'Deliver us from Evil'

We have gone a whole week with no funerals - so that's a good thing. It seems as though our thoughts and prayers are moving to a new 'frontline': to headteachers and their staff, as they try to work out locally how to implement the Government's strategy for children to return to school next week. (Though it must be remembered that teachers have never stopped working! They have been keeping their pupils resourced with various educational materials at home, and also running local 'hubs' for children of key workers, and children 'at risk'.) This is a major headache for headteachers especially: they are caught up in a political storm for one thing; but of course their main priority is for the safety and well-being of their children and their staff, while dealing also with the concerns of many parents. Decisions have to be made in the local context. Heads try to agree on a concerted policy, to avoid confusion; they will also be constrained by logistical concerns regarding the practicalities of their own building. They need our prayers and support. I hope parents, naturally concerned primarily for their own children, will be understanding of what teachers are having to cope with.

I have been thinking about the word 'deliverance'. George VI started it for me, reading his VE Day speech in 1945, when he spoke of a 'great deliverance' at the end of the War in Europe. Deliverance presupposes there is a 'deliverer'; it also means there is a 'deliverance from' and a 'deliverance for'. King George clearly believed that God had delivered our nation from the tyranny of Nazism: he had called for a Day of Prayer in 1940 when the entire British army were trapped on the beaches of Dunkirk. Many of us pray now, for deliverance from Coronavirus - and, more than that - from all that afflicts the human race, and spoils the life God always intended for us. To believe in and know there is a God who sustains the universe, and wants only what is for our good, is a huge blessing at a time such as this.

But I am specially interested in the 'deliverance for...' question. Having been delivered, what then? For King George, this was first a matter of thanksgiving, of gratitude. I believe that thanksgiving is actually a gateway to prayer. Rather than come to God with a list of requests, it is good first to be thankful. The King went on to speak of the tasks that peace would require. There was a nation to be rebuilt - and a world. The immediate post-war years were times of severe austerity, but also times of significant re-formation. The NHS itself, of course, was one of the outcomes. I wonder what benefits will emerge from this latest deliverance.

Currently, our morning Bible readings take us through St Luke's Gospel. Here, the first significant  'mighty work' that Jesus does is the deliverance of a man who had an evil spirit. (What this means in today's language of mental and spiritual health, we don't know.) What interests me is, 'What happened next?' As so often in the Gospels, we are not told! But I would love to think that this man, now delivered, went on to live a life which was happy, fulfilled, and profoundly thankful.

We are taught by Jesus to pray, 'Deliver us from evil.' What evil do we desire to be delivered from today? And how will we use our new freedom, when that prayer is answered?

Living with Viruses

We are now completing 6 weeks of lock-down. For many of us, a whole new routine and way of life has developed, from which we will eventually emerge - with more disruption, I guess. So our thoughts turn to the future. We are fortunate that the leadership in our diocese is devoting itself to considering the future of 'Church' here: we have recently had papers from both bishop and archdeacon inviting us to reflect on this. Finance and buildings inevitably will feature largely, but the bigger questions have to do with how we understand Christian witness, ministry and mission today and tomorrow. Some would say that another 'fault line' (geologically speaking) which the present crisis has revealed is the apparent irrelevance of Church for much of society. This is not news, but it has become clearer.

For me, the beginning and end of this debate is the 'old news' that God has entered the world in the person of Jesus Christ, and the first call on the life of every Christian is to 'follow him.' Like Peter, who tries to walk on water, if we pay too much attention to the wind and the waves around us, we're sunk!

I've been thinking about viruses. I'm absolutely not a scientist so anything I'm about to say is open to question! According to my dictionary, a virus is a corrupting or infecting influence. (There's a much longer scientific definition too, which I can't begin to understand!) But, from a little research, it is clear to me that viruses are - quite literally - a part of life. Some biologists describe them as a 'life form', and one particular description fascinates me: they are organisms at the edge of life. This being so, maybe the language of battle is not quite appropriate - pace my recent quotation of C.S. Lewis. For one thing, it suggests a rather arrogant attitude on the part of humanity, that we can be conquerors of all we survey. For another, it is foolish to think that we can defeat or eradicate something which, scientists, believe, have always been there. I also understand that it is possible to harness viruses for good, in the treatment of various diseases - and this, I believe, is the foundation of vaccination.

We are told that COVID-19 will be around for along time. So if this is about waging war, we will be exhausted. If, on the other hand, we are patient and think in terms of living with, while protecting ourselves from the virus, we will stand a much better chance of living well. Perhaps a good illustration of this comes from computing, where we are aware of viruses and the need to have good anti-virus software. (Let us not discuss here the question of the origins  of viruses - whether in nature or in computer software!) We need to protect our computers from these invasions, but once we have done so we can get on with the business of using these machines well. But think about how we react if we are hacked, or if something goes wrong! Anxiety, panic, anger. All negative emotions, which can prevent us from thinking sensibly about how to deal with the problem.

In the end, it's about humanity's desire, even expectation, to be in control. And if there is one thing we are learning now it is that actually we can't be. Not completely. So we need to live more humbly, and tread more carefully upon the good earth. So the ancient words of the prophet Micah come to mind: what does God require? To do justly, to love mercy, to walk humbly with God.

So I continue to pray daily: Peace (in the face of fear) and Protection (from all that harms us) for all. As one of my favourite theologians, Stanley Hauerwas has put it, We all want to get out of life alive!

Here is another offering from Eleanor: the rainbow of hope over Cockermouth.