Christian Union Prayer

Christian Union Prayer Dear God,We praise and glorify you.Help us overcome our fears and follow your teachings with love and courage. Give us the strength to face the challenges and endeavours that exist in our daily lives. As we grow in faith together, help us to overcome the trivialities, distractions and the darkness in our lives and focus on you, the giver of life.Forgive us for all that we should have done but did not do, and all that we should not have done but did. Help us to forgive others who have gone against us, and we thank you for all the blessings you have given us throughout our lives.Help us to share the love that you have given us with others, and to spread the teachings of Christ in our world.We pray for all those without Christ, without light, and without hope, and we pray for all the Christians in the world who need your strength and love.Amen

Doubt and Diversity: 21st Century Faith Should we stay true to our ideals/beliefs in a world where many people disagree? Should we compromise or adapt? Are we certain?

How Should we treat People of Other Faiths? Behind the Stereotype • Often we can stereotype people of other faiths e.g. judge all Muslims by the fact that many Muslims around the world persecute Christians or focus on the ridiculous aspects of one religion. • For example, I have recently got to know a Muslim who described his faith to me in a way that completely redefined how I thought of Muslims. • There are a few facts here which I didn’t know before – it made me see Islam and the historic divisions between it and Christianity – in a new light. The Arabic word ‘Islam’ simply means ‘submission’, and derives from the word ‘salaam’ which means ‘peace’. In a religious context it means ‘a complete submission to the will of God (Allah)’ . A ‘Muslim’ is a follower of Islam, one who attempts to ‘live in peace through their submission to the will of God (Allah)’.

How should we treat people of other faiths? Do we have more in common with people of faith than people without faith? Should that affect how we behave to people of other faiths? • Often we can share certain ideas (e.g. The idea of God and following ethics which our society today often mocks) more easily with those of faith. • We may also find overlap e.g. all religions of the abrhamic tradition share certain books/values. • Many people of other faiths find goodness and peace within their religion and lead good, productive and active lives. 7 Cardinal Sins & Virtues VICE VIRTUE Lust Chastity Gluttony Temperance Greed Charity Sloth Diligence Wrath Patience Envy Kindness Pride Humility “The challenge of faith in practice however is to do so in a sometimes unbalanced world full of the hustle and bustle of modern industrialised life which is often out of sync with human life and spiritual purpose.”

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How should we treat people of other faiths? Thomas said to Him, "Lord, we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way?" Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. "If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him. But... Christianity is different to other religions.... • We believe that Christ (God) died on the cross as a human. No other religion teaches of a God who came down to Earth in order to suffer and die that we may be redeemed. • No other religion teaches so much of grace, love and mercy in relation to crucifixion. • No other religion can respond to suffering with the idea that God knows how you feel ‘because he suffered too’. So with all this in mind... How should we respond to people of different faiths? For example, if we view all religions as ways to the truth, do we have the right to evangelise and support Christian-only charities? If we don’t believe this, then how should we respond in an appropriate and loving manner – and how do we deal with the fact that there are so many people of different faiths etc. within the world? “You shall find the closest to you in love and kindness shown to the believers are those who say we are Christians, for among them are priests and monastics, and they are not arrogant.”

CS Lewis • “The world does not consist of 100 per cent Christians and 100 per cent non-Christians. There are people who are slowly ceasing to be Christians but who still call themselves by that name.... There are other people who are slowly becoming Christians though they do not yet call themselves so. There are people who do not accept the full Christian doctrine about Christ but who are so strongly attracted by him that they are his in a much deeper sense than they themselves understand. There are people in other religions who are being led by God's secret influence to concentrate on those parts of their religion which are in agreement with Christianity and who thus belong to Christ without knowing it.”

Christians with different beliefs/behaviour “If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one... if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.” (Matthew 18:15-17, NRSV) I was a struggler. Religious people would say to me, "I love you but I don’t like your behaviour.” Despite their intentions, all I heard from them was "You’re worthless.” Why couldn’t they say, ‘I love you and God loves you? HOW DO WE RESPOND TO ‘SINNERS’ IN THE CHURCH? Thunderously, inarguably, the Sermon on the Mount proves that before God we all stand on level ground: murderers and temper-throwers, adulterers and lusters, thieves and coveters. We are all desperate, and that is in fact the only state appropriate to a human being who wants to know God. Having fallen from the absolute Ideal, we have nowhere to land but in the safety net of absolute grace. Phillip Yancey The call of today’s Gospel is to stay focused on your mission. Whatever God has called you to do – do that, and be very attentive to how He wants it done, when He wants it done, and where He wants it done. That is the spiritual formula for success in the Kingdom of God.

Christians with Different Beliefs The ministers of the church must be ministers of mercy above all. The confessor, for example, is always in danger of being either too much of a rigorist or too lax. Neither is merciful, because neither of them really takes responsibility for the person. We must accompany people, and we must heal their wounds. Pope Francis "Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” We should also remember that there is no record of Jesus ever speaking out against slavery – in fact, most of our laws relate to behaviors which Jesus never adressed. We should not feel bound – but free to follow our consciences. It is worth stressing, however, that we cannot simply overlook an offense if doing so is motivated by our cowardice, fear of conflict, and/or lack of concern for someone and their sanctification. In the end, it is the glory of God, the reputation of Jesus, the well-being of the church, and the holiness of the individual that must outweigh any personal desires for a life of ease that avoids dealing with sin biblically.

Christians with different beliefs: How should we respond? The Bible • “Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved?But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.” • ”And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.”

“I rejected the church for a time because I found so little grace there. I returned because I found grace nowhere else.” Philip Yancey

A Prayer for Grace in a Time of Uncertainty O God of every age and circumstance, who gives us life and time to live it, we acknowledge the struggle of coping with the uncertainty of our days. We cannot know what is waiting for us along the way of this life’s journey and dare not imagine the threats that lie hidden in the days and challenges of unseeable tomorrows; but we do know that you are already there, waiting to keep your promise to travel with us and to provide the grace we will need to live in the light of your love. In Jesus’ name, we claim that promise, Amen

Links – On Website • http://www.awmi.net/extra/article/overcome_doubt • http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2027:46 • http://www.beliefnet.com/Entertainment/Books/2005/08/If-Christianity-Is-True-People-I-Love-Will-Burn-In-Hell.aspx?p=3 • http://www.whatchristianswanttoknow.com/bible-verses-about-doubt-20-scripture-quotes/ • http://www.philipyancey.com/q-and-a-topics/faith-and-doubt • http://www.ted.com/talks/lesley_hazleton_the_doubt_essential_to_faith.html • http://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/doubt-and-the-apologist/

Christian Union Prayer