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Sunday, 16 March, 2025 Lent 2
Taking them under your wing
Genesis 15:1-12, 17–18; Philippians 3:17–4:2; Luke 13:31–35
Context: Parish Eucharist in a suburban church with a strong choral tradition - the congregation an ethnic mix, but predominantly white, with children, young adults and older adults
Aim: to reflect on the image we have of God, and whether that is the God we worship or not
SERMONS I REMEMBER
There are very few sermons or homilies that I remember, but occasionally one stands out that I have never forgotten. Quite often they are when I am on retreat, and I am particularly attentive to what is being said. One such I heard on an Ignatian retreat, and it was very pithy, containing this challenge: ‘Why is that our descriptions of ourselves so rarely match our reality?’ A powerful question, unearthing an eternal truth, that human beings are rarely honest with each other or themselves about themselves. We all project an image of ourselves, which has some dissonance with what we feel inside. I wonder why?
IMAGES OF GOD
A classic question in spiritual direction is: ‘What is your God like?’, or more precisely perhaps: ‘What is your image of God?’ The Bible contains many images of God, and we have a few in the readings today. In the reading from Genesis, God describes Godself as a ‘shield’ (15:1), in St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians, he describes Jesus as ‘Saviour’ and ‘Lord’ (3:20) and in Luke, Jesus describes himself as like a mother hen (13:34). As many a psychologist can tell you, images are immensely powerful, and we generally receive vast numbers of them every day, often unconsciously, through the medium of television, the internet and advertising. Social media has become adept at presenting an image of ourselves that is often at variance with our inner reality. All those smiles! How many people do you know who post miserable pictures of themselves? The image Jesus gives us today of himself is an unusual one, as it is an overtly female image. I wonder how often you have seen this image in stained glass, statues or pictures? They are quite hard to find! I wonder why?
WHAT IS GOD REALLY LIKE?
I would guess that most Christians would agree that God is a mystery which can never be fully known. As God describes Godself to Moses: ‘I am who I am’ (Exodus 3:14). But in Jesus, we see the reality of a God who is love itself (I John 4:16) and who, as a consequence, is prepared to offer his life so that we might live forever. The description we have today in Luke of Jesus as like a mother hen is warm and tender and protective, with echoes of Psalm 91:4. But just as a person’s description of themselves might not match their inner reality, so a believer’s image of God, may not really connect with their outworking of faith. There are many Christians who can describe God as loving, compassionate and kind, and then act in the name of God cruelly with others or with themselves. That disconnect is something those outside the Church often pick up on, and it can be very damaging to the Church and the Christian faith alike.
INTEGRATION
Christians believe that Jesus was fully God and fully human, and as such had the greatest integrity. He was fully himself. There is an authenticity about him, which shines out in this short passage today. He can be provocative: calling Herod a ‘fox’ is hardly endearing, but he is also playing with the idea, because foxes hunt hens, and that is the image Jesus gives of himself here. But he also cares, and he is not afraid to call out the behaviour of people in Jerusalem and to hold them to account (15:34). Here is a challenge for us writ large in today’s Gospel. How do we integrate the description of ourselves with our inner reality, so that we might be authentically ourselves, like Jesus? How do we integrate our image of God with the outward working of our faith, so that we might truly live what we believe? I wonder.
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Issue 195: Speaking of Last Things
