'For it is the God who said "Let light shine out of darkness" who has shone in our hearts to give us the knowledge of God in the face of Jesus Christ.'
I am delighted to be back at St. Ursula's to share with you in this service of confirmation and reception into the Anglican Church. Confirmations are always significant occasians because they are celebrations of Christan faith. To confirm means 'to strengthen', and we hope ard intend that you be strengthened in your discipleship of Jesus Christ. I was confirmed nearly 50 years ago. I still remember the event well and I hope that you will remember this event forever.
But to begin with I have some bad news and some good news to share with you.
First the bad news. Here in Eurape, you are part of a declining church and a declining faith. I travel around Europe, and I see evidence of the decline of Christian faith in most countries I visi. A survey carried out by the University of Freiburg indicated that by 2060 the membership of the two big national churches in Germany, Protestant and Roman Cathalic will fall by 50%. And that's ot untypical. It's probably similar in Switzeriand. Big decline. No-one likes to be part of a declining group, so I apologise for that.
Although it is not enticely my fault. Some people put it down to secularisation – as societies become more advanced they become less religious. I don't entirely agree with that. But it is bad news, and if you'd like to change your mind about being confirmed, I would quite understand.
Though I said there was also good news. And the good news is that a strong case can be made that the West is by world standards an exception. At a world level, religious belief and Christian faith in particular are booming. 85% of peeple on the planet claim adherence to a faith tradition. In fact research shows chat almost all religions wil experience growth in the 21st century. I spent some time in South Asia earlier this year, and religion was everywhere – temples, mosques, churches – in public life as well as private life. The inscription over the impressive State parliament building in Bangalore reads: 'Government work is God's work'. I love it. You won't see anything lke that on the European Parliament building in Brussels. China is fast becoming the world's largest economy and religion has grown there in ways unimaginable in recent history.
My son-in-law is Hong Kong Chinese and his Baptist church have done missions in mainland China where they baptized one thousand converts. Or take the continent of Africa. The growth of Christianity in Africa has been one of the most remarkable social movements in 20th century global history. Between 1970 and 2010 the Anglican Church in Africa grew from 7 milion to 50 milion adherents.
Of course, we in the West, we in our European Diocese, are benefiting from the growth of world Christianity. The evidence for that is before us today – all these wonderful candidates trom different countries and continents. But it remains a big challenge for us, an unsettling challenge, that our faith is not shared or discussed widely in the public squares of Switzerland or Europe. People look increasingly less to the church for moral teaching. Many younger Furopean people are ignorant of even the most basic elements of Christian belief. And because we don't find our beliefs are affirmed and reinforced by our society we may well start to wonder whether what we believe is true, or not. Maybe you're not sure whether lo believe or not?
Perhaps it might be helpful to think differently. Maybe it is not so much that there are believers and unbelievers. Better to say there are seekers and dwellers. And the church's task is to help seekers become dwellers. We are helping those who are uncertain, who doubt, who have many questions to became mare settled, more confident, more at hame in church and in their faith. And I fully appreciate that the division between seekers and dwellers, is not between 'us' and 'them' bul runs down the middle of each of us – because all of us have doubts and questions and uncertainties, including me.
But if we are seekers, where should we look? Where is God to be found? Should you visit the Hadron Collider at CERN and ask them to show you the God particle? Should you visit the Canary Islands to see the world’s largest telescope to try to locate God beyond the stars and galaxies? Maybe. But today's Bible readings suggest an access point that many have found is a much better piace to-start seeking after God. St. Paul writes: ‘For it is the God who said 'let light shine out of darkness' who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.' According to St Paul, the Creator Gad, the God who made everything from the sub-atomic particles to the starry heavens, this God invites us to know about him by looking into the face of Jesus Christ. And St. John says something very similar: 'No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father's heart, who has made him known'.
The Bible's remarkable claim is that Jesus is the fullest self-expression of God. Jesus is the window through which we see God at work. Now of course, we today can't see Jesus physically in the way his first disciples could. But we can see the wonderful works that he did. We can appreciate his gracious character, We can dwell in his remarkable ‘teaching. And we can wonder at the immense love shown in his self giving life and agonising death. Jesus is the face of the invisible God. His is the name of the one who is unnameable.
If this God exists and is true, why doesn't everyone believe in him? The only thing I can say is that there is enough light for those who desire to see, and enough darkness for those who do not. And that is a part ofthe mystery of God and the world he has brought into being.
The Christian way of engaging with this mysterious God is through faith in his Son Jesus Christ. And faith is a way of life, it is something we learn, something we practice, something in which we grow. Faith is a way of seeing that fills our lives with meaning and helps us cope with the many difficulties, puzzles and complexities we encounter, It is a matter of knowing God, of loving God, of opening, the dark places of our lives to his light.
Supposing I wanted to learn about Switzerland. I could go into a shop and buy a map. I would see the contour lines and realise there are steep mountains. I would notice the crags. I would observe that there is a large lake in the South af the Country. But none of that would be any substitute at all for actually visiting Switzerland, going up into the Bernese Oberland, seeing the wild flowers, smelling the fresh mountain air, hearing the cow bells and seeing the breathtaking views. In the same way, faith isn't something you learn about in a classroom, it is something you practice at home, in school, at work, and in church.
So, dear candidates, this service of baptism and confirmation is a significant staging post on your journey into God. Many of us here know a good deal about travel and journeying. The spiritual life is the same; it is a journey. Right at the beginning, Abraham and Sarah set out on a pilgrimage nat knowing where God would take them. So for us, our Christian journey will take us into Unfamiliar and uncharted territory.
Where will you be, I wonder, in 10 years time, 25 years time? It is impossible to know, But I can guarantee that your life will be richer, more meaningful, more worthwhile it is lived before the face of God, seeking his light, modelled and patterned an the example of his Son, Jesus Christ. 'For it is the Gad who said 'let light shine out of darkness' who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.' May this God shine in your hearts today, and may he sustain and deepen your walk with him to the very end of your life.
+ Robert