Sermon for Sunday 13 September, 2020 Trinity 14 with Blessing of School Bags
This is the time of year for the return to school.
At the end of this service we will bless our young people’s school bags.
In our church today, we have pupils, teachers and school governors. And we have parents and maybe guardians too. So we have the full range of school stakeholders here today.
Holding up placard showing [10:10]
What might this mean to you?
If you were to visit the website of the “Outstanding” Twford Academy School in Ealing you will see these two numbers emblazoned on every page of the website.
What are they? And why are they there?
They are from the Bible. Can you guess where?
The Gospel of St.John 10:10 “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly”
The “10:10” ethic is central to Twyford’s operations..
In the introduction of the School prospectus, the Head writes:
Our family values are Christian ones.
We believe in a world which is lovingly and purposefully made
and we believe that all people have God-given gifts to use wisely and well.
At the school, we aim to create a positive ethic of appreciation for all that the world offers,
and gratitude for our human capacity to do and be good.
This morning let us do three things:
1. Celebrate the gift of knowledge and give thanks for all those teachers who have inspired us.
2. Let’s give thanks for the work of all schools and recall the work of Church of England schools
3. When I conclude, as well as 10:10, I’d like you to take away a further set of numbers.
Celebrate the gift of knowledge and culture:
Matthew Arnold wrote “Culture is the best that has been thought and said in the world”
This is opportunity that education provides – to open up the best that has been thought and said. If we receive this gift, then we find we are living John 10:10 : “we do have life, and have it abundantly.
Social media can help in this regard but there is a real risk we spend more time on social media than studying or reading. When this happens, we find we live in the permanent present, reacting to others rather than taking charge of where our mind and our energy is directed.
It is especially damaging for our young people.
Just a reminder about underage social media accounts.
The minimum age to have Facebook, Twitter and Instagram Accounts is 13. WhatsApp is 16.
I know of one young lady whose parents banned her from taking her phone to bed. She was so upset that relations with her parents became very frosty. Yet she found by looking at her accounts less she started to enjoy life more. Within a few weeks, she had, to the surprise of her parents, deleted all her accounts. Her studies improved and she felt happier than she had done so for years. A clear example of having life abundantly.
John 10:10 applies to us grown-ups too. The next two Saturdays I am taking weddings. The couples have been doing a pre-marriage course. It is really excellent – full of wisdom. One of the main lessons is that we should be intentional in our relationships with loved ones. The phone/social media can really get in the way of our relationships.
Guidance from the course includes:
· Don’t look at your phone after 10.00 o’clock at night.
· Get an alarm clock
· leave the phone outside the bedroom
We then have a much better chance of having life abundantly.
Give thanks for the work of all schools especially Church of England schools
You may already know this but this is what our Church is doing in the field of education:
Approximately 1 million children attend Church of England schools.
About 15 million people alive today went to a Church of England school.
A quarter of primary schools and over 200 secondary schools are Church of England.
The Church is the biggest sponsor of academies in England.
Over 500 independent schools declare themselves to be Church of England in ethos.
Across the country, Church of England clergy dedicate a million hours every year to working with children and young people in schools, often providing holiday and after-school activities.
There are 22,500 Foundation Governors in Church schools recruited, trained and supported by dioceses. – perhaps this is the day when you realised that God was calling you to be a Governor of a school, or a teacher or even a chaplain.
In the words of one Governor of a church school:
Church of England schools are neighbourhood schools with a Christian character.
They are not “faith” schools. Faith schools are for children of one faith or denomination.
All CofE schools are aware of the need to avoid proselytization.
The same Governor said to me:
It’s about presentation and about offering people possibilities in a missional way rather than being overtly proselytizing. The proselytizing approach would be a misuse of what we have to offer. We are really offering new possibilities in the way that we care for and work with our Church schools.
I’d like to close with the further set of numbers. As well as 10:10
Holding up placard with the numbers “4:8”
Perhaps you might agree with me that this verse which is on the front of your service sheets is a clear example of what an excellent school can open up to us.
It is also, when at this time of COVID, life is more restricted than usual and perhaps we find time hangs heavily, this advice from St. Paul to the Philippians is a key to unlocking the door to having abundant life.
Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honourable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things
So let us leave hear with these two verses engrained on our hearts: 10:10 and PIP 4:8