A vision of community

  21st October 2021

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We had this psalm at Morning Prayer on Tuesday…

How very good and pleasant it is to live together in unity!
It is like the precious oil on the head, running down upon the beard,
on the beard of Aaron, running down over the collar of his robes.
It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion.
For there the Lord has promised his blessing: even life for evermore

Psalm 133

Earlier that morning I had heard the Roman Catholic priest from Southend, Father Geoff Woolnough, talk about the way people there were remembering Sir David Amess after his tragic death. Sir David had been part of his congregation.

He told Nick Robinson about one of the floral tributes in the church. It had been brought by a group of lads, who had rung from outside the church to check it was Ok for them to come in. They explained that they were from the Amidayya Muslim community and had travelled from the far side of London to make their contribution. Their card said ‘Love for all, hatred for none’.

Father Geoff asked if he could pray with them, as fellow children of Abraham, and they in turn said that they would offer prayers in their mosque.

They were doing what Sir David’s family asked for in their statement. They said, ‘He was a man of peace. So, we ask people to set aside their differences and show kindness and love to all. This is the only way forward. Set aside hatred and work towards togetherness. Whatever one’s race, religious or political beliefs, be tolerant and try to understand.’

After a tragedy like this there is often a reaching out across communities and divides. But how can we keep reaching out? It isn’t easy. We are much more comfortable with ‘people like us’ – people who look like us, sound like us and think like us.

Recently we’ve got a little involved with the work of Cheltenham Welcomes Refugees. We invited over the Syrian family my wife teaches, and we’ve been along to the café put on for the families.

Even in that very supportive and encouraging atmosphere it isn’t always easy to reach out – to sit down at a table when you don’t know whether you’re welcome or whether you’ll be able to communicate. To launch out into conversation when you’re worried about saying the right thing.

But when we do manage to reach out across our differences, or when others reach out to us, we discover a common humanity – the same sense of humour, a shared enjoyment of the delicious Syrian food, a willingness to learn from each other. There is a real blessing in it, which is much richer than simply meeting with those who are like us.

I think this is what Psalm 133 points to – a vision of what community can be like. This possibility is described in images of beauty and overflowing gift – dew on the mountains, precious, fragrant oil…

It’s an encouragement not to wait for a tragedy to begin bridge building, but to be inspired by the vision of what could be. Like a sportsperson visualising the game that they want to play, we can visualise this possibility and then let that vision guide and empower us.

And we can bring to God our longing for this vision to become a reality, offering ourselves, trusting that he will be with us, and asking for the grace, courage and understanding that we need. So we pray…

• We think of those places in the world, and in our country, where past history, distrust, hatred and prejudice divide people and communities. Lord, we bring to you our longing for there to be people of peace who will reach across those divides, and hold out a vision of a better way through their lives.

• We think of situations closer to home. We give thanks for the work of Cheltenham Welcomes Refugees and Cheltenham Interfaith and all those who build bridges across the boundaries of belief, culture and faith. Lord, we offer you ourselves to be peacemakers – in the places where we live, in our university here, in our churches, in our families – give us the wisdom, courage and patience that we need.

• We think of any who are especially in our minds and hearts today – including those caught up in conflict or living with rejection…  Lord bring to them the blessing of your peace.