Dear Saints,
Our Scripture reading on Sunday took me back to the letter of Paul to the
Church in Rome:
”Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of
your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good
and acceptable and perfect.” (Rom 12:2)
So how do we read and understand this text in the context of Women’s Month or rather from a women’s point of view? I am of the opinion that our New Testament reading on Sunday
4th August gives us a clue as to the central truths of the Christian faith which can add value to the transforming and restoring the work of the Holy Spirit in us.
In chapter 3 of Paul’s letter to the Colossians, he reminds the Christian community of their new life in Christ and has the following to say as part of his reflection:
“Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have stripped off the old self with its practices and have clothed yourselves with the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge according to the image of its creator. In that renewal there is no longer Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and free; but Christ is all and in all!” (Colossians 3:9-11)"
I read in this then, that If we are being transformed, our minds are renewed with knowledge according to the image of God who is our creator. We further see that renewal in us when barriers between people are broken down. We see that renewal when
we grow in our knowledge that equity and equality are part of a movement towards being restored into God’s likeness through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Transformation therefor happens when we grow in our ability to see God’s
image in the other, for according to Paul,
“... Christ is all and in all!”
This is confirmed by our Struggle slogan,
“An injury to one is an injury to all”.
Looking at Women’s Month from this perspective we understand then that violence to the “least of these my children” is violence against all of us. This makes us want to scream from the mountain tops like the song writer Andra Day with her song “Rise Up”:
You're broken down and tired
Of living life on a merry go round
And you can't find the fighter
But I see it in you so we gonna walk it out
And move mountains
We gonna walk it out
And move mountains
And I'll rise up
I'll rise like the day
I'll rise up
I'll rise unafraid
I'll rise up
And I'll do it a thousand times again
And I'll rise up
High like the waves
I'll rise up
In spite of the ache
I'll rise up
And I'll do it a thousands times again
For you
For you
For you
For you
When the silence isn't quiet
And it feels like it's getting hard to breathe
And I know you feel like dying
But I promise we'll take the world to its feet
And move mountains
We'll take it to its feet
And move mountains
And I'll rise up
I'll rise like the day
I'll rise up
I'll rise unafraid
I'll rise up
And...
Come therefore, let us rise p for ourselves! Let us rise up for women! Let us rise up for the world as we are being transformed by the renewal of our minds in Christ Jesus our Lord.
The Kingdom of God is at hand in you through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Yours in Christ as always,
Revd Jacque
Come join us on Women’s Day tomorrow Friday 9 August @ 15h00 for the Holy Eucharist as we give thanks to God for women and the transformation we have entered into.