What is our mission
Last year when we held our first service to celebrate Robbie Burns, I am sure that many of you had questions as to how there could be any redeeming features in Robbie Burns that might even indicate that it was possible to consider him a person of faith and conscience.
So much of his life seemed to be consumed by passions that we would not associate with a person of faith but while he had his weaknesses and sins, he also possessed a keen spiritual heart and a great concern for the welfare of all humanity. One of his greatest struggles was trying to reconcile his understanding of the gospel with the reality that he found in the church of his day.
The doctrine of predestination as interpreted by John Calvin was dominant in the church. That interpretation stated that God had foreordained who would be the elect – in other words, who would go to heaven. It seemed to have nothing to do with the life a person was living so much as that God had destined that person to be saved. The doctrine remained a powerful part of the Presbyterian theology well into the 20th century. To speak against the doctrine, as interpreted by Calvin, was seen as contravening the Westminster Confession of Faith and was seen as grounds for trials for heresy.
The use of excommunication as a tool to discipline church members was often used in Burns’ time and was still being used into the early and mid 20th century. Even though there was a clear understanding that all of us fall short of the standards that God has set for the people of this world, there was still the strong belief that those who were part of the church body were to be pillars of virtue in the community. Any behaviour which detracted from the spiritual purity of the community was to be dealt with in such a way as to let the entire community know that such behaviour would not be tolerated.
Burns didn’t set out to anger the church leaders of his day but he did have the audacity and the courage to question many of the things he saw happening in the church. To his mind there was a disconnect between the gospel being preached and the reality of what he saw in the church leadership and life.
Having said this, we need to be careful not to judge the church of his day as they were living in a social climate different from the one we are in today; but having said that, we can also be thankful that Burns used the freedom of will and mind granted to him by God to be a social critic in his time through song and poetry.
It is also interesting to note that in the century following Burns’ life and death, the social conscience of the church grew and the church became more involved with the suffering of the people and became a beacon of hope for the poor among them. The focus that came led to education for the entire population and a system of welfare that looked not just to the spiritual needs but also addressed the many physical needs present in a society that was seeing poverty and hardship on an unprecedented scale due to the industrialization of the society and the movement of people from country to city.
While Robbie Burns may not have succeeded in changing the face of the church in his day, we can certainly be thankful that his courage to speak his mind and even incur the censure of the elders and clergy of the church have left us with a legacy of thought that can still cause us today to stop and ask what we are doing as a church community and as a people of faith.
Our final hymn today reflects so much of what Burns truly sought for in his life from a relationship with God. He sought for a God of mercy, a God who understood the weaknesses within us. He sought for a God in whom he could feel a sense of joy and peace, one whom he knew in his heart would embrace and make whole all that walked upon the earth.
Christopher Idle who authored the hymn is now a retired Anglican priest living in Bromley England. Throughout his ministry he had a passion for the poor and served in inner city parishes as well as rural multi-point parishes. He was a conscientious objector and has maintained connections with the peace movement through various organizations. He has written books on evangelism, inner-city church life and prayer. He seems like the kind of church leader that Robbie Burns would have appreciated and with whom he would have found a kindred spirit.
In our gospel lesson for today, Jesus speaks with the disciples about the mission that he has come to fulfill. It consists not of buildings or budgets or committees but it is to teach people the plan of God, to bring hope and peace to the people, and to heal disease in mind, body and spirit. In that glimpse of the early days of Jesus’ ministry, we are reminded the purpose for which the church was established. The apostle Paul even laments what is happening in the church in Corinth as people seem to have lost sight of the core intent of their faith.
It is so easy for us to become wrapped up with the maintenance of our communities of faith that we can lose sight of the real purpose for our existence. God has called us to be a light to the world, to be communities that welcome the stranger, the seeker, the hurting. And while many of us will make personal commitments to support the life of our communities of faith financially and in gifts of time and talent, the community is to ever remain open to the neighbourhood around it and ever allow that community to interact with it.
Perhaps it may pain us to remember that Jesus spoke more of the one lost sheep, the one lost coin, the one lost brother than he ever did of all those who did everything right. Those of us who are secure in our relationship to God and who know the love, mercy and forgiveness of God need to be gentle and understanding with those who struggle.
The words in the second verse of the hymn reflect much of the mission statement of this congregation. It is my hope and prayer that we will continue to welcome everyone in need with free, affirming care and that we will ever understand and appreciate that God’s word, truth and justice are for all.
We are to be partners with God to accomplish the will of God. And if the will of God is that all be saved, then it becomes our responsibility to enable that to happen.
As Burns wrote:
“We came into this world with a heart and disposition to do good for it, until by dashing a large mixture of base Alloy called Prudence alias Selfishness, the too precious Metal of the Soul is brought down to the blackguard Sterling of ordinary currency.”
May we all be encouraged to recognize how blessed we are to know God and be called to be part of the continuing work of bringing peace and reconciliation to this world. And may that blessing lead us to accept the challenge to be a people who welcome the stranger and the seeker, allowing them to discover that the gifts of God are not just for some but that they are for all.