36 mins
LETTERS
Love and Risk
We are instructed to be radical by the General Assembly (July 2018).
John Milne lucidly addressed this issue in his July letter begging us to “carry forward the message of Jesus”.
We need to change our ways of meeting and interacting with people. The message of Jesus from His life and death is to approach each person we meet with unconditional love. This is where the risk is first encountered. In the appalling and shameful migrant and refugee crisis in so many countries, it is the human being that needs to be met and loved, just as Jesus did to anyone in need. What stops us doing this? It is not a lack of faith in God but an inability to see God in each encounter. This has been shown time and time again by our Lord himself and written about by Martin Buber (“I and Thou”), and demonstrated with sacriice by Etty Hillersum and Frans van der Lugt.
This is the way forward for each of us. To bring God’s love to ordinary persons, each person we meet, and embrace them. Watch the Church grow!
John Kusel, Cumbernauld
Jesus and Friends
The Very Rev Dr James Simpson in the June edition of Life and Work wrote on the subject of the beneicial power of friendship and referred to a number of examples, including that of Andrew Carnegie and Booker T Washington. He also referred to ‘Dombey and Son’ in which Charles Dickens described Dombey as being in the unenviable position of having no friends.
It is interesting to relect upon the friendships entered into by Jesus and how close they may have been. On two occasions, according to the Gospels, he elected to take only Peter, James and John with him. According to Luke 8: 49 – 56, when he visited a girl thought to be dead by her parents and others, she recovered. According to Mark 9: 2 -5, Jesus took all three up a high mountain when he was transigured before them. Do these descriptions mean that Peter, James and John were more close friends than others in the circle of Jesus?
There is a case, of course, for believing that Jesus’ closest friend was Simon Peter. At one point Jesus asks his disciples: ‘Who do you say that I am’ It is Peter who responds ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the Living God’. Jesus then said: ‘You are Peter, the Rock’ (Matthew 16 15 – 17). Whether or not Peter was the closest friend can no doubt be the subject of debate. What is for sure is that Jesus was surrounded by friends in the form of the disciples and others such as Lazarus, Martha and Mary. It should be remembered that Jesus did say: ‘You are my friends, if you do what I command.’ (John 15: 14).
Ian W Thomson, Lenzie, East Dunbartonshire
Temperance Book
I was interested in Jackie Macadam’s article in the June issue of Life and Work, concerning Abstinence and Addiction, and the ongoing problems relating to alcohol.
Seventy years ago my uncle, the Rev Dr Malcolm B MacGregor, who was minister of Jamestown Parish Church, Dunbartonshire, wrote a book entitled ‘Towards Scotland’s Social Good’. Its content gives a historical and detailed account of a hundred years of temperance work in the Church of Scotland. The book includes a foreword by the Moderator of the General Assembly at the time, the Right Rev Alexander MacDonald DD, and was produced at the request of the General Assembly’s Committee on Temperance.
Hugh MacGregor, Erdington, Birmingham.
Easter in Linlithgow
So enjoyed reading of the ive diferent churches’ Holy Week in March issue but I must tell you about what happens in Linlithgow!
Thirty-two years ago last month Linlithgow Church Forum was born and has grown like Topsy - our Ecumenical Holy Week is the best week of our year - much much better than Christmas! We have around 20+ services in our ive churches from Palm Sunday evening to Easter Sunday at 9am atop Cockleroi, local wee mountain behfind Linlithgow, with anything from 100-300 climbing with babes in arms to a 90+ year old last year, as we shout “He is Risen findeed!”
Services throughout the days and evenings - I managed 15 this year! A diferent Minister, Priest or Pastor in someone else’s pulpit giving their prayerful thoughts on the Bible’s account of that day - some with music some without: RC Stations of the Cross, Maundy Communion, Tenebrae, Between the Cross and Resurrection - and loads more!
What a JOY Holy Week is in Linlithgow - and especially because it is all done brilliantly ecumenically! A huge thank you to the leaders of our ive churches in Linlithgow and to all who pilgrimage year on year together to Praise The Lord!
Patricia Chapman, Convener of Forum, Linlithgow, West Lothian
Cartoon: Bill McArthur
Irresistible Call
Have you been called?
The call from Jesus is irresistible. Luke 5:10-11: Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will ish for people”. So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him. Luke 5:27-28: After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. “Follow me” Jesus said to him and Levi got up, left everything and followed him.
Jesus loves us. He wants us to say sorry for all our wrongdoings and follow him. Begin a new life with him. Luke 5:32: “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance”.
Have you been called? God bless,
Jennifer Elizabeth Beattie, Fort William
Industrial Mission Notes
For over thirty years the Church of Scotland along with most UK churches invested time, efort, and staf to the task of relating the faith to the working life of our people. This mainly came under the name of Industrial Mission.
Over a hundred Parish ministers regularly visited local companies and a small team of Full Timers were appointed and were able to work more closely alongside workers staf and management.
This would not be possible now, and few of us remain who were actively involved. Yet we were able to help many findividuals and change the way companies and trade unions did things.
Donald Ross (by email)
Communicants’ Class
Your feature article in the July issue on The Piping Padre, former Moderator the Rev Lauchlan MacLean Watt, remfinded me of a story about him when he was minister of Glasgow Cathedral.
Out visiting in his parish one night, he heard shouting and screaming through an open tenement wfindow, and immediately charged up the stairs to burst in and find a man battering his wife. Within seconds, he had the man down on the loor and was holding him fast while he yelled back at him about his behaviour.
Suddenly, there was a police whistle and one of Glasgow’s inest was standing over them. The parish minister turned his head to look up at the constable and yelled at him:”Don’t you dare interrupt my communicants’ class!”
(It was in New College, Edinburgh, that I heard this story, while I was preparing to be a parish minister, almost certainly in a Glasgow housing scheme.)
Jack Kellet, Innerleithen
Life and Work welcomes letters from readers of not more than 350 words which can be sent by post to Life and Work,121 George Street, Edinburgh, EH2 4YN or by email tomagazine@lifeandwork.org
For verification purposes letters must be accompanied by the writer’s name, address and daytime telephone number.
Anonymous let e writer, provided veriication can be made. The Editor reserves the right to edit letters for space and legal reasons.
This article appears in the August 2018 Issue of Life and Work
If you would like to view other issues of Life and Work, you can see the full archive
here.