Including children in worship and communion. My General Assembly speech

Moderator - Rev Sarah Ross, 338, minister, wife and mother of two - Kieran and Jessica, 9&7. I want to comment on 10 (of Mission and Discipleship) because I think we need to do more about the discipleship of children.  We know from the Ministries Council that the call to God's service is often heard in the teenage years. I was 14 at the time that I heard mine. However, Moderator I was at that time in the Salvation Army.  And with them I got to do everything including taking a full service. I sang badly, prayed public ally, read scripture and uplifted the offering in regular Sunday's. I went to church three times a day plus open airs and midweek clubs. I returned to the CofS at university and was struck by the 15 minute church time given to. Children. And the fact they weren't even allowed in church worship on Communion Sunday. The minister of the day heard my plea to at least let the children watch Communion.  The reason I asked was because the Salvation Army don't celebrate communion.  My first communion was at the age of 20 and it was terrifying (heart out of the chest). I don't want any child to feel that. Plus when I went forward for ministry I was informed I couldn't because I had no real understanding of sacraments nor were they sure I'd cope with Presbyterian governance.  (They may have been right about that) 

Moderator - how will our children have faith if we persist in excluding them.  I even have a question for children during baptism.  But why I am standing here is to say that the statistic recorded in the council of assembly supplementary report re the number of children at communion broke my heart. Off 54579 children only 3090 participated in communion. 30 years or so after the General Assembly agreed to children at communion is 5.7% of children acceptable? Or will we be told that 51,000 are babies? ;) 

As a young person said earlier this week the young are not the church of the future they are the church of now. 

Finally, my daughter turned 7 on Sunday 22nd May and she wanted to go to church.  And her brother thought communion on her birthday was the best gift the church could give.  Please fully disciple your children before they leave malnourished in faith. 

A sprinking of perspective? Reflections on the General Assembly 2016

The General Assembly of 2016 has almost drawn to a close - tomorrow is Friday and as I am going away for the weekend to recover I thought I'd share some thoughts tonight.  It has been a great week with a good atmosphere although not without its pain and challenge.  The worship has been excellent and the singing heavenly.  The Right Rev Russell Barr has navigated us well through the week and we have enjoyed the humour as well as the "head in hands" moments. 

I have tried to value the whole experience though I must admit it always takes a couple of days to orient myself - the number of people including stewards and others means somewhere around 850 people are around although more than will pass through the halls and when you spend most of your working life on your own or in small groups it can be somewhat overwhelming.  However, catching up with friends and making new ones, sharing ideas and moans are all part of the experience.  And reminiscent of Jesus in Jerusalem there is the crush for coffee in the Rainy Hall, the quiet of the courtyard and many languages as ecumenical partners and overseas guests share with us. 

I guess what strikes me most about the General Assembly is how much is about managing the institution and keeping the show on the road.  Starting with worship certainly centres us in the why we are here but generally we celebrating the work done and looking forward to what might be done, focussing often on the how and the resources needed rather than the why (with the exception of facing the fact we are becoming the church on the margins).  There have been some u-turns on the floor of the General Assembly as Councils and Committees feel the people power of the Commissioners.  And difficult decisions have been handled gracefully but unlike previous years there hasn't been the same repeated call to prayer.  Speakers have been varied with some regular contributors and some very random contributions.

I have enjoyed the General Assembly without a doubt and grateful for the experience.  How much will impact on the local is yet to be seen but for me the timely reminder that I am part of something greater than the local has been important.  Next year we celebrate 450 years of a church on the site of Blantyre Old.  We are in the early stages of planning our celebrations and that is right to do.  But as I listened, pondered and reflected I realised that there is more to celebrating what has been, there is what we are now and what we will be. 

And so it is my intention to work towards becoming an eco-congregation because the World Mission reported reminded us all about creation and the importance of looking after the world not just for our sake but for our global brothers and sisters.  I want to work towards Fair Trade status because Church and Society reminded us that where we put our money, our investments, our business can change the world for the better no matter how small.  In line with the Ministries Council developments in ministry I want to strengthen the parish grouping, look at youth ministry and figure out what a hub ministry might look like in my locale.

If my first time at the General Assembly since 2013 helps me to consider again what it means to be church locally and globally then surely that must be a good thing. And to practise what I preach I must once again challenge myself to reconsider the discipleship of our children and whether we really are doing enough. 

Sometimes we get so caught up in managing the institution even at the parish level we lose perspective.  I appreciate that we can't do everything but as one speaker said "we can't do everything but everyone can do something".  Always at the heart of what we do is the one true God - three in one - and as the Archbishop of Canterbury put it (paraphrased) - we worship and witness the same God.

Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plough and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”  Luke 9:62

So let's look forward together and get a little perspective.  After all this is God's church and we are his children. 

May God bless you with a sprinkling of perspective and a lot of love.

 

Pentecost Warmth

This past week has been a beautiful week where we have been able to enjoy a brief summer.  Of course we hope it is only a taster of what it is to come. 

Perhaps it is part of living in the UK and in Scotland in particular that when the temperatures rise we wish we could have a national holiday.  With the sunshine comes much joy for many – the sky is bluer, the colours are brighter, the atmosphere warmer, the songs of the birds are sweeter and the laughter of children rings out as they play out doors. 

Many I’m sure remember the days when the sun came out like this and washing lines up and down the street groaned under the weight of fresh washing.  If the wind was blowing gently it was a perfect drying day.  Beds were stripped, curtains taken down and every nook and cranny checked for anything that could be washed.  In Scotland at least a sunny day was measured by how much washing could be done!

Pentecost is rather like that first warm super summer day.  Pentecost, for the Church, is when the warmth and cleansing power of the Spirit arrived.  The disciples had been very sad, missing Jesus and wondering what would happen next. It was such a hard time for them living in limbo.  The days would have seen dull by comparison with what had gone before. 

And then the Holy Spirit arrived – the sound of the rushing wind – clearing away the cobwebs and stirring up the souls.  And then the warming flame of the Spirit resting upon each person brightening the world around them, opening their minds and hearts to the presence of God within.  From that experience, that encounter with the Spirit they left their locked space and went out into the world full of hope.  Like stepping outside on a bright warm day after the bleakness of spring showers the disciples stepped excited and hopeful. 

Sunny days always encourage us to enjoy life, even to take chances.  There is something about being warm outdoors that brings the adventurer to the surface – a barbeque perhaps, a game of football, or even just sitting to read a good book.  The disciples stepped out and shared the good news of Jesus with confidence, with knowledge and in Peter’s case with authority.

For me Pentecost is like that heat wave that hits and inspires hope and joy in each person.

The Church needs Pentecost and she needs reminded of Pentecost just like we need reminding that summer does exist.  The Church struggles at times to find a way forward and often locks herself away.  The Church worries so much about getting it right or raising enough money to pay the bills.  The Church worries about whether there will be enough Christians left to fulfil God’s mission.  Rather like the disciples in the upper room before the Spirit arrives we worry.  What does Jesus mean by this?  What will happen next?  Will we still have a church in 20 years?

Pentecost reminds us that God is in charge, and that it is his Spirit that is our advocate, our truth-teller, our guide.  Sometimes people pray that the Spirit will come but the Spirit is already here.  The Holy Spirit has arrived and perhaps what the Church needs to do, what we need to do is welcome her, nurture her and trust her.  Hard to do when she is something we cannot see – in John’s Gospel we read:

15 “If you love me, keep my commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.

The Church needs to hold onto the Spirit of Pentecost especially in the bleak days. And in our own bleak days when the world seems devoid of colour and we are not sure why we are here or why we bother – know that the Spirit of Pentecost resides within each of us.  And that just as a summer’s day dawns bright and early, so too will the Spirit shine on and give us light and warmth if we let her.

(Reflection used for an afternoon service on Pentecost Sunday)