All members of parliament should be given a free conscience vote on any bill amending the Marriage Act to include same sex marriage.
Monthly Archives: November 2016
AFL’s scheduled Good Friday match in 2017 another win for market, not for people
Melbourne Bishop Philip Huggins has criticised a decision by AFL to stage a match on Good Friday next year, saying it was ‘another win for the market, not for people’.
News Update – 4 Nov – Marriage, Refugees, Politics, Discrimination, Reformation Day
News Update – 4 Nov – Marriage, Refugees, Politics, Discrimination, Reformation Day
More news… more issues…
Plus an article on Reformation Day and what it means…
Jenny
___________________________
News Update – 4 November 2016
Australian News
1. Marriage developments
1.1 Irish LGBTIQ campaigners produce video for Senators
1.2 WA Survey on ‘marriage equality’
2. Asylum seekers, Malcolm Turnbull and Kevin Rudd – proposed new law
3. Senator Bob day resigns from the Senate
4. Preferred Prime Minister – Popularity Polls
5. Transgender – how do they think?
Overseas News
1. UK: Christian couple warned their daughter ‘could be taken away’ if they don’t accept a ‘gender change’
2. Ireland: Bakers lose appeal over refusing to bake ‘pro-homosexual marriage’ cake
3. Israel: Moves to protect children from online pornography
4. Are Child refugees REALLY children?
ARTICLE:
Reformation Day – October 31
______________________________________
News Update – 4 November 2016
Australian News
1. Marriage developments
1.1 Irish LGBTIQ campaigners produce video for Senators
Homosexuals from Ireland, and their supporters, who campaigned for the change in the law in Ireland, have produced a video which will be used in Australia to persuade the Senate to vote against a plebiscite.
In the video, homosexual activists and a mother with a homosexual son speak about the ‘negatives’ that occurred during the campaign that led to the referendum vote, which they state included “verbal abuse and hatred”.
The video was produced by the Australian homosexual group just.equal and posted on their You Tube channel. Click here to view the FULL 5 minute video.
The just.equal group is VERY ACTIVE in their campaign to legalise homosexual marriage as well as other ‘discrimination’ matters. Check out their website where they list a number of current campaigns (Contacting federal MPs and Senators re the plebiscite, Tasmania’s anti-discrimination laws and supporting the removal of religious exceptions in Victoria). Click here for the website.
Their You Tube Channel has this heading, with a photo of Dean Smith…
“This is Dean. Dean is a Liberal Senator from WA who supports marriage equality & a free vote in the parliament. Dean is great. LNP MPs and Senators, time for Plan B.” It comes with the hashtag #BeLikeDean.
What they DON’T tell you is that Dean Smith is a homosexual! As we’ve noted before, once you have homosexuals in the parliament, they willinevitably push their cause.
Article: Irish gay marriage campaigners warn of abuse in same-sex marriage vote, 9 News, 3/11/2016.
1.2 WA Survey on ‘marriage equality’
What’s in a survey? A recent report from WA claimed that “almost 70%” of people in WA support ‘marriage equality’.
First, note the changing of terms – we recently sent out an article that spoke of the change in ‘words’ – from ’homosexual marriage’ to ‘same-sex marriage’ to ‘marriage equality’ -which then asked ‘Who doesn’t want ‘equality’ for all?
What TYPE of survey was it?
In essence, it was an online survey where people CHOSE to participate! In other words, the notoriously unreliable ‘self-select’ type of survey. No random sampling, anyone can participate!
The Sunday Times/PerthNow conducted the WA Speaks survey in October. The online survey was open for one week from 2 October and people were invited to participate online – 8832 people took part. There were 50 questions, so people had to show some level of commitment to do the survey!
So despite the headline, the survey result is not very reliable, although it does indicate where this issue is going…
Article: WA Speaks: survey highlights Perth people want marriage equality, News.com.au, 3/11/2016.
Article: WA Speaks Survey is back, Perth Now, 2/10/2016.
2. Asylum seekers, Malcolm Turnbull and Kevin Rudd – proposed new law
The Coalition has announced plans to introduce a new law that would prevent people who had been ‘rejected’ as asylum seekers’ or ‘refugees’ from ever entering the country. The SMH writes, that this would apply “even if they are genuine refugees and seek to come as tourists decades later”. The Bill will be “introduced by Immigration Minister Peter Dutton when Parliament returns. The lifetime ban would apply to all adults detained at the Manus Island or Nauru detention centres from July 19, 2013 – including those who have chosen to return home. Children who were brought by their parents or unaccompanied would be exempt.”
Of course, Bill Shorten criticised the proposal. Former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd also criticised the proposal and said Malcolm Turnbull was appeasing the “mad right” of his Party. Even the media report said it is unusual for a former Prime Minister to criticise a current Prime Minister.
Article: Asylum seekers who come by boat banned for life under new laws, SMH, 30/10/2016.
Article: Refugee ban: Kevin Rudd in blistering attack on Malcolm Turnbull over asylum seeker laws, SMH, 1/11/2016.
3. Senator Bob day resigns from the Senate
Senator Bob Day announced his resignation from the Senate this week. His place will be taken by a Senator nominated by Family First. The ABC reports that, “The South Australian parliament will now have to convene a joint sitting to appoint a replacement, a process which requires seven days’ notice. SA Parliament will not sit again until November 15, which would allow Mr Day’s replacement to attend the final two sitting weeks of Federal Parliament.”
In a statement, Senator Day said that a potential investor who had indicated interest in purchasing the company had decided not to proceed.
Article: Bob Day tenders resignation as Family First senator, ABC, 1/11/2016.
4. Preferred Prime Minister – Popularity Polls
In recent years the results of ‘Opinion Polls’, often conducted by newspapers or polling companies, have become increasingly significant in our political process. We saw that under the previous Labor government, when a drop of popularity in the opinion polls led to the demise of Kevin Rudd, and later Julia Gillard, as the Prime Minister. When Tony Abbott’s rating fell, a move was made by Malcolm Turnbull to depose him and take over as Prime Minister. Now Malcolm Turnbull’s rating has fallen to a level that is LOWER than Tony Abbott’s was!
A recent Newspoll showed that Malcolm Turnbull’s rating as ‘Preferred Prime Minister’ had fallen to 29%. “The latest Newspoll, taken exclusively for The Australian, reveals Mr Turnbull’s satisfaction rating of 29 per cent is now lower than Tony Abbott’s measure of 30 per cent when he was toppled as leader in September last year.”
In addition, Labor’s popularity had increased: “Labor chalked up its third successive Newspoll lead of 52 to 48 per cent.”
This week another poll asked WHICH of the Coalition figures people would prefer as Prime Minister.
For the first time, Julie Bishop came out in the lead as ‘Preferred Coalition leader’ with 34% compared to 25% for Malcolm Turnbull. Tony Abbott had 14%. Coalition voters had “Turnbull ahead with 35%, to 25% for Bishop, 16% Abbott and 10% Joyce.”
Article: Turnbull hits lowest rating as Labor maintains lead, says Newspoll, The Australian, 24/10/2016.
Article: Bishop leads Turnbull as better Coalition leader in Morgan poll, The Conversation, 1/11/2016.
5. Transgender – how do they think?
Interesting article by a transgender person on dating and what people really think of them.
Of course, this person doesn’t think they should have to ‘self-disclose’ about their history!
But in reality the TRUTH is the casualty here…
Article: If it’s still taboo to date transgender people, how far have we really come?, SMH, 3/11/2016.
Overseas News
1. UK: Christian couple warned their daughter ‘could be taken away’ if they don’t accept a ‘gender change’
Christian Today reports, “A Christian couple in the U.K. is seeking legal interference against their local council authority after it overruled them, siding with their 14-year-old daughter who wants to transition into a boy. The Daily Mail reports that the girl told local council officials that she wants to begin transitioning to look like a boy. Her identity is under wraps due to legal reasons, and her parents believe that she is too young to be taking such decisions. They plan to meet with teachers and social workers this coming month to discuss how she needs to be addressed and treated at school.
“The Christian Legal Centre, which is funding the couple’s legal battle, accused the “transgender cultural movement” for creating a new “conflict of rights” within the family.”
The couple “has been warned by their lawyer Michael Philips that their daughter could even be taken away from them if they fail to follow the instructions of social workers.”
Article: Christian parents opposing daughter’s wish to become a boy warned she could be taken away from them, Christian Today, 27/10/2016.
2. Bakers lose appeal over refusing to bake ‘pro-homosexual marriage’ cake
Christian Today reports, “After refusing to bake a pro-gay marriage cake on the grounds it would have conflicted with their religious beliefs, the Christian owners of a bakery in Ireland were found guilty of discrimination. The owners have since lost their appeal in a ruling this week.
“An appeals court in Belfast with a panel of three judges stood by a lower court’s ruling that Daniel and Amy McArthur, the owners of Ashers Bakery in Belfast, were indeed guilty of discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, Christian Post reports. The court stated that despite the family’s religious beliefs, businesses are not allowed to deny services that they willingly offer to the general public.”
This was no ORDINARY wedding cake…
It was a propaganda piece. The cake, ordered by homosexual activist Gareth Lee, was to feature BERT & ERNIE and a slogan saying “SUPPORT gay marriage”!
The McArthurs claimed they didn’t discriminate against Lee because of his sexual orientation, but rather refused to put the picture and slogan on the cake because of ITS CONTENT. Although they accepted their explanation, the court said it wasn’t a valid excuse.
Read what the court said about that…
The court’s explanation read: “The benefit from the message or slogan on the cake could only accrue to gay or bisexual people. The appellants would not have objected to a cake carrying the message ‘Support Heterosexual Marriage’ or indeed ‘Support Marriage.’ We accept that it was the use of the word ‘Gay’ in the context of the message which prevented the order from being fulfilled. The reason that the order was cancelled was that the appellants would not provide a cake with a message supporting a right to marry for those of a particular sexual orientation. This was a case of association with the gay and bisexual community and the protected personal characteristic was the sexual orientation of that community. Accordingly, this was direct discrimination.”
Do bakers have ANY rights about what they have to put on a cake?
What about ‘Legalise abortion” or “Decriminalise marijuana” or “Remove the age of consent” or “Close down all churches” or “God is DEAD”?
What about slogans such as “Imprison pedophiles for life” or “OPPOSE gay marriage” or “BAN abortion”?
What about activities that are ILLEGAL, say a pedophile ordering a cake that says “Sex is good for children”?
Surely the bakers should have the right to decline to put any statements on a cake that they philosophically disagree with!
Article: Christians who refused to bake pro-gay marriage cake lose appeal, Christian Today, 26/10/2016.
3. Israel: Moves to protect children from online pornography
FamilyVoice report…
“FamilyVoice research officer Ros Phillips has praised a recent move by the Israeli Knesset (parliament) to give initial approval to a bill to protect children. It would require internet service providers to block access to pornographic, gambling and violent websites by default. “Customers would have to personally contact their internet providers to have the block removed,” she said. “The bill was co-sponsored by lawmakers from across the political spectrum. The only party that refused to support the bill was left-wing Meretz.”
“Ros Phillips is hoping the current Australian Senate inquiry on the harm to children from online pornography will recommend similar legislation when it hands down its report, due on 23 November this year. “Something needs to be done urgently to address this problem”.”
Israel moves to protect kids from online porn, FAVA Media Release, 3/11/2016.
4. Are Child refugees REALLY children?
A report from Breitbart reveals that two-third of so-called child refugees are REALLY adults!
The article cites a UK case where a dental check revealed that a refugee who was supposed to be a 12 year old child was actually a 21 year old jihadi… Dental checks are routinely used in Europe and the USA and there are calls for them to be used in the UK.
We’ve regularly noted the number of ‘single young men’ who are among those arriving by boat in Australia!
Article: Two Thirds of ‘Child Refugees’ Are Adults, Tory MP Slams ‘Naive Lily Allen Tears’, Breitbart, 19/10/2016.
ARTICLE: Reformation Day – October 31
Some good news… after all our ‘negative’ news, and our report on Halloween last week, some of our readers reminded us that Reformation Day is held on 31 October.
I planned to send a note on that on Monday, but I was unwell.
Reformation Day is celebrated on October 31, particularly by the Lutheran Church and Reformed churches. It marks the day that Martin Luther wrote his 95 Theses – his objections to the way the church was then being run, in particular the sale of indulgences – and nailed them to the door of the cathedral.
Read Stephen Nicholl’s article on the meaning of Reformation Day at Ligonier Ministries (R C Sproul)… He explains the background and the context.
Let me give you this extract…
“One of Luther’s 95 Theses simply declares, “The Church’s true treasure is the gospel of Jesus Christ.” That alone is the meaning of Reformation Day. The church had lost sight of the gospel because it had long ago papered over the pages of God’s Word with layer upon layer of tradition. Tradition always brings about systems of works, of earning your way back to God. It was true of the Pharisees, and it was true of medieval Roman Catholicism. Didn’t Christ Himself say, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light?” Reformation Day celebrates the joyful beauty of the liberating gospel of Jesus Christ.
What is Reformation Day? It is the day the light of the gospel broke forth out of darkness. It was the day that began the Protestant Reformation. It was a day that led to Martin Luther, John Calvin, John Knox, and may other Reformers helping the church find its way back to God’s Word as the only authority for faith and life and leading the church back to the glorious doctrines of justification by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. It kindled the fires of missionary endeavors, it led to hymn writing and congregational singing, and it led to the centrality of the sermon and preaching for the people of God. It is the celebration of a theological, ecclesiastical, and cultural transformation.
So we celebrate Reformation Day. This day reminds us to be thankful for our past and to the Monk turned Reformer. What’s more, this day reminds us of our duty, our obligation, to keep the light of the gospel at the center of all we do.”
Read the whole article: What is Reformation Day?
Link highlights – October 2016
Highlights of links to online news and opinion pieces for October 1st to 31st, 2016.
The trial of a man blind since birth
You would have thought being blind was difficult enough …
How to choose a mentor
We all want to live well. But who’s example should we follow?
Mustard Tree Aspirations (Luke 13:18-19)
The leadership team at a local Baptist church set a goal in early 2012 to double in size over three years, from an average of thirty on a Sunday to an average of sixty. Unfortunately, over the year the church declined from thirty to twenty. The church did not have a fight that caused the decline. People left for good and understandable reasons, having finished their studies, relocating elsewhere for other, further studies, or deciding to participate in a church more local to their home. It was a challenge for the church to consider how to make the most of the opportunity to encouraging people to grow in their faith for the time that they do attend the church, and a challenge to engage fresh, local community outreach. But the question hung in the air, what to do with that growth goal of doubling?
This local church was one where both of the present authors ministered, Darren as the pastor and Julia as a member of the leadership team. In wondering how we might grow and branch out as a corner boutique church in our local community, we have been surprised and encouraged by the picture painted in Luke’s gospel of the great things that can be achieved not only when a large wealth of resources is at one’s disposal, but also when very few resources are mobilized. In the commonly-termed “Parable of the Mustard Seed,” Jesus says:
What is the kingdom of God like? And to what should I compare it? It is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in the garden; it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches. (Luke 13:18-19 NRSV)
The mustard seed—small, tiny and seemingly insignificant—is a very humble picture of what kind of resources we need if we are to enact change in our world. God’s Kingdom—an analogy for the time and place when God’s dreams for creation are fully realised—can spring from seemingly nothing at all, provided it is “sowed” in hope and faith. But a further challenge lies in considering the result of the mustard seed’s transformation, and thus the nature of the Kingdom of God that we as local churches, as well as a broader Baptist tribe of churches, the BUV, seek to cooperate with God to advance.
Humble Hospitality
The parables of Jesus inspire a process of rethinking by turning things on their head and challenging assumptions, both of the gospel writer’s first century audience and also of readers today. While it may be tempting to read the parable as just another illustration of the truism “from little things big things grow,” it is surprising to find that a fully-grown mustard tree is not a large and domineering plant that towers above over other trees. It is in fact much more like a shrub that stands, at its tallest, at around nine feet. This begs the question of why Jesus picked the mustard seed as the foundational metaphor of the parable, if not to champion the tree’s grand height and hence the impressive outcome of the seed’s transformation.
The parable concludes in v.19 by referring not to the size of the mustard tree but rather to its role as a place of rest and hospitality: “it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.” While a mustard tree, or mustard shrub, on its own is not that impressive, its place as a house for the birds of the air allows it to embody something of God’s reign because it is a symbol of God’s hospitality.
Moreover, this is a hospitality that creates meaningful and sustaining frameworks for those who are vulnerable or in particular need. This becomes clear when we read the parable in its wider context. In the verses immediately prior, we read:
10[Jesus] was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. 11And just then there appeared a woman with a spirit that had crippled her for eighteen years. She was bent over and was quite unable to stand up straight. 12When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said, ‘Woman, you are set free from your ailment.’ 13When he laid his hands on her, immediately she stood up straight and began praising God. 14But the leader of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had cured on the Sabbath, kept saying to the crowd, ‘There are six days on which work ought to be done; come on those days and be cured, and not on the Sabbath day.’ 15But the Lord answered him and said, ‘You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger, and lead it away to give it water? 16And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen long years, be set free from this bondage on the Sabbath day?’ 17When he said this, all his opponents were put to shame; and the entire crowd was rejoicing at all the wonderful things that he was doing.
18 He said therefore, ‘What is the kingdom of God like? And to what should I compare it? 19It is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in the garden; it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.’ (Luke 13:10-19 NRSV)
When read as part of this larger episode, the parable of the mustard seed forms an integral part of Jesus’ criticism of his religious counterparts on account of their failure to care for the marginalised in their midst when it compromised their sense of religious piety. Acts of kindness and hospitality, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant, go a long way in God’s eyes, and the failure to reach out to the vulnerable in one’s midst amounts to hypocrisy and shameful conduct. God’s Kingdom is actualized by the “someone” who gives whatever she or he has so as to make a place for someone in need, and is willing to bear the social, material or religious consequences.
A Challenge for Mission
We are inspired by Jesus’ vision for a world where all people can belong, and his particular concern for the poor and marginalized. At the same time, we are convicted by his criticism of those who participate in any system that perpetuates injustice. In our shared church life, Jesus inspires us to place our lives, our little seed, into the ground of God’s nurturing, so that we might become a tree that gives hospitality to all the neighbourhood. We are encouraged that neither the origins nor the end product in realizing God’s reign are necessarily all that big and impressive. We don’t have to strive to become a huge, grand superstructure; the mustard tree is, from certain angles, a pretty humble outcome. Mustard Tree aspirations are about existing to feed and house others, to provide a place where healing happens, where the lonely find community and where the stranded can make a nest. This is an aspiration to be a vibrant, multi-coloured space of hospitality. We live in an age where the end product of successful Christian ministry is often measured according to numbers, growth, financial measures or social media presence. The parable of the mustard seed, and the pericope of Jesus healing the crippled woman before it, challenge us to get over our idolatry of size (whether large or small), and reframe our community aspirations to be mainly about hospitality and inclusion.
A hero of ours, Jean Vanier, wrote:
“In the midst of all the violence and corruption of the world God invites us today to create new places of belonging, places of sharing, of peace and of kindness, places were no-one needs to defend himself or herself; places where each one is loved and accepted with one’s own fragility, abilities and disabilities. This is my vision for our churches: that they become places of belonging, places of sharing.” (Befriending the Stranger, Mahwaj, NJ: Paulist Press, 2010, 12)
This was an inspiration for “Slow Church” advocates C. Christopher Smith and John Pattison to encourage churches to generously share the resources God gives us. Hospitality, especially to those who are different from us, is a key way of bringing new life to others, and a way of discovering Christ among us in fresh ways. Slow Church advocates urge us to avoid the temptation of modern hospitality which keeps the other at arm’s length, and to instead sit patiently with those around us, with a genuine willingness to share life and “waste time” together. (See their Slow Church: Cultivating Community in the Patient Way of Jesus, Downers Grove, IL: IVP, 2014, 192-207).
For our local, corner church, we are learning the beauty and blessing of opening our doors and lives to international students. English classes and Bible studies are programmes that our new friends welcome, but it’s more often in relaxed conversations over coffee or social get-togethers that we see glimpses of where God is working and Kingdom life sprouting forth. While we still pray and plan to grow and double in size, we also welcome and celebrate the signs of growth in hospitality and the connections we are making outside of Sunday gatherings that might not translate into numerical growth at this stage.
As a tribe of Baptist churches around Victoria, we hope our communities will be stretched to flourish in more inclusive directions of hospitality to those who really need it. This doesn’t require a wealth of resources, but simply the willingness to use what we have to do humble things for God and our neighbour. Moreover, our voice as followers of Christ can bring important critique of broader Australian policies that fail to care for the orphan, widow and stranger of our time and treat hospitality as though it was a dirty word. We believe that Australian Christians can make a real, positive difference in discussions concerning asylum seeker and immigration policy in particular by boldly insisting that our resources be planted in ways that bear the fruit of hospitality, refuge and welcome.
We pray, “Gracious God, enable us to become people and communities of hope and life, who plant the seeds of your earthly garden for the benefit of all who need a home and a nest. Fill us with your gentle love, that we may cooperate with your intention of abundant love and life.”
Julia Rhyder is a member of AuburnLife, but spends most of her time in Lausanne, Switzerland where she is completing a doctorate in Biblical Studies.
Darren Cronshaw is pastor of AuburnLife and Mission Catalyst – Researcher with BUV.
Picture by Beth Barnett, reflecting on Auburn’s repeated engagement with the parable of the Mustard Seed.
Mustard Tree Aspirations (Luke 13:18-19)
The leadership team at a local Baptist church set a goal in early 2012 to double in size over three years, from an average of thirty on a Sunday to an average of sixty. Unfortunately, over the year the church declined from thirty to twenty. The church did not have a fight that caused the decline. People left for good and understandable reasons, having finished their studies, relocating elsewhere for other, further studies, or deciding to participate in a church more local to their home. It was a challenge for the church to consider how to make the most of the opportunity to encouraging people to grow in their faith for the time that they do attend the church, and a challenge to engage fresh, local community outreach. But the question hung in the air, what to do with that growth goal of doubling?
This local church was one where both of the present authors ministered, Darren as the pastor and Julia as a member of the leadership team. In wondering how we might grow and branch out as a corner boutique church in our local community, we have been surprised and encouraged by the picture painted in Luke’s gospel of the great things that can be achieved not only when a large wealth of resources is at one’s disposal, but also when very few resources are mobilized. In the commonly-termed “Parable of the Mustard Seed,” Jesus says:
What is the kingdom of God like? And to what should I compare it? It is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in the garden; it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches. (Luke 13:18-19 NRSV)
The mustard seed—small, tiny and seemingly insignificant—is a very humble picture of what kind of resources we need if we are to enact change in our world. God’s Kingdom—an analogy for the time and place when God’s dreams for creation are fully realised—can spring from seemingly nothing at all, provided it is “sowed” in hope and faith. But a further challenge lies in considering the result of the mustard seed’s transformation, and thus the nature of the Kingdom of God that we as local churches, as well as a broader Baptist tribe of churches, the BUV, seek to cooperate with God to advance.
Humble Hospitality
The parables of Jesus inspire a process of rethinking by turning things on their head and challenging assumptions, both of the gospel writer’s first century audience and also of readers today. While it may be tempting to read the parable as just another illustration of the truism “from little things big things grow,” it is surprising to find that a fully-grown mustard tree is not a large and domineering plant that towers above over other trees. It is in fact much more like a shrub that stands, at its tallest, at around nine feet. This begs the question of why Jesus picked the mustard seed as the foundational metaphor of the parable, if not to champion the tree’s grand height and hence the impressive outcome of the seed’s transformation.
The parable concludes in v.19 by referring not to the size of the mustard tree but rather to its role as a place of rest and hospitality: “it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.” While a mustard tree, or mustard shrub, on its own is not that impressive, its place as a house for the birds of the air allows it to embody something of God’s reign because it is a symbol of God’s hospitality.
Moreover, this is a hospitality that creates meaningful and sustaining frameworks for those who are vulnerable or in particular need. This becomes clear when we read the parable in its wider context. In the verses immediately prior, we read:
10[Jesus] was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. 11And just then there appeared a woman with a spirit that had crippled her for eighteen years. She was bent over and was quite unable to stand up straight. 12When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said, ‘Woman, you are set free from your ailment.’ 13When he laid his hands on her, immediately she stood up straight and began praising God. 14But the leader of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had cured on the Sabbath, kept saying to the crowd, ‘There are six days on which work ought to be done; come on those days and be cured, and not on the Sabbath day.’ 15But the Lord answered him and said, ‘You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger, and lead it away to give it water? 16And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen long years, be set free from this bondage on the Sabbath day?’ 17When he said this, all his opponents were put to shame; and the entire crowd was rejoicing at all the wonderful things that he was doing.
18 He said therefore, ‘What is the kingdom of God like? And to what should I compare it? 19It is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in the garden; it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.’ (Luke 13:10-19 NRSV)
When read as part of this larger episode, the parable of the mustard seed forms an integral part of Jesus’ criticism of his religious counterparts on account of their failure to care for the marginalised in their midst when it compromised their sense of religious piety. Acts of kindness and hospitality, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant, go a long way in God’s eyes, and the failure to reach out to the vulnerable in one’s midst amounts to hypocrisy and shameful conduct. God’s Kingdom is actualized by the “someone” who gives whatever she or he has so as to make a place for someone in need, and is willing to bear the social, material or religious consequences.
A Challenge for Mission
We are inspired by Jesus’ vision for a world where all people can belong, and his particular concern for the poor and marginalized. At the same time, we are convicted by his criticism of those who participate in any system that perpetuates injustice. In our shared church life, Jesus inspires us to place our lives, our little seed, into the ground of God’s nurturing, so that we might become a tree that gives hospitality to all the neighbourhood. We are encouraged that neither the origins nor the end product in realizing God’s reign are necessarily all that big and impressive. We don’t have to strive to become a huge, grand superstructure; the mustard tree is, from certain angles, a pretty humble outcome. Mustard Tree aspirations are about existing to feed and house others, to provide a place where healing happens, where the lonely find community and where the stranded can make a nest. This is an aspiration to be a vibrant, multi-coloured space of hospitality. We live in an age where the end product of successful Christian ministry is often measured according to numbers, growth, financial measures or social media presence. The parable of the mustard seed, and the pericope of Jesus healing the crippled woman before it, challenge us to get over our idolatry of size (whether large or small), and reframe our community aspirations to be mainly about hospitality and inclusion.
A hero of ours, Jean Vanier, wrote:
“In the midst of all the violence and corruption of the world God invites us today to create new places of belonging, places of sharing, of peace and of kindness, places were no-one needs to defend himself or herself; places where each one is loved and accepted with one’s own fragility, abilities and disabilities. This is my vision for our churches: that they become places of belonging, places of sharing.” (Befriending the Stranger, Mahwaj, NJ: Paulist Press, 2010, 12)
This was an inspiration for “Slow Church” advocates C. Christopher Smith and John Pattison to encourage churches to generously share the resources God gives us. Hospitality, especially to those who are different from us, is a key way of bringing new life to others, and a way of discovering Christ among us in fresh ways. Slow Church advocates urge us to avoid the temptation of modern hospitality which keeps the other at arm’s length, and to instead sit patiently with those around us, with a genuine willingness to share life and “waste time” together. (See their Slow Church: Cultivating Community in the Patient Way of Jesus, Downers Grove, IL: IVP, 2014, 192-207).
For our local, corner church, we are learning the beauty and blessing of opening our doors and lives to international students. English classes and Bible studies are programmes that our new friends welcome, but it’s more often in relaxed conversations over coffee or social get-togethers that we see glimpses of where God is working and Kingdom life sprouting forth. While we still pray and plan to grow and double in size, we also welcome and celebrate the signs of growth in hospitality and the connections we are making outside of Sunday gatherings that might not translate into numerical growth at this stage.
As a tribe of Baptist churches around Victoria, we hope our communities will be stretched to flourish in more inclusive directions of hospitality to those who really need it. This doesn’t require a wealth of resources, but simply the willingness to use what we have to do humble things for God and our neighbour. Moreover, our voice as followers of Christ can bring important critique of broader Australian policies that fail to care for the orphan, widow and stranger of our time and treat hospitality as though it was a dirty word. We believe that Australian Christians can make a real, positive difference in discussions concerning asylum seeker and immigration policy in particular by boldly insisting that our resources be planted in ways that bear the fruit of hospitality, refuge and welcome.
We pray, “Gracious God, enable us to become people and communities of hope and life, who plant the seeds of your earthly garden for the benefit of all who need a home and a nest. Fill us with your gentle love, that we may cooperate with your intention of abundant love and life.”
Julia Rhyder is a member of AuburnLife, but spends most of her time in Lausanne, Switzerland where she is completing a doctorate in Biblical Studies.
Darren Cronshaw is pastor of AuburnLife and Mission Catalyst – Researcher with BUV.
Picture by Beth Barnett, reflecting on Auburn’s repeated engagement with the parable of the Mustard Seed.
Source: BUV News