My dear brothers and sisters,
As a Church in the 21st century, we have a very complicated relationship
with angels. The more materialistic understanding of our world has led
many people to think that if they can’t see or touch something it can’t be
real, or can’t exist. Many within the Church have this attitude. We can
accept we can’t see God, and we believe he exists, but anything else, not
really.
The difficulty with such a view is that angels are everywhere in the Bible. From
Genesis to Revelation, angels pop up everywhere. In the New Testament,
there is only one book that does not mention angels, the Letter of James.
Jesus knew about angels:
You will see heaven opened
and the angels of God ascending and descending
upon the Son of Man.
This is my favourite line of Scripture. I will never forget the first time I
heard it. I was preparing for confirmation in 2007 here at S. Michael’s. In
that line being spoken, I heard the Scriptures come to life. They became
something I lived in, and they lived in me. The world I lived in before
becoming a Christian was filled with talk about angels. This was stuff that I understood, this was common to many people
I associated with.
But here, in this line of Scripture, there was something greater. This Jesus
who had come to be everything in my life was saying that these same
angels would ascend and descend upon him. These same angels’
existence, purpose and being was, like my own, like all of our own,
centred on Christ.
I believe Michael, Raphael, Gabriel, Uriel, indeed all angels, are an
important part of our Christian cosmology. But even more, they have a
function for us in terms of outreach and evangelism. While the Church
has seemed almost embarrassed by angels and does not speak of them
very often, they are spoken of, written about, prayed to, painted, and
reported about by many parts of our society. Many people believe in
angels, but have no belief in Christ. For us, angels can be a middle ground,
a meeting-place to speak with such people.
May our Church become a place of such engagement.
Peace be with you.
Father Chris
Parish Notices
- S. Michael’s 2019 Calendar: orders now being taken. Details Rachel Watson.
- St Michael’s School: Term 4 begins tomorrow.
- Bible Study Group meets tomorrow, 7:15 pm in the parish lounge.
Details Peter Oakley (960 0974). - Women’s Fellowship meets Tuesday, 10:30 am in the lounge. All welcome.Speaker: Penny Tattershaw, School Principal. Details Pat Evans (358 0127).
- Meditation Group meets in the Lady Chapel, Wednesdays 12 noon.
Details Margaret Maclagan (359 9215) or Pat Evans (358 0127). - S. Luke’s Festive Eucharist: S. Michael’s parishioners are invited to join
withS . Luke’s on Thursday, 7:00 pm in the Knox Chapel. Supper to follow. - Angelology: those interested in being part of the Angelology Group please contact Fr Chris regarding day and time (possibly a Thursday or Friday morning).
- Blessing of the Animals Service: 28 October, 12:30 pm in the school grounds. Everyone is invited to bring their pet, however furry, hairy, feathery or scaly. There will also be time to remember those pets we have loved but who are no longer with us. If you would like to help with this service, please contact Fr Chris.
- A Handful of Change—Journeying through Advent: Craufurd Murray’s latest book is available for $10. Speak to Fr Craufurd.
- Inasmuch basket: please continue to support the City Mission with your gifts.
- All Souls Friday 2 November: Masses at 12:35 pm and 7:00 pm
Lists of those to be remembered are available at the back of the church from today until next Sunday. These are updated lists from last year but please make any other changes needed (print clearly and put your own name in brackets). The full list is for those coming to the evening Mass, but if you will be coming to the earlier Mass, please use the 12:35 pm list.
