MayDay Message.

If I were to be asked, I guess I would say that I am a committed ecumenist.

A what?

I hear someone murmur.

I believe that the prayer of Jesus that his followers should be one with each other so that the world may find faith is to be taken as an imperative in my, even our, faith journey.

When attending Mission21 earlier in the year, someone said that the work of mission to all people was too important to be left any one strand of “church”, we all needed to be engaged, and so learn to “stop spitting at each other”. An interesting turn of phrase!

It was interesting to join a panel of church leaders in Coventry recently, where we were invited to share our vision for the church. I had the privilege speaking first. I focused on three points in good Methodist preaching style.

• Institution. We belong to organised church, but I believe that we need to lighten up our regulation of the church to set people free on a journey to discover and enjoy being God’s people. We need to be affirming of people and not putting them down. Be a place of celebration. We need to do this with other Christians from other traditions, paying attention to each others stories.
• Grass roots. Some years ago now the church leaders declared that the movement of Christians toward unity, not uniformity, had to come form the people. I think that now is the time for such a movement. Why not go to church in the community in which you live? Why not go to the church nearest you front door? Well I know you have always gone to the Methodists. I don’t want to lose the values that our heritage brings to being Christians today, but as I share it with others, I am enriched by what they bring to the table. I, also, find that we have far more in common than we have that separate us. 
• Issues. I have found that as people work for some common cause, MakePovertyHistory, NCH, just for example, they discover their shared faith and life. They find it easier to come out from their religious hiding places and work with others, sometime even joining hand with people from other faith communities or none, bound by their passion!

Well, far too religious this month. How do you while the hours of a car journey. We have tried many different approaches over the years. Have you got any good ideas?

 Journey well!

Bill Anderson