He feels shy

Lovelines
As old as the guy I am dating is, he feels too shy to have a kiss with me. He also feels shy to talk to me freely. What should I do?
Haja-Matty

*************
There is no big deal in his behaviour or shyness. All you need to do is small coaching. As a mature lady that you both are, tell him to be freed whenever he’s with you. Try as much as possible to be hilarious by adding small joke to your discussion when you are together. For further information call Lovelines. Good luck!

What can I do?

Lovelines
Some guys act as if they love me but they cannot tell me. What can I do?
Sukai

*************
It is a simple thing. If you notice that and there is anyone among them that you are attracted to, call them for a chat. Probably some of them are been afraid of you.
So you need to put words in their mouth. Still if such guys still don’t understand you, you have to take the bull by the horns. Call Lovelines for more information. Good luck!

I am suspicious of him

Lovelines
I have a boyfriend whom I love very much. But I have the feeling that he’s cheating on me.
Kate

*************
Suspicion is like a two edges dagger. If you do not stop this attitude you might either hurt him or yourself. If you surely love him and you both trust each other, there shouldn’t be room for suspect. So drag him back to the bedroom and both discuss co heartedly with each other. Ask him what you are suspecting him about and let him answer you. Then you will know if to clear off you doubting mind or not. Good luck!

My fiancé

Lovelines
I am 28; I have a fiancé who has never come to my house since I know her. She has neither called nor texted me. Anytime I ask her why she does not visit or call me, she always says no credit. Still, when I buy credit for her, it is the same story.
Manlafi

*************
I am not convinced that you will both make good lovers. How can a woman be your fiancé without visiting you and your family and be unable to spend 2 units of credit to call you at least once in a week. And you are claiming that she is your fiancée. If she is deceiving you, it is better you do not deceive yourself. As per your text it is obvious that there is nothing for you in this relation. Good luck!

 Romantic texts

Saidy
Remember I love you! But learn to ask yourself positive questions. Focus your mind on how you want things to be for yourself. Believe it and act on it act with all the faith you have in you. In togetherness we shall sail through this hurdle.
Jatou

Amie
If you seek the counsel of bad advisers they will tell you the lies you want to hear rather than the truth you need to know. Give me the chance to prove myself. I love you and I know you love me too.
Baba
Steve
Time might lead me nowhere; fate might break me into pieces. But I will always be grateful that in my life’s journey I met someone like you.
Gift

Sweet Heart
I know you are reading …value each precious moment of your life. Morning brings hope. Afternoon brings faith, evening brings love, and night brings rest. I pray you find them where you are. I love you. Time will surely tell because the sound ‘my love’ which you always call me still echoes in my mind.
(Name withheld)

Sunday Gospel and life

“Banjul was one family…”

When I saw it written by both Fr. William Cleary (“Reaping a Rich Harvest”) and Rev. Martha Frederiks (“We Toiled all Night”) that both Muslims and Christians worked on the construction of the Catholic Cathedral in Banjul,

I was a bit surprised. One elder, native of Banjul, confirmed this by word of mouth because she was one of those who went to get sand from the beach. Christians and Muslims building the house of God!

Many visitors or tourists in Rome walk along the narrow streets of the older part of the Eternal City. Surely the churches are some of the attractive sites they visit – places of history.

Among the four churches in ancient Rome is the church of St. John Lateran – the church of the Bishop of Rome.
Today we celebrate the feast of the dedication of this great church that has been built many years ago but stands the weather and visits of many tourists. It is maintained so as to preserve its original structure and look.

Our reflection today is centered on the house of God and we shall use readings from the Holy Bible: Ezekiel 47: 1-2, 8-9,12. This passage from the Old Testament tells us about fresh water flowing from the temple, giving life to trees that bear good fruit, and transforming salt water into fresh water.

Our gospel reading from John 2: 13-22 tells us how Jesus (“filled with zeal for my house…”) drove out those who misused the temple. When the people doubted who he was and asked for a sign to justify his seemingly crude actions he said, “destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.” How can one man rebuild a temple in three days which many people have taken forty-six years to build? Jesus referred to himself.
In the second reading St. Paul tells us that God dwells in each and every human being (I Corinthians 3: 9-11, 16-17) –

“Your body is the temple of God.” Temples and holy places are treated with special respect because it is there that God meets with people. It is a place of worship and a holy place. If we have become the holy place of God, then we should be holy people.

The former Bishop of Banjul, Rt. Rev. Michael J Cleary, was known for building many churches during his term of office. At the opening of these churches Cleary often told the people that the church building is founded on rock (i.e. Jesus) and made of bricks (each person) and bound together with mortar (love).

“This is your church, (community) look after it.” Yes, every building must be maintained or else it will sooner than later fall.

Maintenance of the Christian Community is done when we have love for one another, when we respect the dignity of our human person because we are created in the image of God. Prayer and regular worship (the mass) add up to that which maintains a good Christian Community.

Each individual has a noble duty to keep the Christian Community together. We can do this by striving daily to be holy, to love people, to seek for peace, to radiate the joy of being a Christian, etc. Hence, each can ask oneself what kind of a brick one is in the edifice of God.

We come back to the old Banjul family. It comprised Christians and Muslims, Wollofs, Akus, Mulattoes, Manjagoes, Jolas, Mandinkas, etc. People who are rich and poor… All of these were one family such that they can build a place of worship of God.

 The Banjul of old can be revived when people of today are aware of what old Banjul life was like. Indeed everyone can participate in creating and ensuring a peaceful community, a society where justice prevails, a place where love abounds, a people that worship the only God. Am I helping to build and maintain that one family of ‘Old Banjul?’

The Bible Challenge Test your knowledge of the Bible

Topic: Easter

1.  As Jesus rode into Jerusalem, what did He say would cry out if His disciples didn't?
  * the stones
  * the angels
  * the earth
 *  the animals

2.  What was the man carrying whom Peter and John followed to prepare the upper room for Passover?
 *  a bushel of wheat
  * a young lamb
  * a pitcher of water
 *  a loaf of bread

3. What was the sign that Jesus gave Peter in stating that he would deny Him?
  * the sun would rise
  * a rooster would crow twice
  * someone would build a fire
  darkness would cover the land

4.  Which of these things did NOT happen at the Lord's Supper?
  * The disciples sang a hymn
  * Jesus washed the disciples'   feet
  * Judas left to betray Jesus
  * Jesus wept bitterly

5.  Which of these people did NOT question Jesus after He was arrested?
 * Caiaphas
  * Pontius Pilate
  * Herod
  * Caesar

6.  In the garden, who cut off the ear of the high priest's servant?
  * John
  * Judas
   * Peter
  *  Bible doesn't say

7.  Which of these things did NOT happen when Jesus died?
  the veil of the temple was torn in two
  * an earthquake
  * many saints were raised    from the dead
 *  the moon turned red

8. What happened when a soldier pierced Jesus' crucified body?
  * blood flowed out
  * water flowed out
 *  blood and water flowed out
   nothing flowed out

9.  What were the soldiers told to say regarding the missing body of Jesus?
 *  His body fell into a crevice   created by the earthquake
  * His mother moved the body   to a different tomb
 *  His disciples stole the body   at night
 * He wasn't really dead - just   unconscious

10. On what day of the week was Jesus first seen after His resurrection?
  * Friday
 *  Saturday
 *  Sunday
• Monday

Answers to Bible Challenges

1.  the stones

2.  a pitcher of water

3.  a rooster would crow twice

4.  Jesus wept bitterly

5.  Caesar

6.  Peter

7.  the moon turned red

8.  blood and water flowed out

9.  His disciples stole the body at night

10.  Sunday

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with your entire mind." This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: "You shall love your neighbour as yourself." On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets" (Matthew 22:37-40).

Since two Sundays ago our gospel reading has presented us with people trying to trap Jesus by posing questions to him.

We saw it last week in our gospel reading when Jesus was asked about paying taxes to Caesar. Jesus answered, "Give back to Caesar's what is Caesar's," and then went on to add "and to God what is God’s." Here the emphasis of Jesus is not on Caesar’s rights, which are apparently obvious, but on God’s rights, which they were ignoring. In the same way, the emphasis on today’s question about the greatest commandment is not on the obvious love of God but on the love of neighbour, which they were trampling upon.

Jesus is here reacting against a one-dimensional understanding of love. The scribes and the teachers of the law were so concerned with their relationship with God but neglected their relationship with people. They are so conscious about the love of God. Why then are they so insensitive when it comes to love of neighbour? Holy Scripture teaches us that you cannot say you love God when you do not love those that you see everyday.

For Jesus, true love must express itself in three dimensions. These three dimensions are (a) love of God, (b) love of neighbour, and (c) love of oneself. The first two are positively commanded; the last one is not commanded but presumed to be the basis of all loving. The commandment to love your neighbour as yourself presumes that you love yourself. There is no doubt that love begins from oneself. You must love yourself first in order to see the beauty of love.

The error of the Pharisees is still here with us. There are still many Christians who try to separate love of fellow human beings from love of God. Their commitment to faith does not include commitment to human rights and to justice and peace issues.

We will do well to heed the message of Jesus in today's gospel: that true love of God and true love of neighbour are two sides of the same coin. Any attempt to separate them is a falsification of the message of Christ.

"Those who say, ‘I love God,’ and hate their brothers or sisters, are liars; for those who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen" (1 John 4:20).

To my brothers and sisters, I say wake up from your slumber and open your eyes; shine your eyes very well and take a u-turn for a better Gambia.

I find it very disturbing taking into consideration the change of life style and attitude adopted by my Gambian brothers and sisters in the tourist industry.  I therefore appeal to the authorities to be vigilant and strong in their responsibility in disciplining and inculcating good moral conduct amongst youngsters in the industry.

Of course, our relentless efforts in eradicating poverty in the country are well noted. It is obvious that one has to go to areas where you can find your "cheese". This is clearly shown everywhere in the country, especially around the Senegambia area.  Many of these boys end up erecting wonderfully solid houses through their relationships with these tourists ("Toubabs"). Others are taking hundreds of steps ahead by marrying and bringing their partners to embrace their faith, in most cases Islamic.

This is good and remarkable.
However, on the other hand, I think we tend to compromise and let go of a lot in return for just a little. This brings up the question still circulating in my brain: is a tourist ready to help only by disregarding the feelings of the person they intend to help?  This is a fundamental problem facing our society today.

Hey brothers, let us be strong and have faith. No one can give you which is not destined for you. No one can take you to Europe if you are destined to remain in Africa. After all, someone’s Africa could be far better than another one’s Europe. Be nice to them though; exercise patience and honesty towards them; interact with them positively as fellow beings, but never as superior or inferior beings. Never entertain any inhuman activities, like lesbianism, gayism, hard drug consumption, alcoholism, and street romancing almost naked, just to name a few unacceptable practices common within the tourist industry these days.

For God’s sake, my brothers and sisters, we are all either good Muslims or good Christians; therefore we should demonstrate and practice the qualities of perfect Muslims and Christians.

The main factor responsible for Africa’s underdevelopment is our show of weakness. An African man will smile widely at every word uttered by another man.
We think they are right in everything they say or do.  What is it all about?  This culture of NODDING without DOUBTING to everything said to us must stop now! Let us start making a move now, before it is too late. "IT IS BETTER TO BE SAFE THAN TO BE LATE". This is how it should be if others are to treat us with care and respect as they do among themselves.

The two Saints are a pillar to the Catholic faith as both were indeed called to serve the church. One of either of them supported the other as Jesus did not choose His apostles from the righteous to show how God can draw straight line on crooked paths. Paul converted a lot to Christianity. Subsequently Peter was given the Keys to build Christ’s Church on a strong foundation, thus his name the Rock. He later became the first Pope in AD 67. From his time to now about 264 Popes have come after him. These great men of faith are revered in the Catholic Church for their faith and are celebrated at the end of every June.

St. Peter’s Parish Lamin headed by Rev. Fr. Antoine Sambou celebrated in a grand style to keep their parish name high. Fr. Antoine Sambou says. “The charism of Saints Peter and Paul was; Peter was a leader and Paul as an evangelizer. After the whole hard fight, Peter acknowledged that he had fought a good fight. He was also trying to encourage Timothy and others and that every body has a responsibility in the world not to be the best but doing your bit. Peter denied Jesus many times but was still chosen why did He do that?”  Fr. Antoine Sambou said man makes mistakes but repentance was the key word. “Whenever we make mistakes God forgives,” Fr. Antoine Sambou said.  He reiterated that Paul went around arresting Christians and Jesus told him he was on the right road but on the wrong direction. “We should learn from their examples,” he said.

The parish priest acknowledged that the feast day was celebrated by his parishioners and a few people from other parishes, because it coincided with St. Anthony celebrating their feast day, Cathedral doing their confirmation and St. Peter and Paul Society celebrating their day as well. “This brought the poor attendance of visitors to enjoy with us. The day ended with the usual style of sales and music for the rest of the day.

The school at Lamin bears the name and they too under Fr. Bruno Toupan rejoiced and prayed for their school on that day. Meanwhile, others who bear the name Simon Peter or Paul joined in to celebrate on such occasion in the Diocese of Banjul and beyond. The Seminary in Freetown named after St. Paul, trains seminarians for the Gambia and Sierra Leone and closed on that day after celebrations on their campus. The Gambian seminarians would be seen soon on the roads of The Gambia and in their homes and later parishes on their pastoral assignments.

This was not only celebrated by parishes with the name, but by all parishes according to the Canon Law. It is a Solemnity, so should be treated as such.

At the Divine Mercy Catholic Church, it was celebrated and Fr. Peter Adu was pleased to talk about Saints Peter and Paul in detail. He said God works with those that need change as in the case of the two powerful saints, Peter and Paul. They too he said could not believe that God could call them to change other people but God shows that He is capable of drawing straight line in crooked roads. “Jesus had called a lot with severe image problem the fact remains that God does not have favourites. Matthew for example was a sinner in the eyes of the people, he was feared for his actions but Jesus called him and made him into an apostle and a saint for that matter. Jesus did not go on calling the righteous but He made those he called righteous. The two saints could not believe their achievements after all but they thanked God for remaining in God’s vineyard till death,” he said. He asked other Christians to emulate the example of these two great men of their church. He prayed for those who bear the name Peter or Paul or Simon Peter, which he said was common in the country.

St. Anthony’s Catholic Church at Kololi had pushed their own feast of St. Anthony of Padua to the same Sunday as St. Peter and Paul. This brought thousands of visitors and well wishers although they were hampered also by the many celebrations at the same time. The church compound contained lots of cars with all church seats occupied to the brim. Fr. David Jimoh Jarju, the Parish priest was filled with joy. He spoke on the good works of St. Anthony the Miracle worker and urged his parishioners to be fervent in prayer as their patron saint was.

(Part 2)

Third, the dilemma of an Ummah living in a global village tightly framed in confused, uncertain and paranoid postmodern epistemology and interacting as a mere object with a might that is often militant and aggressive but worse still a might that enjoys eloquence abilities that always turn the victim to look like the criminal and the criminal to look like the victim

Fourth, and the worst factor that makes the theme difficult is the state of Muslim internal crisis of the loss of adab (discipline) amongst themselves a situation that has already produced a chronic state of psychological emotionalism, intellectual literalism and social over reactionism generated through ages of injustices inflicted upon the Muslim populace both externally and internally mostly by the Muslim governments themselves.

In our crises, the blame should be first laid on the Muslims themselves. There has always been a form of Islamic Machiavellian politics led by Muslim totalitarian governments who to rest in power would create tribal and religious tensions and indoctrinate their peoples into a high degree of emotionalism. Such high degree of emotionalism has further been exploited by the enemies of Islam through provocative attitudes seen, for example, in Salman Rushdi’s Satanic Verses and the caricaturing of our Prophet (pbuh) to purposely consolidate in the public sub-conscience the wrong messages about Islam and its contribution to the world peace and prosperity.

In short, in this global village, where a sneeze in one corner is directly felt in the other, engulfed in rejection of spiritualities with a zeal to materialistic attraction, confused by the paradigm of quantum uncertainty, ruled by the law of the might, and threatened with the possibility of a nuclear conflict, what is the role of Islam and Muslims in spreading peace and making the world a better place to live in?

This paper tests the hypothesis that Islam is peace and that Islam and its followers have contributed in the past and present in promoting the culture of peace and that they can play a better peace role in the 21stcentury. It attempts to falsify the theory of Islamic intolerance, an image wrongly channeled to the world sub-conscience by a cunning minority through a brutal media in order to perpetuate hatred against Islam. The paper gives some theoretical as well as practical examples of the Islamic peaceful approach and suggests mechanisms for future contribution to the world peace in a globalized world.

Fourth, and the worst factor that makes the theme difficult is the state of Muslim internal crisis of the loss of adab (discipline) amongst themselves a situation that has already produced a chronic state of psychological emotionalism, intellectual literalism and social over reactionism generated through ages of injustices inflicted upon the Muslim populace both externally and internally mostly by the Muslim governments themselves.

In our crises, the blame should be first laid on the Muslims themselves. There has always been a form of Islamic Machiavellian politics led by Muslim totalitarian governments who to rest in power would create tribal and religious tensions and indoctrinate their peoples into a high degree of emotionalism. Such high degree of emotionalism has further been exploited by the enemies of Islam through provocative attitudes seen, for example, in Salman Rushdi’s Satanic Verses and the caricaturing of our Prophet (pbuh) to purposely consolidate in the public sub-conscience the wrong messages about Islam and its contribution to the world peace and prosperity.

In short, in this global village, where a sneeze in one corner is directly felt in the other, engulfed in rejection of spiritualities with a zeal to materialistic attraction, confused by the paradigm of quantum uncertainty, ruled by the law of the might, and threatened with the possibility of a nuclear conflict, what is the role of Islam and Muslims in spreading peace and making the world a better place to live in?

This paper tests the hypothesis that Islam is peace and that Islam and its followers have contributed in the past and present in promoting the culture of peace and that they can play a better peace role in the 21stcentury. It attempts to falsify the theory of Islamic intolerance, an image wrongly channeled to the world sub-conscience by a cunning minority through a brutal media in order to perpetuate hatred against Islam. The paper gives some theoretical as well as practical examples of the Islamic peaceful approach and suggests mechanisms for future contribution to the world peace in a globalized world.

 Roman Catholic Mission

1. I often find that when we come to celebrate this greatest solemnity of the mystery of Christ’s life, that is, His resurrection from the dead, that it doesn’t seem to touch me or to have the kind of impact that I would like it to have on my faith. There can be various reasons for this: - The many ceremonies of Holy Week beginning with Palm Sunday can be long and tiring. - These ceremonies take us through the various stages leading up to the passion and death of Jesus. In this way, we are confronted by the very raw and concrete sufferings of Jesus - at all levels of his human nature. These are things with which we can identify so easily. - If we have not been as faithful to our Lenten calling to repent and believe in the Gospel as we had promised, then that too can prevent us from experiencing the new life of the Risen Lord in which we believe. - When we come to celebrate his Resurrection from the dead, how do we focus on this unique event in human history? Nobody was there to see what actually happened on that first Easter Sunday morning. - The four Evangelists give us various accounts of the empty tomb and the ways in which the Risen Lord appeared to his disciples over a period of forty days until He ascended into Heaven. And from these stories, we can also learn about how they came to terms with His presence among them in His glorified body. This, I think, can help us to grow in our faith in the Resurrection of our Lord from the dead.

2. Many film Directors have produced the story of Jesus of Nazareth. One of them in particular, has given us a special insight into the mystery of His Resurrection. The story begins with a scene in which we are looking at the disciples in the ‘Upper Room’ in Jerusalem - the very place where Jesus shared with them the Last Supper. In doing so, He also celebrated the Sacrament of the New Covenant, the giving of his own body and blood ‘for you and for all’. They are still there early on the Sunday morning. The Video camera moves silently around the faces of the disciples - fear, guilt and dejection are evident. The doors are locked tightly. There is no sound until suddenly there is a knock on the door. It is clear that they are terrified - and understandably so. Have the authorities come now to arrest them? Finally, one of them opens the door slowly...It is Mary Magdalen. She tells them the news: ‘They have taken His body away, and we don’t know where they have put him’. There is no discussion - just signs of disbelief on their faces. Presumably, all kinds of thoughts have crossed their minds. But there is little indication that any might be thinking that Jesus has risen from the dead. The film Director leaves that to the audience - to us! Mary Magdalen then leaves the room - quietly. (A little later, Peter and John run to the tomb to verify the message of Mary Magdalen. They found everything exactly as Mary had reported. John believed, but said nothing. Peter saw - but still could not take that step to belief).

3. When Peter and John get back to the Upper. Room, the others are expecting some statement. But the silence continues....and the Video camera moves slowly to Peter. He is clutching a wooden support from floor to ceiling. He appears to be staring into space - totally unaware of the presence of the others in the room. John is looking at him intently, willing Peter to say something. Now John can no longer restrain himself and speaks directly to Peter: Do you believe? Then Peter slowly nods his head up and down. John goes further and says: Why? Finally,  Peter declares: ‘Because the Master said so’.

This Video portrayal of the disciples coming to believe in the Resurrection of Jesus from the dead is simply one interpretation of the Gospel stories. It seems to me to be quite faithful to them; and it seems to be the result of much study and reflection. Most of all, it shows us that coming to a deep faith in the Risen Lord is not something that is given to all at the same time. Likewise, it is not something given at once. ‘No one can come to me unless the Father draws him’. Faith is a gift. When Mary Magdalen discovered the empty tomb, her first reaction was that the body of Jesus had been stolen. Then there is the story that when she ran to tell the disciples, she ran into a man whom she presumed was the gardener of the cemetery. It was only when Jesus called her by name,  that she fell on her knees and believed. When John and Peter ran to the tomb, ‘John saw and believed’. Peter saw the same evidence in the empty tomb, but failed at that moment to put two and two together. It was only when he got back to the Upper Room with John, and when confronted by John’s impatient questions, that he came to believe in his own way: ‘Because the Master said so’. Peter had to make the ‘bridge’ between his lived experiences with Jesus of Nazareth and the Word that Jesus had spoken so insistently’ (The Son of Man will suffer, die and rise -from the dead on the third day). And so it is that each of us grows in our faith in the Risen Lord in his own way and in his own time. This is an ongoing process as we try to make sense of our own lives in the light of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. Peter was slower to believe than John. Was this due to Peter’s failure to own up to the fact that he was indeed a disciple of Jesus when confronted even by a servant girl in the courtyard of the praetorium and then ran away altogether? Whereas John followed the Master right up to Calvary? And still, Jesus confirmed Peter in the role of leadership as promised: ‘Peter, I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail; and once you have been converted, you must then confirm your brothers and sisters in the faith’.

The Anglican Mission

Dear Reader,

In the words of St. Peter, the apostle of Jesus Christ,

In the words of St. Peter, the apostle of Jesus Christ,

In the words of St. Peter, the apostle of Jesus Christ,

In the words of St. Peter, the apostle of Jesus Christ,

In the words of St. Peter, the apostle of Jesus Christ,

In the words of St. Peter, the apostle of Jesus Christ,

“Praise be to God … who in his great mercy gave us new birth into a living hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead!”

(1 Peter 1: 3)

At this time we are celebrating the Feast of the Resurrection, or Easter.  Incidentally, we have not had Easter this early for Ninety five (95) years and the next time we are going to have Easter this early will be in Two Hundred and Twenty (220) years’ time – 2228! Be that as it may, early or late, Easter continues to be celebrated joyously annually. This celebration recalls happenings that are at the heart of the Christian Faith – the time when Jesus rose from the dead.  After the events of darkness and death on Good Friday, the light and life of Easter is truly something to celebrate.  When we consider “life” in general, we tend to think of our own personal lives, the lives of our loved ones and the life of the world around us.  Life and hope seem to go together.  As the saying goes – “where there is life, there is hope”.

In a world that seems to have much darkness in it, we may hear people question - where is this hope?  We hear from our newspapers, radios and televisions that many people in our world do not have sufficient food to live on – let alone a nourishing diet to nurture body, mind and spirit.  We hear of global warming and environmental degradation.  What future do we have?  I would like to present the case for hope; and further to state that, under God, the cause for hope can be in our hands.

First and foremost, God, revealed in the form of man (Jesus), opted for life.  In order to conquer sin Jesus was prepared to undergo the most appalling pain – of body, mind and spirit.  He was prepared to die – to die the death of a criminal – for us.  Whatever we may suffer here on earth, we can be sure that God understands this, through His own experience, and is alongside us in our pain.  The good news and hope we have to share is to be found in the events of the third day from Good Friday.  On this day Jesus overcame death and rose from the dead.  This is what we celebrate today – and what greater evidence can we have in the cause for “hope”.  This is what we celebrate today – the resurrection to life of Christ Jesus.  In conquering death, Jesus obtained for us the chance of eternal life – in this world and in the world to come.  This is the backbone of the Christian Faith.

Although God, in Christ, has won the war against sin and death, we too can participate with God in creating a better world to live in.  A large proportion of the world’s problems are due to the sin of greed and pride in humankind.  So, it is logical to deduce that we can be part of the solution. 

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth and all that is in it.  At that time, “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good” (Genesis 1: 31).  The creation of man and woman was the pinnacle of God’s creation, and for a while all continued well.  However, when man and woman sought equality with God the downward spiral began.  Adam and Eve represent God’s creation of humankind in the beginning – a creation that was perfect, but which fell through sin.  We are “re-created” through Jesus Christ, who, in the words of St. Paul, “did not think to snatch at equality with God” (Philippians 2: 7).  The way we live our lives, under God, determines whether and how we continue to be re-created or re-generated, or whether we degenerate.  Our actions can be “life giving” or “death dealing”.  Our actions can cause us to turn to God, or they can cause us to turn away from God.  God is the great life giver.  Jesus said, “I have come that man may have life, and may have it in all its fullness” (John 10: 10).

We have turned away from God and God’s ways in the way we have misused our planet.  We have lost our reverence for God’s perfect creation.  As we relate more and more to a material world, we lose our spiritual connection with the earth and with God.  Our ancestors, and probably even our older generation today, maintained a kinship with the land.  We are in danger of losing this – to our own detriment.  The satisfaction we can attain through our connectedness with the land and our environment can so easily be lost, but is inevitably replaced by something else.  In order to satisfy our deeper longings, we are in danger of developing other “addictions”.  These would most drastically be found in alcohol or drugs, but can also be found in other forms of materialism.  As we strive to satisfy our inner longings by artificial means, we can so easily move away from God.  We would also find that our relationships with our neighbours will suffer.  The more we are caused to look in on ourselves; we more and more fail to notice the need in the person next to us.  If we believe that our neighbour is made in the image of God, to look at them is to look at God, and to serve both.  All major Faiths in our world advocate concern for our neighbour.  Where have we gone wrong?

Let us return to the fundamental teaching of our Faith – to love God and our neighbour.  Let us return to the basic moral teachings of our Faith, which is based on respect for God and respect for our neighbour.  Let us re-own the principle of the “bantaba”, where all views can be heard, and where we can maintain the art of gracious disagreement when opinions vary.  Let us seek the truth and true justice for all.  When one of our brothers or sisters falls from grace, may there still be the due process of justice, but with mercy.  In the words of the prophet Micah,  “And what does the Lord require of you?  To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”  (Micah: 6: 8)

What, then, is our cause for hope?  It is our knowledge of a loving God who would take the form of a man and die for us, but then rise to new life.  It is our knowledge that, by this intervention by God, sin and death have been overcome.  It is our knowledge that, by God’s grace, we can be empowered to work with God for a better world of justice and peace.  This truly is good news.

It is my ardent prayer that God’s gifts of peace with justice may come to our world and our lives.  May you and yours know God’s peace this Eastertide, and always.

Happy Easter! 

Your Friend and Bishop,

+Tilewa