I want to think with you this morning about engaging with youth and families.
This was promised as part of a three part series on the priorities we identified in July at our thinking day at which four groups of the 35 or so who were present identified independently – as if from the Lord - the same three priorities:
Renewing our worship
Engaging with youth and families
Enhancing our buildings.
Two weeks ago we looked at renewing our worship. I want to look today at the second priority and what we’re doing and might do to accomplish it. In two weeks time we will look at the third priority of enhancing our buildings
Engaging with youth and families then. Have another look at our Gospel reading. Which verses leap out at you as we reflect upon this priority which was affirmed again at Monday’s PCC?
Which verses? Mark Chapter 9v36-7 surely!
Then Jesus took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, 37‘Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.’
Jesus did this to stop an argument. He knew his followers had been arguing who was best so he gave them a wake up call by pointing to a child.
It’s my task with the PCC to give us all a wake up call this morning by pointing to our need to engage with youth and families.
It’s harder to point to them here in St Giles Sunday by Sunday though we are breaking more ground. At this very moment, of course, by design, they can’t be pointed to, though they were last week in Church on our Patronal festival.
You could have pointed to 120 of them on Friday though. Every Friday St Giles School gathers in Church and seven of our church members take it in turn to lead a Christian assembly.
What a privilege in this day and age to have a school coming into your church week by week! Not on a Sunday, sadly, but at least on a Friday.
It’s a chance to salute the church members who work as governors and in other capacities with our head teacher Mrs Francis to equip each of our pupils, to the best of our ability, with knowledge, skills and understanding, so that they may develop fully as individuals with Christian values and contribute to, participate in and enjoy the world in which they live.
I’ve just read out what’s called ‘the broad purpose of education at St Giles Church of England Primary School’. It’s something we should own and the PCC are very keen that we do so more effectively as we engage with youth and families. If the Lord is leading you to serve this purpose alongside our School in any capacity you should talk to me or our Chair of Governors, Marion Lott. The School needs Christians on board if its Christian purpose is to be accomplished more fully.
Just looking at our purpose statement, it seems to define Christianity as nothing less than humanity in its right mind. That’s exactly about developing fully as individuals and contributing to, participating in and enjoying the world in which we live.
If few people contribute to society in this way it’s their loss and the world’s – and it’s a loss of the enjoyment many of us in Church this morning know comes from humble service.
Our Lord took that child in his arms to put his proud followers in their place.
Children can, of course, be outrageously proud and that’s one of the struggles we have as parents, teachers or youth workers!
We’re born self-centred but destined to lose that self-centredness. Christianity is about knowing ourselves to get to loving ourselves to get to losing ourselves. This is how human beings get themselves to what they’re meant to be. We had some advice about that in the second reading didn’t we? Do not be boastful and false to the truth James wrote. Where there is selfish ambition, there will also be disorder…submit yourselves therefore to God…Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.
It’s really a choice between two religions in the end – that of the Child in the Manger or that of the Dog in the manger!
The Dog in the Manger is a fable attributed to Aesop, concerning a dog who one afternoon lay down to sleep in the manger. On being awoken, he ferociously kept the cattle in the farm from eating the hay on which he chose to sleep, even though he was unable to eat it himself, leading an ox to mutter the moral of the fable: People often begrudge others what they cannot enjoy themselves.
Think of the child who discards a toy - until his brother or sister tries to play with it! The child suddenly becomes possessive about something it hadn’t wanted up to that point.
Jesus commended the humble dependence of children. His word also calls us to ‘put away childish things’ (1 Corinthians 13.11) which includes the self interest that sees others as a threat to our domain.
At the Eucharist our prayer climaxes in the prayer Hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done. Take me into your purposes, Lord, we are praying. Let me be part of the kingdom of this world becoming the kingdom of our God and of his Christ (Revelation 11.15).
The Christian values we seek for our children come from this ultimate vision. It’s my belief that when a young person sees this he or she will go for it. They just need to hear the good news and see it lived in an intriguing Christian community. Intriguing, yes, boring no! How dare we make Christianity dull – but we do, preachers often most of all!
I would ask you, and I would ask myself: how intrigued are you with Jesus? Have you lost your first love somewhat? Jesus is ever new and his power to make you and I new will never fail because he’s the same joyful, holy, good, inspiring Jesus yesterday, today and tomorrow! Gathering for this hour with him, with his word and with the sacrament of his love, every Lord’s Day should be transformative – is transformative. It is Jesus hour we’re in – an awesome hour, an hour that should be accessible to young and old.
We’ll best engage with youth and families if we can speak of Jesus and show we’re here because of the out of this world dimension of Christianity. God make us more Christlike and less likeminded because in an older church likemindedness can exclude youth and families, let’s beware! Beware especially in your conversations before and after the Eucharist.
Besides deepening our own integrity and depth as believers the best we can do to serve this identified priority is to be there for youth and families in our acquaintance and in the life of St Giles - and by not getting in the way of their most helpful engagement with the Lord.
Yes this means being accommodating, for example in our musical preferences. Yes it means coping with extraneous noise as best you can, welcoming noise as a problem of life. Churches needs ushers and not hushers! Microphones and loop systems are given to reinforce those who speak in church. They also help him or her rise above the noise of children in unfamiliar and sometimes to them alien surroundings.
However good the words are in church unless priest and people walk the talk they’re on a hiding to nothing.
Last Sunday we had half a dozen choristers. The junior choir serve us well. They do sing. How much we miss Rachel Rawdon-Mogg though! The choir are sheep without a shepherd especially with Lucy going to College. Here’s a vital realm for service if anyone could rise to it. The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few when it comes to musicians. Chris Wheatley and I are holding the fort as best we can, with the support of Martin and Jamie.
I wrote these prophetic words in this month’s P&P – at least I hope they are prophetic: We are working to build up the choir and form a music group employing the abundance of musical talent in the village. This sermon is part of the working!
I added – and this is actually happening even as I speak: More teaching is being provided for children and young people during the 10am Eucharist. This is a signal achievement for a church with our membership - a six week rota for Sunday Club - but we do need more hands on deck.
Is it possible for one or two people here this morning to offer one Sunday every couple of months to be part of the Sunday Club team? This won’t exclude you from the Eucharist, just mean you miss the sermon once in a while!
Our young people aren’t just the church of the future. They’re the church of today!
Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me the Lord says.
Saint Giles is welcoming children and youth but there are questions. How can we give them more of a voice and make space for them to lead?
Our other two priorities of renewing our worship and enhancing our buildings connect with this of course. No stated priorities will get anywhere though without ownership, which is why I am seeking to promote what the Spirit seems to be saying to us in this important part of our Sunday worship.
We want our church to be God’s church in the sense of being a place where youth and families are engaging with him and not just entertained, loved practically and not just admired, a place where young people can learn both to give and receive and to develop fully as individuals… contributing to, participating in and enjoying the world in which we live.
So be it – and let’s walk the talk on this as best we can. The PCC needs everyone on board!
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