Sermon
at All Saints’ Church, Whiteparish - Sunday 3 September 2017
Jeremiah
15:15-21; Romans 12:9-end; Matthew 16:21-end
Let
us begin with a prayer,
Father
God, we bless and praise you that we can meet here this morning without fear of
persecution knowing that you are always present; especially when we are assembled
together as your Church. We thank you that you gave us Your Son, Jesus Christ,
to die for us to redeem our sins and that we are forever forgiven. We thank you
for the gift of the Holy Spirit and, in these current times of political and
economic uncertainty and unrest, may that same Holy Spirit be there with us as
an inspiration to us all in making and keeping the presence of God deep within
us even when the going gets tough. Amen
Seventy-eight years ago, on this date and on this day, a
Sunday, the world was thrust into a conflagration that would last for almost
six years and would leave millions (many innocent non-belligerents) dead – for
today, 78 years ago, the United Kingdom and France declared war on Hitler’s
Germany. The reason for the declaration was that Germany, which had already
re-occupied the Ruhr and the Rhineland, and had occupied Austria and
Czechoslovakia had now turned its attention on Poland which it had invaded two
day’s previously. Hitler’s aim was to take the free city of Danzig (now Gdansk)
and incorporate Poland into the Third Reich. Poland would cease to exist.
As we know, the occupation of Poland and the subjugation of
its inhabitants, especially its Jewish population, was something which is
painful to describe because of the horrific nature of the cruelty inflicted,
yet, having visited that country three times, I cannot ever get over the
kindness and hospitality of a people who have, not only during the Second World
War, but throughout a long and involved and violent history, been so badly
treated.
Poland is a very devout Christian country – 96% of its
inhabitants are registered as Roman Catholics – other denominations and no
religious affinity making up a mere 4%.
The Polish immigrant population here in the UK have been responsible for
a massive swelling of Roman Catholic congregations. At the very heart of the
Christian Faith is the concept and doctrine of forgiveness and at the heart of
that concept is the Cross. I cannot help but think that this Christian
principle, the Cross of Forgiveness, is at the heart of the Poles’ general
demeanour of love, hospitality, grace and forgiveness.
There is so much wonderful material in all three of our
readings this morning on this topic and I could have written and preached so
much today – but I would like to concentrate on the reading from Paul’s letter
to the Romans – which I think sets for us a wonderful code for how Christians
are expected to treat the world and others, even when everything around them
seems so evil. The heading in my bible
for this piece of scripture reads “Marks of the True Christian”. In the context of the suffering of the Polish
inhabitants between 1939 and 1944 I think it worth repeating it again here:
"Let love be genuine; hate what is
evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection;
outdo one another in showing honour. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit,
serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in
prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to
strangers.
Bless those who persecute you; bless
and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who
weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate
with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are. Do not repay
anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of
all. If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with
all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of
God; for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the
Lord.’ No, ‘if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty,
give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on
their heads.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
When
I read these words I find this whole concept so lovely but yet so difficult.
Which of us has not had enemies at some time? People who have hurt us or wanted
to hurt us? People who have put themselves and their own desires first and
foremost above the feelings and situations of others. Sometimes deliberately,
sometimes unthinkingly – and which of us can honestly say that we have not, at
some time hurt others ourselves? Perhaps a thoughtless or tactless word or
action – a feeling of revenge or retribution against the other person who has
hurt us? Ghandi once said to a Christian “It says somewhere in your Bible ‘…an eye for an eye’ but what use is
that – when does it stop – when the whole world is blind?”
The
Christian’s response is not recorded but Gandhi was, of course, referring to
the Jewish law as set out in the Old Testament – the true response would have
been to quote from this morning’s Epistle because everything which we as
Christians believe and quote ourselves needs to be viewed through the lens of
the Cross – looking both forwards and into biblical history. The Cross is the object which acts as the
linchpin and we must always recall that at the heart of the Cross was
Forgiveness – even as Jesus was being cruelly nailed to the Tree he prayed
forgiveness to those who drove the nails through his flesh. His death was also to be an atonement for all
our sins – so we might be forgiven.
Every
Sunday, and hopefully on other days of the week, we recite the Lord’s
Prayer. We are probably all so familiar
with it that we rattle it off automatically; but again, at the heart of it is
that part which asks for forgiveness – just as we are forgiven. Forgiveness is something we can readily
receive but which we must readily give to others – whether they ask for it or
not.
After
the Second World War, Churchill and Stalin thought the best way in which to
deal with the leaders of the Nazi Regime was to simply line them up and shoot
them – just as the partisans had done with Mussolini. However, this was not
advocated by others who wanted the crimes of those murderous individuals to be
exposed and for there to be justice not only done but seen to be done. Trials
were held throughout Germany – notably in Nuremburg, when those still alive who
had been responsible for the atrocities in Poland and elsewhere were called to
account and many subsequently suffered the ultimate penalty. Later on, many more, guilty of lesser crimes,
were released to help build up the new Germany. The exposure of those crimes
and the accounting were all part of the process which has led, ultimately, to a
greater forgiveness to a nation for the crimes of its leaders.
When
we are hurt we suffer distress. We can have a whole range of emotions - disbelief,
anger, sadness, a desire for vengeance but as Ghandi said what does that
achieve but to make the whole world blind – Paul puts it better – “vengeance is mine says the Lord”. Our role has
to be to give room for God’s support and love – through Christ, through the
Cross and through the Holy Spirit.
The
Christian mystic, Etty Hillesum, of whom I have often spoken put it like this
when she saw how her fellow Jews were feeling towards the Germans who were
deporting them to Auschwitz –
It is the
problem of our age; hatred against the Germans poison’s everyone’s mind. “Let the bastards drown, the lot of them”.
Such sentiments have become part and parcel of our daily speech and sometimes
make one feel that life these days has grown impossible”.
“To sum
up, this is what I really want to say: Nazi barbarism evokes the same kind of
barbarism in ourselves… we have to reject that barbarism within us, we must not
fan the hatred within us because if we do, the world will not be able to pull
itself one inch further out of the mire”.
And in a prayer addressed to God she
wrote:
There
are, it is true, some who, even at this late stage, are putting their vacuum
cleaners and silver forks and spoons in safekeeping instead of guarding You,
dear God. And there are those who want to put their bodies in safekeeping but
who are nothing more now than shelter for a thousand fears and bitter
feelings. And they say ‘I shan’t let
them get me in their clutches’. But they
forget that no one is in their clutches who is in Your arms”.
I began this sermon with the invasion of
Poland by the Germans 78 years ago this month.
As we now know, through the revelations of the horrors of the Holocaust,
some 1.8 million people are believed to have been murdered in Auschwitz Concentration
and Extermination Camp in Silesia, Poland.
I have visited that place three times now and its survival, as a
memorial to the horrors remains a bleak reminder of Human inhumanity. However, I would like to end of a very
uplifting note:
In the museum at Auschwitz, is a map showing all
the railway lines which carried the transports of people such as Anne Frank and
Etty Hillesum to the extermination camps.
This map shows arrows pointing into Auschwitz. The two founders of an
organisation called Living Stones, Mark and Cathy Warwick, each had the same
vision at the same time whilst looking at this map – they saw those self-same
arrows pointing away from Auschwitz - in other words reversed. They are now establishing a House of Prayer
close by Hells Gate, Birkenau – the foundations of which have been dug already.
In their leaflet, Mark and Cathy Warwick write:
“We
believe it is Father God’s desire to close this portal of death and open a
fountain of life in the Spirit. He wants to redeem Auschwitz-Birkenau and
transform it into a place of blessing, healing and reconciliation both for the
Jewish people and for all nations.
Transformation
is only possible because of the death and resurrection of Jesus. It is his
sovereign work. He does, however, invite
us to participate with Him through our intercession, praise and worship to
bring the Kingdom of Heaven to earth.
The fires
of the gas-chamber crematoria burned day and night with a stench of death. Now
70-odd years later Father God desires the fire of His Holy Spirit to burn day
and night in a house of prayer”.
What a wonderful reversal – through
understanding, grace and forgiveness the place of such pain and suffering and
cruelty can become a place of peace and tranquillity – as Paul says in our
passage today – “Do not be overcome by
evil, but overcome evil with good.”
In a moment of silent prayer, is there somebody
you want to forgive, somebody who has caused you pain and suffering; if so
mentally recite the name of that person and leave that name at the foot of the
Cross.
Amen
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