It's been a better week. No less busy - just better. Thanks to all of you who dropped by with kind thoughts and words of encouragement. We've got a holiday coming up and I'm looking forward to getting away from the parish for a while and 'getting my head showered' as we say in Ireland (ie. getting some p and q).Part of what's turned things around is the excitement I feel at a project we've just embarked on at St Hackett's. We've called it Dreaming of a Right Christmas, and it's based on an idea that's been rattling round in my mind for a few years now. Last week I preached on the Parable of the Mustard seed, and it seemed like the God-given time to pursue this seed of an idea with my congregation.
How is it we've managed to turn Christmas so completely on it's head? We tell the story each year - the story of God giving those who were spiritually poor the most precious gift of his Son - and we turn it around so we can give more stuff to people who already have more than they'll ever need. We rehearse the Santa myth with the kids, forgetting that St Nicholas was all about blessing the poor in his community. Other than going to church a little more often, is the way we celebrate Christmas as Christians any different from what everyone else does? Don't we end up as overdrawn and overfed and overstressed as the next person?
We've decided to commit to doing things differently this year, and Right Christmas will help us in two ways. Firstly, we're going to encourage people to simplify and de-stress; to make better choices about how they use their time and money at Christmas. We're going to direct them to ideas and resources that are more in keeping with the true meaning of the season.And secondly, we're going to undertake a wide range of simple, easily organised fundraisers to generate revenue for a particular project so we can give a Christmas gift to those who really need one. At the moment we're still discussing our options, but it seems likely that we'll be supporting a children's school in Gulshan, a poor suburb of Dhaka in Bangladesh.
I've challenged the congregation to take up the gauntlet, both as individuals and groups that meet under our auspices, and find ways that they can raise some finance towards this goal. It's exciting to see what people are already coming up with - a sponsored slim (!), initiatives where we cut down on Christmas cards (something we're trying to involve the local Primary school in), running a fundraising puppet show, carol singing. Who knows where this is going to end...? I'm not sure, but I hope and pray that our efforts can become a sign of a Right Christmas in our parish and beyond. I'll keep you posted!
FBL
2 comments:
Sounds good to me.
I also thought I'd pass on some invaluable pastoral advice picked up from the Mad priest blog. This should have been mandatory at Gartmore house.
Here are his 10 suggestions for streetwise clergy;
i) Get in first. On moving to a new parish gratuitously maim somebody for life within the first week of being there. Make sure the word on the street is that the vicar did it and he/she was only slightly cross at the time.
ii) Be proud of your dog collar. Always make sure it is clearly visible underneath your smelly, battered, leather "Hells Angels" jacket.
iii) Cultivate a mad stare. Practice this at home, standing in front of a mirror snarling "Here's Johnny."
iv) Dig up two or three areas of soil in your front garden - these should be roughly the size of a dead body.
v) Speak with a New York Italian accent.
vi) Have the words "Vengeance is mine sayeth the Lord" tattooed on your forehead and on one knuckle the word "God" and on the knuckle you punch with, the word "Satan."
v11) On entering the local hostelry for the first time enquire loudly of the bartender, "Who do I pay round here if I want someone to disappear?"
viii) In the aforementioned hostelry always drink your whiskey straight from the bottle.
ix) Name your pet rottweiler, "Osama."
x) Let it be known throughout your kingdom that you visit the OCICBW... blog everyday and that you are personal friends with Grandmere Mimi.
What a coincidence! I was just saying to a friend of mine the other night that this is exactly what we need. And now it exists, and I'm too scared to do it. Sigh...
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