Chaplain's Address - Wednesday 6th May 2009

Although we are nowhere near the end of term, nor even at the half term when many of you will leave, this is the final full school service at which we will meet together as this group of people to sing and to pray, to hear the word of God and to reflect upon the place of God in our lives and in our world. Whilst those of you who are leaving may not yet be in a reflective mood, I hope that in years to come you might look back upon these full school services as being important times in your experience of your school years at Dauntsey's as an expression of the school life you have shared and the place of God within this community.

Jesus said:

'The kingdom of Heaven is like treasure hidden in a field which someone has found; he hides it again, goes off in his joy, sells everything he owns and buys the field.

Again, the kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls; when he finds one of great value he goes and sells everything he owns and buys it.'

(Matthew 13)

There are certain moments in life when a sense of what is truly important in life becomes blindingly obvious; when your sense of purpose and your place in the world becomes perfectly clear.

Often they are times of overwhelming and intense joy. It might be personal achievement: something in sport or music or drama or even the truly satisfying academic results that many of you will certainly receive in August. They are precious times when everything you have worked for, or struggled to achieve, comes together.

Sometimes those moments might completely catch you unawares. You might feel overwhelmed by being in beautiful place: at a lakeside or on a mountain, or an incredible view that suddenly opens up before you. You might even find such a moment in somewhere man-made: a beautiful or historic piece of architecture, such as a beautiful church.

We might refer to this kind of moment as a religious experience: a brief time in which you are aware of something greater than yourself, or a sense of feeling connected to, and very much part of, a beautiful world. I hope that this might be something you have already experienced, and that you might always be open to such moments of transcendence.

Whilst many people might not describe that sensation in traditionally religious terms, sometimes we might refer to these moments as being 'religious' or 'of God' whatever our formal expression of faith. They are, at their heart, brief times in which you are aware of something greater than yourself, and yet feeling that the world is a good place into which we have much to give as well as from which to receive.

For some people, such moments might shape what they want to do with the whole of their life. An experience of making a difference to another person's life might call you to devote yourself to a particular career or way of living. Such a career is what we refer to as a vocation; literally a calling; and those who wish to live in such a way that their lives are defined not by what they gain for themselves, but in the difference for good they can make to other people's lives.

Sadly, a sense of what is important sometimes only comes when we are faced with losing something or someone important to us or being faced with our own mortality. Such an experience can also completely shape the direction of our future.

Throughout life we will sometimes be shocked or faced with the harsh realities of human existence. The people we love suffer pain; life sometimes seems to be so unfair. They may be times when our feeble faith fades away. They may equally be times when we turn to God because the answers this world offers seem inadequate; to just say that bad things happen, and often they happen without any warning.

From having heard nothing of Swine Flu in Mexico less than two weeks ago, we have been faced with the possibility of a global pandemic and all manner of statistics have been presented to us. Spanish Flu, beginning in 1918, just after the end of the First World War, is said to have killed 40 million people worldwide. Asian Flu, from 1958 contributed to the deaths of around 1.5 million people. And Hong Kong Flu, beginning in 1968 is believed to have killed an estimated 1 million people throughout the world.

The reality with Swine Flu seems to be that with care, vigilance, the advances of science and the preparedness of governments, we are well placed to face such a pandemic. Indeed it seems as if the threat has been contained and controlled; and whilst it may have some effect later in the year, we most certainly seem to have little to worry about today.

And so, as far as the media guides or reflects our thoughts, we can return to worrying about the world economy. Once again, it is certainly true that what is happening to global finances may have an effect on all of us whose security has become tied up with the value of assets and investments; the former of which may have been greatly overvalued and the latter of which may not have been as confident or well placed as we might have allowed ourselves to believe.

It is certainly the case that the lifestyles of many people are having to be changed, but even if life may have less style, we must never forget that we still have the gift of life itself: Something that the majority of people in the world struggle to maintain at the most basic level of subsistence and survival.

Two of Jesus' shortest parables are concerned with a person realising that they have found something of great value and selling all of their worldly goods just so that they can have the one thing that matters more than anything else.

Amongst all of the conflicting priorities of the world we have to develop an understanding of what is most important. I cannot dictate to you what that must be for you: you may have already decided that it is family, friends and relationships, or you may be holding onto motivations of personal success and achievement. Either way it is important that we have some sense of what is truly important to us. Paul Tillich describes this as the state of being ultimately concerned. That which concerns us ultimately, above all other things, is the measure of our true values; what we might define as our religion or our God.

When Jesus talks about the kingdom of Heaven he is not talking about some realm of existence beyond this earthly world. He talks about the kingdom of heaven in the way he refers to it in the Lord's Prayer: thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Heaven is a state of life here on earth. It is a way of life that should be shared equally between all people, not an exclusive club into which we try to gain membership. Christian Aid week begins this Sunday and their slogan says it so well: We believe in life before death.

It may be true that many of you are becoming more and more focussed on your exams and the decisions for the future that will be shaped by your answers over the next few weeks. You might even be worrying and seeing their importance beyond any sense of real perspective. They do not define who you are. Your whole future life is not dependent upon them.

What we all need to be given, throughout life, are reminders of what is truly important. Sometimes, as I have said, they come through moments of intense joy whose effects can shape the rest of our lives. Occasionally they will come through the darkest times of sadness. It is in each of those moments that we are reminded that life and time and talents and friends and relationships are gifts that are like pearls of infinite price or treasure of inestimable value. They are not gifts that are only received by a few people in this world. Those who are truly rich in this life are those who realise the worth of what they have; and live and share those gifts because they are grateful and thankful.

The Revd David Johnson

Dauntsey's School Chaplain

May 2009