Grounded Faith - A Reflection
The life of faith is seldom one written in large letters on a world stage. For most it is quite ordinary; simple prayers and quiet company, weekly gatherings and occasional events. But this ordinariness and quietness should not be mistaken for lack of commitment or passion.
While ecstasy can be a joyous experience, to live forever ‘outside of one’s self’ is to risk alienation from God’s creation.
A grounded life is one where daily life is a dominant feature. We might work to live, or live to work, but work we do. Relationships are profoundly important and very difficult, for they twist and turn with time and experience. Birthdays and anniversaries are rightly celebrated for they mark both commitment and change. Possessions are important, but less than they might seem at first; less important than the rich memories evoked by photos or the treasured aromas of love captured by perfume or roast in the oven.
A grounded life embraces tragedy and pain, sometimes with stoicism, and sometimes with wreaking sobs. If a life of faith is to have any significance it must do so here, in the ordinariness of life.
The conviction of faith is that every human life has value; that the answer to violence is not more violence, but love; that life cannot be measured simply in terms of length of days; that existence is not a cruel accident, but a tended creation held in love; that death is not an end.
These convictions are stirred, guided and developed by a knowledge of God in Jesus Christ fed by the written word, nurtured by the people of God and reflected by God’s presence reflected in life itself. They are to be found in short prayers at bedtime; in a furtive tear of gratitude; in the gently held hand of old age; and through the beauty of a multi-coloured rainbow of light glimpsed through the cloud and storm.
Bishop Allan Ewing
1st January 2013
