Plenary, 06 Dec 2006
Meeting date: Wednesday, December 6, 2006
Official Report
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Time for Reflection
Good afternoon. The first item of business is, as it is every Wednesday, time for reflection. Our time for reflection leader today is the Reverend John Lafferty of Stevenston.
Ten years ago, I met Liam, a talented artist who paints in oils. We hail originally from neighbouring Lanarkshire villages. Liam is from the village of Newarthill and I am from the village of Cleland. Following our introduction, Liam was commissioned to paint a portrayal of St Barnabas to hang in a Roman Catholic church of the same name. He asked me to be his model and, modestly, I agreed. My ego trip did not last very long. The painting completed, Liam laid down his brush, smiled at me and said, "At last I'll see a minister from Cleland hung in a Catholic church." So continued—albeit in jest—not denominational bigotry but the rivalry between our neighbouring villages.
In the gospel according to St John, Philip tells Nathaniel that Jesus, from Nazareth, is the long-awaited saviour of the world. Nathaniel, from Cana, near Nazareth, perhaps influenced by inter-town rivalry, responds, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" Philip replies simply, "Come and see." So the Cananite approached the Nazarene and they entered into dialogue in which Nathaniel's scepticism and mistrust were allayed. Nathaniel went on to serve Jesus in the wider world.
Postmodern horizons have expanded far beyond parochial rivalries. Nowadays, our communities include people from different cultural and faith backgrounds. We, as well as our new neighbours, need to adjust, in mutual respect, to find harmony in diversity. Objective, sympathetic dialogue is one way ahead. It was in honest, open conversation that Nathaniel and Jesus found common ground.
Sadly, current global conflict threatens peaceful co-existence within our local communities. Some—the extremists, I imagine—attempt to legitimise conflict using religion, and that creates an air of suspicion. The teachings of both Jesus and the Prophet Mohammed refute such attempts at legitimisation. Jesus taught, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Mohammed said, "He is not one of us whose neighbour is not safe from his conduct." Those are complementary rules for living that could lead to an understanding between religions and bring about a genuine state of peace. Yet, tension and suspicion continue between world faiths, each of which sees its own truth as the absolute truth.
When Christmas eve comes this year, like many Christian ministers, I will preach on the text: "peace on earth and goodwill to all." As there is no peace and, for the main part, an absence of goodwill, I will be conscious of what Hans Küng once said: "There will be no peace among the peoples of the world without peace among the worlds' religions."
Thank you for listening.