“BREAKING THE YOKE OF OPPRESSION” –
A sermon FOR HOMELESSNESS SUNDAY
AND HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL DAY
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A sermon preached at the Readings: |
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Isa
9:4 “For you have shattered the yoke
that burdens them …
and the rod of their oppressors”
Today is Holocaust Memorial Day.
This
afternoon Jews, Christians, Moslems,
members of other faiths and none,
will meet at the Guildhall, and we will remember
the rod and the yoke of the oppressor,
the horrors of the Holocaust –
As we
steel ourselves afresh to contemplate
the horrors of the camps and the ghettos,
we know that we must never forget lest what is forgotten is repeated.
And yet
of course in very significant ways,
those horrors which should have ensured that we all say “Never again”
are indeed repeated –
albeit often on a much smaller scale, yet still in horrific ways –
And so this afternoon’s Holocaust Commemoration
will also refer to subsequent acts of genocide and ethnic violence.
And with
all our international links in this congregation,
it certainly doesn’t need me to remind you
that the Jackboot and the search for tribal supremacy and the rule of the
master race
are stIll very much part of the world in which we
live.
The cry
goes up – How long Lord? –
how long before this world of ours learns the bitter bitter lessons
of fascism and racial and ethnic violence and oppression?
But then
I think we need to ask ourselves a hard question:
When we are thinking about oppression of the weak and vulnerable in society,
are we part of the problem or the answer?
Are we on the side of the oppressors or
the oppressed?
This week Liz and I went to see the Golden Compass –
the film version of the first volume of Philip Pullman’s “Dark Materials”
trilogy.
If you’ve read the books, you’ll know that Pullman is very critical of the Church,
which appears as an oppressive , manipulative and self
seeking institution.
The film incidentally (allegedly to avoid loss of Revenue in the American Bible
belt)
softens this quite a lot - the corrupt and manipulative organization is
referred to as the Magisterium rather than the
Church.
Even so some Christians have objected to the film
and sought boycotts for its anti-Christian stance.
I am not actually sure that a fiction
about an oppressive and totalitarian Church is necessarily such a bad thing –
it may function as a valuable & thought provoking cautionary tale,
warning the Church to avoid the abuse of power,
and challenging us to face the issue –
are we (the Church in the real world)
on the side of the oppressed, or oppressors?
To our shame - from the Spanish Inquisition
to the official state Church under Nazi Germany –
the Church (like Pullman’s Magisterium)
has all too often sided with the powers that be against the oppressed and
needy.
We need to remember that
oppression can come in many forms.
Today is
also the start of the
Week of Prayer and Action on Poverty and
Homelessness,
and that of course is also about oppressors and their victims.
Oppression
can be the effected by international trading systems
as well as by armies, by economic as well as military strength.
Who then
is to blame for the yoke of oppression
that condemns the poor of the developing world
and indeed the poor in our own nation?
We the
Churches may not orchestrate the oppression,
but like some Christians living under Nazi regimes in the 30s and 40s,
we may choose to go along with the socio-political status quo,
passing by on the other side, washing our hands of responsibility,
paying our taxes, obeying orders, and blaming the system.
"First they
came for the Jews,
And I did not speak out, because I was not a Jew.
"Then they came for the Communists
And I did not speak out, because I was not a Communist.
"Then they came for the Trade Unionists
And I did not speak out, because I was not a Trade
Unionist.
"Finally they came for me
And there was no one left to speak out for me.”
[Pastor Neimoller]
We can
remember the horrors of the past – but do we learn from them?
Do we act in solidarity with the needy and oppressed?
David Horn gave me a cutting
from the leader page of the Guardian
a couple of weeks ago –
amazingly one of the editorials was actually about the Methodist Covenant
Service.
This part of it:
“…Yesterday….many Methodists across the country
celebrated their annual covenant service, a renewal of faith
…but one that impressively emphasises
the importance of doing as much as
believing.
The heart of the occasion is a passage that includes the words:
"Put me to what you will, rank me with whom you will;
put me to doing, put me to suffering;
let me be employed for you, or laid aside for you,
exalted for you, or brought low for you."
It should not be misinterpreted as a sort of fatalism,
for many Methodists have held eminent positions,
espoused radical politics, and gone to prison
for opposing injustice and war.
Its nobility is the recognition of the accretion of great good
through small deeds.”
The leader then quotes the closing section of Middlemarch,
where George Eliot commends those who by living faithfully in their own
situations
contribute to the growing good of the world.
And then concludes:
“The same may be said for those who say the Methodist covenant
and try not to forget it, until the second Sunday in the new year
comes round once again.”
So 2
weeks on from our Covenant Service,
·
Have we already gone back to our
complacent lives,
tacitly accepting the corrupt and oppressive values of our society?
·
Or
are we striving to live out our Covenant
promises,
expressing solidarity with the poor and the oppressed?
This year’s Week of
Action for Poverty and Homelessness
offers us the following challenge (and I quote):
“What are the yokes and burdens of people today
which prevent them living a full life?
Debt, overcrowding, shortage of housing,
lack of affordable housing, homelessness, unemployment,
chronic sickness, laws preventing asylum seekers from working …
What can we as a church do about the
issues?
Is there something we can do locally
that is realistic and within our capacity?”
These are
things we would all do well to think on here at the Mint
– both individually and in our Church groups.
And should all this sound a bit daunting, go back to the scriptures.
Read Isaiah 8 – a catalogue of doom and gloom -
the people are oppressed and overrun by Assyria
and the alien powers around them -
society crumbling, enemies, without, enemies within -
But then
read on to chapter 9 (our reading
this morning).
Now suddenly – like a beam of light in the darkness -
there comes another voice – summoning hope
in the God
who will ultimately break the yoke of the oppressor
and destroy the weapons of the enemy
and herald the victorious rule of the Prince of Peace.
So as we stand in the long shadow
of Belsen and Auschwitz,
and perhaps
despair at the continued oppression and heartache
of our dark and sinful world,
Let us thank God that in the end his
shall be the victory –
The Christ who was a homeless refugee,
and who fled from the fascist rule of
Herod and his thugs -
this Christ shall sit upon the throne
– and in his name
shall the poor be lifted up and the
powers of evil cast down!
That is God’s vision for his world
-
Let us settle for nothing less!
Order of Service
Sunday 27 January 2008 10.30 a.m.
Homelessness Sunday Holocaust
Memorial Day
Morning Service led by Rev Andrew Sails
Organ: Harmonies
du Soir -
Karg-Elert
Hymn 86
“Tell out my soul”
(accompanied
by the Mint orchestra)
Prayers
and Lord’s Prayer
All Age
Ministry – Mary Hext
Hymn 215 “Amazing Grace”
(accompanied
by the Mint orchestra)
- 나같은 죄인 살리신 주 은혜 놀라와
잃었던 생명 찾았고 광명을 얻었네 - 큰 죄악에서 건지신 주 은혜 고마와
나 처음 믿은 그 시간 귀하고 귀하다 - 이제껏 내가 산것도 주님의 은혜라
또 나를 장차 본향에 인도해 주시리 - 거기서 우리 영원히 주님의 은혜로
해처럼 밝게 살면서 주찬양 하리라
- 奇異恩典，何等甘甜，我罪已得赦免；
前我失喪，今被尋回，瞎眼今得看見。 - 浩大恩典，使我敬畏，使我心得安慰；
初信之時即蒙恩惠，真是何等寶貴。 - 經過許多危險網羅，飽受人間苦楚，
此恩領我平安渡過，他日歸回天府。 - 將來在天安居萬年，恩光如日普照，
好像最初蒙恩景況，讚美永不減少。
Reading: Isa 9:1-4 (p. 693)
Korean Song
Reading: Matthew
4:12-23 (p. 968)
Hymn 500 “Lord God your love has called us
here”
Sermon: “Breaking the Yoke of Oppression”
Hymn 412 “We turn to you, O
God of every nation”
Collection
Prayers for those on our
Prayer List
Leader: …….Lord, hear our prayer
People (sing) Bless
the Lord, my soul,
and bless God’s holy
name
Bless the Lord, my
soul,
who leads me into
life.
Prayer for Poverty and Homelessness Action Week 2008:
Leader: Lord, your door is always open to us.
Your heart is always open, overflowing with love.
People: Help us, your church, to keep our
doors open
to all who struggle with poverty or homelessness.
Give us open hearts,
to recognise our sister, our brother, in need.
And fill us with the will to work in our community
and our country towards ending the pain and waste
that poverty and homelessness create.
Leader: In the name of
the one who emptied himself
of all but love, our
Saviour Jesus.
Amen.
People (sing) Bless
the Lord, my soul,
and bless God’s holy
name
Bless the Lord, my
soul,
who leads me into
life.
Open my eyes (a prayer by Alan Paton)
People: O
Lord, open my eyes
that I may see the
need of others,
open my ears that I may hear their cries,
open my heart so they
need not be without succour;
Let me not be afraid to defend the weak
because of the anger of the strong,
nor afraid to defend the poor
because of the anger of the rich.
Use me to bring love and hope and faith
where it is needed
and so open my eyes and my ears
that I may this coming day
be able to do some
work of peace for you.
Leader: Lord,
these and all our prayers we offer
in Jesus’ name.
People (sing) Bless the Lord, my
soul,
and bless God’s holy
name
Bless the Lord, my
soul,
who leads me into
life.
[Sung Response © Taize Community NHAWS 381
Calamus Licence 1613]
Hymn “We shall
go out”
(accompanied by the Mint orchestra)
Korean Blessing English Blessing
Organ: Marche Triomphale (Now thank we all
our God) Karg-Elert