Peter’s Progress – October 11, 2013

I love listening to people’s life stories. When I first arrived in the area I had the privilege of sharing a few coffees with Ian Campbell and hearing his war stories. He shared insights into an era before my time. Sadly, he passed away a little over a year ago.  A window on this world, closed.
Revd Colin Peattie recently celebrated 50 years of being ordained as a minister. People from all over came to mark this milestone. A window was opened for me on a lifetime spent sharing the love of Jesus. Starting out well with good intentions is common enough. Ending strong and still loving God (and especially the Church) is much rarer. A window was opened on what could be…
This made me think how society has changed since Colin’s early years and certainly, since Ian’s childhood. The pattern of the week has changed. People now work on Sundays. For others, Sundays is a day for sport or their only day off or their only down-time with families. The way we relate has also changed. We used to relate closely to where we lived and grew up. Relationships nowadays tend to be formed by networks shaped by our work and leisure. It’s an unusual thing for grandparents to live close to their children and grandchildren and all go to the same church.
The church in relation to culture has shifted.  Inside and outside the church there is a vast array of groups and subcultures (There are more TV channels with select audiences, more music styles, more celebrities, more sport varieties, more leisure options, etc). People know less about Christianity. Signs, symbols and traditions which may have once meant a lot are very hard now for an outsider to understand. This means people need more opportunities for worship and community than just on Sundays.  The church needs to seek to intersect with significant networks rather than hoping to be at the centre of it all.  But above all, God calls us to carry the unchanging good news about Jesus to our changing society of different cultures and groups. May God open a new window on his gospel in our lives and for others.
• Rev Peter Houston is rector of All Souls Anglican Church, Umhlali, who will contribute a fortnightly column.