An account of leaving and returning (Luke 10.1-11,16-20)
Introduction
Jesus tells his disciples to leave. The kind of ‘sending out’ which we have witnessed in the UK over the past week was probably not the kind of evangelism and good news sharing Jesus had in mind when he sent out the seventy. While the mission to share good news is never an easy one, rejection is even harder to face. The referendum vote to leave the EU may have won by a very narrow margin (52%:48%), but was a NO/YES vote the best way for the diverse peoples of the UK to choose their future? Those who feel they have been victorious will hopefully be sensitive to those feel they have lost much (Luke 10.17-20).
Context
In the wake of the referendum there is much to disturb and upset us:
- Who will lead us now? David Cameron prepares to retreat and the Conservative Party looks for a new leader.
- 172 Labour MPs made a big push to oust Jeremy Corbyn through a vote of no-confidence, following his alleged lack of action during the campaigning.
- ‘Go back home.’ There seems to have been a racist backlash since the vote, and not just aimed at Europeans. After the slogans and soundbites of recent months, is there a worry that it might become more acceptable to be racist?
- Luke 10.5-6 urges us to offer a message of peace in the hope that we would be welcomed into the homes of others. Who in Europe will welcome us now?
For those with the need to escape and leave both the referendum vote and its consequences behind, there is much this week to distract and to take our minds off things by going somewhere else:
- Many will have travelled to Glastonbury on Friday and revelled in the festival there, bringing welcome relief from the news earlier in the day.
- Others will seek escape in the great sporting events of the summer season: Wimbledon began on Monday and will be watched avidly by many up until its climax on the 10th July; and the irony of battling on in the Euro 2016 football tournament brings with it the worries of UK fans being made to feel unwelcome, as Wales play Belgium this Friday.
- Not so much escapism, as a sombre reminder of what happens when world communities fail to co-exist, the July 1st marks the 100th anniversary of first bloody day of the Battle of the Somme. The BBC will show coverage of annual ceremony at the Thiepval Memorial in France.
- With a huge sense of irony, Thursday 23rd June also saw the release of the new blockbuster movie: Independence Day: Resurgence.
Reflection
Independence Day: Resurgence follows on from the popular 1996 film, where humanity fought for its independence against the oppression of an alien race. This time around humanity has allegedly learnt from the past and has united in working together for a day they knew would come, when the threat to their survival would return. The ironic release date of this film in the UK (you may have noticed the advertising along the sides of trains and buses – ‘Independence Day, 23rd June’ – which many, oblivious to the film, may have thought related to the referendum!), along with the themes of a united humanity against a common foe, sits slap bang in the middle of the contrasts our nation faced one hundred years ago compared to today. The promotional material for the film states: ‘Only the ingenuity of a few brave men and women can bring our world back from the brink of extinction.’ In the wake of Brexit, the UK faces a leadership crisis. Our people need those few brave men and women to lead us boldly into an uncertain future.
How does it feel to be a UK citizen in Europe today? Like a lamb in the midst of wolves? Or, to turn back and extend the analogy from last week’s Gospel passage (Luke 9.58), are we like a fox in the midst of hunting hounds, desperately search for a home to call our own, somewhere to hide and to rest? Those who voted to leave the EU will have done so for many and varied reasons. But, to look back again to Luke 9.62, those who long for a world pre Common Market need to realise that the world around us has become a very different place since then. Looking at Luke 10.4, we might well worry about the state of our ‘purse’ in the days months and years ahead. Who will greet us on the road to a new future? What kind of welcome will we receive in the places we visit (Luke 10.5-6). What do our neighbours think of us now? Where will we find ‘peace’ in the days ahead? And what are the dangers of shaking the dust of Europe from our feet (Luke 10.11)?
A few weeks ago Franklin Medhurst, DFC (RAF 1939-46), wrote a letter to The Guardian. Having fought in the second of the two world wars, and now at the age of 96, Mr Medhurst was urging us to consider how far we have come since those dark days. And having laboured through those days himself, he was urging us to consider how much we have to lose. This week, on the 100th anniversary of the first day of horrendous bloodshed in the 141 day long Battle of the Somme, when in one day 19,240 British soldiers lost their lives, we are reminded of just how many ‘labourers’ have given their lives that we might be where we are today. To quote a letter to The Times from Charles Wellesley, Duke of Wellington, and Sir Nicholas Soames MP: ‘the country cannot escape the lessons of history, that Europe succumbs to division when Britain turns its back on our continent… The EU is imperfect in many ways but, nevertheless, Britain’s destiny and self-interest has always been to secure Europe’s peace and freedom.’
When we look to the leadership of our country now, the labourers (no party-political pun intended) may indeed seem few. Galatians 6.7b – ‘you reap whatever you sow’ – is likely to be banded about, out of context over the coming weeks, but let us ground this verse within the context of God’s great harvest. The rest of the passage goes on to warn of hypocrisy and focussing on that which is not important to the greater good. Galatians 6.9-10 urges the faithful not to give up, but to work for the good of all people, that the kingdom of God may come near. May those who follow this path find peace and mercy, and rejoice that their names are written in heaven.
Prayer
Lord Jesus,
you told your disciples to leave,
to leave behind
their money,
their belongings,
and their distractions,
that they might focus wholly on your missionary harvest.
Lord Jesus,
you told your disciples to remain,
to remain in the same house
where they receive
a welcome,
food and drink,
that they might bring healing
and share the good news of God’s kingdom.
Lord Jesus,
to leave or to remain
has been at the centre of our prayers for so long.
As we set out onto the path of an uncertain future
might we find, along the way,
those who would offer us welcome, mercy and peace,
for your kingdom’s sake.
Amen.
This week might be a good time to look at the ‘Summer prayer journey for all ages’ on pages 4-5 of ROOTS Adult & All Age magazine, Issue 84 – also available, free to all, online. It includes playful reflection on leaving, encountering difficulties, where are we going, who are we travelling with and where are we now? Whatever worries people might have about the future relationship between the UK and the EU, this prayer journey will aid peaceful reflection. Consider various ways you might make it available to members of your churches. You might find it useful to return to this more than once over the months and years ahead.
Questions
Jesus sent out seventy of his followers, in pairs, to go out to every town he intended to go to, that they might bring healing and share the good news of the kingdom of God, while embracing the welcome they might receive there.
- What scares you about taking God’s good news into your village, town or city?
- What gives you courage?
- What scares you about leaving the EU?
- What gives you hope?
Action
Look to see which groups in your local community might be hurting or vulnerable as a result of last Thursday’s vote. What can your church do build bridges and offer peace? As the Lord sent out the seventy, choose who might be the best diplomats to go out on behalf of your church. How can the rest of your church support them?
Young people
The advertising poster for the release of the film Independence Day: Resurgence in the UK showed a threatening giant alien spaceship hovering over Europe, accompanied by the quote: ‘We had twenty years to prepare… So did they’. Taking that poster as a starting point, design a poster advertising the possible two years we have to prepare for Brexit. Try to include a quote from Luke 10.1-11,16-20. Talk about how this might affect us, particularly those under 18 who didn’t get a chance to have a vote.
Tim Lowe is a minister of the United Reformed Church, serving four churches in north Coventry, and is Chaplain to URC Youth Executive 2016. Tim is particularly in interested in using visual art forms as expressions of faith.