Letter From The Vicarage - February 2012

Dear Friends,

I’m reading a very interesting book at the moment. It is called “Fix me; Love them.” It is subtitled “Christianity as it should be.” It was written by Matt Wells and the description of the book says: ‘So often, as followers of Christ, we feel it is our calling to "fix" people for God. But is this really the Christian life as Christ intends? Is it really our place to judge, condemn, and mould people into who we believe they need to be, or are we only to focus on bettering ourselves, so that we may better love others?

I suppose that this sums up my own attitude to religious faith and that’s why I find it so attractive. However, it made me think about what religion was for.

The theme of the book as the quotation says is that the main object of prayer and worship is the improvement of ourselves, not judgment of others or an attempt to squeeze them into a mould we think they ought to be forced into – an idea of Christianity that we have and which we feel that everyone should adopt. In other words to make other people just like us.

Our job is just to love other people. We’re all made in the likeness of God, which if we think about it means that we all – without exception – have the divine spark of life within us. The author maintains that every action and every behaviour is governed by the need to be loved and valued, however misguided that may be.

This means that we don’t need to expend time and energy trying to convert the world – an impossible task anyway, but that we should tend our own garden. It may be that others will see in us an example to follow and an inspiration for their own life. If that happens, then all very well; if not, then God still loves other people, accepts them and if he wishes, may use others to inspire them to go in a different direction to the one we have chosen to go.

Lent begins on Ash Wednesday 22^nd February. Have you given any thought to how you will keep it? Are you giving something up, or are you taking on something extra? Whatever it is it needs to be an expression of your own personality, in view of what I have just written.

With all good wishes,

Geoffrey

From the Parish Registers

Christenings

Ethan Jason Oliver at Wolverley - 1^st January

Funerals

Mollie Turvey at Cookley – 6^th January

Terry Maiden at Wolverley – 12^th January

Kate Bagshaw (Cookley) at Wyre Forest Crematorium – 17^th January

Pauline Coole (Sion Hill) at Wyre Forest Crematorium – 19^th January

Mandy Partridge at Cookley – 27^th January