Synod has begun this morning with a lovely Eucharist organized by the Liturgy Committee.
It is good to be celebrating Corpus Christi – we have not always done so when it falls on the first day of Synod. Good too to hear the Primus sing. I always like a singing bishop.
Bishop of Moray is not here as he is at an event with the Princess Royal in Inverness.
The Primus is currently welcoming Ecumenical Guests.
A very good and thought-provoking sermon. I’ve always thought of the Ethiopian eunuch as a man of great power and authority, and of great learning and devotion too, which points me to your third interpretation. But what startles me about the story – partly because of my thinking of the eunuch as someone of great power and authority compared to Philip, and partly because of a tendency on my part to be dogma-bound – is the sheer simplicity of how Philip welcomes him into the Church.
There is no complicated initiation process. There are no doctrinal tests. The eunuch sees water, and asks Philip in a businesslike way if there’s any reason why he shouldn’t be baptised. Philip’s answer couldn’t be more direct and straightforward: “If you believe with all your heart, you may be baptised.” And the eunuch’s response couldn’t be more direct and straightforward either: no lengthy creed, no question and answer interrogation, but simply, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”
No doubt the eunuch continued his studies after his baptism, being that sort of man. But in a complicated world and (sometimes) a complicated Church I often turn to this passage for reassurance that it needn’t always be so.
Thank you, Father Kelvin. What a lovely and refreshing new insight into the identity and provenance of the ethiopian Eunuch! Philip’s acceptance and Baptism of the Eunuch reflects the teaching of Jesus in Matthew 19:122, where he speaks of 3 types of eunuch; made so by others (the Ethiopian, castrati); those who become so for the sake of the Kingdom (monks, nuns, celibate clergy);
and then, of course; those so ‘from their mother’s womb’ (intrinsic Gays).
Really profound. You’ve given me a lot to think about.
The apples are nearly ready to start falling and the students are drifting back to the university. Autumn is here. The summer is over and we are not yet saved. (As the prophet says). There is a chill in the air some days too. Autumn crocuses will soon give way to frost.
How depressing – the Park of Keir hotel complex has been given the go ahead by the local authority. Ribbon development between here and Dunblane. A lovely wooded valley squandered for large sums of money.I've campaigned against this. At the moment it looks as though we have lost. There may be some kind of appeal…
Had a meeting of chaplains this afternoon here, at the University of Stirling. Napier, Edinburgh and Dundee Anglican chaplains were there, along with a student representative from St Andrews. The universities are so different. In one place, Anglican students sit around drinking port and talking about the Holy Trinity, whereas in others little of that…
No sermon today. We used a script from an Iona Community book this morning for the ministry of the word. I asked four members of the congregation to take and read parts. I had little voice this morning. I don't know about praising the Lord with song, I certainly praised the Lord with splutters.
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