Sermon Details

“Can You See Me -

or are you just looking?”

A sermon for Prisons Sunday

preached at the Mint Methodist Church

at 10.30 am on Sunday 20th November 2011 by the Minister, Rev Andrew Sails

We’ve heard today’s lectionary reading about the sheep and goats.

I want to reflect briefly on that passage in the context of this week -

it is not only the start of Prisons Week, it is also the start of Interfaith Week as well as Women

Against Violence Sunday.

Also the end of a week when racism has been very much in our minds.

So let me start with this year’s theme for Prisons Week - Can you see me? Or are you just looking?

Ralph Ellison’s novel “The Invisible Man”

is set amidst the racial tensions of the USA in the 1950s, The book tells the story of the Invisible Man -

he is not literally invisible in HG Wells style -

in one sense he is quite visible, like you or me -

its just that people refuse to see him for what he is – They choose to ignore him, pretend he’s not there.

“I am the invisible man, he says.

I am not a spook…or one of your horror film ecloplasms, I am invisible, understand,

simply because people refuse to see me.

Like the bodiless head you see sometimes in circus sideshows,

it is as though I have been surrounded by mirrors of hard distorting glass. When they approach me, they see only my surroundings, themselves,

or figments of their imagination –

indeed anything and everything except me.”

And how often do we remain blind

to things and the people we don’t want to see

- ignoring the reality and the needs of others which are inconvenient and painful,

Like Nelson of old we put our telescope to a blind eye, and then – raking the horizon for a sign of distress from the needy of the world, we say “I see no signal”.

In today’s set lesson, the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats, the real failure highlighted is the failure of looking

without seeing the needy at all - or at any rate failing to see them for what they really are as individual children of God.

In the words of one commentator on the parable: I was hungry and starving and you were full,

I was thirsty and you were watering your garden

I had no road to follow and was without hope - and you called the police and were happy when they took me away.

I was barefoot with ragged clothing and you were saying

"I have nothing to wear tomorrow I will buy something new," I was sick and you asked "Is it infectious?”

I was a prisoner, and you said, ‘That is where all of your class should be’ Lord have mercy!

(Anon, quoted  in “Seeing Christ in others” - Geoffrey Duncan)

This week racism has been in the news - with the new Stephen Lawrence trial and the latest depressing remarks of our old friend Mr Blatter.

Racism is the result of looking at another being, another child of God,

and not getting past the skin tone and the accent and the racial characteristics to the human being within - stereotyping - and dismissing -without really seeing our sister, our brother, made in God’s

image.

Another famous piece of literature coming out of the racism of the US deep south is Maya Angelou’s autobiographical “Why does the Caged Bird Sing?”

Significantly the book begins with the words “What you looking at me for?"

At one point in the book, Bailey, Maya's brother, in recounting the discovery of a black man's corpse and the pleasure a white man took in seeing it. "The coloured men backed off and I did too,

but the white man stood there, looking down, and grinned. [Bailey says] “Uncle Willie, why do they hate us so much?" Uncle Willie muttered, "They don't really hate us.

They don't know us. How can they hate us? They mostly scared."

Today is the start of Interfaith Week - and one of the key tasks of the Exeter Interfaith and Belief Group which meets here at the Mint is to help people see those of other faiths as people also on their spiritual journey - not as stereotypes to be patronised or vilified.

.

The Pope is in Benin right now - where voodoo is a major religion -

It is so easy to see followers of voodoo in terms of Hollywood cliché - but they are people too!

“When I needed a neighbour were you there, were you there? And the creed and the colour and the race don’t matter -

were you there?

And of course this is the start of Prisons Week - and my thanks to Sophie for her informative and thought provoking words.

This year’s Prison Week theme is concerned with how we treat prisoners, under the heading “Can you see me - or are you just looking?”

To put it simply, there are many broken lives in prison, and you don’t transform brokenness into wholeness with rules, manifestos, policies and advice -

you do it when you meet, see, listen, care for and give attentive love to the one in need.

Of course Exeter Prison has a high wall -

those inside are literally invisible to those driving along New North Rd.

- out of sight and maybe all too easily out of mind. We are grateful to the YMCA, the Chaplaincy team and others who don’t let that wall stand in the way. And if you want to know more about prison work, please talk to me afterwards.

But for those of us who are not Prison Visitors,

there is still plenty to do in response to the challenge of Christ

“I was in prison and you didn’t visit me”.

(a)  affirming and supporting those involved in the criminal justice system in the community - and I

think particularly of the work we do here with the Community Payback team at our Lunch Club (b)  but also we need to meet the needs of all those others in society who are in other ways imprisoned.

· We will be thinking in our service tonight about domestic violence - you can be imprisoned in your own family.

· You can also be enslaved, imprisoned in all kinds of prisons, some of your own making, others crafted by others -

The prisons of poverty, debt, addiction,

prison bars moulded by political social and economic forces -

In the words of John Johansen-Berg

“We see many imprisoned behind brick walls

And held in by iron bars -

but they are not as hopeless as those held captive by hate, Those encircled by prejudice and those in a prison of fear.”

We have all been inmates of those prisons in our time.

And we are all called to visit others imprisoned there now.

But then comes the miracle - for there in each cell, we meet Christ himself. And when we see Jesus in others,

it changes the way we see them - They are no longer “them”

but precious children of God, with infinite value and worth,

For whom we should care - and for whom there is hope.

So pray God today that we may stop just looking and start to see - That in Christ’s name

we - and every caged bird - may yet sing - and fly again

Order of Service

Welcome

Hymn STF 20 “Be still” (see screen)

Prayer

All Age Ministry: Sue Jones

Prayer

Hymn STF 440 / HAP 215  “Amazing Grace” (see screen)

The Peace

Leader: Let us share the peace Adults: The peace of the Lord be with you Children: And also with you

Leader: Go in peace

[Young people leave for their own sessions]

Introducing the work of Exeter YMCA with offenders - Sophie Hodge Hymn STF 410 “Lord, your Church on earth is seeking” (see screen) Bible Reading: Matthew 25:30-46

Sermon: “Can you see me?”

Hymn STF 499 “Great God your love has called us here” (see screen)

Offertory for Church and Circuit funds is taken and dedicated

Prayers of Intercession

The Prison Sunday Prayer:

Lord you offer freedom to all people. We pray for those in prison.

Break the bonds of fear and isolation that exist. Support with your love prisoners

and their families and friends, prison staff and all who care.

Heal those who have been wounded by the actions of others, especially the victims of crime.

Help us to forgive one another, to act justly, love mercy

and walk humbly together with Christ in His strength and in His Spirit,

now and every day.   Amen.

Lord’s Prayer

Hymn STF 345/HAP 216  “And can it be” Blessing