January 2011
- Questions & Answers
- Service of Confirmation
In a recent edition of Oxon Link readers were invited to submit questions to the Vicar. I am pleased to say that a number of questions have been submitted. There were all sorts of queries, from 'do you have a day off'? To 'why should I believe in God'? By far the most common question which David answers below is this:
Q. If you believe in Christianity and in particular that the Anglican Church is the way to God, how do you view other faiths; such as Muslim, Roman Catholic, Jewish, Jehovah's Witness?
First of all, let me say thank you for this very important question. Let me also say that my answer is my considered opinion; others are entitled to theirs. I want to unpack the question in a slightly different order. How do I view other faiths? With a great deal of respect. People who devote their lives to pursuing the idea and possibility of the divine have my respect. Over the years I have had some wonderful conversations with people from all faith backgrounds and none. The important principle is mutual respect. This means realising the other person has the right to a different opinion. Respect also allows for disagreement and honesty. It is what the Chief Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks calls in the title of his book 'The Dignity of Difference'. At best, religion is man's pursuit of God with its many variations. Significantly, Christianity is God seeking us through His Son Jesus Christ. It is Jesus who makes the difference.
Secondly: If you believe...in particular that the Anglican Church is the way to God... I don't believe the Anglican Church is the way to God. Are you shocked? Anglicanism is only one expression of Christianity. It draws its theology and practice from the Catholic, Evangelical, and Orthodox traditions. Its structures and practices have developed over many centuries; and it continues to develop in each generation. Denominations give people a heritage and framework. This gives people a sense of spiritual home and a sense of belonging which is important. Ultimately however, our faith is in God, not a system of belief If you believe Christianity...is the way to God It is Christ who is the way to God; his unique claims make Christianity what it is. He says he is the Son of God. He dies on the Cross to take away our sins. He is raised from the dead on the third day. He ascended to the Father's side. If this all true there is no middle ground.
To quote C S Lewis "I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: 'I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept His claim to be God.' That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic - on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg - or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronising nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to." (C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, The MacMillan Company, 1960, pp. 40-41.) I cannot better the words of Lewis.
All of the above is why I believe Jesus is the way to God.
God Bless
David (Rev'd David O'Brien)
SERVICE OF CONFIRMATION: Confirmation is the opportunity for a person to Confirm the promises made at Baptism on their behalf or promises they have made themselves. It is a Christian's opportunity to say 'I now believe these promises and I now want to Confirm them publicly'.
If you want to think about Confirmation for yourself or know someone who does; or you just want to know more about the Christian faith.
Then please see Rev'd David O'Brien for more details. An enquirer's course is planned post-Easter 2011, date to be confirmed [no pun intended!].