What is truth?

Short talk from yesterday's 8am service, bases upon Revelation 1.4b-8 and John 18.33-37

The feast of Christ The King is a relatively new invention, introduced by pope Pius 11th in 1929, it’s adoption into Anglicanism is even more recent. In 1970 the feast was moved from October to the last Sunday of the church year- just before we enter Advent.

In the gospel we see Jesus before Pilate. Pilate was Governor of Judea for ten years; it wasn’t a prestigious appointment so he’s only remembered through his encounter with Jesus. Pilate has a very Roman, very worldly, notion of what power is, of what a King is. All he wants to know is whether Jesus is a threat to his power and the power of the empire. Pilate can’t see past the importance placed on earthly power and authority, he has no interest in Jesus wielding a different kind of power. At the end of this interaction, just after our reading ends, Pilate asks “what is truth?”. The truth is not his concern.

In Pilate and the Roman Empire we see the embodiment of how worldly power is perceived- in money and politics, in wielding control over others, exploiting those who are weaker and on the margins. Jesus tells us he’s not that sort of King. His Kingdom isn’t about its location but its character and at the heart of this is God’s power which comes in truth and love. Jesus’ kingship is characterised by mercy, justice and peace. 

This is the kingdom that we’re called to emulate and build upon, this is the kingdom God wants us to bring to our lives in the here and now.

We haven’t always got that right in the church, our notions of worldly and heavenly power have become muddled, we’ve used the notion of God’s rule to impose our own; religion is at its absolute worst when used as a means of control, and it’s not entirely a thing of the past as we see political groups claiming Christian values both here and in other parts of the world, even if those groups are far from demonstrating those indicators of God’s kingdom; truth, mercy, justice and peace.

The concept of truth has become somewhat muddied in recent times with “fake news” and “alternative facts” becoming buzz words, we’ve become a suspicious society, not knowing what to believe and who and what is truthful.

Our job is always to search for the kingdom of truth, to actively seek it and promote it. This gospel reading is the very model of speaking truth to power. God’s kingdom has no party politics, no notions of individual nations, we’re one people of God’s kingdom. 

‘I am the Alpha and the Omega’, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come. Jesus is before all things and after all things, earthly authority isn’t and never will be the last word. As we enter Advent next week, let’s look for the signs of God’s kingdom of truth in our world.

Remembrance

I don’t know if any of you have seen the film Coco? We watched it at The LOFT last week as a way of engaging with this remembrance season as it looks at memory, remembering loved ones who’ve died and our common memories. We’ve already had the feasts of All Souls and All Saints and of course today is the solemn day set aside to remember all those whose lives have been lost in conflicts the world over.

Coco is the story of a boy named Miguel, who accidentally ends up in the Land of the Dead on The Day of the Dead and must get help from his ancestors to find his way home. We see Miguel’s village both in their homes and at grave sides making offerings and remembering their dead ancestors.

Film critic Clarisse Loughrey writes that "our relationship to the dead is a key theme of Coco. Those who reside within the colourful, bountiful Land of the Dead can do so only as long as there is someone to remember them in the Land of the Living; once that last memory is lost to time, that individual – quite literally – fades into nothingness."

It's incredibly important that we find ways of engaging with every generation about remembrance, that we keep alive the memories of our ancestors and don’t let them fade into nothingness. When I was young the reasons for and outcomes of two devastating world wars were burned into our communal memories and conscious. Alongside “we will remember them” we said “never again”.

We’re seeing a worldwide rise in those with extreme views gaining power and the discrimination of particular minority, ethnic and religious groups. Our communal memories should be reminding us that we’ve been here before.

Remembrance is central to the ritual of church life. Each time we gather here it’s an act of remembrance for the life of the one we’re called to follow. Every communion service has Jesus’ words “do this in remembrance of me”. Our gathering here is a reminder that like the fishermen in today’s gospel we’re called to something else, for someone else. We recognise and remember the importance of God in our lives each day.

Remembering Jesus doesn’t mean we just think about him and hear stories from his life, it means we have a call to act and be different. Our remembering directly affects our actions in the world. Maybe remembrance is always about more than remembering, maybe true remembrance is always about how we’re influenced to act and be because of those memories, because of the experiences of those who’ve gone before us and because we should learn, grow and change because of our shared memories.

It may sound obvious but I think it’s important to remember that today is a memorial of peace, and that we as Christians are the agents of God’s peace. We can’t let these memories fade into nothingness because by keeping them alive we highlight the importance of peace, and hopefully have a better chance of achieving it.

Prayers for Remembrance Sunday 2018
to be used at Llandaf Cathedral and can be used at any Service, including multi-faith services

1
God of all,
here with us now,
loving us always;
sharing our hopes for peace
and our fears for present and future wars
in this one world we share;
hear us as we pledge ourselves in prayer and deed
to be your peace creating people.
Kindle your love within us
that we may be your light in the world
and channels of your peace.

2
God of time and history;
of present and of future
As we mark a century since the war it was said would end all wars
we turn to you for guidance and support.
Help us, in our human frailty, to be the people you would have us be.
May we respond to human need through loving service,
bursting through the walls of our institutions
to reach out with unconditional love.
Kindle your love within us
that we may be your light in the world
and channels of your peace.

3
God of grace and mercy,
prompt us daily to acts of kindness,
that even through our lives we may reflect
your love for all humanity.
Kindle your love within us
that we may be your light in the world
and channels of your peace.

4
God of all compassion,
may we always be alert to the needs of others
and be ready and willing to respond;
to treat all others as we ourselves would wish to be treated.
Kindle your love within us
that we may be your light in the world
and channels of your peace.

5
God of peace
make us restless until war and conflicts cease
and the long envisaged unity among the nations is made real.
May we honour the millions killed in war by
being your active and committed peace-makers now
in our country, communities and homes.
Kindle your love within us
that we may be your light in the world
and channels of your peace.

6
God of justice
Together, may we seek to transform
unjust structures within society.
Give us your passion to work
for a world where all are treated equally.
and may live in safety.
Lead us from falsehood to truth, darkness to light, & from death to immortality
Kindle your love within us
that we may be your light in the world
and channels of your peace.

7
God of rainbow hope
we thank you for our rich diversity.
Together may we be receivers and givers of
the wisdom and faithfulness you gift to us.
For the sake of tomorrow
we pledge our lives in your service today and always.
Kindle your love within us
that we may be your light in the world
and channels of your peace.

Peace in our world
Peace in our hearts
Peace in our homes
The Peace of God
Lest we forget.