Broadcast August 11 2009
Langside in Glasgow is indeed my church. And if you live on the south side you may already know that we had some major drama earlier this summer when the church building was burnt down after an electrical fault.
An event like that really concentrates the mind. One thing you realise is just how much of what goes on is centred around a building. Last night we held quite an important meeting in a local pub.
May seem like an unusual venue for a church meeting - but then again why not? The trouble with churches is that we can become so insular – so tuned into our own wee world instead of mixing with everyone else.
When religious people stay away from the rest of society it is no surprise that there is misunderstanding about faith.
Yesterday I read a report by the BBC about an investigation launched by the Vatican into the work of nuns - particularly in the US. It seems as if some in the Catholic hierarchy are worried that too many of them are working in settings that are not officially “church”. It used to be that nuns worked primarily in church-run schools and hospitals. Today many nuns no longer wear their traditional habit and they are to be found in centres dealing with the homeless or combating alcohol addiction.
Apparently there is the worry that some of these nuns may becoming too liberal, too lax in attending mass, and there are reports of some being brought back into the cloisters.
Jesus went to the church of his day to worship but spent most of his time mixing with the people around him - especially those who needed the most support.
It seems to me that if nuns are out there in the world where people are - where people hurt, where people need support and where people can be met and engaged, then they are exactly where they need to be.
Faith is not just about belief – it’s about action. The goal of Christianity (and indeed all major religions) is to help make the world a better place.
Going to where people are is a prerequisite for that. And it allows people of faith and no faith to meet and share and learn about each other. That kind of understanding can only be good for us all.