Journeys and Adventures

Here is a copy of the first sermon I preached at Portsmouth Cathedral on the third Sunday of Easter:

A new canon started work in a cathedral somewhere on the south coast. He discovered that amongst the choir were two particular choir boys, terrible trouble makers. They were always breaking things, stealing things, lying, and generally making all kinds of trouble. The choir master had tried everything to get the boys to change, but to no avail. Finally, he asked the new Canon if he could help. The Canon said that he would talk to the boys and try to get them to understand that God saw everything they did. The Choir Master brought the younger of the two into the cathedral to see the canon while the other waited in the song school. The boy sat in a chair across from the canon and they just looked at each other.

Finally, the canon says, "Where do you think God is?"

The choir boy just sits there and doesn't answer.

The canon begins to look stern and loudly says, "Where is God?"

The little boy shifts in his seat, but still doesn't answer.

The canon is starting to get angry at the boy's refusal to converse and practically shouts "Where is God?"

At this point the choir boy jumps up out of his chair and runs out of the cathedral, he runs all the way back to the song school where the other choir boy is waiting. He shuts the door and pants, "We're in BIG TROUBLE. God's missing and they think we did it!"

This is of course just a story and I’m relieved to say that as a new canon in this cathedral that has not been my experience. I have received nothing but a warm welcome and for that I am very grateful. But I’m guessing some of you will want to know what this new canon standing before you is like? What will he do and what exactly is his role? How will he unpack that wonderful job title he has, responsibility for discipleship, growth and community outreach? In effect, what is his story?

Well some of you may know a little of it by now, my work as a priest and a school teacher, my love of cooking, my slight obsession with Doctor Who and that I think I should have been the next Doctor not Peter Capaldi and that my favourite possession is my VW Campervan. It isn’t a classic one, it’s a T4 but it is a new conversion which I bought last September, the realisation of a long held ambition. It is red with a cream roof, cooker, fridge and sink in the back and I love it I call it the adventure bus. I’d always admired these vans when I had seen them on the road but when I first decided to buy it I suddenly noticed campervans everywhere. I could not go a mile without seeing at least one of these wonderful vehicles.

Of course there had not been a sudden surge of people buying vans like mine. Instead, I had just became more conscious and aware of them and so I was more able to see what was there all along.

When we are looking for something, we are more likely to see it. When we are looking for a certain kind of car, it’s there. But when we’re not looking at all, we are likely to miss it.

The gospel story tells us that two travellers are walking on the road to Emmaus and they are sad and confused. They are aware of what happened to Jesus, and they have heard these stories that he might be back, but they are obviously doubtful. So doubtful, that they are not looking with eyes that wanted to see Jesus. So much so, that when he was walking with them, they didn’t even notice it.

We hear the story now and think they must have been pretty dense. Who would miss it if Jesus were standing right next to them? But the reality is that a lot of us would. A lot of us just wouldn’t have the eyes for it that day. As much as we tend to see things when we are keeping a look out for them. The type of car. We don’t see them if we are not.

A few years ago a violinist played in a train station in the USA. He played for 45 minutes. Only six people stopped. He made about $32 and packed up and went home. The violinist’s name was Joshua Bell. He’s one of the most renowned classical musicians alive. Seats for most of his shows average $100. And he was playing one of the most complicated pieces ever – look on you tube – it’s there! And yet no one realized. Because no one was looking for it, and no one was ready to believe that an extraordinary musician would just come and play in the train station. And so he became just another guy trying to make a little money playing in the subway.

I’m wondering if it was that way on the road to Emmaus that day. Who would have expected Jesus to be walking this dusty road, in the middle of nowhere? Who would have imagined that possibility?

But we’re not so different. We miss Jesus a lot. We sometimes teach ourselves not to expect what we think is unlikely. We tell ourselves that the choir boy who is a “trouble maker” will always be a troublemaker and we fail to see that he is really gifted in some area. We say that the drug addict or the homeless lady will never really get their act together. We criticise other churches or Christians because they don’t agree with us or don’t do things the way we do. We make a million assumptions and snap judgments without meaning to, and we miss the incredible reality of what is in front of us, we miss Jesus working in the world. We tell ourselves not to expect the incredible. Not to see the life changing. Not to dare to believe in what is extraordinary. We miss Jesus, but we do so to our cost. As St John Chrysostom wrote “Those who fail to recognize Christ in the beggar at the church door will not find him in the chalice”

On that road Jesus noticed the two companions were looking sad and so he asked them what their story was and they shared it with him. He then shared his story with them, from right back in the Old Testament he explained the story and their stories became one story. When the three travellers got to the end of that road, they sat at a table. They still didn’t see who they were with because they were not looking for him. They didn’t see until he took bread, and broke it, and gave it to them. And finally it became too much to ignore. They had to see it.

Sometimes we have those moments too. When it just becomes too much to ignore. When our eyes, for however short a period of time, are opened wide. When we can’t argue it away anymore, and we have to believe. They went from that place and they told everyone what they saw – they shared the next part of their story. They went to the disciples who had just had their own experience of seeing Jesus. And together they shared the news that he was back and the two stories became one. They were now looking for Jesus and were sharing that story.

We come here week after week, sharing the story that Jesus is with us. Telling one another about walking on the road with him or seeing him again for the first time. We strengthen one another when we look around and really see what is happening around us. We strengthen the church when we look around not with eyes that are looking for a certain car but for Jesus. When we look at the world through Jesus-eyes, we find that we cannot help but see him all around us. And then we find that we can’t keep it to ourselves anymore we have to share that story with others – both with words but more importantly by our actions.

So that is what the job description of this new role is actually about, and it isn’t just my job description, it belongs to all of us. It is about looking for Jesus and it is about sharing stories. Seeing where Jesus is working and joining in. Sharing the stories we already have, my story, your story, the stories of people in here and out there and then writing new stories together. Stories about adventure, fun, laughter, sadness, tears, companionship and joy. Stories about death and resurrection. In fact everything which is a condition of being human and of being loved by God. Looking for Jesus and sharing stories. And it is not just my job, it is all of ours, we will look for Jesus together, we will create new stories together, with each other and with everyone out there. We will love it and we will find some of it challenging and uncomfortable just as those travellers did on the road to Emmaus but like it was for them it will also be for us - very exciting!