Called to be the door

Homily – Sunday, the 24^th September 2023

Anglican Church Freiburg and St. Ursula’s Old Catholic Church Freiburg, Combined Service

Reading: John 10:7-10

Jesus said to them,
‘Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep.
All who came before me are thieves and bandits;
but the sheep did not listen to them.
I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved,
and will come in and go out and find pasture.
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.
I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

Behind every door there is a story!!

The gospel lesson that we read is one such story- of Jesus the door.

Two set of words are prominent in the text

Jesus says I am the door of the sheep, whoever enters through me will be saved, find pasture, have life, have it abundantly.

On the other side Jesus also talks of the Thief and the bandit who come to steal, kill and destroy.

Jesus says I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

Who are the thieves and bandits who steal, kill and destroy today?

How can we ensure life in abundance to generations yet to be before its too late?

A story goes like this. It happens sometime in the future. The destruction of the earth and climate change had made life difficult and holed up in a small chamber under the sea was a grandmother and a son. They had masks. On a plasma screen there were images flashing of the past

In 2023 we used to see something called the sheep. They have all vanished

They used to graze in open grass fields and we did not protect them

The boy sadly said- Who stole them, killed them, destroyed them?

The grandmother was silent.

Imagine this is a door to the future.

You can see the future.

Generations who would live in the future is visible to you

Their joys and pain- flash before you.

Now carefully look who are stealing and what is being stolen from them.

And Listen to

The Voice of the Future Generation talking to you.

You are stealing our rivers and water sources- We will soon find it hard to find safe drinking water

You are stealing our trees and forests- We will get a destroyed planet with no bio diversity

You are stealing our fossilised and other energy sources- We will find it difficult to source energy

You are stealing our hills and mountains- reducing the richness of our life

You are stealing the purity of our air, water and soil- we will have to live in a polluted environment.

You are stealing equality- fostering technological inequality, educational inequality, health care disparity, digital divide and we will be left with a polarised humanity.

You are stealing our cultural heritage- we are being cut off from our roots and our wings are being clipped.

You are stealing our homelands- forcing us to migrate and find our living as refugees and migrant wanderers in alien lands.

You are stealing our health- creating vaccines first and then viruses and making health a commodity.

You kill and destroy making nuclear weapons and weapons of mass destruction.

You are being silent, when you see us being looted of our rights- including right to dignified life.

You are the thieves and the bandits who steal, kill and destroy!!!

Who are they talking to?

Our only response can be,

Is it I Lord?

Actively destroying the earth

Or passively participating in the destruction through my silence

Jesus says I am the Door of the Sheep

The sheep is taken to greener pastures and still waters by the shepherd.

Sometimes it is a long journey.

As evenings approach the shepherd puts up a temporary fence around for the sheep.

And the small opening for them to come in and come out.

The shepherd himself lies down there.

No sheep can get out into danger.

No predator can come in without alerting the shepherd.

Its all about providing the security, care, safety, privacy and access control– the functions of the door/

I am the door. Whoever enters by me will be saved,
and will come in and go out and find pasture.

My experience in a previous Church

On a cold winter night, one of my first days, I saw a man outside the church in the cold

I called Warden to ask what need be done

He said- The door is open please tell him

I did and he came into the Narthex and slept

I learnt about the Church with no doors- though the Insurance Company would not agree to that

Then what is the alternative

And the solution was simple

A Church where Jesus is the door.

What does it mean to us today?

A safe space for the vulnerable?

No its far beyond.

Every door has a story to tell and what is the story of our door?

The call is clear

The followers of Christ being the DOOR for the Future generations

Where thieves and bandits who aim to steal, kill and destroy prowl around,

How do we live out the gospel mandate

How do we live out being the door security, care, safety, privacy and access control.

I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

Ensuring Life and Life in Abundance is the Mission of the Church

And the basic commitment for the same is our commitment for creation care today.

That’s what we sang before the homily.

Like a celebration after a long mourning,
like a fire in the night.
An open gate in a wall,
opened for the sun.
Like a letter after a long silence,
like an unexpected greeting.
Like a leaf on a dead branch,
an I-like-you-still-kiss.

This is what reconciliation is like, this is how true peace must be.
this is what it means to forgive and be the church

What must be the church like?

Like a look that awakens hope.
Like a light on steep cliffs,
like a continent newly discovered.
Like spring, like the morning,
Like a song, like a poem.
Like life, like love,
like God himself the true light 

Church is called to be THE DOOR.

Vinod Victor

September 24, 2023