Send me, send you, send us
Preacher: Rt Rev Dr Shaw James Paterson, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
Readings: Isaiah 6:1-8; Matthew 25:31-46
I thought I would do some research on St Andrew’s… so I checked that great source of information that none of you should reference in your degree papers… And I’m not even going to mention its name within an academic institution that was Scotland’s first university and the third oldest in the English-speaking world. St Andrew’s is famous for golf, for the beach… and a little-known fact… I preached in the Scot’s Kirk in Paris on the 100th anniversary of the Sunday when Eric Liddell refused to run in the Olympics and instead he preached in that church from the lectern I used that day… and I have been amazed at the number who claimed to have been filmed running on that beach (over there) for the movie – it has seemed like hundreds of thousands (I know I exaggerate a little – but just a little)… and whenever we hear just a few bars of the iconic music from the film we all picture Eric Liddell running.. He had a passion, an enthusiasm. He worked hard, he trained – he never lost his principles and he achieved so much.
Let’s go back much further than 100 years. In the Middle Ages, Scottish students were forced to pursue their studies abroad as there was no national university. The first teaching in St Andrew’s began in 1410… and there was a passion and an enthusiasm for education… and three years later (in 1413) the University was formally constituted by the issue of a papal bull in 1413 after Bishop Wardlaw turned to the exiled Pope Benedict XIII to seek his blessing. King James, despite being a prisoner of the English, added his weight to the petition.
St Andrew’s may be known for golf, movies or whatever but it is most famous for its University. For more than 600 years of continuous existence during which time it has made an enduring contribution to the intellectual and cultural life of both Scotland and the wider world. And on your web site there are hundreds of interesting statistics… but the one that stuck out for me was your impressive 96% first-year retention rate. You don’t just attract students, they stay and develop their own passion and enthusiasm for learning.
Founding a University sounds rather straightforward on paper but the reality of establishing an educational establishment and not just maintaining it but making it grow and blossom into an institution with internationally recognised research has taken generations from the 15th century to ensure that the foundations of the past are continually being built upon and developed to meet the needs of the 21st century.
This links in with my theme of building together. If you have an opportunity make the most of it. Bishop Wardlaw saw an opportunity and he made the most of it… and the university is the success that it is because his successors were not content to just sit and ‘be’. I want the church to build together and I emphasise its not about the bricks and mortar or stone and lime – its about people building together on the foundations of the past. That is the same message I would share with the good folks of St Andrew’s.
A family driving a large campervan pulled up in front of the church just as the minister was heading home. Wishing to be friendly, the minister introduced himself and expressed his admiration for the campervan. The driver told him rather proudly: “This campervan sleeps eight people.” Then he asked: “What is the capacity of your church?” The beleaguered minister replied rather glumly, “Oh, it sleeps about 450.”
That’s the view lots of people have of us. Now don’t get me wrong, I have sat through some tremendously boring sermons over my life time… I’ve probably preached some tremendously boring sermons in my time. The Holy Spirit, God’s Spirit, was given not just to those who are Ordained or those who lead worship. None of us (and by that I mean, every one of us) is not somehow magically imbibed with this wonderful gift to be able to communicate to all people of all ages and backgrounds in a language they can understand. The Holy Spirit was given to all Christians – the job of speaking to people, where they are, using things they can understand and relate to, was given to all who are part of the church – you and me. And all of us have been guilty of falling asleep – and before we know it we become like the sleeping giant of the Christmas Pantomime that needs to awaken and become enthusiastic about sharing the love of God and the love of our neighbour to others.
Some people have heard the challenge, ‘go then to all peoples everywhere and make them my disciples.’ They have heard that challenge – but they haven’t listened. Jesus presented the Gospel – he did not force it upon them – he shared it with them. He shared God’s love by caring for the sick and the outcast, those in the margins of society, the unloved. Jesus didn’t say ‘believe in me and follow me and I will help you’. He helped them and cared for them and loved them purely for the fact that they were God’s children – some people responded and others didn’t – and when they didn’t they were still welcome.
Those who know anything of my life story will know that further education plays a significant role in my life and ministry. When I was a boy in the heart of industrial Lanarkshire no one went to university. One was simply directed to the steelworks or surrounding engineering factories or (as in my case) follow in your father’s footsteps). I was heading to the building sites and a trade as a bricklayer like my Dad. He saw something in me and by a very circuitous route encouraged me to go to University. And I have been passionate about education ever since … and I often hear myself repeating ‘don’t let anyone tell you, you can’t – try it, give it a go, for you might discover something you never knew you had.’ Science, my first academic love, divinity, palliative care and a doctorate in practical theology.
Our reading from Isaiah 6, is my call to the ministry: ‘Whom shall I send… send me’. / Having gone to University, I was called into the ministry and I have been in the parish ever since. God was calling me to go and do. The Word of God connects with every individual: you and me… for God is calling each of us to wake up and go, and do.
In my closing address to the Assembly, I was sending the Commissioners back out to their parishes – they were to journey home and get on with the work of building Christ’s Church, rooted in the foundations laid by Jesus. I mentioned something that really irritates me. Escalators. Don’t mind them. I quite like them… it’s the way people use them that gets to me. I haven’t come across any in St Andrew’s yet – but in the airports and train stations or department stores they are a necessity. Whether you are going up, or down or it’s a walkway escalator – why do some people take one step off and stop… they stop to work out where they are and where they should go next…. Leaving a pile up of bodies behind them who are unable to get off but the escalator keeps moving. / I was encouraging Commissioners to go back to their home parishes and step forward in faith – knowing that the Holy Spirit would be travelling with them. While its always good to take stock of where we are we must not stop. The church is on a journey. The university is on a journey.
I have lost count of the number of times I’ve preached at services marking anniversaries during my tenure as Moderator, and each time I describe them not as milestones but stepping stones. The Moderator preaching at St Andrew’s to commemorate the founders and benefactors of this wonderful institution – this is a stepping stone – every year when we look back, when we think of the steps (and it took courage and commitment and dedication to take the necessary steps to found a university) – and we must never be content just to look back over what has been without looking forward to what will be. Our past, our legacy has shaped who and what we are but we are on a journey to ensure that as individuals and as an institution we honour the past and build for the future – so that we might be sent out to meet the needs of an ever changing population, community and world.
God bless you in that future… as we say send me, send you, send us to serve in so many ways so that everyone (for we are all God’s children) to use our knowledge, skill and abilities to make this world of ours more like the place you created it to be.
Let us pray…