A Sermon On Face-To-Face Engagement

Joel Clark Mason
“The Sixth Lord's Day inwards Eastertide”
17th May 2009
Transcribed from Podcast

...but something inwards that document caught my eye. It’s from Being Human: Human Computer Interaction inwards the Year 2020, which Microsoft Corporation pulled together, a query squad to expect into this, in addition to this is from Chapter 2.4 [laughter from congregation], “The Growth of Hyper-Connectivity,” in addition to it said,

We directly connect at greater distances in addition to over longer timeframes alongside our friends in addition to household unit of measurement than ever before. We make each other to a greater extent than of the fourth dimension wherever nosotros are, in addition to are available for contact whatever place, whatever time. We are likewise making novel friends in addition to edifice novel forms of relationships, many of whom nosotros may solely ever encounter through digital channels. This is changing the means nosotros construct in addition to keep our relationships at work, dwelling trouble solid in addition to play. The boundaries betwixt the component subdivision in addition to home, in addition to betwixt run in addition to play are dissolving. It is perfectly normal directly for people to last emailing their run colleagues inwards the early on hours piece playing a game of online poker alongside people they receive got never met. Traditional, socially accepted conventions in addition to etiquette governing how nosotros communicate, when nosotros communicate, whom nosotros communicate alongside in addition to what else nosotros are doing are apace disappearing. New ones are replacing them but it seems that anything goes now.

Well I read that in addition to I thought, Why are nosotros here? I mean, why don’t nosotros only position the service upward on Facebook? [laughter from congregation]. Or I could Twitter it to ya. I don’t create Twitter, that’s what? – 120 characters, it’s brusk in addition to to the point. So why are you lot – in addition to today, alongside the 10K race, plopped correct downwards inwards the midpoint of the church? It would’ve been a lot easier to Facebook the sermons. So why are nosotros here? Why create nosotros come?

I think the response is over hither inwards this letter… [indecipherable]… Let’s see… “And this is the victory that conquers the world: our faith.” We’re hither to celebrate. We come upward hither every Lord's Day to celebrate. We celebrate victory. I don’t know close you, but a digital high 5 isn’t quite every bit pleasing every bit the smack of a manus on manus inwards celebration. We celebrate the victory of the footing past times our faith.

Faith inwards what? What create you lot receive got religious belief in? Is it religious belief inwards Jesus, the boy of God, that calls you lot here? Is that why nosotros struggled through the 10KS to acquire hither this morning? To last faithful to Jesus? Well about of you lot may. But at the Last Journey Continues coming together at that spot was a mortal at that spot who shared alongside us that she, when she comes here, looks around, in addition to sees other people sitting here, in addition to knows… in addition to knows confidence for the calendar week ahead, in addition to that confidence comes from her religious belief that if she needs you, all she needs to create is call. She has your support. And isn’t that truthful of Saint Mary’s? [member says “Yep”]. If you lot are – Yep! – someone says “Oh yep.” If you’re sick, the Good Saint Maryans are at that spot alongside food; if you lot demand somebody to sit down alongside you lot during the day, we’ll suit for that; if you lot demand transportation, at that spot are people inwards this congregation who tin give notice create that. And you lot can’t Facebook that form of connection. That form of faith.

Well, what else is there? I – I’m didactics a course of written report this Fall at [indecipherable] called – directly I’ve got to yell upward the elevate of this course of written report [indecipherable]… I think it’s called Narrative Theo - …Narrative in addition to Sacramental Theology. So I’ve been… [indecipherable]… figure out what “narrative theology” is if I’m going to learn it, thus I’ve looked upward about materials on “narrative theology,” in addition to it’s close stories. And what calls us hither is the story. We come upward hither to percentage the story. We listen it inwards the scripture, nosotros listen it repeated inwards the ritual, in addition to it’s the storey of the sacrifice of Christ, the boot the bucket of Christ, the resurrection of Christ, in addition to the rise of Christ. And, nosotros participate inwards that story.

See, here’s the thing: [holds upward the loving cup belongings the blood of Christ] how are nosotros going to acquire this through the Internet? [laughter from the congregation]. How are nosotros going to acquire this through? It only won’t fit! I’m certain John may know of about people at IBM who are working on that, right? [laughter from the congregation]. [John shakes his head, ‘No.’]. No? Alright, good, we’re even thus safe. There’s that.

Here’s about other thing: when I enjoin “The peace of the Lord last ever alongside you,” or “The peace of Christ last alongside you,” there’s the affect of manus on hand, there’s the embrace. That’s an of import component subdivision of the story. We brand that storey or acquire it when nosotros come upward together inwards tactile affect in addition to religious belief inwards each other, in addition to thus nosotros are empowered every bit a community.

How’s that true? How many immature people from this congregation receive got graduated in addition to gone into Americares, in addition to spent non i but perhaps multiple years inwards Americares teaching? That’s victory! Where did they larn that form of sacrifice, that form of [indecipherable] to a short-sighted focus on the turn a profit in addition to cloth gain – “that’s what I want” – how many people graduate from our colleges alongside that idea solely on their mind? But several people that receive got graduated from this congregation receive got given of themselves. And in addition to thus there’s people who’ve themselves to the Peace Corps, in addition to of course of written report Morgan Kay to the outer reaches of Mongolia in addition to the [indecipherable] people. They create that because victory has been achieved through our faith. Victory over the footing that is thus narrowly focused on ‘What tin give notice I get, what tin give notice I have, what tin give notice I hold?’

What else is there? See there’s a powerful pace we’re making inwards that narrative theology – peculiarly amid us, nosotros Anglicans who are [indecipherable]…. Where create nosotros destination upward every Sunday? [Puts his manus on the tabular array belongings the Communion wafers in addition to wine]. We create destination upward correct here. And nosotros convey into our hands the torso nosotros telephone yell upward Christ, in addition to nosotros position to our lips the blood that nosotros telephone yell upward Christ, in addition to nosotros eat the story. And nosotros create that thus that nosotros tin give notice convey our identify in addition to play our utilisation inwards the continuing story. And give cheers God! – I tin give notice consider that through the youth; I tin give notice consider that through people at [indecipherable] who are non out on the street but tin give notice honour housing because we’ve supported [indecipherable]; or people who wouldn’t last getting healthcare receiving healthcare at Open Door because nosotros back upward them; or women who demand to honour relief in addition to security from battered – from spouses that batter them finding that inwards the women’s shelter that nosotros support. We receive got victory through our faith: religious belief inwards Christ, religious belief inwards i another, in addition to religious belief that nosotros create inwards coming to this sacred identify eat the body, eat the blood, in addition to acquire Christ, in addition to acquire out that door in addition to proceed the story.