Letter from the Vicar (November 2009)
Dear friends,
The month of November has in recent years been given a new designation by the Church. It is called the ‘Kingdom season’. I believe it is good to have a specific season devoted to the Kingdom of God because it was at the heart of Jesus’ proclamation.
But what is the Kingdom of God? Is it a present reality or a future hope? Is it a kind of Christian Utopia in this world, or is it a heavenly Kingdom for the next world only? Is it something we can work for or only wait for? Is it a kind of divine totalitarianism, or is it the living goodness of God shared with humanity? These different understandings of the Kingdom are reflected in the history of the church and in the way it relates to the world. For instance, some parts of the church have emphasised the church’s task of working to bring in the Kingdom on earth as an ideal society. Others see the Kingdom of God primarily as a personal hope, particularly of heaven.
But what did Jesus teach? The first thing to be said is that Jesus did not try to define the Kingdom. Though Jesus continued to proclaim it as a future hope, what was original about his teaching and actions was his message that the Kingdom of God is here, is now. Israel had long hoped that the day would come when God’s truth, mercy, justice and peace would be established in the world. Jesus’ teaching is that this hope is in process of fulfilment: “The day is here.” “Today in your hearing this text has come true.” “Blessed are the eyes which see what you see! Many prophets and kings desired to see what you see but did not.” Jesus demonstrated the presence of the Kingdom by bringing people into its life and freedoms. He did this by his healings, by mixing with those on the fringes of society and by his own suffering. He did it by his teaching, using stories and metaphors to bring the Kingdom of God closer to people in a way no mere definition could.
This message is so closely tied in with Jesus’ own identity, presence and authority that the first disciples came to see Jesus and the Kingdom as inseparable. In a way we could say that Jesus is the Kingdom of God in person. Jesus did not define the Kingdom, he made it present. In the gospels we see the Kingdom taking shape, we see its character and its power to transform and liberate. This is what happens when God draws near and people accept and receive him. Look at the people Jesus mixed with, ate with, touched and allowed to touch him. We see and feel what it is to be in God’s Kingdom, to share in God’s life. Expectations, values and judgements are turned upside down. The reign of God is inclusive, liberating and reconciling. The lost are rescued, the stranger embraced, the hungry are fed, feasts are thrown open to the poor, the marginalised are welcomed in, the sick and disabled are no longer excluded or disadvantaged, and people experience the companionship of God in the person of Jesus. The Kingdom of God is the energy of God’s love breaking open our exclusivity. Whenever we see that happening we can be sure that the Kingdom of God has drawn near.
Yet this also brings with it a challenge. The Kingdom is disturbing and faces us with hard choices. There must be a letting go of all holding onto power and all that binds us into exclusiveness and privilege. How hard it is for those who are rich in this world’s privileges to experience the Kingdom of God. Jesus points us towards the poor and to children as those who most naturally experience and receive God’s life, his Kingdom.
So how does this help us with the questions I posed at the beginning? Let us draw some conclusions about each of them.
1. The Kingdom is a present experience wherever God’s love and truth break through the hardness and oppressiveness of human structures and sin. Thus it is not just a future hope but present experience. But the Kingdom is also like a mustard seed. We await its full growth and flowering when springtime turns into summer and God’s light fills everything. Experience and hope belong together and strengthen each other.
2. The Kingdom is about this world and its transformation. This involves challenge and judgement about the way things are in this world. But the Kingdom cannot be reduced to a political programme.
3. The Kingdom is something we are caught up in and invited to share, to live and to bear witness to. This means we are not just waiting for the fulfilment of the Kingdom, but praying Thy Kingdom come not only in words but by our actions. We are commissioned by Jesus to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and that means working for a better world. But the Kingdom is a gift from God not a human achievement. It is to be received and celebrated - something we do each time we celebrate the Eucharist.
4. Finally the Kingdom is not a form of divine dominance but the transforming life of God and His presence. The Kingdom of God is the energy of God and Jesus is the Kingdom of God in person.
Let us rejoice that He shares our life and brought His Kingdom into our presence.
Richard Franklin
November 2009
