ALL SAINTS MARGARET STREET

Trinity IV – 09.07.06. – Evensong

Fr Ivan Aquilina

Factus est Iuda sanctuarium eius, Israel potestas eius.
Mare vidit et fugit, Iordanis conversus est retrorsum.

Last Friday saw the first anniversary of the London bombings. We all have our own images of that day. The pain of some is still evident, fear, I am sure, lurks at the back of many a mind but a year on the dust is settling. It is in this clearing that we may start to put pieces together and see what has gone on behind the surface and beyond the facts of that day in July of last year.

The bombings are a symptom of something more sinister and deeper. It is the loss of the vision of humanity when persons are treated as expendable commodities which can be used for some perceived narrative.

The fact is that we live in a society in which words that formed the parameters of the accepted way of life now mean different things to different people. The exodus of peoples from many countries into this are meant to bring a richness of culture and diversity, the problem is that we realise that we are loosing what guaranteed stability and many are afraid. It is in this fear that terrorism is born and nurtured.

The Pax Brittanica has long gone and because there seems to be no more stable ground on which to stand many find the vacuum as an opportunity to impose their own views and change the narrative of humanity into a parody. Faced with this insecurity he who shouts loudest becomes credible.

This crisis which we are facing is not new. The names and places and circumstances are different but it has been present before in our human history. I lift up my eyes today to the great Father of Western Monasticism, Patron Saint of Europe whose feast day we shall celebrate on Tuesday. St Benedict.

Benedict faced the same problems. The Pax Romana was no more. Defining words were devoid of any concrete meaning. The one who shouted loudest was listened to. Terrorism in the guise of raids and pillaging were widespread. An influx of new cultures in Italy were changing the familiar secure scene.

Benedict and his monasteries became beacons of security and oasis of tranquillity in such difficult and changing times and they safeguarded a heritage which was then fully appreciated and built upon when the hour of madness was over.
I narrow down Benedict’s huge contribution to three points which we might want to reflect upon during this coming week.

1. Ordered life: In the rule which bears Benedict’s name one finds a powerful tool on ordered life. The Gospel and the teachings of the Church set out the parameters. It is within that that our lives take structure and become beacons of order above the chaos that surrounds us. Remaining faithful to our narrative is a powerful way to respond to the loss of identity.

2. Humility: This makes us accountable to God and to each other. In humility we can see that no one is the centre of what happens; only God is. And as we are accountable to each other we learn to value the contribution that every person, every little child can make.

3. Work and Prayer: This is the famous motto of Benedict Ora et Labora. Both are in equal measure and equally important until work becomes prayer and prayer becomes work: the Opus Dei, the Work of God.

Loyalty to God and the building of his kingdom in righteousness and peace and joy are the message of today’s readings. They have been embodied in Benedict who today invites us to adopt them. The choir sang to us a very opportune anthem tonight, it was only when Judah and Israel submitted to God and His Law that the sea, the symbol of evil, fled. It is only when we submit to God and His Law that we will be responding to our context. Thus we may serve God and value every human life, and those around us will see our light and join us in the service of God and of each other.

Factus est Iuda sanctuarium eius, Israel potestas eius.
Mare vidit et fugit, Iordanis conversus est retrorsum.