Second Sunday before Advent 2019

Lectionary reading: 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13

I want, this morning, to focus on the passage we heard read from Paul’s letter to the church in Thessalonica. It sounds, at first hearing, not dissimilar to an editorial you might read in one of our tabloid papers, not least in the midst of a General Election campaign: “Tax-payers’ money should not be spent propping up the lifestyle of those too idle to work! They deserve to go hungry!” But that is not what Paul is saying. We need to put in a little work of our own, if we are to be nourished as we gather around the table of our Lord.

Paul commands those he loves to keep away from believers who are living in idleness. The Greek translated living in idleness literally means walking in a disorderly manner. Not sitting around doing nothing, but walking around aimlessly. And in making a command, Paul is calling them from disorder to order. To walk, as one. The primary metaphor for being church here is one of pilgrimage.

And that is very interesting. The north east, where we live, is known for its saints and its pilgrimage routes. Look around. The lower windows along the north side of the nave depict four northern saints: Columba, Aidan, Bede, and Hild. The upper windows along the north and south sides of the nave depict, in sixteen images, the life of faith as a pilgrimage, begin in baptism and completed with the saints in heaven. The metaphor of pilgrimage is literally all around us. And for every church that makes up Durham Diocese, the coming year has been designated as a year of pilgrimage. Of setting out on a journey together, not knowing what we will experience, or discover, and discover about ourselves, along the way.

And as we contemplate that year of pilgrimage, our text today calls us to walk in an orderly manner. Together. Keeping one another company. At a slow pace. Indeed, Paul makes a point of challenging busybodies, literally those who overdo or waste their labour by running all around, meddling in this or that. Such people, Paul advises, should not be left unchallenged, or else they will consume all there is to eat, all that God has provided. You see, the busybody gets under foot, robbing other people of the opportunity to contribute according to their own skill, or, indeed, of the opportunity to discern calling and develop competency.

I’m a dreadful busybody when it comes to the dishwasher. No one else loads it correctly, and we’ve all learnt that it is easiest just to leave it to me. Easiest, but not necessarily best, for anyone. And there are plenty of busybodies in this congregation. I know, because there are plenty of busybodies in every congregation. But Paul calls us back to order, insisting that each one has a part to play, and should be able to get on with playing it.

But this brings us back to the metaphor of an orderly and shared common walk, a pilgrimage. Where we follow, together, in the footsteps of those who have gone before us. Columba, and Aidan, and Bede, and Hild, and the other saints, nearer in time to us, whose names adorn the other windows. Men, women, and children of faith, many of you remember.

And so, I would like to invite you to join with me in a year of pilgrimage. What might that look like, in practice? Let me offer three ways to take part.

Firstly, for those of you who enjoy a long walk, new Northern Saints Trails—the Way of Light, the Way of Life, the Way of Love, and the Way of Learning—are being launched, each converging on Durham cathedral. The Way of Learning will pass through Sunderland. Some of us might make a physical pilgrimage to the cathedral, on foot or taking transport to Durham and joining us there.

Secondly, we might make more of our own pilgrim way, opening this building more often during the week, inviting our friends and neighbours to come and enjoy the gift of journeying together. I know, from listening to several of you, that in the challenges of life you have found great support within this pilgrim people. Our neighbours have just as many challenges. Let’s make the most of what we’ve been given in this place, and this congregation, to connect with spiritual seekers.

Thirdly, I want to commend to you the Pilgrim course, an Anglican catechism that covers the terrain of our faith in a number of six-week-long sections. My intention is to be here on Tuesdays 2.00-3.00 p.m. and again 7.00-8.00 p.m. to cover the Creeds, the Lord’s Prayer, the Commandments, and the Beatitudes, reading and reflecting on passages of scripture together. Life is a journey, rooted in the Christian story even if the story has become increasingly unfamiliar to us. Join me as we renew ancient paths in our day.