Progressive, affirming, questing in Warrnambool, Victoria
Well, Sanctuary has now met for the last time and, in the words of an old prayer, what has been done has been done; what has not been done has not been done: let it be. I am in the process of closing things down, and this will be the final post. We’ll finish off with Psalm 136, Sanctuary-style, developed from your responses to a prayerful exercise (here). Continue reading “Our final post: Psalm 136, Sanctuary-style”
When Beth first worshipped with Sanctuary, she found it so mysterious that she wrote a poem. It became something we shared at our annual covenanting service. A few weeks ago, she went back to the poem and added the lines in italics. It is a beautiful witness to the transforming power of a small, gentle gathering around the gospel. Thank you so much, Beth, for sharing this with us now. Continue reading “A silver spoon from Richmond, revisited”
Happiness is fleeting and contextual. But even in the depths of anguish, we can know joy. (Listen.)
‘It might seem crazy what I’m ‘bout to say …’: but sometimes when the sun is shining and the birds are singing and the house is cleanish and the garden’s flourishing and everyone’s cheerful and I have a bit of money in my pocket, I dance around the kitchen to Pharrell Williams’s smash hit, Happy. Continue reading “Philippians | In the depths of anguish, joy”
Be mature, therefore, as your heavenly Father is mature. Beware of practising your piety before others in order to be seen by them, for then you have no reward. (Matthew 5:48-6:1)
Perfection is a Greek concept, evoking the Platonic ideal. It suggests something unreachable, unattainable, unchanging, and removed from the mess of life. “Be ye perfect,” says Jesus, and when I hear this a little something within me dies. Perfectionism, self-flagellation and hypercriticism run deep in my family story, and so I wasted years worrying that I am not good enough, or doing enough, for God. Continue reading “Matthew | Aiming for ripeness”
He went away grieving, for he had many possessions. (Mark 10:22)
A man asks Jesus how to inherit fullness of life; when Jesus tells him, the man goes away grieving. It’s one of the saddest phrases in the gospel. The man doesn’t have to walk away from Jesus and his disciples, nor does he need to grieve. Yet that is what he chooses, and Jesus is so committed to his freedom that he lets him walk away. Continue reading “Mark | Slow reading | He went away grieving”
A reflection for white settlers living on stolen land. (Listen.)
It’s tempting to reflect on the bones. The massacre site that is now a fast food restaurant just a couple of blocks from Sanctuary. The bones which still wash up from time to time on the beach near Peterborough. The babies’ bones buried six feet under at the missions. The bones which were scattered throughout the landscape, left to rot in every lake, valley and hollow, left lying in the paddocks to dry out in the sun. It’s tempting to focus on the bones: because our history and geography are studded with other people’s bones. Continue reading “Ezekiel | Dem dry colonial bones”
Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed. The prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with. (James 5:16, MSG)
I’m sure I’m not the only person who finds these words, or at least the way they can be used, difficult at times. In the public sphere we too often see Christians praying for domination over others, for the eradication of queerness, for violent military successes, for personal wealth, even for the overturning of election results. Even in our own circles, the conviction with which some people insist that they know God’s will and that their prayers must and will be answered is unsettling. Continue reading “Prayer | Let us pray for one another”
Sanctuary’s taking a summer break. This month, many of us are on leave and outside every day, so here’s something from the archives – a summer read from Greg. If this reflection evokes your own prayer, image, artwork, perhaps it could be your contribution to the Lent book (2023 described here).
10am on Jan 1, 2020. The year started abruptly at our house: we awoke to the shock that one of our family’s treasured guinea pigs had escaped. Fortunately, years of wrangling chooks together as a family had stood us in good stead and with the able services of Jindi the ‘Sniffer Dog’ extraordinaire, we swung into action as one. We started working coordinated patterns in the native plant bed, bravely fossicking amongst the bushes and rocks whilst Jindi went to work picking up the scent. Half an hour and a few failed attempts later and we had our ‘treasure’. ‘Blossom’ was found and returned to her friend and wholeness was restored. Continue reading “Isaiah | On a guinea pig restored and the slow work of healing”
Inviting Christ into your dwelling means being renovated from the inside out. (Listen, or watch on YouTube.)
A newcomer was sitting with a circle of women as they reflected on the sermon after the service. Suddenly she said, ‘Wow! I’ve never seen THAT before!’ I asked her what she noticed. She gestured to the men heating food and setting the table for our common meal. ‘Everywhere else, men talk and women serve,’ she said. ‘Not here,’ I replied. ‘Here, people take turns. And if you stay for the meal, you might see men doing the dishes afterwards!’ Continue reading “Luke | Martha Made Whole”
Our deepest liberation can set a city free.
A few years ago, when my kids were a bit younger, the movie Frozen would often be playing in my house. As kids often do, they liked to enjoy the same story again and again. I must have watched it several times myself. And sitting there watching it with my children I was drawn in. A girl called Elsa has a magical ability: she can magically create ice and snow, sending it streaming from her fingertips. And for this she is judged to be dangerous – a danger to her little sister, a danger to anyone around her. So she is locked away in her room and hidden away from everyone else in the city. Continue reading “Luke | Back to the city”
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