“I was glad when they said to me,
‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’” (Psalm 121:1)
“In days to come the mountain of the Lord’s house
shall be established as the highest of the mountains,
and shall be raised above the hills;
all the nations shall stream to it.
Many peoples shall come and say,
‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the house of the God of Jacob;
that he may teach us his ways
and that we may walk in his paths.’” (Isaiah 2:2-3)
One Sunday a mother shook her son awake, telling him it was time to go to church. No effect. Ten minutes later she was back: ‘Get out of bed immediately and go to church.’ ‘Mother, I don’t want to. It’s so boring? Why should I bother?’ ‘For two reasons: You know you must go to church on a Sunday, and secondly, you are the bishop” [1]
One of the things I have found is that as Christians things can appear obvious to us so we don’t bother explaining them. When I became a Christian when I was thirteen it seemed obvious to me that I should go to church each week. The moment I got home from boarding school, the first Sunday I found a church and went to it. And I have barely missed a single Sunday since them – not because I am particularly virtuous, but just because it seemed obvious to me that that is what a Christian should do.
But it is not obvious to everyone.
It is not obvious to Hindus. Our Hindu brothers and sisters don’t go to Temple each week. If say exams are coming up or there is some big event in there lives – they go to the Temple. If it is a particular god’s feast day – well they find the particular temple to that particular god and go there for that day. (That’s why many Hindus will turn up to churches for midnight mass- even if they don’t recognise the uniqueness of Jesus, they recognise he is “a” god – so turn up to his temple on his feast). So when its something you need help for, or when it’s a god’s particular feast you go to Temple. But every single week?
Even our Muslim friends – where they make a big thing of men going to Mosque every week – its entirely optional for women whether they want to go to Mosque and they are free to pray at home instead if they prefer. While we Christians are very clear that whether you are male or female, adult or child, church is there for you….
Why? Why do we go to church?
Before I unpack that – lets have a bit of a chance for you to unpack that – turn to your neighbour – not someone you came with – and share with them why you got out of bed this morning – and if the answer is simply your mum made you (or your heating wasn’t working at home)- just be honest…
[give them break to discuss this before bringing them back]
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"Hello – this is the Equiry from Buckingham Palace – his Majesty King Charles would like to invite you to a special garden party to celebrate the Kings Birthday."
"That’s very kind of you – but would you mind doing it a week or so earlier. We always meet as a family to celebrate the Kings Birthday. The real meaning of Royal Birthdays is family, don’t you think."
"You do know who’s birthday it is?"
"Well I’m very happy to do something at the Palace to celebrate the Kings birthday – but not the day itself – that’s for family"
Hmmmm...
It’s advent – the lead up to Christmas and the goodnews is that it is a time of year when “Many peoples shall come and say,
‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the house of the God of Jacob” (Isaiah 2:3)
The slightly less good news is that people can still treat it like someone getting an invite from King Charles himself – and then trying to rearrange the date. In my previous two parishes we would have a Christingle service at 4pm on Christmas Eve – because even though these large numbers of people had decided they did want to go to church at some point in December, they didn’t want going Church to get in the way of Christmas which seems to be slightly missing the point.
Anyway – lets here what some of you had to say about why you got out of bed this morning.
………………………………………… ……………………………………………………..
[Take feedback from them being in small groups earlier]
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So then lets look at three things
1. Why those who don’t don’t go to church
2. Some good reasons for going to church
3. Some even better reasons for going to church
WHY THOSE WHO DON'T, DON'T GO TO CHURCH
Now of course there are some people who don’t come because they very actively don’t believe in God or belong to another religion. But given that half the people in this country still identify as Christians, and of those who don’t the majority are “nothings” rather than active atheists, lets ignore these for a moment. After all – we have seen that in the lead up to Christmas, many people – millions of people - will come for “A” service – so people haven’t completely ruled it out.
1. Why people don’t come to church
a. The fear has gone.
In the middle ages the government thought it was a great idea to fine people for not being at church on a Sunday. Well – it got people into Church…. But as soon as the fines stopped, people stopped going. By the 1930s – many people were going to church not because of fears of fines but because of what their neighbours would think of them if they didn’t. Now its not the social norm to go to church… Somepeople of course were made by their mother or father or grandmother to go to church – like that mother waking her son up in the joke at the beginning of the sermon “For two reasons: You know you must go to church on a Sunday, and secondly, you are the bishop.” That finger wagging can continue a long time in people’s lives – but perhaps they move further away from where Mum or Grandma lives and very quietly they don’t go when she’s not watching.
Or perhaps they were made to fear God – God would be angry if you don’t go. But that is not the God of the Gospels. When the prodigal son sneaks home we don’t read of a finger wagging father shouting at him for being away, but of a loving Papa running down the drive with arms opened wide to welcome him.
If people were ONLY coming because of fear – whether its fear of fines, fear of people or fear of the Father
b. A bad experience pushed them away.
John Lennon – of the Beatles – said he stopped going to Church when the vicar kicked him out for laughing. Which is sad – because one of the signs of a health church is there is lots of laughter. [2]
In a previous parish of mine a grandma started coming with her 13 year old and 18 month old grandchildren. They came every Sunday for around 3 months. Then one of the congregation members decided to lecture them – the toddler would sometimes wander – and the grandma would carefully and quietly an unobtrusively follow behind to keep the little one safe – causing no one any harm. Well the congregation member lectured them on “how wrong this is” – and well the grandma told me she didn’t want to upset anyone – so she would come back when the toddler was old enough to sit still. No amount of begging by me could change her mind. Guess what – she never came back.
Other people have left after hypocrisy or bullying or people complaining about what they were wearing in church – or even more horrific things that we don’t need to go into here.
Sadly – churches are full of broken people – and broken people hurt other people. As it says in our reading from Romans 13:12-13 “Let us then lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armour of light; let us live honourably as in the day, …. not in quarrelling and jealousy.”
c. And a third reason why people don’t come to church
– because No one has invited them!
“Many peoples shall come and say, ‘Come….let us go’” – Isiah’s prophesy sees people streaming into the house of the Lord – but it does also see someone taking the ititiative and inviting others.
As it says in Romans 10:14-15 “But how are they to call on one in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in one of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone to proclaim him? And how are they to proclaim him unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!’"
The good news – since 2018 more people are going to church”
The good news is that REPEATED surveys have shown that people are open to being invitedby a friend When we asked non-churchgoers whether they would be open to attending a church service if they were invited by a friend or family member, close to a third (31%) said that they would be – and Among adults – the two most open groups to being invited 18–24-year-olds (34%) and over-65s (35%). Amongst teenagers the numbers continue to rise. Back in 2016 more than half of teenagers (56%) said they definitely would not be open to being invited by a friend. That has fallen to only 25% who definitely not say yes.
But the key thing here is that people have to be invited by a friend.
A poster. An invitation through the door. And invitation from a vicar. All these are great.
But the most likely thing to get people into church is an invitation from a friend.
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2. SOME GOOD REASONS FOR COMING TO CHURCH
[Show a slide stating the following - ]
a. Church goers live on average 18 months longer than non church goers
b. 75% of churchgoers agree their life feels meaningful compared to 49% of nonchurchgoers
c. 55% of churchgoers agree they feel close to the people in their local area compared to 28% of nonchurchgoers
d. 69%of churchgoers agree they feel hopeful about their future compared to 46% of nonchurchgoers
e. Churchgoers less likely to feel anxious or depressed – 43% non churchgoers, 31% churchgoers
a. Church goers live on average 18 months longer than non church goers
If you have ever read the Old Testament you will read about long lived people like Methusaleh or Abraham or Moses – Well our churches may not be full of people that old – but my experience is that churches are often full of people in their 80s or 90s. That’s not simply because we attract older people – but because people who go weekly to church – this has been scientifically proven live longer than people who don’t go to a place of worship.
It could be because of all those other reasons that are on that list (point to the slides), it could be because the peacefulness that comes from going to church lowers your blood pressure. It could be because we sing together and communal singing has been proven to have all sorts of significant health benefits. Or it could simply be a blessing from God – who knows?
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b. 75% of churchgoers agree their life feels meaningful compared to 49% of nonchurchgoers
A lack of a sense of purpose is I believe one of the things that is causing such mental ill health. But the bible teaches that God has a purpose for the humans race – and that God has an individual purpose – sometimes we call that a “calling” for each one of us
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c. 55% of churchgoers agree they feel close to the people in their local area compared to 28% of nonchurchgoers
This is interesting because it is not just the obvious fact that Church goers have friends at Church – but we are also more likely to know our neighbours – or be involved in volunteering or community groups or things like that. We live in a very lonely age. The average person today has one less close friend than thirty years ago. The number of people who have more than ten close friends has fallen to a third of what it was in 1990. The average person then had 4-5 close friends. The average person now has 3.6 close friends. 12% of people have NO close friends. We live in a very lonely age. Yet you come to church. You meet people. You meet loving people. You meet people who through all their flaws chat with you – and you make friends – coming to God’s house offers hope in a lonely age.
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d. 69%of churchgoers agree they feel hopeful about their future compared to 46% of nonchurchgoers
Obviously we have hope about the future in the life to come – and perhaps because of THAT hope, we have more hope about the immediate future. The fact that we have a God whom we can take things to in prayer, the fact that we believe God is in charge of the situation. It gives us hope.
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e. Churchgoers less likely to feel anxious or depressed – 43% non churchgoers, 31% churchgoers
Don’t get me wrong – depression and anxiety are horrible illnesses- and Church goers do suffer from them. And that’s OK.
The good news is not that Christians don’t get depression or that we have to lie and pretend we don’t have it if we do – but that Some how – along with all the other treatments such as CBT, counselling, medication – actually going to church seems to help. Numerous studies have shown that being part of a worshipping community improves your mental health – and helps you get through the illness faster.
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Those were:
"Some good reasons to go to church"
Now for (new slide) –
3: SOME EVEN BETTER REASONS FOR GOING TO CHURCH
Because those were about us – and they are all true – but the best reasons for going to church are about God. As we enter Advent – “now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; the night is far gone, the day is near.” (Romans 13:12)
Now is the time to think about why the Presence of God himself might draw us to come to church.
A couple of years after I first arrived at Holy Trinity Barkingside, a new person started coming to our Family Mass. At the end of one Sunday she said to me “I love coming to mass – I feel so at peace”. At first that surprised. There were little children running around everywhere. There was a noisy action song before the kids went out to Sunday School, there was a band with not just keyboard and guitars – but drums. And the vicar had a loud voice. It was anything but quiet. And yet she said “I love coming to mass – I feel so at peace”.
The peace came not from a lack of physical noise – it came from the presence of the Holy Spirit – sending on us as Philipians 4:7 puts it “the peace that passes all understanding” – of course we can experience the Holy Spirit in other places but we particularly experience the Holy Spirit in Church.
Traditionally – not everyone does this nowadays – but traditionally the priest would give three [indicate with my fingers] three kisses during the mass. He or She would:
Kiss the altar,
kiss the Gospel Book, and then
exchange the Kiss of Peace.
These represent the main ways we encounter God in the Mass.
The priest kisses the altar
– because we encounter God in the Bread and Wine of Communion. In Advent we are looking forward to God coming as a human being at Christmas – and to him coming again at the end of time to bring us the fullness of Joy. But in meantime God does not leave us on our own. He knows we are physical beings – so he gives us a physical touch of his love in the bread and wine of communion.
The priest kisses the Gospel book
- because through the written word we hear God’s Word speaking to us.
The bible is the sacrament of God’s voice.
"‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the house of the God of Jacob;
that he may teach us his ways
and that we may walk in his paths.’
For out of Zion shall go forth instruction,
and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.’" (Isaiah 2:3)
Yes – as those of us who have been doing the Bible Course on Tuesdays and Wednesdays have been learning – it is important that we read the bible ourselves and not just on Sundays. But there is something special about hearing the bible in Mass – hearing what everyone else is hearing, and also having a sermon to break the word open for us.
Its OK to disagree with what the preacher says in their sermon – well obviously not if it is me – you should always agree with everything I say (wink) – Ok I jest – it IS OK to disagree with what Fr Mund, or Fr Dean or Cam or Kate or any other preacher says – because hearing what the preacher says will get you engaging with God in the Scriptures, and even if you disagree you’ll have to think about why you disagree – and God will speak to you through that.
And thirdly – as well as kissing the altar and the bible – we kiss - that’s what they did in bible times – although in practice we are more likely to hug or handshake or high five each other – at the Peace.
There are at least five references in the New Testament to a Kiss of Peace, a Holy Kiss or a Kiss of Love.(3) Why do we share the Peace – because as 1 Corinthians 12 puts it – “We are the Body of Christ” – that’s not just poetic language – We ARE the Body of Christ – in one another we encounter Jesus.
Back at the Pandemic many people stopped coming to church – and started going online. And if you are sick and have come down with flu – watching St Jo’s mass on You Tube is great. You don’t totally miss out – but it is never as good as being there in person.
All those health and wellness benefits that come from going to church – God made us knowing that coming to church would be good for us.
But more importantly – coming to church we encounter the presence of the King of Kings. In Each other . In the singing. In the praying. In the God’s word through the bible. In Jesus present in communion – we meet him. We experience the intimate touch of his love. Amen? [get response from congregation]
Final Stories
A Church goer wrote a letter to the editor of a newspaper and complained that it made no sense to go to church every Sunday.
He wrote: "I've gone for 30 years now, and in that time I have heard something like 3,000 sermons, but for the life of me, I can't remember a single one of them. So, I think I'm wasting my time, the preachers and priests are wasting theirs by giving sermons at all".
This started a real controversy in the "Letters to the Editor" column.
Much to the delight of the editor, it went on for weeks until someone wrote this clincher:
"I've been married for 30 years now. In that time my wife has cooked some 32,000 meals. But, for the life of me, I cannot recall the entire menu for a single one of those meals.
But I do know this: They all nourished me and gave me the strength I needed to do my work. If my wife had not given me these meals, I would be physically dead today.
Likewise, if I had not gone to church for nourishment, I would be spiritually dead today! (4)
In parts of Africa or the Philippines many people will walk for one or two hours every Sunday to get to church. UN Aid workers working with refugees from one particular war in Africa were really surprised – they decided to ask the refugees themselves what should be the first priority to build in the camp – without hesitation – before their own homes or a school, the first thing they wanted was a church.
"I was glad when they said to me,
‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’" (psalm 122:1)
How much do you value coming to Church? Amen
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(1) from "Why go to Church?" by Fr Timothy Radcliffe O.P. - The Archbishop of Canturbury's Lent Book 2008.
(2) https://gloriousnoise.com/2008/john_lennon_christian_warrior
(3) Romans 16:16, 1 Corinthians 16:20, 2 Corinthians 13:12, 1 Thessalonians 5:26, and 1 Peter 5:14
(4) illustration on Sermon Central - anonymous
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