Re-membering the Body of Christ

From Wellington Cathedral of St Paul

Re-membering the Body of Christ

Remembrance Day 14 November 2010

The Revd Jenny Wilkens

• Daniel 6
• Psalm 97
• Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23

http://wellingtoncathedral.org.nz/index.php/Sermons

One of the most poignant moments of our Remembrance Day service this morning was when four young cadets lit the candle for peace, our Paschal candle, and we all then pledged to strive for all that makes for peace and to seek to heal the wounds of war. I always think then of the many young people from our country who are even now serving as peace-keepers in many different countries of the world: at present 1171 personnel serving on 16 peacekeeping & UN missions in 11 countries. And we remember that it is just a few short months since we held a memorial service here in this Cathedral for the local Defence force as they mourned the loss of Lieutenant Tim O'Donnell in Afghanistan.

I must admit my knowledge of the geography of the Middle East and the countries from Saudi Arabia, across Mesopotamia, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India is all a bit sketchy. And yet through media coverage in recent years, we have become familiar with the names at least of Bamyan, Mosul, Basra.. I recall on one of our long-haul flights in June, waking up and looking at the little TV screen to find out where we were, and being amazed to see we were flying over Kandahar in Afghanistan, safely cocooned thirty thousand feet above it.

Tonight we heard familiar readings, the well-loved Sunday School story of Daniel in the Lions' Den, but while we are perhaps intrigued just as we were as children with the exotic setting, the fascinating names and bizarre punishments of the Persian empire, we need to remind ourselves that this is set in Babylon, in what is now contemporary Iraq, not far from Baghdad.

And we need to move from the realm of story to the reality of Iraq today, still reeling from years of war, just this week struggling to put a government together, that jostling for power and control of Daniel's story still evident in the politics of today. Tonight on this Remembrance Day, I want us to re-member the Body of Christ in Iraq, which is suffering just as Daniel did for his loyalty and trust in his God.

You will have heard in the news of October 31st of the attack and hostage taking of Christians in the Lady of our Salvation Syrian Catholic church in Baghdad, ending in 58 deaths, including that of two young priests, who were seeking to hide people from danger in the vestry.

We who have such a Western view of the church and its problems, often forget the many millions of Christians who make up the Eastern part of the Church, most of whom are part of the Orthodox church, but including many Eastern Catholics and ethnic churches.

What we perhaps did not hear in the news was that at the funeral for those who died in the church attacks, there were both Muslims and Christians together chanting slogans against terrorism. Amidst the many statements by Christian leaders of East and West, condemning this attack on people at worship, was the voice of the Shiite Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani condemning "the criminal action against our Christian brothers". Small but important steps of solidarity together against the evils of terrorism, and of persecution on the grounds of religion.

The reality is that Christians are living in fear in Iraq, thousands have fled to safer countries and those who remain wonder if they should stay or go. We feel so powerless at this distance, and yet we are called to be in prayer and solidarity with these members of the Body of Christ who are suffering.

Five Syrian and Chaldean Catholic archbishops in Iraq have said this in a recent statement just last week: "What we need are your prayers and your moral and fraternal support. Your friendship encourages us to stay in our land, to persevere and to hope. Without that we feel alone and isolated. We need your compassion in light of all that has touched the lives of innocent people, Christians and Muslims. Stay with us, stay with us until this pestilence has passed."

We as Anglicans need to know that there is also an Anglican church in Baghdad, St George's, which has been there since 1936. It is not just a church for ex-pats, rather it has a large and lively Iraqi congregation, or rather congregations, with full services on Friday, Saturday and Sundays. St George's ministry is led by a chaplain, Canon Andrew White, who ministered formerly at Coventry Cathedral, and seeks to continue that ministry of reconciliation in Baghdad, where he's commonly called the Vicar of Baghdad.

St George's is not only a thriving centre of worship, but also of social services with medical and dental services, a kindergarten, and Mothers' Union. It is also a centre for relationship-building amidst the different religious groups of Baghdad. You can find some very good little videos of the church and its ministry on the web.

Andrew White commented after the recent Syrian Catholic church attack: "we work together with that church the whole time, it's about a mile and a half away… It's so very, very difficult but we've got to just try and carry on. People will be scared to go out, to come to church, but we won't give up.'

When I hear of his faith, and that of the Iraqi Christians he serves, I think of those other three young men who in Daniel's time were threatened with being thrown into a furnace if they would not bow down to a golden statue set up by the King. Their words have always inspired me, "If our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire and out of your hand, o King, let him deliver us. But if not, be it known to you, o King, that we will not serve your gods and we will not worship the golden statues that you have set up." (Daniel 3:17, 18)

But if not…But if God does not deliver us, yet we will not give up on our faith. I always wonder what my response would be in such circumstances. How would I fare if nine suicide bombers came into this church? Would I try to hide people in the vestry, would I hide in the vestry?...

One of James K Baxter's prayers included in our Prayer Book (ANZPB p. 160) says this: Lord God, your nature is to love. You put us in the furnace of the world to learn to love you and love one another. Father, we sing to you in the furnace like the three Jewish children…

May our prayers and songs be for those Iraqi Christians tonight who are in the furnace at this time. And may we remember in our prayers also those Iraqi Christians who have fled from their country to many other countries, including our own. I understand there are some 250 Iraqi families in Wellington. Many of them are Assyrian Christians, and Father Aprem Pithyou pastors what is called the Ancient Church of the East here in Wellington, a member church of the Council of Wellington Churches. It is good to be getting to know him - you may recall he read a lesson in Aramaic at one of our special Advent services here.

Next year it will be ten years since the events of 9/11 in New York, it will be important to remember and tell the stories. But it will also be important for us to continue to listen and hear the stories of others, those not so well known to us, those whose voices are not so familiar to us or we have not heard before,

It is important for us as Anglicans to not keep turning inwards on our own church's issues and problems, but to keep our face outward, keep our eyes and ears tuned to hear the stories, and always to re-member the Body of Christ throughout the world, especially where it is suffering.

In this way, may we strive for all that makes for peace and seek to heal the wounds of war. In the name of the Prince of Peace, Amen.