified thereby, and the old woman content to boil her potatoes in the same sacred intention; the Catholic burning a candle before the symbolic image of the Sacred Heart or confidently seeking the same Divine Presence in the tabernacle, and the Methodist or Lutheran pouring out his devotion in hymns to the Name of Jesus; the Orthodox bowed down in speechless adoration at the culminating moment of the Divine Mysteries, and the Salvationist marching to drum and tambourine behind the banner of the Cross – all these are here at one. Their worship is conditioned by a concrete fact; the stooping down of the Absolute to disclose Himself within the narrow human radius, the historical incarnation of the Eternal Logos within time.’

So, in response to Underhill’s focus on worship as preparation to find God in our ordinary lives and through acts of service in ordinary life to bless others and create signs of the kingdom of God, I invite you, using the words of Evelyn Underhill herself, to: ‘Gather yourself up’ and give your complete loving attention to something outside of yourself. ‘As to the object of contemplation,’ she says, ‘it matters little. From Alp to insect, anything will do, provided that your attitude be right: for all things in this world towards which you are stretching out are linked together, and one truly apprehended will be the gateway to rest.’

‘Then -- with attention no longer frittered amongst the petty accidents and interests of your personal life, but poised, tense, ready for the work you shall demand of it -- stretch out by a distinct act of loving will towards one of the myriad manifestations of life that surrounds you: and which, in an ordinary way, you hardly notice unless you happen to need them.’

What matters is that you ‘pour yourself out towards it in an act of loving will’ and ‘do not draw its image towards you.’ Deliberate and impassioned attentiveness of this kind is ‘an attentiveness which soon transcends all consciousness of yourself, as separate from and attending to the thing seen.’ That is how we receive the mystery of God.

So we pray, ‘Going out from the silence, teach me to be more alert, humble, expectant than I have been in the past: ever ready to encounter You in quiet, homely ways: in every appeal to my compassion, every act of unselfish love which shows up and humbles my imperfect love, may I recognize You still walking through the world. Give me that grace of simplicity which alone can receive your Mystery. Amen.

O God, Origin, Sustainer, and End of all your creatures: Grant that your Church, taught by your servant Evelyn Underhill, guarded evermore by your power, and guided by your Spirit into the light of truth, may continually offer to you all glory and thanksgiving and attain with your saints to the blessed hope of everlasting life. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

‘Let our lives run to Your embrace and breathe the breath of Eternity. O God Supreme! Most secret and most present, most beautiful and strong. Constant yet Incomprehensible, changeless yet changing all! What can I say, my God, my Life, my Holy Joy. You are the only reality’ ‘Guide us with your adorable wisdom,’ ‘take possession of our souls. So fill our imaginations with pictures of Your love’ and ‘make us ready for adventure’ knowing that ‘beyond us are the hills of God, the snowfields of the Spirit, the Other Kingdom.’ Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Save us in our present crisis, from sliding down into the confusions of a world that has lost contact with God, by means of a constant adoring remembrance of the universal charity of God, overflowing all divisions and embracing all our petty loves and hates, your untouched joy redeeming our suffering, your deep tranquillity resolving our conflicts, and enable us to make a steady effort to embody something of those holy realities in our prayer and life. May the threefold rhythm of adoration, intercession and communion in which the spiritual life consists bring us into Your abiding presence and peace, as we are closely united with a world in torment; and fulfil our sacred privilege to carry that world and its sorrow with us, and submit it in our prayer to Your redeeming action. So we cry, ‘Within Your wounds, hide me!’ for all who suffer and mourn at this time. ‘Soothe our restlessness: say to our hearts “Peace be still.” Brood over us, within us, Spirit of perfect peace… enfolded in Your loving care.’ Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

In these ways, may we come to possess an extreme sensitiveness to the state and needs of souls and of the world. As those who live very close to nature become tuned to her rhythm, and can discern in solitary moments all the movements of her secret life, or as musicians distinguish each separate note in a great symphony and yet receive the music as a whole; so may we be sensitised to every note and cadence in the rich and intricate music of common life. May we, through our intercessions, stretch out over an ever wider area the filaments of love, and receive and endure in our own persons the anguish of its sorrow, its helplessness, its confusions, and its sin; suffering again and again the darkness of Gethsemane and the Cross as the price of redemptive power. For it is our awful privilege to stand in the gap between the world’s infinite need and the treasuries of the Divine Love. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Going out from this silence, teach us to be more alert, humble, expectant than we have been in the past: ever ready to encounter You in quiet, homely ways: in every appeal to our compassion, every act of unselfish love which shows up and humbles our imperfect love, may we recognize You still walking through the world. Give us that grace of simplicity which alone can receive your Mystery. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

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Van Morrison - Hymns To The Silence.

Living God’s future now

Here is the sermon that I preached at St Peter's Nottingham yesterday:

‘A Future that’s Bigger than the Past’ is a book by Sam Wells, the Vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields that focuses on the theology and methods of HeartEdge as a vision for renewal in the Church. In the book Sam asks “What kind of church do we need to become if we are to face the challenges and take the opportunities of the years ahead?” He explores what it means to see culture, commerce and compassion as out-workings of congregational life, and sources of growth for the church in faithfulness as well as numbers. The book is called ‘A Future Bigger than the Past’ because he wants us to rediscover a sense that this is a great time to be the Church and God is sending us everything we need to do the work of the Holy Spirit.

At present, within the Church of England, we often struggle to see a future that’s bigger than the past. That’s because the church in the West is getting smaller; and the church is becoming narrower. Those who regularly attend worship are fewer; and the church’s reputation and energy are becoming associated with initiatives that are introverted and often lack the full breadth of the gospel. In response, churches often focus on what they don’t have, who isn’t there, and the problems they face. When we think in terms of deficits, we begin with our hurts and our stereotypes, and find a hundred reasons why we can’t do things or certain kinds of people don’t belong. As churches, we are often quick to attribute our plight to a hostile culture or an indifferent, distracted population or even a sinful generation; but much slower to recognise that our situation is significantly of our own making.

Yet that phrase - ‘A Future that’s Bigger than the Past’ - remains true for us as Christians regardless of our circumstances or the state of the Church because our future is ultimately in heaven. As Paul states, in Philippians 3:20, ‘Our citizenship [as Christians] is in heaven.’ Pause for a moment to reflect on how transformational those words are; ‘Our citizenship is in heaven.’ Paul literally shifts the centre of the universe, from this existence and our daily reality, to the realm of essence, the things that last forever, the habitation of God and of those whom God has called to share the life of eternity. Rather than earth being the source and testing ground of truth and coherence, the measure of all things becomes heaven. When we’re assessing whether something is right or wrong, when we’re determining the current state of the Church, the question to ask is, does it stand the test of eternity? Will it abide with God forever? Or does it belong to the world that is passing away?

I want us to follow Paul today and start to concentrate on where we’re going. We’re going to heaven – where there is more than enough love for all, more than enough joy, more than enough truth, more than enough space for everyone to flourish. When we do so, we arrive at a new definition of the Church: a bunch of people who all come from different places but are all going to the same place. We’re a people pooling our resources for a journey we make together to a place none of us have ever been. There are no experts, because we’re all citizens of a country we’ve never visited and longing for a home we’ve never known.

How do we prepare for that journey? We look at the glimpses we have in scripture of heaven, including our Gospel reading today – the story of the Transfiguration (Matthew 17.1-9). In speaking of that story Sam Wells says: “There’s glory – the glory of the Lord in the face of Jesus Christ. There’s the pattern of God’s story in Israel and the church, a story that finds its most poignant moments in the midst of suffering and exile. There’s the loving, tender, presence and heavenly voice of God the Father – a voice that for the only time in their lives, the disciples hear and understand. And there’s the extraordinary realisation that, even though all this could have gone on without them, the disciples have been caught up in the life of the Trinity, the mystery of salvation, the unfolding of God’s heart, the beauty of holiness.”

Up until this point, “the disciples know Jesus does plenty of amazing and wonderful things and says many beautiful and true things, but they still assume he’s basically the same as them.” It’s only as they go up the mountain with him that the veil slips and they’re invited in to a whole other world. A world in which “Jesus is completely at home,” “even when the Father’s voice thunders from above.” “And more remarkably still, it seems there’s a place for them in it, hanging out with the likes of Moses and Elijah. They’ve been given a glimpse of glory. It’s a glory that’s faithful to the story of Israel, a glory that has Jesus at the centre of it, a glory that has God speaking words of love, a glory that has a place for them in it, however stumbling and clumsy they are, and finally a glory in which Jesus touches them tenderly in their fear.”

The glimpse of glory that they are given is a glimpse of heaven. In the glimpse of heaven they are given they first see Jesus with his face shining like the sun. The light of the glory of God shines in the face of Jesus. God is seen – seen, not heard - in Jesus. What the disciples see of God in the Transfiguration is demonstration, not proclamation; the light of God seen as it is lived out in the life of his Son.

Second, they see Jesus in conversation and in relationship with Moses and Elijah. Moses, Elijah and Jesus are together in community, communing one with the other. The letter to the Hebrews speaks about a great crowd of witnesses in heaven made up of the prophets, saints and martyrs who have gone before but with whom we are in relationship. We see here, in the Transfiguration, a glimpse of that community of saints of which we are part.

Third, we see that such glimpses are currently temporary while they encourage us to yearn that they become permanent. Peter responds to the Transfiguration with the hope that Moses, Elijah and Jesus can tabernacle together (or live together in tents) just as God tabernacled (or dwelt in a tent) with the Israelites in the wilderness. Although, he yearns for a longer, more permanent experience, Peter has to accept the temporary nature of the Transfiguration in his present reality. A cloud overshadows the disciples and, when they look up, Jesus is alone again.

As citizens of heaven we are given glimpses of heaven in order that we begin to live as if we were already there. What do the glimpses of heaven that we see in the Transfiguration show us about how to live as if we were already in heaven?

First, the light of God was seen as it was lived out and demonstrated in the life of Christ. The church, therefore, should be about modelling and making possible forms of social relationship not found elsewhere. The church should seek to shape communities whose habits and practices anticipate and portray the life of God’s kingdom. Our role in mission is to cultivate assets and thereby foster and advance abundant life. So, it makes sense for the church to witness to its faith in an incarnate Lord who cares for the material reality of people’s lives by building community capacity and enhancing training, education, personal development and creative expression so as to enable individuals and neighbourhoods to flourish. Social engagement isn’t an add-on to the core business of worship; it’s a form of worship, because in the kingdom disciples are humbled, moved and transformed as they stumble into the surprising places and come face to face with the disarming people in whom the Holy Spirit makes Christ known. Christianity caught on in the second and third centuries because it created institutions that gave people possibilities and opportunities the rest of the world had yet to imagine. That’s what Christianity originally was: a revolutionary idea that took institutional form. That’s what it needs to become again. The church must model what the kingdom of God (its term for the alternative society, its language of God’s future now) means and entails in visible and tangible form.

Second, this modelling and demonstration of God’s future now will be centred on community. The Transfiguration shows us Christ in communion with the prophets, saints and martyrs. The chief end of humanity is, as the Westminster Shorter Catechism puts it, to glorify God by enjoying him forever. Heaven is all about relationships; enjoying God, each other and ourselves. Therefore, Christianity must take the present opportunity to be what it was always called to be: an alternative society, overlapping and sharing space with regular society, but living in a different time – that’s to say, modelling God’s future in our present. It’s not enough to cherish the scriptures, embody the sacraments, set time aside for prayer, and shape disciples’ character in the ways of truth, if such practices simply withdraw disciples for select periods, uncritically then to return them after a brief pause to a world struggling with inequality, identity, and purpose. Rather, what we need is to become and to model communities of ordinary virtues, but ones infused with grace: thus trust, honesty, politeness, forbearance, and respect are the bedrock of such communities, while tolerance, forgiveness, reconciliation, and resilience are among its abiding graces. What I’m describing is the transformation of churches into dynamic centres of abundant life, receiving, evidencing, dwelling in and sharing forms of social flourishing and being a blessing to their neighbourhood.

The Lent Course that you will shortly begin here explores the question ‘Who is my neighbour?’ in terms of: being waited on by Angel Neighbours; being a neighbour to those close to us; giving hospitality to strangers; standing up for the oppressed; carrying another’s load; and being a neighbour to those on the road. That course will, therefore, provide an opportunity for you to explore together how to become and how to model being a community of ordinary virtues infused with grace.

Third, we recognise the temporary nature of our community whilst longing, like Peter, for a more permanent experience of heaven on earth. That reality is implied by the phrase ‘The future is always bigger than the past.’ In essence, we don’t know, but we’re learning. We haven’t arrived, but the journey’s great. We’re not sure exactly where we’re going, but it’s getting better all the time. We’ve had some wonderful experiences, but the best is yet to come. So, we pray for the kingdom to come in future, on earth as it is in heaven, while seeking to create temporary signs of that kingdom in the here and now.

The experience of what it’s like to feel as though we’re already in heaven is what we call the kingdom of God. In HeartEdge we are seeking the renewal of the church by catalysing kingdom communities where we all have that experience. That is transfiguration. In Jesus’ transfiguration we see a whole reality within and beneath and beyond what we thought we understood; in times of bewilderment and confusion, we are shown God’s glory, that we may find a deeper truth to life than we ever knew, make firmer friends than we ever had, discover reasons for living beyond what we’d ever imagined, and be folded into God’s grace like never before. In other words, God reshapes our reality, to give us a new and right spirit to trust that even in the midst of suffering and hardship, truth can still be experienced and shared.

Entering in to that experience of glory is where we’re going. God invites us all to be in heaven, not because any of us have a right to be there, or because God is trying to set straight a historic injustice or present imbalance, but because God chooses never to be except to be with us in Christ, and that being-with is not a for-some-people thing but a for-everyone thing, and it’s not a for-now thing it’s a forever thing. We prepare for that reality by learning to live with everybody now and receive their unexpected gifts with imagination and gratitude in recognition that these are the people with whom we’ll be spending eternity, lucky and blessed as we all are to be there. So, we’d best use these earthly years as a time for getting in the mood.

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Echo and the Bunnymen - Heaven Up Here.

Light Come Shining: The Transformations of Bob Dylan

In Light Come Shining: The Transformations of Bob Dylan (Oxford University Press) Andrew McCarron:

'deems major turning points in the songwriter’s life and career: his 1966 motorcycle accident, his mid-1970s conversion to Christianity, and his newfound creative spark in the late 1980s. All three, argues the author, are manifestations of a consistent “script” in which Dylan confronts his fear of death, becomes transfigured, and channels that transfiguration in new ways into his music. In coming to these conclusions, McCarron had no assistance from Dylan himself or those close to him; this work of “psychobiography” is based solely on a close study of Dylan’s interviews, writing, and performances. Though the author’s discussion of psychobiology is often leaden, overall the book is an insightful and often persuasive work, particularly in how spiritual themes (especially apocalyptic ones) persist in Dylan’s music. (Counter to the assumption that Dylan cast off his Christianity sometime in the early 1980s, McCarron finds plenty of evidence that the faith still matters to him.) Beyond Dylan’s music career, McCarron also explores the influence of his Jewish background, his growing up during the Cold War, and his upbringing in rural Minnesota as playing essential roles in his story.' (Kirkus Review)

Richie Unterberger writes that:

'The book is most persuasive when examining how spiritual themes, quite often of an apocalyptic nature, persist in Dylan’s music. For instance, McCarron finds that Dylan’s conversion to Christianity and a kind of fundamentalist gospel-rock that mystified and angered many of his longtime fans can be understood as “a meta-narrative of death and redemptive change that found relatively easy expression in the Christian stories and symbols that Dylan embraced as he approached the age of forty.” And although Dylan eased off on his hard-line Christianity within a few years, McCarron finds evidence that the faith still matters to him, and that elements of the language associated with his religious fervor linger in his music.'

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Bob Dylan - Pressing On.

Start:Stop - Take us to the mountain-top and sustain us in the valleys

Bible reading

Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”—not knowing what he said. While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen. (Luke 9. 28 – 36)

Meditation

As they looked back on their experiences with Jesus the disciples were able to see that the sight of Jesus transfigured had been an important assurance for them that Jesus was God’s Son and that the path he followed, even though it led to his death, was the path that God had mapped out for him. Jesus was seen in glory speaking with the great patriarch and the great prophet of the Israelites, Moses and Elijah, and then God spoke to confirm Jesus as his Son. Everything about this experience spoke of Jesus as God. Moses and Elijah spoke to Jesus about his plan to fulfil God’s purpose by dying in Jerusalem and God confirmed to them that everything Jesus said came directly from God himself. This experience should have been a confirmation for the disciples of everything that Jesus is and was about to do but, at the time, it seemed to be too much for them to comprehend. They were afraid, confused and kept the experience to themselves. It was only later, looking back, that they could see the confirmation that this experience provided.

I wonder if we have had experiences of events and plans coming together in ways that confirmed to us that we were on the right path. It may be that we need that kind of confirmation in our lives and should be asking God for his confirmation about our direction in life. What God wants to do for us, as he did for the disciples, is to give us a greater vision of Jesus as he really is. That will not answer all of our questions but can strengthen our ability to trust and follow him through our questions and uncertainties.

Like the disciples, we, too, will have mountain-top experiences in our lives; times of great blessing and revelation when all seems well with the world and when we know without any uncertainty that we are God’s children. What, I wonder, have your mountain-top experiences been? Whatever they were and however wonderful they were, we inevitably, as did Jesus, came down from the mountain-top to experience suffering or failure. We cannot live on the mountain-tops but those experiences sustain us when we are in the valleys. Such experiences are one of the means God uses to go with us through the valleys, even the valley of the shadow of death.

The disciples only recognised the full significance of their mountain-top experience as they looked back. At the time, they felt afraid and confused. Are you able to look back on events that may not have been clear at the time but which have been significant, sustaining experiences for you in your life? Have there been times of joy, wonder or blessing which you have now lost sight of in your life and need to rekindle and relive? The disciples relived their experiences by telling them to others and by having them written down so that their stories could be passed on to others including us. It may be that you also need to relive your experiences of refreshment, blessing and revelation by telling others about them or by writing them down to share with others.

Prayer

Lord God, give us your guidance over the direction in life through the experience of events and plans coming together in ways that confirm to us that we are on the right path. Give us a greater vision of Jesus as he really is and, through that greater vision, strengthen our ability to trust and follow Jesus through our questions and uncertainties.

Take us to the mountain-top and sustain us in the valleys.

Lord God, give us mountain-top experiences; times of great blessing and revelation when all seems well with the world and when we know without any uncertainty that we are God’s children. We know that we cannot live on the mountain-tops but those experiences sustain us when we are in the valleys. Go with us through the valleys, even the valley of the shadow of death, and sustain us in part through the legacy of our mountain-top experiences.

Take us to the mountain-top and sustain us in the valleys.

Often we only recognise the full significance of our experience as we look back. Encourage us to look back on events that may not have been clear to us at the time but which can become significant, sustaining experiences for us in our lives. Remind us of times of joy, wonder or blessing which we have now lost sight of and need to rekindle and relive. Enable us to relive our experiences of refreshment, blessing and revelation by telling others about them or by writing them down to share with others.

Take us to the mountain-top and sustain us in the valleys.
Blessing

Mountain-top experiences, times of great blessing and revelation, recognising the full significance of our experiences, confirmation that we are on the right path, and a greater vision of Jesus; may those blessings of Almighty God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, rest upon you and remain with you always. Amen.

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The Brilliance - Does Your Heart Break?

Transfiguration: A glimpse of glory

Last night our Evensong for the Feast of the Transfiguration followed by a Garden Party drew a congregation of 125 to St Stephen Walbrook. The setting used by the Choir of St Stephen Walbrook was Hebert Howells in G and the anthem was Edgar Bainton's And I Saw A New Heaven. In my reflection for this service I said the following:
The dictionary definition of transfiguration is: a change in form or appearance or an exalting, glorifying, or spiritual change. Those aspects of transfiguration can be seen in our Gospel reading, but the story defines the word best.

Sam Wells, the Vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields, puts it like this:

“There’s glory – the glory of the Lord in the face of Jesus Christ. There’s the pattern of God’s story in Israel and the church, a story that finds its most poignant moments in the midst of suffering and exile. There’s the loving, tender, presence and heavenly voice of God the Father – a voice that for the only time in their lives, the disciples hear and understand. And there’s the extraordinary realisation that, even though all this could have gone on without them, the disciples have been caught up in the life of the Trinity, the mystery of salvation, the unfolding of God’s heart, the beauty of holiness.”

The way he describes it, transfiguration involves the glory of seeing a person or event in the bigger story of God’s loving purposes for the world. Up until this point, “the disciples know Jesus does plenty of amazing and wonderful things and says many beautiful and true things, but they still assume he’s basically the same as them.” It’s only as they go up the mountain with him that the veil slips and they’re invited in to a whole other world. A world in which “Jesus is completely at home,” “even when the Father’s voice thunders from above.” “And more remarkably still, it seems there’s a place for them in it, hanging out with the likes of Moses and Elijah. They’ve been given a glimpse of glory. It’s a glory that’s faithful to the story of Israel, a glory that has Jesus at the centre of it, a glory that has God speaking words of love, a glory that has a place for them in it, however stumbling and clumsy they are, and finally a glory in which Jesus touches them tenderly in their fear.“

Sam Wells suggests that this experience, this glimpse of glory, can shape the way we pray by giving our prayers the same extra dimension. In fact, he details three different ways to pray. The first involves Resurrection. “Resurrection prayer is a prayer calling for a miracle. It is prayer of faithful risk. We look to the heavens with tightened fist and say, ‘Sweet Jesus, if you’re alive, make your presence known!’” 

The second way to pray is Incarnation. This is “a prayer of presence. It is, perhaps, more silent than a prayer of Resurrection. It is a prayer which recognizes that, yes, Jesus was raised, but that it happened through brokenness. Through Christ, God shares our pain and our frailty. So we pray acknowledging that God suffers with us.”

The third way to pray is Transfiguration. Sam writes, “God, in your son’s transfiguration we see a whole reality within and beneath and beyond what we thought we understood; in … times of bewilderment and confusion, show … father your glory, that [we] may find a deeper truth to … life than [we] ever knew, make firmer friends than [we] ever had, discover reasons for living beyond what [we’d] ever imagined, and be folded into your grace like never before.” “In other words, it is a prayer that, in whatever circumstance, asks God to reshape our reality, to give us a new and right spirit to trust that even in the midst of suffering and hardship, truth can still be experienced and shared.”

“On the mountain, the disciples discovered that Christ was part of a conversation with Israel and God and was dwelling in glory in a way that they had no idea of and could hardly grasp and yet it put everything on a different plane.” 

As a result, the prayer of Transfiguration is a different kind of a prayer. “The prayer of resurrection has a certain defiance about it – in the face of what seem to be all the known facts, it calls on God to produce the goods and turn the situation round. It has courage and hope but there’s always that fear that it has a bit of fantasy as well. The prayer of incarnation is honest and unflinching about the present and the future, but you could say it’s a little too much swathed in tragedy … it’s so concerned to face … reality … that there’s always that fear that it’s never going to discover the glory of what lies above.”

The prayer of Transfiguration is different. “Not so much, ‘Fix this and take it off my desk!’ Nor even, ‘Be with me and share in my struggle, now and always.’ But something more like, ‘Make this trial and tragedy, this problem and pain, a glimpse of your glory, a window into your world, when I can see your face, sense the mystery in all things, and walk with angels and saints. Bring me closer to you in this crisis than I ever have been in calmer times. Make this a moment of truth, and when I cower in fear and feel alone, touch me, raise me, and make me alive like never before.’”

Maybe you would like to make the prayer of transfiguration your prayer for yourself at this time, “in the midst of whatever it is you’re wrestling with today.”

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Edgar Bainton - And I Saw A New Heaven. 

Start:Stop - The Prayer of Transfiguration

Today's Start:Stop - 10 minutes of quiet reflection repeated every 15 minutes between 7.30 - 9.30am on Tuesday mornings at St Stephen Walbrook - focuses on the Prayer of Transfiguration:

Bible reading

Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white. 3 Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him ... While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Get up and do not be afraid.” And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone. As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.” (Matthew 17. 1 – 9)

Meditation

The dictionary definition of transfiguration is: a change in form or appearance or an exalting, glorifying, or spiritual change. Those aspects of transfiguration can be seen in our reading, but the story defines the word best. Sam Wells, the Vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields, puts it like this: “There’s glory – the glory of the Lord in the face of Jesus Christ. There’s the pattern of God’s story in Israel and the church, a story that finds its most poignant moments in the midst of suffering and exile. There’s the loving, tender, presence and heavenly voice of God the Father – a voice that for the only time in their lives, the disciples hear and understand. And there’s the extraordinary realisation that, even though all this could have gone on without them, the disciples have been caught up in the life of the Trinity, the mystery of salvation, the unfolding of God’s heart, the beauty of holiness.”

The way he describes it, transfiguration involves the glory of seeing a person or event in the bigger story of God’s loving purposes for the world. Up until this point, “the disciples know Jesus does plenty of amazing and wonderful things and says many beautiful and true things, but they still assume he’s basically the same as them.” It’s only as they go up the mountain with him that the veil slips and they’re invited in to a whole other world. They’re given a glimpse of glory. “It’s a glory that’s faithful to the story of Israel, a glory that has Jesus at the centre of it, a glory that has God speaking words of love, a glory that has a place for them in it, however stumbling and clumsy they are, and finally a glory in which Jesus touches them tenderly in their fear.“

Sam Wells suggests that this experience, this glimpse of glory, can shape the way we pray by giving our prayers the same extra dimension. Sam writes, “God, in your son’s transfiguration we see a whole reality within and beneath and beyond what we thought we understood; in … times of bewilderment and confusion, show … forth your glory, that [we] may find a deeper truth to … life than [we] ever knew, make firmer friends than [we] ever had, discover reasons for living beyond what [we’d] ever imagined, and be folded into your grace like never before.” “In other words, it is a prayer that, in whatever circumstance, asks God to reshape our reality, to give us a new and right spirit to trust that even in the midst of suffering and hardship, truth can still be experienced and shared.” “On the mountain, the disciples discovered that Christ was part of a conversation with Israel and God and was dwelling in glory in a way that they had no idea of and could hardly grasp and yet it put everything on a different plane.”

So, maybe you’d like to make the prayer of transfiguration your prayer for yourself at this time, “in the midst of whatever it is you’re wrestling with today.” “Not so much, ‘Fix this and take it off my desk!’ Nor even, ‘Be with me and share in my struggle, now and always.’ But something more like, ‘Make this trial and tragedy, this problem and pain, a glimpse of your glory, a window into your world, when I can see your face, sense the mystery in all things, and walk with angels and saints. Bring me closer to you in this crisis than I ever have been in calmer times. Make this a moment of truth, and when I cower in fear and feel alone, touch me, raise me, and make me alive like never before.’”

Prayer

Lord God, shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. Show us a glory that’s faithful to the story of Israel, a glory that has Jesus at the centre of it, a glory that has God speaking words of love, a glory that has a place for them in it, however stumbling and clumsy we are, and finally a glory in which Jesus touches us tenderly in our fear.

Shine in our hearts to give us a glimpse of your glory.

We ask that you will reshape our reality to give us a new and right spirit to trust that, even in the midst of suffering and hardship, truth can still be experienced and shared. In times of bewilderment and confusion, show forth your glory, that we may find a deeper truth to life than we ever knew, make firmer friends than we ever had, discover reasons for living beyond what we’d ever imagined, and be folded into your grace like never before.

Shine in our hearts to give us a glimpse of your glory.

Make our trials and tragedies, our problems and pain, a glimpse of your glory, a window into your world, when we can see your face, sense the mystery in all things, and walk with angels and saints. Bring us closer to you in our crises than we ever have been in calmer times. Make them moments of truth, and when we cower in fear and feel alone, touch us, raise us, and make us alive like never before.

Shine in our hearts to give us a glimpse of your glory.

Blessing

God speaking words of love, Jesus touching us tenderly in our fear, a new and right spirit to trust, a deeper truth to life than we ever knew, firmer friends than we ever had, reasons for living beyond what we’d ever imagined, sensing the mystery in all things. May all those blessings of God almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always. Amen.

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Delirious? - We Give You Praise.

The Transfiguration: From mystery into mystery

Here is the reflection from this evening's Choral Evensong for the Feast of the Transfiguration at St Stephen Walbrook:

The Transfiguration (Mark 9. 2 - 8) ‘is a vivid portrayal of the mystery of Jesus’ being with us, with the law and the prophets, and with God, all at the same time, and an invitation for us to enter that mystery.’ Through the responses of the disciples, it ‘demonstrates how much we resist doing so, and how Jesus finds a way to be with us regardless.’ (Sam Wells, A Nazareth Manifesto)

The great modern religious artist Albert Herbert viewed ‘Bible stories … as symbols, metaphors, revealing the ‘marvellous’.’ He said that his ‘painting of Moses climbing the mountain and speaking to God in a cloud, is about the incomprehensible; God is beyond understanding, it is the revelation coming from outside the tangible world of the senses. It cannot be put better than in this Biblical image of something hidden from you by a cloud; and you going upwards with great difficulty, away from the ordinary world, and looking for something hidden from you.’

The Transfiguration is about this same sense of being taken out of our routine lives and routine experience in order that we experience something more, something beyond, something outside our current experience which is transforming and transfiguring without being fully explicable. If it is real our encounter with God must ultimately be an encounter with mystery because God is someone other, someone more than, someone beyond and outside of human comprehension and reasoning. God reveals himself through Jesus, in ways that we can see and know and understand, but, ultimately, remains someone who is more than we can fully see and know and understand.

The Transfiguration was, therefore, the disciples (and, through them, ourselves) encountering the mystery of God. We call such experiences, ‘mountain-top experiences’. We are all likely to have had them at some point in our lives. Moments when something we encounter takes our breath away and we are taken out of ourselves and become specially aware of the wonder of the world, of existence or, directly, of God. They can be times of great blessing and revelation when all seems well with the world and when we know without any uncertainty that we are God’s children. Our mountain-top experience might be a great worship service, an experience of healing, answered prayer or the gifts of the Holy Spirit, or a sense of overwhelming joy or of union with every other living thing in the whole created order but, equally, cannot be restricted just to those moments.

We can go with the flow in such moments and open ourselves to experience something beyond our understanding and experience or we can respond, like the disciples, with some fear and trepidation at this disruption of our usual experience and make attempts, as Peter did in proposing tents for Jesus, Moses and Elijah, to get this disturbing experience back inside the limits of our control and understanding.

Whatever it is and however wonderful it is, we will inevitably, as Jesus, did come down from the mountain-top to experience suffering or in our case failure. We cannot live on the mountain-tops but those experience sustain us when we are in the valleys. Such experiences are one of the means God uses to go with us through the valleys, even the valley of the shadow of death.

Mountain-top experiences are surprises which we cannot look for or manufacture. They are gifts for us to experience, appreciate and enjoy. The singer-songwriter Bruce Cockburn sums up the attitude we need when he sings:

‘There you go
Swimming deeper into mystery
Here I remain
Only seeing where you used to be
Stared at the ceiling
'Til my ears filled up with tears
Never got to know you
Suddenly you're out of here

Gone from mystery into mystery
Gone from daylight into night
Another step deeper into darkness
Closer to the light’

To genuinely encounter God as he is, we cannot constrain or control him but have to accept that he is beyond our understanding, more than we can fully grasp, comprehend or reason. When we are open in this way, we can go swimming deeper into mystery, we can go from mystery to mystery, from daylight into night, another step deeper into darkness, closer to the light. This is the invitation and welcome extended to us through the Transfiguration.

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Bruce Cockburn - Closer To The Light.

Services for the Feast of the Transfiguration

Today is the Feast of the Transfiguration and at St Stephen Walbrook we will celebrate at our 12.45pm lunchtime Eucharist (where we will reflect on mountain-top experiences) and at a 6.00pm Festal Evensong (where in the reflection we will encourage our welcome of mystery). The setting for Choral Evensong, sung by the St Stephen Walbrook Choir, will be Stanford in Bb and the anthem will be 'Jubilate Deo' by Benjamin Britten. This service will be followed by a Garden Party at which wine and snacks will be served and you are encouraged to bring guests with you (39 Walbrook, London EC4N 8BN).

The choir that sings every Thursday for Eucharist at St Stephen Walbrook is a consort of four professional singers led by Choir Director, Emma Corke. They sing an unaccompanied mass setting, generally of the seventeenth century, and a motet (as well as a congregational hymn). Emma Corke joined the choir of St Stephen's in 1997, becoming Choir Director in 2002. She has also sung with the Oratory Choir and the BBC Singers. Our organist, Joe Sentance has been associated with St Stephen Walbrook since 1987 as well as having been Master of Music at the Chapels Royal, H.M.Tower of London and Director of Music at Sherborne Abbey.

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Sir Charles Villiers Stanford - Magnificat in B flat.

Start:Stop - Mountain-top experiences

Bible reading

Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”—not knowing what he said. While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen. (Luke 9. 28 – 36)

Meditation

As they looked back on their experiences with Jesus the disciples were able to see that the sight of Jesus transfigured had been an important assurance for them that Jesus was God’s Son and that the path he followed, even though it led to his death, was the path that God had mapped out for him. At his Transfiguration Jesus was seen in glory speaking with both the great patriarch and the great prophet of the Israelites, Moses and Elijah, and then God himself spoke to confirm Jesus as his Son. Everything about this experience spoke of Jesus as God. Moses and Elijah spoke to Jesus about his plan to fulfil God’s purpose by dying in Jerusalem and God confirmed that everything Jesus said came directly from him. This experience should have been a confirmation for the disciples of everything that Jesus is and was about to do but, at the time, it seemed to be too much for them to comprehend. They were afraid, confused and kept the experience to themselves. It was only later, looking back, that they could see the confirmation that this experience provided.

I wonder if we have had experiences of events and plans coming together in ways that confirmed to us that we were on the right path. It may be that we need that kind of confirmation in our lives now and could be asking God for his confirmation about our direction in life. What God wants to do for us, as he did for the disciples, is to give us a greater vision of Jesus as he really is. That will not answer all of our questions but can strengthen our ability to trust and follow him through our questions and uncertainties.

Like the disciples, we, too, will have mountain-top experiences in our lives; times of great blessing and revelation when all seems well with the world and when we know without any uncertainty that we are God’s children. What, I wonder, have your mountain-top experiences been? Whatever they were and however wonderful they were, we inevitably, as did Jesus, came down from the mountain-top to experience some suffering or failure as part of our life experience. We cannot live on the mountain-tops but those experiences sustain us when we are in the valleys. Such experiences are one of the means God uses to go with us through the valleys, even the valley of the shadow of death.

The disciples only recognised the full significance of their mountain-top experience as they looked back. At the time, they felt afraid and confused. Are you able to look back on events that may not have been clear at the time but which have been significant, sustaining experiences for you in your life? Have there been times of joy, wonder or blessing which you have now lost sight of in your life and need to rekindle and relive? The disciples relived their experiences by telling them to others and by having them written down so that their stories could be passed on to others including us. It may be that you also need to relive your experiences of refreshment, blessing and revelation by telling others about them or by writing them down to share with others.

Prayer

Lord God, give us your guidance over the direction of our life through the experience of events and plans coming together in ways that confirm to us that we are on the right path. Give us a greater vision of Jesus as he really is and, through that greater vision, strengthen our ability to trust and follow Jesus through our questions and uncertainties. Take us to the mountain-top and sustain us in the valleys.

Lord God, give us mountain-top experiences; times of great blessing and revelation when all seems well with the world and when we know without any uncertainty that we are God’s children. We know that we cannot live on the mountain-tops but those experiences sustain us when we are in the valleys. Go with us through the valleys, even the valley of the shadow of death, and sustain us in part through the legacy of our mountain-top experiences. Take us to the mountain-top and sustain us in the valleys.

Often we only recognise the full significance of our experience as we look back. Encourage us to look back on events that may not have been clear to us at the time but which can become significant, sustaining experiences for us in our lives. Remind us of times of joy, wonder or blessing which we have now lost sight of and need to rekindle and relive. Enable us to relive our experiences of refreshment, blessing and revelation by telling others about them or by writing them down to share with others. Take us to the mountain-top and sustain us in the valleys.

Blessing

Mountain-top experiences, times of great blessing and revelation, recognising the full significance of our experiences, confirmation that we are on the right path, and a greater vision of Jesus; may those blessings of Almighty God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, rest upon you and remain with you always. Amen.

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Delirious? - Louder Than The Radio.

Feast of the Transfiguration: Choral Evensong & Garden Party

St Stephen Walbrook is to hold a Festal Evensong on Thursday 6th August at 6.00pm for the Feast of the Transfiguration. The setting for service, sung by the St Stephen Walbrook Choir, will be Stanford in Bb and the anthem will be 'Jubilate Deo' by Benjamin Britten.

The service will be followed by a Garden Party at which wine and snacks will be served and you are encouraged to bring guests with you. There is no charge for the event but, for purposes of catering, we do need to know if you are coming so please let us know in one of the following ways: by email: send an email to office@ststephenwalbrook.net; by telephone: 020 7626 9000; or by post: The Administrator, St Stephen's Church, 39 Walbrook, London EC4N 8BN.

The choir that sings every Thursday for Eucharist at St Stephen Walbrook is a consort of four professional singers led by Choir Director, Emma Corke. They sing an unaccompanied mass setting, generally of the seventeenth century, and a motet (as well as a congregational hymn). Emma Corke joined the choir of St Stephen's in 1997, becoming Choir Director in 2002. She has also sung with the Oratory Choir and the BBC Singers. Our organist, Joe Sentance has been associated with St Stephen Walbrook since 1987 as well as having been Master of Music at the Chapels Royal, H.M.Tower of London and Director of Music at Sherborne Abbey. 

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Benjamin Britten - Jubilate Deo.

Start:Stop - The Importance of Affirmation

Start your day by stopping to reflect for 10 minutes. Every Tuesday morning there is a rolling programme of work-based reflections at St Stephen Walbrook (39 Walbrook, London EC4N 8BN). Every 15 minutes between 7.30am and 9.15am, a 10 minute session of reflection begins. These sessions include bible passages, meditations, music, prayers, readings and silence. Drop in on your way into work to start your day by stopping to reflect for 10 minutes.

Bible reading

Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white … suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Get up and do not be afraid.” (Matthew 17. 1 - 9)

Meditation

We all need affirmation in order to continue to do what we do and this story has Jesus receiving affirmation from God, his Father, close to the end of his ministry in just the same words as were used at the beginning of his ministry; "This is my own dear Son with whom I am pleased."

Jesus was shortly to knowingly endure the cross. In the preceding verses to this passage he tells his disciples: "I must go to Jerusalem and suffer much from the elders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law. I will be put to death, but three days later I will be raised to life." So, we can well imagine that Jesus needed this affirmation from his Father, just as much as his disciples needed to hear it for their future understanding.

Are there people whose work you could affirm this week? Do you know of people facing particularly difficult challenges and circumstances that you could encourage? Perhaps there are some to whom you have given encouragement in the past, maybe even helped into their current direction, who would appreciate a call or a conversation to sustain them this week.

Finally, God also wishes to call you his child and affirm you in your ministry; which is your work! Are you open to that prospect?

Prayer

Lord Jesus, scripture speaks of you as the sustainer of all things and yet you, yourself, required affirmation in your ministry. We thank you for your example of the importance and necessity of affirmation. May we put that lesson into practice within our lives and work.

May we know your pleasure with the way we work and may we share your affirmation with others.

Holy Spirit, you give each of us gifts and talents for the benefit of others. Affirm us today in the gifts and talents we possess and guide us in knowing how best to use them to the benefit of others.

May we know your pleasure with the way we work and may we share your affirmation with others.

Heavenly Father, you affirmed Jesus in his ministry just before he entered challenging circumstances. Guide us to see those around us in our workplaces who need our affirmation and support this week.

May we know your pleasure with the way we work and may we share your affirmation with others.

Holy God, assure us know that we are your beloved children. As we receive your love and affirmation now, enable us to relax knowing that we are in your hands and in your love throughout our lives, including our working lives.

May we know your pleasure with the way we work and may we share your affirmation with others.

Blessing

Lord Jesus, scripture speaks of you as the sustainer of all things and yet you, yourself, required affirmation in your ministry. Encourage us this week with your affirmation of our ministry in and through our work and enable us to share your affirmation with others. May those blessings of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, rest upon you and remain with you always. Amen.

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James MacMillan - O Radiant Dawn.

Coming down from the mountain-top

I find it very encouraging that the Gospels are so honest about the disciples. They are just like us; falling asleep when they should be praying and misunderstanding what God is doing and why he is doing it. Don’t you often find yourself doing those sorts of things? I do. But Jesus still loved and persevered with his disciples despite their shortcomings and he does the same with us. We are not expected to be perfect followers of Jesus just to keep trying and learning.

As they looked back on their experiences with Jesus the disciples were able to see that the sight of Jesus transfigured had been an important assurance for them that Jesus was God’s Son and that the path he followed, even though it led to his death, was the path that God had mapped out for him. Earlier in Luke 9 there had been much discussion about who Jesus was and what Jesus was here to do. In verse 7 we read about Herod’s confusion as he thinks Jesus is John the Baptist come back to life. In verse 18 Jesus asks the disciples to tell him who the crowds think he is. The disciples say that some think he is John the Baptist and others Elijah. Jesus asks Peter to say who he thinks him to be and Peter answers, “You are God’s Messiah.” Then Jesus tells them about his plan to go to Jerusalem where he will be arrested and killed and we know from the other Gospels that the disciples were greatly disturbed about this plan.

In the midst of this confusion and disturbance they have this experience which, in hindsight, they can see answers both questions. Jesus is seen in glory speaking with the great patriarch and the great prophet of the Israelites, Moses and Elijah, and then God speaks to confirm Jesus as his Son. Everything about this experience speaks of Jesus as God. Moses and Elijah speak to Jesus about his plan to fulfil God’s purpose by dying in Jerusalem and God confirms to them that everything Jesus says comes directly from God himself. This experience should, then, be a confirmation of everything that Jesus is and was about to do. But for the disciples, at the time, it seems to be too much for them to comprehend. They are afraid, confused and keep the experience to themselves. It is only later, looking back, that they can see the confirmation that this experience provided.

I wonder if we have had experiences of events and plans coming together in ways that confirmed to us that we were on the right path. It may be that we are needing that kind of confirmation at this point in our lives and should be asking God for his confirmation about our direction in life. What God wants to do for us, as he did for the disciples, is to give us a greater vision of Jesus as he really is. That will not answer all of our questions but can strengthen our ability to trust and follow him through our questions and uncertainties.

More than anything else though, the Transfiguration was preparing Jesus to walk the path that led to the cross. God had confirmed that Jesus was his Son at Jesus’ baptism which led to his temptation and then into his public ministry. Here at the point that Jesus resolves to walk the path of suffering which leads to redemption, God again confirms his Sonship to Jesus in the same way as at his baptism. Jesus came down from this mountain knowing that he was God’s Son walking in God’s way and that sustained through all the trials that endured.

We too will have mountain-top experiences in our lives. Times of great blessing and revelation when all seems well with the world and when we know without any uncertainty that we are God’s children. Our mountain-top experience might be a great worship service, an experience of healing, answered prayer or the gifts of the Holy Spirit, it might be a sense of overwhelming joy or of union with every other living thing in the whole created order. Whatever it is and however wonderful it is, we will inevitably, as Jesus, did come down from the mountain-top to experience suffering or in our case failure. We cannot live on the mountain-tops but those experience sustain us when we are in the valleys. Such experiences are one of the means God uses to go with us through the valleys, even the valley of the shadow of death.

Mountain-top experiences are often not looked for but are gifts to us to appreciate and enjoy. The disciples only recognised the full significance of their mountain-top experience as they looked back. At the time, they felt afraid and confused. Are you able to look back on events that may not have been clear at the time but which have been significant, sustaining experiences for you in your life? Have there been times of joy, wonder or blessing which you have now lost sight of in your life and need to rekindle and relive?

The disciples relived their experiences by telling them to others and by having them written down so that their stories could be passed on to others including us. It may be that you need to relive your experiences of refreshment, blessing and revelation by telling others about them or by writing them down to share with others.

Jesus was changed as he went up the mountain; his faced changed its appearance and his clothes became dazzling white. But it was not just Jesus that was changed by this experience as the disciples too were changed – not instantly but over time as they looked back and thought about the significance of what they had seen and heard. Their responses at the time were confused but time and reflection brought the understanding and assurance that enabled them to stand for Jesus in their lives and follow him on the path where he had led.

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U2 - I Will Follow.

Gospel Reflection - Matthew 17. 1-9

My latest Gospel Reflection - Matthew 17. 1-9 - has been sent off to Mission in London's Economy:

We all need affirmation in order to continue to do what we do and this story has Jesus receiving affirmation from God, his Father, close to the end of his ministry in just the same words as were used at the beginning of his ministry; "This is my own dear Son with whom I am pleased."

Jesus was shortly to knowingly endure the cross. In the preceding verses to this passage he tells his disciples: "I must go to Jerusalem and suffer much from the elders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law. I will be put to death, but three days later I will be raised to life." So, we can well imagine that Jesus needed this affirmation from his Father, just as much as his disciples needed to hear it for their future understanding.

Are there people whose work you could affirm this week? Do you know of people facing particularly difficult challenges and circumstances that you could encourage? Perhaps there are some to whom you have given encouragement in the past, maybe even helped into their current direction, who would appreciate a call or a conversation to sustain them this week.

Finally, God also wishes to call you his child and affirm you in your ministry. Are you open to that prospect?

Lord Jesus, scripture speaks of you as the sustainer of all things and yet you, yourself, required affirmation in your ministry. Encourage us this week with your affirmation of our ministry in and through our work and enable us to share your affirmation with others. Amen.

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Josh T Pearson - That's Just The Way That Life Goes.

Gospel Reflection: Transfiguration & Epiphany

My latest Gospel Reflection for the Mission in London's Economy website can be found by clicking here.

This reflection is on the story of the Transfiguration and thinks on the nature of that event as an epiphany; in that moment the glory of the divine was revealed in the human and I suggest that this can also be our experience if we are able to look deeply into life.

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Over The Rhine - Jesus In New Orleans.