Sermon

Bishop Michael Bird has announced the name of our New Priest.
Go tor Rector's Page to see the letter

The Reverend John Ripley
(Interim Rector)

The Sermon is no longer available

See John's Jottings on the Rector's page

Interim’s Message
Vestry, 2011
The Rev. John Ripley

Today marks the tenth month that Elaine and I have been serving the parish as interim clergy. Our contract for this assignment has been three days and Sunday. Elaine has assumed responsibility for one of the days in a pastoral role. I have served on the basis of two days per week. Both of us have been involved in Sunday worship.

Interim clergy serve in the period of transition from one settled priest to the arrival of the new settled priest. The word ‘settled’ describes well the period of time when a rector is in place, because, the period of transition is often an unsettled time, or better said an unsettling time. The comfort of the past is gone and the anxiety of the future is anticipated. It is through those waters that both Elaine and I have tried to navigate the good ship Christ Church. On my first Sunday with you I assured you that there would be changes – largely changes of style. And to the dismay of some I did not tell a lie. My approach to ‘doing’ the Eucharist has I am sure been decidedly different than was Kevin’s. And your new rector will no doubt do it differently again. Whatever the bumps along the way I think that they have been largely resolved. As someone once said as they left the church one Sunday morning – “You’ve sort of grown on me.” I took that as a positive response, even though, warts sometimes grow on people.

Part of the role of the interim is to provide appropriate leadership for the parish during the time of transition. Effective leadership can be as simple as or as complex as one might want it to be. At its simplest the interim works to maintain the status quo so that people are, relatively speaking, comfortable. A truly dynamic leader during the interim period works hard to ‘stir up’ the status quo so that the folks in the parish might again rediscover their mission as a church in the community. I have failed you. At my truly dynamic best I do like to create a constructive tension around a parish’s vision and mission. I like to challenge the status quo, encouraging the congregation to step outside the confines of the ‘comfortable pew’, into what might be best described as the prickly pew. I guess as one get older, one, is sensitive to the potential unsettledness of pushing too many buttons. Minimizing your stress has helped me minimize my stress. Although I feel deep inside the stress of failing to do all that I might have done to help you prepare yourselves for the future. Because my friends there are indeed significant challenges that you as a parish face as you anticipate a new ministry with a new priest.

The Rev. Dr. Gary Nicolosi, rector of St. James Westminster Anglican Church in London and a church development guru, recently wrote in the Canadian Journal an article titled "Seven Questions Every Church Should Ask Itself". I want to share these questions with you because they could form the basis for a little soul searching individually and congregationally. Think about them.

1. What would be lost, and how would the world be worse off, if our church ceased to exist?

2. How does our church add value to people's lives that they cannot live without -- whether they know it or not?

3. What challenges in the fulfillment of mission does our church face and what can we do to bring about that new thing God wants our church to be?

4. What are the barriers to seeing (the) reality that our church needs to move beyond?

5. What issues does our church need to face within the next year so that five years from now, we won't have to say, "We wish we had..."

6. If money were not an issue, where would you like your church to be five years from now?

7. In what ways can we affirm "Jesus is Lord" without appearing to be bigots?

He further says, "Churches that can rethink their assumptions of ministry, reformulate their mission strategy and re-examine their way of doing church are more likely to revive and renew than the ones that do not. These 'missional' churches will lead us into the future - confident and resilient, open and affirming, life-giving and liberating, with a compelling gospel message that centers on Jesus combined with flexible methods of ministry."

As you move into your new ministry with Paul, I think you would be wise to open yourselves up to new possibilities, because, my friends you will have to . Your fellowship is nurturing. Your fellowship does reach out on an individual basis to the community. Your fellowship is comfortable. But you should know that your fellowship may not be here for much longer. Sadly money becomes the final arbiter when the reality of survival rears its ugly head. Those who understand finances will know that you are drawing significant money from your investments to balance your budget. The budget projection for the coming year - 2012 - is a deficit of $57,100.00. In order to balance the budget and cover all of your expenses that shortfall will have to be drawn from investments. Those investments, as you would likely know are not growing, because of present economic conditions. Further not all investment is available to cover the budget. My understanding is that you have $286,187.00 available to offset budget shortfalls. If you maintain your present draw on your investments, providing there is no significant change in the situation, they will be gone in approximately 6 years. Decreased giving, increased expenses and diminished return on your investments will require some significant changes in the status quo. This is the present reality that your parish faces. How you respond will determine your future. You may have to learn to do things differently. There will inevitably need to be change. bsp;

This is a hard pill to swallow I know. You are not alone. There are many parishes in our diocese facing the same reality. The past is catching up to us now. The challenge is to face the present so that we can assure a healthy future. The responsibility for this rests with the whole parish, even though, the parish leadership team will be tasked with charting the course to a new future.

The danger as you face the challenges of the future is to deny the reality of the situation and/or get depressed. The danger if you move into that space is to do nothing -- to give up as it were. One of the hallmarks of our faith is hope. When we forget that than we do not do justice to who we are as Christians. As I have tried to say so many times - your ministry in this community is God's ministry. I suggest that, if you truly see the validity of the existence of this church beyond your own needs, that you reach out to God in prayer - looking for comfort and direction. You may find that vigorous renewal will give you the ability to move on in a creative and positive way. You might be able to reinvent yourself as a 'missional' church. I repeat, slightly paraphrasing, what Nocolosi says, "(the)...missional church ... leads us into the future - confident and resilient, open and affirming, life giving and liberating with a compelling Gospel message that centers on Jesus combined with flexible methods of ministry." I pray that you find within your fellowship the will to step out in faith, taking risks as you carve out a new future for yourselves.

In one month Elaine and I will complete our ministry at Christ Church. As with every interim you develop friendships. Indeed there is a period of grief for us. I do not like to get into the "thanking game", but it is inevitable that I do. I would first like to thank Tom, Shirley, John and Dalton. You are likely not aware of the hundreds of volunteer hours that these individuals have put in on your behalf. It has been a very busy year for them - thank-you. Add to the four already named, Eleanor and Geraldine who served on the Parochial Committee. Theirs what not an easy task. They deserve your appreciation. My personal thanks to Tom, the organist, who has assisted me, and given me wise counsel, over the past few months. Sometimes Tom was the primary resource that I went to to determine how is it done a Christ Church. His capable musical leadership has enhanced the Sunday worship. Nancy works diligently around the parish devoting many volunteer, as well as paid hours, devoted to the upkeep of the buildings. thank you! And last, but certainly not least, I say a thank you to Enid. Her encyclopaedic knowledge of the parish has proven invaluable as both Elaine and I became, and continue to become, familiar with the ethos of the parish. There are so many other groups and individuals that are part of the fabric of this place. For your contribution I say thank you.

Elaine and I both leave with the hope that this beautiful church, with the beautiful people who give shape to the fellowship, will continue to serve God in this community. Listen to God. You are a partner with Him. Elaine and I extend to you God's blessings as you move into a new future.

      Peace,
      John Ripley
      (Interim Pastor)

First Lesson: Isaiah 40: 21 - 31

Have you not known? Have you not heard?
   Has it not been told you from the beginning?
   Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
It is he who sits above the circle of the earth,
   and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers;
who stretches out the heavens like a curtain,
   and spreads them like a tent to live in;
who brings princes to naught,
   and makes the rulers of the earth as nothing.
Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown,
   scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth,
when he blows upon them, and they wither,
   and the tempest carries them off like stubble.
To whom then will you compare me,
   or who is my equal? says the Holy One.
Lift up your eyes on high and see:
   Who created these?
He who brings out their host and numbers them,
   calling them all by name;
because he is great in strength,
   mighty in power,
   not one is missing.
Why do you say, O Jacob,
   and speak, O Israel,
‘My way is hidden from the Lord,
   and my right is disregarded by my God’?
Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
   the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
   his understanding is unsearchable.
He gives power to the faint,
   and strengthens the powerless.
Even youths will faint and be weary,
   and the young will fall exhausted;
but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength,
   they shall mount up with wings like eagles,
they shall run and not be weary,
   they shall walk and not faint

Psalm: Psalm 147: 1- 12, 21

Praise the Lord!
How good it is to sing praises to our God;
   for he is gracious, and a song of praise is fitting.
The Lord builds up Jerusalem;
   he gathers the outcasts of Israel.
He heals the broken-hearted,
   and binds up their wounds.
He determines the number of the stars;
   he gives to all of them their names.
Great is our Lord, and abundant in power;
   his understanding is beyond measure.
The Lord lifts up the downtrodden;
   he casts the wicked to the ground.
Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;
   make melody to our God on the lyre.
He covers the heavens with clouds,
   prepares rain for the earth,
   makes grass grow on the hills.
He gives to the animals their food,
   and to the young ravens when they cry.
His delight is not in the strength of the horse,
   nor his pleasure in the speed of a runner;
but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him,
   in those who hope in his steadfast love.
Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem!
   Praise your God, O Zion!

The Second Lesson:1 Corinthians 9:16-23

If I proclaim the gospel, this gives me no ground for boasting, for an obligation is laid on me, and woe betide me if I do not proclaim the gospel! For if I do this of my own will, I have a reward; but if not of my own will, I am entrusted with a commission. What then is my reward? Just this: that in my proclamation I may make the gospel free of charge, so as not to make full use of my rights in the gospel. For though I am free with respect to all, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I might win more of them. To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though I myself am not under the law) so that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law) so that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, so that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, so that I might by any means save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel, so that I may share in its blessings

The Holy Gospel: St. Mark 1: 29-39

As soon as they left the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told him about her at once. He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them. That evening, at sunset, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons. And the whole city was gathered around the door. And he cured many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him. In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. And Simon and his companions hunted for him. When they found him, they said to him, ‘Everyone is searching for you.’ He answered, ‘Let us go on to the neighbouring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do.’ And he went throughout Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.