Sermon: Evensong - 4 May 2014

Preacher:

Date:

Sunday 4th May 2014

Service:

Evensong

Readings:

Haggai 1:13-2:9

1 Corinthians 3:10-17

Listen:

Download Recording (MP3, 12.5M)

Somewhere in the hall cupboard my mum keeps albums full of family photos.  Pouring over them reminds me of the complexity of our family tree; there are pictures of relatives I've never met, yet I see familiar features in their faces. Engagements, weddings, baptisms, Christmases, birthdays, holidays, first days at school and graduations.  The dress and platform boots my mum wore 60s reappear in photos of me dressing up in the 80s.  A very ordinary human story unfolds. 

But somewhere in this mix there's the story of a house. The house that dad built, or rather rebuilt.  And amongst the photos of plastered walls, new cabling, stonework, bricks and revealed oak beams, which still evoke that smell of cement, there is one of me "laying" the foundation stone. Or rather of me, standing  on the concrete footings with a hand tentatively resting on a breeze block.

I watched the transformation of a derelict cottage into a family home: a transformation dependent on careful underpinning, on internal restructuring and re-roofing. Plans had to be followed, skilled tradesmen brought in, building loans taken out and quality materials purchased as over several years one man worked holidays, evenings and weekends to make a dream come into being. 

The prophet Haggai and the apostle Paul used this language of building and laying foundations. What they say resonates with us as we set about thinking carefully about the physical structure of this Cathedral Church; but they both point us beyond a building built with human hands, to a spiritual vision which renews and transforms our human nature.

In the Hebrew Scriptures we hear of a vision for a house dedicated to God.  Haggai was writing with urgency at a time when God's people were returning from exile; rebuilding the temple was seen as vital to the process of re-establishing a pattern of worship, religious identity and the social/ethical practices  which fulfilled the law.

This evening's reading ends with of the whole world being shaken so that its resources might be harvested and used for the new temple.  The treasure of the nations - word, stone and precious metals - would be quarried and crafted by human skill; the house of the Lord would be filled with splendour.

It is a future hope.  A deep longing.  It is not just a human endeavour.  It is rooted in God's faithfulness.

It's a tremendous vision, but only one part of the story.  When everything you have known is lost; when you're cut off from the familiar, and when the former glory of your city is in ruins, the prospect of return and restoration is overwhelming in its enormity.  Hope and possibility arise from the by the power of God. 

Yet the spirit of the Lord is stirring.

I am with you.

To the governor, the high priest and amongst all the remnant a voice says:I am with you.

The God who brought his people out of Egypt promises to be with them.

My spirit abides with you, do not fear.

 

We need to take courage in our own generation. Save Guildford Cathedral is an imperative being issued to us, to our diocese and to the wider community within which we live and worship and work. However, our calling is not to save a pile of bricks, to replace plaster and renew lighting.  Guildford Cathedral is more than an iconic building. The recent report From Anecdote to Evidence reflects that buildings are an asset, helping to enhance mission through central visibility.

Guildford Cathedral is the epitome of visibility; we who worship here are part of its mission. The annual review, which we'll discuss at our congregational meeting next Sunday morning, will be the starting point of a conversation about how that work will evolve in relation to our diocese; in relation to the connections we forge across civic, cultural, public and educational spheres.

The Cathedral's foundation is as a sacred place - dedicated to the worship of God.  Day by day, the Scriptures are read, the Eucharist is celebrated and private prayer is offered.  Such deep attentiveness to God and to the needs of the world is not exclusive, but generous.  Yesterday 90 adults and children crossed the threshold, many for the first time, during our first family activity day.  They explored and were creative; they asked questions and left messages of hope and thanksgiving.

It is a hospitable place - where men and women, young and old can learn and engage. It is place of conversation - across the different spiritual traditions of our diocese, across the disciplines of our university, across issues that arise in the public sphere which impact upon all of us.  There will be opportunities to engage with the visual arts, literature and politics;  with other faiths, the life of the forces, and our vision of the Kingdom

This building rests on firm foundations - piles driven into clay.  If we are going to be able to restore and renew it, we need to attend to the spirit of God stirring in our midst. Paul reminded the Corinthians, that there can be no other foundation than Jesus Christ.  Likewise, our forebears did not just buy bricks; some of them prayed in the crypt.  We build on that foundation in worship and ministry; in dialogue and hospitality.

Paul reminds his brothers and sisters in Christ, that whatever material we build in will become visible.  As bricks, or wood rise above the soil line it will be tested.  It's a physical image for our spiritual life.

We know about the risk to buildings from fire and water penetration; the consequence of poor materials or allowing them to fall into poor repair.  In our quest to save this building, we must also be mindful of what goes on here in relation to our core purpose - to be a place of worship; a place dedicated to the pursuit of the Spirit's gift of wisdom; a place where connections across our community are strengthened and transformed by a bigger vision of the Kingdom.

Paul's challenge is a spiritual one:  Do you not know that you are God's temple and God's Spirit dwells in you? We are God's temple: together, here, in our worship we are being inspired, challenged and transformed by the Spirit working through us.  Each one of us is in-dwelt by God's Spirit, with Jesus Christ as our foundation.  How is that made manifest in our lives? What is it of that foundation that shows above the ground?

We know in our lives and in our relationships that we are not always as careful as we might be about how we speak and what we do.  Pressures of every sort distort our responses: we become impatient or dismissive; we become fearful or anxious.  In the face of our shortcomings, God our merciful father takes what we are refines it. 

We are God's holy temple: not just in this place, but when we walk out of the west doors and immerse ourselves once more in the complex network of challenges, responsibilities, relationships and opportunities in our daily lives.  The Spirit dwelling in us, equips us as we seek to grow in patience, kindness and self control; as we endeavour moment by moment to be people of generosity and love; of resilience and perseverance; people who are forgiven and forgive.

The house that dad built rose up on meticulously laid foundations; it became a home, a place of rest. A place of learning how to relate; a place that we left - day by day until home became elsewhere, embarking upon the next phase of life.

The foundations of our faith and of our lives, of this building and of its mission are just as carefully laid: by the grace of God.  That takes time; gradual process of transformation. We are to have courage to listen to the Spirit of God as we secure the future of this Cathedral and its network of connections. We are to have courage to listen to the Spirit of God in our hearts and minds; that all we wrestle with - in hope - might be transformed to be a gift and blessing to others. For the sake of Kingdom; the breaking in of God's rule.

God's temple is holy, and you are that temple.