Facing fears and insults in the storms of life on Father’s Day

‘Leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him’ (Mark 4: 36) … fishing boats in a sheltered harbour at Loughrea, Co Galway (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2021)

Patrick Comerford

Sunday 20 June 2021

The Third Sunday after Trinity (Trinity III, Father’s Day)

9.30 a.m. Saint Mary’s Church, Askeaton, Morning Prayer

11.30 a.m. Saint Brendan’s Church, Tarbert, the Parish Eucharist (Holy Communion II)

The Readings: I Samuel 17: 32-49; Psalm 9: 9-20; Mark 4: 35-41

There is a link to the readings HERE.

‘Let us go across to the other side’ (Mark 4: 35) … waiting gondolas near Saint Mark’s Square in Venice (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

May I speak to you in the name of God, + Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Amen.

As we work our ways through the storms of life, we have many questions to ask about the purpose or meaning of life. Often, we can feel guilty about putting those questions to God. Yet, should we not be able to put our deepest questions and greatest fears before God?

In the first reading, David seeks to assure Saul about his suitability to do battle with Goliath, and tells him: ‘Let no one’s heart fail.’ David casts off Saul’s heavy armour, disregards Goliath’s disdain, and puts his faith in God.

In an alternative first reading, God responds to Job’s questions with his own challenging questions and reminds Job that God is control of all forces in nature.

In our Psalm (Psalm 9: 9-20), we are reminded that God hears the cry of the poor and promises justice for the oppressed and those in trouble.

In the Gospel reading, the frightened disciples challenge Christ and ask him whether he cares that they are perishing (verse 38). But he offers them words of peace before doing anything to remedy the plight in which they have been caught, and goes on to ask them his own challenging questions: ‘Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?’ (verses 40)? They, in turn, end up asking their own challenging question about who Christ is for them.

In the first reading, Saul lives in fear and is haunted by his dreams (I Samuel 17: 10-12), while David overcomes his greatest fear by facing it in the person of Goliath (verse 32-49).

David is disdained by the Philistine, who mocks, curses and insults him.

But David answers: ‘I come … in the name of the Lord.’ He believes God will give him victory so that ‘all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel,’ and that God prevails over material advantage. David’s victory marks the beginning of a new era of trust in God.

Psalm 9 is a reminder that the success of evil is only temporary, and in the end, the righteous will endure.

This psalm has a tone of victory over evil and it may have been written to celebrate David’s victory over Goliath.

We are reminded that those who know God (verse 10) will trust in him, for he is faithful to those who seek him. God remembers the pleas of those hurt by the wicked.

God is asked to show his mercy, and to save the petitioner from the ‘gates of death’ (verse 13), so that he may praise God in the Temple (verse 14).

The plight of the disciples in the Gospel reading (Mark 4: 35-41) seems to be the working out of a constant, recurring, vivid dream of the type many of us experience at different stages: the feelings of drowning, floating and falling suddenly, being in a crowd and yet alone, calling out and not being heard, or not being recognised for who we are.

Christ is asleep in the boat when a great gale rises, the waves beat the side of the boat, and it is soon swamped by the waters.

Christ seems oblivious to the calamity that is unfolding around him and to the fear of the disciples. They have to wake him, and by then they fear they are perishing.

Christ wakes, rebukes the wind, calm descends on the sea, and Christ challenges those on the boat: ‘Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?’ (verse 40).

Instead of being calmed, they are now filled with awe. Do they recognise Christ for who he truly is? They ask one another: ‘Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?’ (verse 31).

Even before the Resurrection, Christ tells the disciples not to be afraid, which becomes a constant theme after the Resurrection.

Do those in the boat begin to ask truly who Christ is because he has calmed the storm or because he has calmed their fears?

On Father’s Day, people have mixed emotions and memories.

The vast majority have memories of a loving, kind and gentle father, who cared for them and provided for them. Many will remember that when they confronted fears – from bad dreams as a child to fears for the future facing adulthood – their father calmed those fears, acted as a role model, and shared the natural hopes, fears and anxieties for the future.

But for some people, memories of father-figures in childhood can be disturbing, and still the cause of troubled dreams and memories of lost hopes.

Indeed, traumas such as this can make it difficult for some people, as children and as adults, to pray even the simple opening words of the Lord’s Prayer, ‘Our Father …’

And there are people who have no memories of a father, good or bad. People who grew up with bereaved or single mothers, people who were the children of broken families. Too often, the Church has often failed to understand the dilemmas and memories of so many.

But through the storms of life, through the nightmares, fears and memories, despite the failures of the Church, past and present, we must not let bad parenting, or bad experiences of parenting, to ruin our trusting relationship with God our Father.

Like David, we come in the name of the Lord. Despite those who mock and disdain us, despite the death or the failures of father figures, in all the storms of life, throughout all our fears and nightmares, we can trust in God as Father and trust in the soothing words of Christ, ‘Peace! Be still! Be not afraid.’

And so, may all we think, say and do be to the praise, honour and glory of God, + Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.

The sails of a boat and the shape of the cross in the harbour at Collioure in the south of France (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Mark 4: 35-41 (NRSVA):

35 When evening had come, Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Let us go across to the other side.’ 36 And leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him. 37 A great gale arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. 38 But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him up and said to him, ‘Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?’ 39 He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead calm. 40 He said to them, ‘Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?’ 41 And they were filled with great awe and said to one another, ‘Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?’

‘ … they took him with them in the boat, just as he was’ (Mark 4: 36) … boats in the small harbour at Georgioupoli in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Liturgical Colour: Green

The Collect of the Day:

Almighty God,
you have broken the tyranny of sin
and have sent the Spirit of your Son into our hearts
whereby we call you Father:
Give us grace to dedicate our freedom to your service,
that we and all creation may be brought
to the glorious liberty of the children of God;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The Post-Communion Prayer:

O God,
whose beauty is beyond our imagining
and whose power we cannot comprehend:
Give us a glimpse of your glory on earth
but shield us from knowing more than we can bear
until we may look upon you without fear;
through Jesus Christ our Saviour.

A closing prayer on Father’s Day:

Heavenly Father,
you entrusted your Son Jesus,
the child of Mary,
to the care of Joseph, an earthly father.
Bless all fathers
as they care for their families.
Give them strength and wisdom,
tenderness and patience;
support them in the work they have to do
protecting those who look to them,
as we look to you for love and salvation,
through Jesus Christ our rock and defender.
Amen.

The Blessing:

The Lord God almighty is our Father:
he loves us and tenderly cares for us.

The Lord Jesus Christ is our Saviour:
he has redeemed us and will defend us to the end.

The Lord, the Holy Spirit is among us:
he will lead us in God’s holy way.

And the blessing of God almighty …

Hymns:

584, Jesus calls us! O’er the tumult (CD 33)
666, Be still my soul: the Lord is on thy side (CD 39)

‘Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead calm’ (Mark 4: 39) … boats in the calm waters at Mesongi on the island of Corfu (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org

Material from the Book of Common Prayer is copyright © 2004, Representative Body of the Church of Ireland.

Material for Father’s Day from Common Worship © The Archbishops' Council of the Church of England, 2000-2004

A French museum for people who know nothing about art but know what they like

‘Le Port de Collioure’ (ca 1890-1900), attributed to Étienne Terrus

Patrick Comerford

The French painter Étienne Terrus (1857-1922), who lived most of his life in Roussillon, is seen as one of the precursors of Fauvism. During his life, he worked closely with many of the artists who worked in Collioure in the south of France at the beginning of the last century, including George-Daniel de Monfreid, André Derain, and Henri Matisse.

Although Terrus lapsed into obscurity for a time, he was rediscovered in the late 20th century.

So, after a visit the week before last [17 May 2018] to Collioure, the coastal resort where Terrus and Matisse had worked, it seemed appropriate to our friend that on our way back to Ste-Marie-Le-Pen we should visit Elne, the town where Terrus was born, did much of his work, and died.

The Musée Terrus in Elne opened in 1994 (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

The Musée Terrus, a museum dedicated to his work, opened in his home town of Elne, near the French border with Spain, in 1994. Then 20 years ago, a major exhibition of what were believed to be his major works, Le Roussillon à l’origine de l’Art Moderne, was held in Perpignan in 1998.

However, when we arrived in Elne that Thursday evening, the Terrus Museum was closed. Initially we thought this was because we had arrived too late in the day. But soon we were told how in recent weeks it was discovered that more than half the collection in the museum, 82 paintings, have been identified as counterfeit works.

The council in Elne bought the paintings, drawings and watercolours for about €160,000 for the museum over a 20-year period. Some paintings were bequeathed by collectors, others were bought through fundraising efforts. But staff at the museum were not aware of the forgeries until a visiting art historian alerted them earlier this year.

The Étienne Terrus Museum commissioned the art historian Eric Forcada to rehang its collection following the recent restoration of the building. During his assignment, Forcada discovered that 82 paintings – or about 60 percent of the museum’s holdings – were not painted by Terrus.

Forcada said he noticed the works were fake almost immediately. ‘On one painting, the signature was wiped away when I passed my white glove over it,’ he told the Guardian.

‘At a stylistic level, it’s crude,’ Forcada said, referring to the fakes. ‘The cotton supports do not match the canvas used by Terrus. And there are some anachronisms.’ For example, some of the paintings show buildings built after Terrus had died, France 3 said.

The art historian informed the region’s cultural minister and convened a panel of experts, who confirmed his suspicions and agreed that 82 of the 140 paintings and watercolours that have been on display in the museum for more than two decades were not painted by Terrus.

The news was announced a few weeks ago as the museum was opening following a renovation. Local people are shocked, including the Mayor of Elne, Yves Barniol, who has apologised to people who have visited the museum in good faith.

‘Étienne Terrus was Elne’s great painter. He was part of the community, he was our painter,’ the mayor told the Guardian. ‘Knowing that people have visited the museum and seen a collection, most of which is fake, that’s bad. It’s a catastrophe for the municipality.’

‘I put myself in the place of all the people who came to visit the museum, who saw fake works, who took a ticket of entry, whatever the price,’ he said.

The mayor has now opened an investigation into the forgeries and he insists those responsible will be caught. ‘We’re not giving up,’ he has told journalists.

The town hall has filed a complaint against those who ordered, painted, or sold the fake paintings. A legal complaint has been filed, the fakes have been seized by police and French police have launched an investigation into the alleged forgery and fraud.

Police also believe other museums may have been similarly duped; they suspect an organised ring. It is now thought that works by other regional artists in other locations near Perpignan and Collioure may also be fakes.

Étienne Terrus (1857-1922) … a sculpture on a terrace near the cathedral and the museum in Elne (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

‘By the power of the Spirit … draw everyone to the fire of your love’

The pastel colours of a side-street in Collioure … languages can shape how we see the world and how we see others (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Patrick Comerford

Sunday 20 June 2018,

The Day of Pentecost, or Whit Sunday.

Readings: Acts 2: 1-21; Psalm 104: 26-36, 37b; Romans 8: 22-27; John 15: 26-27, 16: 4b-15.

11.30 a.m., The Parish Eucharist, Saint Brendan’s Church, Kilnaughtin (Tarbert), Co Kerry.

May I speak to you in the name of God, + Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Amen.

I have just had a fresh experience, culturally and linguistically, over the past few days.

I have been to France before, visiting Paris at least half a dozen times. But last week, for the first time ever, I spent a few days in the south of France, thanks to the welcome and the hospitality of a friend who moved there from Dublin many years ago.

I have known what to expect in Paris. But I went without any expectations of what to see, taste or experience in the south of France.

We visited old castles and cathedrals, vineyards and galleries, walked by river banks and marinas, and spent some time strolling around the harbour, beaches and castle at Collioure, with its pastel-coloured houses and streets, which provided so much inspiration for artists a century ago, including André Derain, Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso.

First impressions can never be repeated, but my first impressions of the South of France include the clear translucent light that must have inspired artists like Matisse and Picasso, and the very clear fact that I was in a bilingual part of France. Everywhere signs are in both French and Catalan – road signs, place names, directions, menus, advertising, notices at historical sites such as castles and cathedrals.

French is not one of my languages, but in Perpignan, Collioure and throughout Roussillon I was bilingual in my linguistic short-fallings, able to understand many of the signs and the questions in shops and in restaurants, but unable to respond in either French or Catalan.

Of course, I enjoy languages, and can find myself sitting back and enjoying listening to other people in conversation. But so often, by the time I have translated what I want to say and try to utter those translated thoughts, the conversation has moved on quite naturally to another subject or topic.

I am a slow learner when it comes to languages, but it still does not take away from the pleasure and enjoyment I get from being immersed in another language.

Learning another language can open our eyes to fresh insights and new aspects of the world around us.

Sometimes, it can be like the experiences of those artists a century ago in Collioure, seeing everything in a new light, and finding that experience is like an awakening by the Holy Spirit.

French has at least two words for the colour blue, bleu and azure, while Greek has at least four: κυάνεος (kyáneos) or dark blue, which became cyan in English; γλαυκός (glafkós) for light blue; θαλασσί (thalassí) for ocean or sea blue; and μπλε (ble), which is a loan word from French.

Ever since I learned to distinguish those words in Greek, my eyes have come to see not just four hues of blue, but four different colours of blue.

We use the words please, thanks and pleasure differently in different languages.

A sea of blue by the beach in Platanes near Rethymnon (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2017)

The languages we speak can shape the way we think, and they can offer bright new aspects of and insights into life.

This is true too in theology and how we express our faith, our values, our beliefs.

In the New Testament, Saint Paul uses four different words for love.

Quite often, the divisions and theological quarrels in the Early Church were not about essential beliefs, but about problems in translation. They argued about words that seemed to distinguish between God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit being of the same or similar substance or nature, and so on.

Today, too often, we base theological assertions that are founded on Biblical sayings, not on the words and phrases themselves in their original Biblical Hebrew or Greek, but on a translation that has been produced by a committee. And accepting that translation puts a lot of trust – too much trust – in the translators.

There is a saying in many languages that the translator is a traitor. The Italian phrase is Traduttore, traditore. When we try to translate any text, whether it is the Bible or any other book, we already display our own presumptions and even prejudices by the words we give preference to.

Anyone who has tried knows how difficult it is to translate poetry, and how it is impossible to translate a joke.

Languages are a gift from God that offer us new insights into creation, into the world, into other people.

The story of Babel (Genesis 11: 1-11) tells us that languages divided us in the world, set us apart from each other, were an expression of disunity and conflict in humanity.

But that was then, and Pentecost is now. Pentecost is the undoing of Babel. Now we can appreciation that each culture, each society, each people, each individual, can have a fresh insight into God, through the Holy Spirit, who leads us through the love God the Son, to the majesty of God the Father.

Instead of languages being a barrier, the disciples find in our first New Testament reading this morning (Acts 2: 1-21) that the good news is not reserved to one linguistic group or culture, but can have fresh meaning for Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and parts of Libya, visitors from Rome, Cretans and Arabs – each in their own languages.

And that is equally true of every other culture, people, nation, generation and society.

The very people who were once counted out as ethnic or linguistic minorities, the religious curiosities and the perceived oddities, those who dress, and appear, and sound and look different, whose foods and perfume and bodily odours are marked by variety, are told today, on the Day of Pentecost, that you are counted in as God’s own people.

Pentecost is the undoing of Babel. The barriers we built in the past, the walls we use to separate ourselves from each other, particularly in our use of language to exclude rather than include, are torn apart by the Holy Spirit who rushes in and breaks down all the walls that separate us from those we think are different because of how they sound, look and smell.

Pentecost celebrates the over-abundant generosity of God. This generosity is beyond measure, to the point that it challenges us, surprises us, startles us.

So often we want to box-in, contain or marginalise the Holy Spirit by our use of language.

And, indeed, there are more languages than our verbal, spoken and written languages.

We have different body languages: how we look at each other, how we shrug our shoulders, how we point and gesture, are all as unique as spoken languages, but much more difficult to translate, and help to keep those we see as the outsider on the margins.

We have different liturgical languages. We are very good as Anglicans – and I saw it at General Synod in Armagh less than two weeks ago – of counting people ‘in’ or ‘out’ because we are too evangelical or too Anglo-Catholic, too low or too high, too liberal or too conservative, and so on.

We still use language like that to paint people into corners that are often not of their own making.

This morning’s account of the first Day of Pentecost is a sharp reminder that Pentecost is for all. The Holy Spirit is not an exclusive gift for the 12, for the inner circle, for the believers, or even for the Church. The promises that God will pour out his Spirit on all (verse 17) is a promise for all without regard to gender, age or social background (verses 17-21), is a promise of God’s salvation is for everyone (verse 21).

The gift of the Holy Spirit does not stop being effective the day after this Day of Pentecost.

God never leaves us alone. This is what Christ promises the disciples, the whole Church, in the Gospel reading, as he breaks through the locked doors and breaks through all their fears (John 20: 19-23).

We need have no fears, for the Resurrection breaks through all the barriers of time and space, of gender and race, of language and colour.

Pentecost includes all – even those we do not hear or understand. It is just simply that I have not yet learned to hear or understand them. But the gift of the Holy Spirit encourages me to hear them with a new sound and to see them in a new light.

And so, may all we think, say and do, be to the praise, honour and glory of God, + Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.

This sermon was prepared for the Day of Pentecost, 20 May 2018

Seeing the world in a new light … the colours of Collioure inspired Matisse, Picasso and other artists a century ago (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Acts 2: 1-21:

1 When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. 5 Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. 6 And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. 7 Amazed and astonished, they asked, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? 9 Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs – in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.” 12 All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others sneered and said, “They are filled with new wine.”

14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them, “Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. 15 Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o’clock in the morning. 16 No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:

17 ‘In the last days it will be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams.
18 Even upon my slaves, both men and women,
in those days I will pour out my Spirit;
and they shall prophesy.
19 And I will show portents in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below,
blood, and fire, and smoky mist.
20 The sun shall be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood,
before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day.
21 Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’

‘Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them’ (Acts 2: 3) … Pentecost by El Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos)

Liturgical colour: Red

Greeting (from Easter until Pentecost):

Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia!

Penitential Kyries:

Great and wonderful are your deeds,
Lord God the Almighty

Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

You are the King of glory, O Christ.

Christ, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.

Come Holy Ghost, our souls inspire.

Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

The Collect of the Day:

Almighty God,
who on the day of Pentecost
sent your Holy Spirit to the apostles
with the wind from heaven and in tongues of flame,
filling them with joy and boldness to preach the gospel:
By the power of the same Spirit
strengthen us to witness to your truth
and to draw everyone to the fire of your love;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Introduction to the Peace:

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace.
If we live in the Spirit, let us walk in the Spirit.
Galatians 5: 22

Preface:

Through Jesus Christ our Lord,
according to whose promise
the Holy Spirit came to dwell in us,
making us your children,
and giving us power to proclaim the gospel throughout the world:

Post Communion Prayer:

Faithful God,
who fulfilled the promises of Easter
by sending us your Holy Spirit
and opening to every race and nation the way of life eternal:
Open our lips by your Spirit,
that every tongue may tell of your glory;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Blessing:

The Spirit of truth lead you into all truth,
give you grace to confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
and to proclaim the words and works of God …

Dismissal:

Go in the peace of the Risen Christ. Alleluia! Alleluia!
Thanks be to God. Alleluia! Alleluia!

Hymns:

386, Spirit of God, unseen as the wind

294, Come down, O Love divine

293, Breathe on me, breath of God

Evie Hone’s window in Saint Patrick’s Church on the Hill of Tara, Co Meath, has images of Pentecost interspersed with images of Saint Patrick (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA, and are used by permission. All rights reserved.

‘All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages’

Seeing the world in a new light … the colours of Collioure inspired Matisse, Picasso and other artists a century ago (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

Sunday 20 June 2018,

The Day of Pentecost, or Whit Sunday.

Readings: Acts 2: 1-21; Psalm 104: 26-36, 37b; Romans 8: 22-27; John 15: 26-27, 16: 4b-15.

9.30 a.m., The Parish Eucharist, Saint Mary’s Church, Askeaton, Co Limerick.

May I speak to you in the name of God, + Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Amen.

I have just had a fresh experience, culturally and linguistically, over the past few days.

I have been to France before, visiting Paris at least half a dozen times. But last week, for the first time ever, I spent a few days in the south of France, thanks to the welcome and the hospitality of a friend who moved there from Dublin many years ago.

I have known what to expect in Paris. But I went without any expectations of what to see, taste or experience in the south of France.

We visited old castles and cathedrals, vineyards and galleries, walked by river banks and marinas, and spent some time strolling around the harbour, beaches and castle at Collioure, with its pastel-coloured houses and streets, which provided so much inspiration for artists a century ago, including André Derain, Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso.

First impressions can never be repeated, but my first impressions of the South of France include the clear translucent light that must have inspired artists like Matisse and Picasso, and the very clear fact that I was in a bilingual part of France. Everywhere signs are in both French and Catalan – road signs, place names, directions, menus, advertising, notices at historical sites such as castles and cathedrals.

French is not one of my languages, but in Perpignan, Collioure and throughout Roussillon I was bilingual in my linguistic short-fallings, able to understand many of the signs and the questions in shops and in restaurants, but unable to respond in either French or Catalan.

Of course, I enjoy languages, and can find myself sitting back and enjoying listening to other people in conversation. But so often, by the time I have translated what I want to say and try to utter those translated thoughts, the conversation has moved on quite naturally to another subject or topic.

I am a slow learner when it comes to languages, but it still does not take away from the pleasure and enjoyment I get from being immersed in another language.

Learning another language can open our eyes to fresh insights and new aspects of the world around us.

Sometimes, it can be like the experiences of those artists a century ago in Collioure, seeing everything in a new light, and finding that experience is like an awakening by the Holy Spirit.

French has at least two words for the colour blue, bleu and azure, while Greek has at least four: κυάνεος (kyáneos) or dark blue, which became cyan in English; γλαυκός (glafkós) for light blue; θαλασσί (thalassí) for ocean or sea blue; and μπλε (ble), which is a loan word from French.

Ever since I learned to distinguish those words in Greek, my eyes have come to see not just four hues of blue, but four different colours of blue.

We use the words please, thanks and pleasure differently in different languages.

A sea of blue by the beach in Platanes near Rethymnon (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2017)

The languages we speak can shape the way we think, and they can offer bright new aspects of and insights into life.

This is true too in theology and how we express our faith, our values, our beliefs.

In the New Testament, Saint Paul uses four different words for love.

Quite often, the divisions and theological quarrels in the Early Church were not about essential beliefs, but about problems in translation. They argued about words that seemed to distinguish between God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit being of the same or similar substance or nature, and so on.

Today, too often, we base theological assertions that are founded on Biblical sayings, not on the words and phrases themselves in their original Biblical Hebrew or Greek, but on a translation that has been produced by a committee. And accepting that translation puts a lot of trust – too much trust – in the translators.

There is a saying in many languages that the translator is a traitor. The Italian phrase is Traduttore, traditore. When we try to translate any text, whether it is the Bible or any other book, we already display our own presumptions and even prejudices by the words we give preference to.

Anyone who has tried knows how difficult it is to translate poetry, and how it is impossible to translate a joke.

Languages are a gift from God that offer us new insights into creation, into the world, into other people.

The story of Babel (Genesis 11: 1-11) tells us that languages divided us in the world, set us apart from each other, were an expression of disunity and conflict in humanity.

But that was then, and Pentecost is now. Pentecost is the undoing of Babel. Now we can appreciation that each culture, each society, each people, each individual, can have a fresh insight into God, through the Holy Spirit, who leads us through the love God the Son, to the majesty of God the Father.

Instead of languages being a barrier, the disciples find in our first New Testament reading this morning (Acts 2: 1-21) that the good news is not reserved to one linguistic group or culture, but can have fresh meaning for Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and parts of Libya, visitors from Rome, Cretans and Arabs – each in their own languages.

And that is equally true of every other culture, people, nation, generation and society.

The very people who were once counted out as ethnic or linguistic minorities, the religious curiosities and the perceived oddities, those who dress, and appear, and sound and look different, whose foods and perfume and bodily odours are marked by variety, are told today, on the Day of Pentecost, that you are counted in as God’s own people.

Pentecost is the undoing of Babel. The barriers we built in the past, the walls we use to separate ourselves from each other, particularly in our use of language to exclude rather than include, are torn apart by the Holy Spirit who rushes in and breaks down all the walls that separate us from those we think are different because of how they sound, look and smell.

Pentecost celebrates the over-abundant generosity of God. This generosity is beyond measure, to the point that it challenges us, surprises us, startles us.

So often we want to box-in, contain or marginalise the Holy Spirit by our use of language.

And, indeed, there are more languages than our verbal, spoken and written languages.

We have different body languages: how we look at each other, how we shrug our shoulders, how we point and gesture, are all as unique as spoken languages, but much more difficult to translate, and help to keep those we see as the outsider on the margins.

We have different liturgical languages. We are very good as Anglicans – and I saw it at General Synod in Armagh less than two weeks ago – of counting people ‘in’ or ‘out’ because we are too evangelical or too Anglo-Catholic, too low or too high, too liberal or too conservative, and so on.

We still use language like that to paint people into corners that are often not of their own making.

This morning’s account of the first Day of Pentecost is a sharp reminder that Pentecost is for all. The Holy Spirit is not an exclusive gift for the 12, for the inner circle, for the believers, or even for the Church. The promises that God will pour out his Spirit on all (verse 17) is a promise for all without regard to gender, age or social background (verses 17-21), is a promise of God’s salvation is for everyone (verse 21).

The gift of the Holy Spirit does not stop being effective the day after this Day of Pentecost.

God never leaves us alone. This is what Christ promises the disciples, the whole Church, in the Gospel reading, as he breaks through the locked doors and breaks through all their fears (John 20: 19-23).

We need have no fears, for the Resurrection breaks through all the barriers of time and space, of gender and race, of language and colour.

Pentecost includes all – even those we do not hear or understand. It is just simply that I have not yet learned to hear or understand them. But the gift of the Holy Spirit encourages me to hear them with a new sound and to see them in a new light.

And so, may all we think, say and do, be to the praise, honour and glory of God, + Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.

This sermon was prepared for the Day of Pentecost, 20 May 2018

The pastel colours of a side-street in Collioure … languages can shape how we see the world and how we see others (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Acts 2: 1-21:

1 When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. 5 Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. 6 And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. 7 Amazed and astonished, they asked, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? 9 Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs – in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.” 12 All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others sneered and said, “They are filled with new wine.”

14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them, “Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. 15 Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o’clock in the morning. 16 No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:

17 ‘In the last days it will be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams.
18 Even upon my slaves, both men and women,
in those days I will pour out my Spirit;
and they shall prophesy.
19 And I will show portents in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below,
blood, and fire, and smoky mist.
20 The sun shall be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood,
before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day.
21 Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’

‘Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them’ (Acts 2: 3) … Pentecost by El Greco (Doménikos Theotokópoulos)

Liturgical colour: Red

Greeting (from Easter until Pentecost):

Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia!

Penitential Kyries:

Great and wonderful are your deeds,
Lord God the Almighty

Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

You are the King of glory, O Christ.

Christ, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.

Come Holy Ghost, our souls inspire.

Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

The Collect of the Day:

Almighty God,
who on the day of Pentecost
sent your Holy Spirit to the apostles
with the wind from heaven and in tongues of flame,
filling them with joy and boldness to preach the gospel:
By the power of the same Spirit
strengthen us to witness to your truth
and to draw everyone to the fire of your love;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Introduction to the Peace:

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace.
If we live in the Spirit, let us walk in the Spirit.
Galatians 5: 22

Preface:

Through Jesus Christ our Lord,
according to whose promise
the Holy Spirit came to dwell in us,
making us your children,
and giving us power to proclaim the gospel throughout the world:

Post Communion Prayer:

Faithful God,
who fulfilled the promises of Easter
by sending us your Holy Spirit
and opening to every race and nation the way of life eternal:
Open our lips by your Spirit,
that every tongue may tell of your glory;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Blessing:

The Spirit of truth lead you into all truth,
give you grace to confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
and to proclaim the words and works of God …

Dismissal:

Go in the peace of the Risen Christ. Alleluia! Alleluia!
Thanks be to God. Alleluia! Alleluia!

Hymns:

386, Spirit of God, unseen as the wind

294, Come down, O Love divine

293, Breathe on me, breath of God

Evie Hone’s window in Saint Patrick’s Church on the Hill of Tara, Co Meath, has images of Pentecost interspersed with images of Saint Patrick (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA, and are used by permission. All rights reserved.

A lost mediaeval cathedral and tales of Hanibal, Helen and artists in Elne

Elne was the centre of a diocese from the sixth century and the cathedral was built in the eleventh century (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Patrick Comerford

Earlier this week, I had explored the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in Perpignan. But this was not the first cathedral of the diocese, and so on Thursday evening [17 May 2018], after an afternoon by the sea at Collioure, three of us made our way up through the hills and narrow streets of Elne to visit the Cathedral of Sainte-Eulalie-et-Sainte-Julie.

From its lofty, fortified site, Elne (Elna) dominates the narrow plain of Roussillon between the Pyrenees and the Mediterranean. This was the first capital of the former province of Roussillon, before the provincial capital was moved to Perpignan.

Elne is the oldest town in Roussillon and successive civilisations have left their traces here. Numerous archaeological researches have shown that the surrounding countryside has been occupied since Neolithic times.

As Illiberis, the place is first mentioned in the history of Livy. This is the Iberian city where Hannibal pitched camp after he crossed the Pyrenees in 218 BC, and here he negotiated his safe passage through Gaul on the way to Italy.

However, in the first century AD, Pliny said this was no more than ‘a modest vestige of a hitherto great city.’

In the fourth century, Illiberis became Castrum Helenae, named after Saint Helen, the mother of the Emperor Constantine. Constans, the son of Constantine, was assassinated within the walls of the city in 350 AD.

When southern Gaul was divided in 462, Elne became one of the ‘seven cities’ of Septimania.

A bishopric was established in the city in the sixth century, and the first-known Bishop of Elne, Dominus, is mentioned in 571 in the Chronicle of John of Biclarum. The Bishop of Elne attended the Council of Toledo in 599, and the bishops of Elne called many synods.

When the Arabs crossed the Pyrenees in 719, Elne was one of the first towns they attacked. When the Counts of Roussillon achieved independence, Perpignan became the capital of the county, but Elne remaining the Episcopal city.

The Bishop of Elne called the Synod of Toulouges in 1027, which upheld the ‘Peace and Truce of God.’

A view of the rooftops of Elne from the balcony behind the cathedral (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

The present cathedral of Sainte-Eulalie-et-Sainte-Julie was built later in the 11th century and the high altar was consecrated in 1069. The Romanesque cloister was built in the 12th to 14th centuries. The cathedral and the cloister are rich examples of elaborate mediaeval ornamentation.

During the Aragonese Crusade instigated by Pope Martin IV, Elne was plundered in 1285, the cathedral was set fire and the people of the town who had taken refuge inside the cathedral were massacred by the French troops of Philip III.

During the later Middle Ages, Elne was increasingly overshadowed by the growing prosperity of nearby Perpignan. The Counts of Roussillon moved their seat from Elne to Perpignan.

The people of Elne revolted against French rule in 1472. The town was besieged yet again, was conquered and the leader of the revolt, Bernat d’Oms, was beheaded in 1474. Elne and the rest of Roussillon were returned to the Kingdom of Aragon in 1493.

Entering the cloisters at the cathedral in Elne (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Later Bishops of Elne included members of the Sforza and Borgia families, including Cardinal Ascanio Maria Sforza (1494-1495), Cardinal Caesar Borgia (1495-1498), and Cardinal Francisco Lloris y de Borja (1499-1506). After becoming Bishop of Elne in 1495, Caesar Borgia decided to raise the taxes on the clergy, resulting in an uprising in 1497. After the clergy complained to the king, these taxes were halved the following year.

The episcopal seat was transferred to Perpignan finally in 1601 under a Papal Bull issued by Pope Clement VIII.

Elne came under siege from the French again in 1641, and after the Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659 it was formally ceded to France. The mediaeval ramparts were partly destroyed in 1680 on the orders of Louis XIV.

The artist Etienne Terrus and the sculptor Aristide Maillol lived in Elne in the 20th century and the studio of Terrus, which was visited by Henri Matisse and André Derain while they were painting in Collioure, and Terrus is associated with the birth of the Fauve movement.

Elne is now agricultural town but it also attracts about 70,000 visitors each year.

The studio of Etienne Terrus in Elne was visited by Henri Matisse and André Derain (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

.