Diocesan News12 Jul 09

Cashel Cathedral Choral Evensong Address by the Archbishop of Armagh

Cashel Cathedral, Choral Evensong
12 July 2009
Address by the Most Reverend Alan Harper, OBE, Archbishop of Armagh

This service from Cashel Cathedral is part of celebrations marking the life of Archbishop Charles Agar who died on 14th July 1809. 

Agar was arguably the most able and industrious bishop of the Church of Ireland of his day. Only the jealousy of rivals and the fact of his being Irish rather than English prevented his appointment to the Archbishopric of Armagh.  

Churchmen in the Established Church were also politicians, officers of the state, exercising influence and power in national government. Charles Agar was among the most political of the bishops of his time.

Those days are gone. You may say “A good thing too!” With reservations, I agree. However, it is not good if it means that the spiritual is excluded from the public sphere. It is a bad thing if spiritual insights into morality and the common good are substituted by the “conscienceless” mechanisms of global markets.  

Michael Sandel spoke of this in his recent BBC Reith Lectures entitled of ‘A New Citizenship’. In the fourth and final lecture, ‘A New Politics of the Common Good’ Sandel insisted:

‘We need a public debate about the moral limits of the markets. And…we need a more robust public discourse – one that engages more directly with moral and even spiritual questions.’  

He argued:
‘Democratic governance is about much more than maximizing [Gross Domestic Product] or satisfying consumer preferences. It is also about seeking distributive justice; promoting the health of democratic institutions; and cultivating the solidarity and the sense of community that democracy requires.’
He quoted Harold Macmillan and John F Kennedy to illustrate a tendency of the last 50 years to limit political discourse to matters of regulation and technology:

Macmillan said:
“If people want a sense of purpose, they should get it from their archbishop. They should certainly not get it from their politicians.”

Kennedy remarked:
“Most of the problems that we now face are technical problems and administrative problems. They are very sophisticated judgements which do not lend themselves to the great sort of “passionate movements” which stirred this country so often in the past.”

The notion that a sense of purpose should be reserved to  archbishops completely undermines open and transparent public discussion. It removes vision from the arena of government and, for it, substitutes mere management. If passion has “withered on the vine”, to be replaced by cold technology, does this, perhaps, explain the flight of the voter from the ballot box?   

Whatever politicians may do, men and women of faith cannot sideline passion and purpose. Knowing God and being committed to the things of God means being passionate: passionate about cultivating a personal relationship with God through the Church; passionate also about justice, truth, the good life, protection for the vulnerable, empowerment for the powerless and socially excluded, freedom for the oppressed, and healing for this wounded earth.

People of all religions have a religious obligation to be passionate advocates of a vision for all humanity.  

Each of the world’s great religions understands, in its own terms, that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom”. Such wisdom, contained though it is, in jars of clay, is not given to be treated as a private possession. Not to deploy wisdom for the common good, not to subject wisdom and insight to public scrutiny and engage openly in mature debate is to betray humanity and betray God, from whom all blessings flow.

In the aftermath of 9/11; the crash of 2008; the rapid advance of science and technology, especially in fields like genetics; the looming tragedy of global environmental degradation; and the impact on local economies of industrial globalization, we need a vision of what constitutes “the Good Life” in the 21st century. I believe that the Christian Church should animate that debate in order to try to develop a shared vision for society focussed on the best we can be, not just the best we can get.

Let me then propose items for an agenda, and pose questions of the Church herself:

Reflecting on the example of “Christ the Teacher”, what vision do we have and what provision do we need for the education of the citizen in the 21st century? Are inherited systems adequate? For example, I heard it said recently that our system of schooling is excellent at preparing people for university but not necessarily for entry into the world of work. 

What is the proper place and context for faith formation in educational systems? What new thinking, beyond the defence of historic rights, must the Christian Church now contribute to the enhancement of education in its widest sense?

Reflecting on the example of “Christ the Healer”, the one who raised Lazarus to fuller life, what is required to achieve the holistic well being of all citizens rather than merely struggling to meet immediate health care needs? 

Reflecting on our understanding of “Christ the friend and companion of the marginalized”, what is our vision and what steps must we take to become a wholly inclusive society?

Reflecting on the revolutionary priority given by Christ to children, what insights do we bring to ensure that all the needs of all children are met? What, more than sticking plaster, do we offer for the amelioration of societal ills? What revision of priorities is required to move children to the heart of our concerns?

What understanding of “Christ the critic of the status quo” do we have that will embolden the Church to defy convention on behalf of the powerless and to confront injustice? Are we not all, to some degree, prisoners of the institution? Where institutions inhibit creativity or absorb too much energy in maintenance we must “Cry Freedom!” 

What understanding do we have of “Christ the Reconciler” to inspire us to become a nation of active peacemakers?

The Church of the 21st century must be a Church of passion to stir up society. It must cease to be a defender of historic privilege, or assume a right to respect simply for being the Church. It must be moved by heaven in order to move the earth. It must abandon negativity and speak confidently to the world. It must stand for things and not merely be against things. A Christianity driven by passion will see an end to the era of complacent quietism. 

Agar’s 18th century priorities are not ours, but Agar did grapple mightily with the issues of his time. We must do likewise. We require renewed commitment to engage positively with the world of today, moved by a God given vision of the Good Life!

God said to Solomon:
I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart…Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for – both riches and honour - …Then Solomon awoke – and he realised it had been a dream…
In fact it was a dream that came true!