And the wall came down
It’s amazing how high you can build a wall with just cardboard boxes.
Recently members of the town centre Churches of Waterlooville worshipped together. There were people from Waterlooville Baptist Church, Sacred Heart Catholic Church and St. George’s Parish Church, which is where the service was held. This was to mark the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity which is an annual week kept by Churches not just in this country but in many countries around the world. Each year the service is planned by Christians from a different place and this year it was the turn of Germany.
The service encouraged people to think about things that cause division such as failure to love, false accusations, prejudice, discrimination, intolerance and pride. All of these are contrary to the Gospel of Christ and the service invited people to say sorry.
Each time a sin was read out, boxes were taken and gradually a high wall was built in the centre of the Church. This demonstrated very clearly how a wall can divide people and for a few minutes it felt very uncomfortable as people’s thoughts turned to the old wall in Germany and the wall between Israel and Palestine today. Walls are not the answer to threats but compassion, understanding and love, and later in the service a sign of peace was passed around the congregation while the wall was gradually demolished.
Unity among Christians is really important and it was excellent to experience three quite different Churches worshipping together and enjoying tea together. It’s sad that this Week of Prayer happens only annually, but it does provide a foundation for Christians of all persuasions to think more about what unites them rather than what divides them. Maybe services like this can provide hope for the future – not just for the Church but for all humankind.
Fr. Mike Sheffield
