A sermon preached at the Cathedral Eucharist 26th on Sunday 26 August 2018 - and the first time since I've been ordained that I've preached on shoes! Members of my various congregations have become particularly observant about my footwear; friends joke about the disproportionate number of shoes I bring to conferences... however, shoes have all sorts of practical and personal connotations about purpose and identity for example. The texts were : Joshua 24:1-2, 14-18; Ephesians 6: 10-20; John 6:56-69
As an aside, tracing the Gittoes family tree back through a plumber and publican, millers, servants and tenant farmers, it is satisfying to know that one ancestor was a "cordwainer". In seventeenth century Wales, a certain John Gittoes (1643-1688) was plying the same trade as the creator the Saalburg shoe, crafting footwear from leather.
As shoes for your feet, put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace.
This month, a 2000 year old shoe went on display at the Saalburg in Germany. It had been found in a well - a practical, recognisable and intimate artefact; a point of human connection to those inhabiting the fort between the Roman Empire and Germanic tribes.
With a hobnailed sole and leather upper, modelled on a military boot, this shoe offers warmth and protection. It also reveals both the craft of the maker and the wealth of the wearer. Holes punched into the soft leather created an intricate design. This shoe wouldn’t look out of place on today’s high streets; taking retro fashion statements to another level.
What would the roman shoemaker think of my own collection of footwear: from my faithful DMs, and liturgically coloured heels, to my trainers, converse and floral flats to umpteen pairs of clerical black slip ons, lace-ups, loafers and boots.
A Canon's shoes!
As shoes for your feet.
When we look at the stories of Joshua, Peter or Paul; the witness of Ruth, Mary or Phoebe, it can feel as if we have big shoes to fill. As we walk in the steps of Jesus, we can sense the weight of responsibility, challenge, expectation and opportunity.
Stepping into such shoes can feel overwhelming and precarious; but also exciting and rewarding. Eventually, we grow into them - or break them in - knowing we are where we are meant to be; we can be rooted, take risks and flourish.
Without over stretching the analogy it feels immediate and accessible to hear that when Paul talks to the Ephesians about clothing themselves with the armour of God, he also concerned with their feet. The shoes we are to put on will make us ready to proclaim the gospel of peace.
Like our physical shoes, this ‘spiritual footwear’ is practical and intimate, bringing warmth and protection; equipping us for the all-weather terrain of God’s Kingdom.
The steps we take in following Christ are steps towards peace. As Archbishop Justin’s priorities reminds us, this begins with prayer. It continues in the work of reconciliation, transforming conflict in the light of the cross. It involves witnessing in the power of the Spirit to the love of God revealed in Christ.
Being made ready to proclaim peace demands commitment in the face of struggle. It means choosing life. Today’s readings explore these steps being taken: in gathered community, in communion with Christ, in walking in the world.
In Joshua, steps are taken in gathering together as community and renewing their commitment to serve the Lord.
Joshua was commissioned to lead the nation after Moses’ death. As his life and work draws to an end, he sets before them a choice: between the local gods of their ancestors and the God of the whole universe.
In the verses omitted today, before he invites them to echo his own declaration, he confesses the story of faith of their community.
He retells God’s call to Abraham; of a promise of blessing which extends to the whole of humanity. He recalls the experience of slavery, the journey through the wilderness towards freedom; he speaks of human bravery in battle and of the nearness of God’s presence in rescuing them.
They are worship and serve the Lord, walk in God’s ways with sincerity and faithfulness. Choose. Life. Today.
His personal commitment is echoed by the voice of the people: ‘we too shall serve the Lord: he is our God’. Today, our footsteps have brought us from our homes to this place, as we too gather to affirm our faith; to recommit ourselves to serve God.
Steps taken
In Jesus’ words, steps are taken in response to an invitation to be in communion; to choose life.
In the beginning, the Word was with God; abiding in the intimacy of perfect communion. That very Word became flesh, entering the complexity human history and taking on the frailty of human a human body.
That Word came to invite us to abide in him; to lead us to dwell in communion, sharing the very life of God. Jesus dwells with us at wedding feasts and gravesides; he taught on hillsides and sat at table with his friends. In him, we see love poured out on the cross as God reconciled the world to Godself.
He has broken bread to feed a multitude; he has kindled in them the longing for living bread. The bread from heaven, given by God, is his flesh. We are hunger for this bread - the presence of God’s love in our hearts.
This invitation to eat and abide demands a decisive response. Some turn away, refusing the gift and demands of that love. Jesus asks, with openness and vulnerability, ‘Do you also wish to go away’. It is Peter who articulates the hope and courage of this choice. To whom can we go? In Jesus, we chose life; life in all its fullness.
We hear and respond to that call each time we celebrate the Eucharist together. In broken bread, we are sustained and shaped by Jesus Christ. Our feet are drawn near in faith; our hands reach out to receive; we taste and see how marvellous the Lord is; our hearts are warmed by his love.
And we rise. Our feet walking onwards: clad in leather, heels clicking, laces tied. Our feet walk beyond the threshold of this place into a world. A world where, strengthened by the God’s Spirit, we serve as a pilgrim people; a people called to make peace.
Walking onwards
The Eucharist reveals to us the marks of God’s peaceable Kingdom. And in a messy and complicated world, our lives are to take the shape of the Eucharist as we too are taken, blessed and given for others.
We are to bring communion to others, in places of beauty and brokenness: as we feed the hungry and struggle for justice; as we take time to be with the lonely and break the bread of hospitality together; as we seek to liberate the oppressed and listen to the anxious; as we share the intimacy and tenderness of care for others; to as we offer the gift of friendship which reveals to others the good news that they are loved by God.
As shoes for your feet, put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace.
We walk with Jesus today, nourished by his body and empowered by the Spirit; we walk alert to what God is doing in the world; alert to where we need to offer support or challenge.
Archbishop Justin says: ‘Reconciliation is one of our greatest needs and toughest challenges as human beings. In a world plagued by conflict, division and indifference, the Church has a crucial role to play as a community of reconcilers. Jesus calls every one of us to love God, our neighbours, ourselves and our enemies – a challenging command, with nobody left out.’
As Paul reminds the Ephesians, to do this we need walk in truth and faith, in righteousness and peace. We walk prayerfully, hopefully and courageously; bringing people together - taking small and risky steps of generosity and healing; making cups of tea, creating space to meet or facilitating a difficult meeting. We need to listen carefully and speak wisely; turning suspicion to trust. We walk the way of reconciliation - transforming strangers into friends, friends into members of God’s household.
Walking this way is difficult: we need ‘spiritual shoes’ for our feet: shoes which are warm, practical and protective; shoes of humility, time and patience. May we who have gathered to share our faith in God and been nourished in communion with the living bread, be equipped by the Spirit to walk in the world in the ways of peace.
© Julie Gittoes 2018
