Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!
A couple of weeks ago, our Confirmation group went to the Cathedral for the 200th celebration. They were struck by how different it is to St John’s. The stained glass, the high arching ceilings, the decorated choir stalls, separated sanctuary and the incense.
Their overall impression of the service was one of awe. Going up to the front for communion was daunting for some of the teens. Filing up to the intricately carved altar, through banks of choristers, beneath a ceiling you can barely see and having no idea where to kneel or even if you should, I’m surprised they didn’t just freeze in place! On top of that, the choir master was standing in the middle of the aisle, leading to a bit of an awkward spot near the base of the stairs. People who had received communion were trying to come down and turn through the line while others yet to receive were trying to go up, letting people through in batches. Much like a traffic stop. I think this “who will go first” dance in the line for communion is another tradition that can be found in any Anglican church!
Besides the traffic jam, receiving communion in that space was beautiful. Walking up to the altar, you pass through the rows of singers. Standing tall in their stalls, walking through the choir felt like going through a tunnel of humbling praise. And hearing the congregation singing with such conviction behind us, it almost brought me to tears. In that moment I felt such kinship with all those around me. THIS is what it meant to be a part of Christ’s church. Standing together singing the Lord’s praise with one voice.
In that moment, all the verses speaking of God accomplishing great things through His people made sense. From the breaking down of the walls of Jericho through praise to the building of the walls around Jerusalem through steady dedication. We are called to stand together, solely focused on the Lord. This is how we accomplish the works He has called us as a people to do.
So easily we get disheartened by the evil in the world around us, wondering how things could get so bad. Often, we feel defeated, thinking that wrongdoing has taken root too deep for us to overcome. But it is together that we stand against this.
A week after our trip to the cathedral I stumbled across a video mocking the song “I’m in the Lord’s Army”. To be fair, the kids were wearing the most luminous array of mismatched clothes the 90’s had to offer. But the mockery was not aimed at the questionable style of the times. It was a mockery of the “indoctrination” of kids in church spaces. And it stuck with me for a while. What are we teaching our kids to sing?! It’s all fine and well to march along with Father Abraham’s many sons, or consider how I’d praise God, if I were a butterfly. Talking about infantry and enemies while making shooting actions does seem a bit strange though!
But on thinking about it more, it is so clear why we teach our kids these songs. Though they won’t be expected to “fight in the infantry, fire the artillery or zoooom o’er the enemy” they will face the same fears we face. The same feeling that they are standing alone against evil corruption that makes living a Christian life so hard. Perhaps this song takes an extreme route to teach this, but at least we are getting the message across. We are telling our children they will face difficulty, but they are not alone.
Last weekend we baptized one of our Confirmation candidates. We sang welcome to the family. And that is what a church should be. A family to be strong and to lean on. This weekend nine of our teens are going to be making vows to renounce evil and to declare their faith in the Lord. They, like every Christian before them, will be facing hardship and will struggle to keep their vows. But they along with the rest of us can be emboldened with the knowledge that we are not alone. Just as the choristers sang with the Congregation, we work together for our Lord. And just like the kiddies say in Children’s church: I’m in the Lord’s army, YES SIR!
Much love in Christ
Heather