What sparks in me a hope and delight is Welby's own delight, humour and optimism in accepting the position. No hint of "poisoned chalice" talk here. And I personally identify with the way he demonstrates an authentic mix of views on different matters, defying our desires to categorise others. I could trust a man who appreciates his Evangelical inheritance and has a Catholic spiritual director.
For that is what seems to happen as we mature: we become more our true selves, and find ourselves holding convictions in balance which place us outside any one human camp. And gradually, the Kingdom of God takes shape in us and shapes us.
And so to the capricious title of this post (I'm going to blog more light-heartedly in future): it struck me this morning that my role in my immediate family is beginning to resemble that of the A of C.
Once upon a time we were a family of six and our children naturally fell in with what Mum and Dad believed and where they worshipped. Simple days, so long ago ... They grew up, left home, some of them got married and started their own families - and our little closely knit family has expanded to fifteen and has become very diverse. By the grace of God, every one of us has found a place near God's throne and believes in our Saviour, Jesus the Christ: but He was absolutely right in telling us that there were many rooms in the Father's house! One family is part of a Baptist fellowship on a deprived estate in Bradford; another is now Roman Catholic, drawn to the most traditional wing of that Church, and in a fellowship in Ipswich; another son is recently married and planting new Christian communities in Helsinki; and our daughter belongs to a large Anglican church in Oxford. Mum and Dad are between fellowships right now, but looking for one with enough pentecostal freedom and passionate worship - that's where we thrive.
I absolutely love this diversity, and I let all our grown-up children and daughters-in-law enrich my devotion to God by sharing their lives in Him with us. They will sometimes argue among themselves and reject things another holds dear, but I will not exclude anything or any of them. Of course, it doesn't rationally add up. We have become a microcosm of the Church Universal. But I see the good fruit which validates all this diversity; I appreciate how different we are from each other, and therefore how different a journey God will have planned for each of us, until we all become like Christ.
Once upon a time we were a family of six and our children naturally fell in with what Mum and Dad believed and where they worshipped. Simple days, so long ago ... They grew up, left home, some of them got married and started their own families - and our little closely knit family has expanded to fifteen and has become very diverse. By the grace of God, every one of us has found a place near God's throne and believes in our Saviour, Jesus the Christ: but He was absolutely right in telling us that there were many rooms in the Father's house! One family is part of a Baptist fellowship on a deprived estate in Bradford; another is now Roman Catholic, drawn to the most traditional wing of that Church, and in a fellowship in Ipswich; another son is recently married and planting new Christian communities in Helsinki; and our daughter belongs to a large Anglican church in Oxford. Mum and Dad are between fellowships right now, but looking for one with enough pentecostal freedom and passionate worship - that's where we thrive.
I absolutely love this diversity, and I let all our grown-up children and daughters-in-law enrich my devotion to God by sharing their lives in Him with us. They will sometimes argue among themselves and reject things another holds dear, but I will not exclude anything or any of them. Of course, it doesn't rationally add up. We have become a microcosm of the Church Universal. But I see the good fruit which validates all this diversity; I appreciate how different we are from each other, and therefore how different a journey God will have planned for each of us, until we all become like Christ.
LOVED this piece. You are a credit to your family and I love your way with words. I will carry the many rooms concept for a long time, I think. Bless you x
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