— Midweek Meditations:
thoughts, inspiration and encouragement
from ACF community members —
I come from a Free Church-Evangelical background. In my religious life, a direct relationship with God and the divine has always been important to me – both during worship and beyond. I drew on an inner conviction, not expressed outwardly, of God’s ever-present presence, and was critical of ostentatious religiosity. I was hostile towards the liturgy, particularly that of the Catholic Church. To me, it was synonymous with a dead form of religiosity. Believers who were serious about their faith, on the other hand, formulated their prayers freely and in this way demonstrated the authenticity of their faith.
Over time, however, I realised that my faith was becoming secularised. For example, when I saw a footballer making the sign of the cross before a match, I viewed this with disapproval. I thought he was doing it out of superstition or as an expression of outward – and therefore insincere – religiosity. I, on the other hand, did not want to put on a show. My faith was meant to be genuine, rooted in an inner, personal relationship between God and myself.
I am now becoming familiar with the liturgical forms of worship in the Anglican Church. They were, and still are, unfamiliar to me. However, they open up a different path to God and to spirituality, one that I had not known before. I am learning that it is not my religious state of mind, my spiritual mood or my current convictions of faith that matter, but rather God’s actions and revelation, which we experience together in the liturgy.
I am increasingly coming to understand that I can even sit or stand in worship feeling empty inside, full of doubt or without faith, and yet know that I am sustained by the liturgy, in both body and spirit.
In the liturgy, I do not encounter orthodoxy, nor what is dogmatically correct, but rather the love of God, which comes to meet me without any religious or spiritual effort on my part. Through the ever-recurring words, signs and actions, it tells me in a tender way that I am loved by God.
The ACF Midweek Meditations
are written by a diverse group of our church members with the intention to seek God’s fingerprints in our lives. They range from somber to humorous and are inspired by all facets of live and faith. Written by ordinary people from all walks of life, they reflect a wide range of Christian backgrounds and spiritualities.
Each week’s text portrays the individual viewpoint of its author. They might not always resonate with everyone, and are not meant to be understood as representing the Anglican Church Freiburg as a whole. Yet, as a church that is aiming to ‘Build a Community of Grace’ we seek to practice learning from and listening to one another.
We pray that these humble ponderings add a small spark of blessing to your week.
Leave a comment