Lights for the world

Part of the experience of being at Conference is a search for illumination.

That may be trying to work out what the agenda means, dealing with when the lights go out because of a power surge like yesterday ... or the far more profound daily challenge of seeking the will of God.

There's something humbling about being in the company of people who can move seamlessly from high humour to deep reflection and theological seriousness within a heartbeat.

One illustration was seen in a Conference event which probably had more impact on those who were not attending than those of us who were.

Hundreds of people found themselves discovering illumination on the beach at Southport by walking a sand labyrinth created by volunteers. The team, led by Cornwall's Youth Enabler Andrew Nicholson, offered people the chance to follow one of the most ancient methods of reflection.

They took a piece of rubbish and walked through the labyrinth - almost a quarter of a mile all told - left the rubbish at the centre on a sand mound topped by a cross and then walked back with a pebble that they could keep.

It's such a simple idea and yet the conversations were so profound: with people who had no faith; with Sikhs; Moslems; with whole families; with children who jumped over the sand humps and with people who asked if they were allowed to walk the labyrinth.

On one day alone, 276 people left the 'rubbish' of their lives at the centre of the labyrinth and walked out ...

The theme in our worship this morning was of light dispelling darkness and we were reminded of Jesus' words in Matthew's Gospel: 'let your light so shine before others so that they may see your good works and give glory to your father in heaven.' Matthew 5: 16

Later, Helen Cameron continued our deeper look at Colossians 1: 15-20 under the theme of Living out the Gospel within the culture, not apart from it.

The passage was an invitation to re-imagine the world as very different from the one we see, touch and feel, she said, but Paul invited us to realise we are not sealed off from the world - we breathe same air as everyone. Our calling is to be faithful in this time.

"We are created in Christ and for Christ: the cosmic Christ - Christ for all time and the whole universe," said Helen. "By the power of the Cross none can rule over Christ nor ultimately anyone joined to Christ."

That new community in Christ was one of restored relationships where compassion, generosity and grace were the hallmarks of the light the church shed on the world.

One of the most public opportunities we will have to take the Gospel onto the streets will be the Olympic Games next year and there was overwhelming support for a plea from Lord Mawhinney to get behind More than Gold which will facilitate the Christian response.

Around 6,000 - 10,000 Christians are expected to arrive from overseas to help share the Gospel during the Olympics and Lord Mawhinney also told those who are not inclined to sport 'Get over it!' because we will be flooded by it!

His dream was that, all over the country, local churches would erect big screens in their areas and welcome people to share events based on the Games - to plug in and light up their communities.

It's not a new song any more, but one that keeps rolling round my head is Run by Snow Patrol. You can't stretch the metaphor too far but I always hear God singing part of the song:

Light up, light up
As if you have a choice
Even if you cannot hear my voice
I'll be right beside you dear

We don't have a choice. We shine in our communities. The issue is whether we choose to hide our lights or let it out.

Lord, graciously hear us ... pardon?

What does it mean to listen to the voice of God? How does the Word get through to us? This question formed the foundation of the first day of business for the Representative Session here at Southport.

As we began conferring, we heard about the Word:

• How the Word came to Elijah as he hid in his cave. I've always been struck by God's question, asked twice, "What are you doing here, Elijah?". I've long wondered on which word God put the stress in the question and whether it was different each time: what, are, you, doing, here, Elijah. Was the inquiry followed by a pause, a question mark, a grunt or an exclamation mark? Eventually, of course - after wind, earthquake and fire - it was, as Ken Jackson reminded us, "the sound of sheer silence". [For a different take on that image, see here.]



• Also, through the prologue to John's Gospel, how the Word came as a human being, made flesh for us in Jesus.

Ken referred to Lucy Winkett's book Our Sound is Our Wound: Contemplative Listening to a Noisy World and said that our conferring would invoke many things among us: it would inspire, irritate, anger, rejoice our hearts.
It would make us laugh and weep as people spoke with authority, tentatively, with passion or nervously.
But listening was as important as our speaking; active listening was urgent if we were to hear God's Word for today, to know what God, the Church and the world were saying to us.
The crucial thing, of course, is that we needed to make sure we were not just listening to one another and - as Ken's grand-daughter had said to him - 'You need to listen properly, with your eyes open.'


We then prayed - interestingly - a prayer that included the response Lord hear us, Lord graciously hear us! Perhaps we should have prayed May we graciously hear you, Lord.

So began a day of listening - moving into the General Secretary's Report, with the Rev Dr Martyn Atkins offering a bold vision which has come out of multiple conversations with people around the Connexion. There should be no illusions, he said. The journey towards becoming a "discipleship movement shaped for mission" would not be easy and has costs. It would involve choosing to do things and to stop doing others - it could not be business as usual but Martyn asked us to gather up our courage and our faith and vote for change.

Speaker after speaker affirmed what the report called "the direction of travel", variously referring to it as dynamite and urging that its energy and potential shouldn't be lost in its necessary passing on into the church's committees and working groups.

There was a real sense of 'moment' in the room as we enthusiastically supported Martyn's report. Decisions being reached here mattered for the sake of the people called Methodist and the Kingdom of God. We can make a difference.

In a link to the opening devotions, Fidelio Patron took the metaphor of Elijah's cave. Some caves, he said, were natural, some man-made but very few have windows and you rarely see a way out. This report allows us to see a way out, he said.

Caves very rarely have water, food or light and there would be an urgency to get out or die, said Fidelio. For the people called Methodist there was now a sense of urgency. "We’re very good at prolonging things," he said. "We are still pointing the way forward but we need to do something. How do we overcome our procedures and do something now."

Ultimately, we voted to continue travelling in the direction that Martyn told us the church had asked us to take. We heard him when he said: "I am convinced that God desires a healthy, more vibrant Methodism, offered anew to God as its proper ‘owner’ and as a fruitful and willing part of the One Church of Christ, for the sake of the world God loves and in Christ redeemed."

Methodist Conference 2011 is nearly here!

This year's Methodist Conference takes place 30 June - 7 July at the Southport Theatre and Convention Centre.

Watch this space for updates from our regular Methodist Conference blogger, Revd Gareth Hill. Gareth will be blogging throughout the representative session, which starts on Saturday 2 July.

All the reports on the agenda are available online here.

Real Conference junkies will be able to follow the action via the @MethodistMedia Twitter stream (for tweeters the official Conference hashtag is #methconf) or our Facebook page and you can even watch the debates live online via the Methodist Conference website. The latest news from the Conference will appear here.

We hope you can feel a part of it, wherever you may be!

Anna Drew
Lead Media Officer, Methodist Conference

Watch this space!

The representative session of the Conference doesn't start until Saturday 26 June, so blog posts from Gareth Hill (a Methodist minister from Cornwall) will start to appear then.

In the meantime, you can check out the official Methodist Conference website, for all the info you could possibly want about the event.

When the Conference starts, you can follow the action in a number of different ways:
* On Twitter, you can follow the official Conference twitterstream via @MethodistMedia, or contribute to the wider discussion, by using the Conference hashtag - #methconf.
* On Facebook, all news and info from the Conference will be available and regularly updated on the Methodist Media Facebook page, by myself and Karen Burke from the media team.
* You can check out photos from the Conference on the official Flickr photostream.
* You can listen live to the debates (in partnership with Premier Christian Radio), or watch the debates live on the Conference website. Audio and video from the debates will also be available after the business sessions on the Methodist web radio page.

(just a few links to be getting on with there)

Any questions? Get in touch with the media team via mediaservice@methodistchurch.org.uk.

Anna

Anna Drew
Lead Media Officer