The Vicar Writes
June 2008
The Church's Foundation
Dear Friends,
The Church's Foundation
This is the month of the foundation in the programme of our church's rebuilding. Needless to say, we have seen dramatic developments over the past few weeks. It seems a long time since the final service in the old church. The sermon that I preached on that occasion, along with the prayer of dedication that we used for the plans, is printed below.
Since the beginning of May, we have seen a wonderful effort in removing all those parts of the building and its contents that we want to preserve. The move out could not have gone more smoothly, thanks in good measure to Tom Kent's detailed co-ordination. The move into the Millennium Centre for worship has gone equally well. Some are even admitting to enjoying it! The relative informality is refreshing. Of course, by December the novelty may have worn off!
After 'the move' began the most disturbing part of the whole process, the dismantling of the old building. Those who witnessed that on Friday 16 will probably never forget it. This includes all the children who were arriving for the Pre-School Group at the time. Now begins the rebuild.
June will see the laying of the concrete raft foundation and the base for the steel frame. Pray for fine weather and good progress! Both of these permitting, the Bishop of Durham will lay the foundation stone on the afternoon of Wednesday, 2 July. That will be another memorable day. There are a few people who can remember the laying of the original four cornerstones in 1937. Those stones will be incorporated into the new building as a symbol of continuity.
A Biblical Precedent
The foundation of a building is so important, isn't it? If that is not right, the whole structure can be in jeopardy. Thankfully the plans provide for a robust base to support the new church. That makes both structural and biblical sense. When we read about the building of Solomon's temple, we are reminded of the significance of foundations. We should, however, be grateful that the same resources are not required for the new All Saints'. Just read these verses from 1 Kings 5:13ff:
King Solomon raised a forced levy from the whole of Israel amounting to thirty thousand men. He sent them to Lebanon in monthly relays of ten thousand, so that the men spent one month in Lebanon and two at home; Adoniram was superintendent of the levy. Solomon had also seventy thousand hauliers and eighty thousand quarrymen, apart from the three hundred foremen in charge of the work who superintended the labourers. By the king's orders they quarried huge, costly blocks for laying the foundation of the Lord's house in hewn stone. The builders supplied by Solomon and Hiram, together with the Gebalites, shaped the blocks and prepared both timber and stone for the building of the house.
You see, if something is worth doing, it is worth doing well. This is especially so if it is to the glory of God. It is important to remember that as we see the new All Saints' being built, this is not just a more secure shelter from the elements for those who gather to worship. It is a building that speaks of God and of faith in God to our community. It is a precious thing that results from costly resources being dedicated to sacred use: an act both of faith and worship. Thankfully, however, we are not planning on employing tens of thousands of craftsmen and labourers. After all, where would they park?
The Generations of the Faithful
Looking at the empty church site yesterday, I found myself thinking about those who worked on that land over seventy years ago to put the first building there. Then it was a field surrounded by other empty fields save a few marked-out building plots. The chapel at Sir E.D. Walker Homes was the neighbouring building. The idea for All Saints' church was that of faithful people who wanted to share the faith with a growing part of the town. The same could be said for the Church of the Salutation that is part of our common heritage. Everything that has happened here since has been possible because of the foundation of faith, vision and commitment provided by these church builders. One then begins to imagine who the people might have been in earlier generations who laid the foundations on which they were established. Quickly one appreciates the difference made by successive generations of parents who passed on the faith to children. There were those who showed confidence in God's providence, perhaps at times of uncertainty. In this town we will forever be indebted to Bishop Hugh de Puiset, for example, who built St. Cuthbert's. In this region we still benefit from a foundation of faithfulness and mission laid down by Aidan and Cuthbert. They were indebted to Columba, and so it goes back to the apostles themselves. In every generation people have benefited from the foundations laid by a previous generation. These are as much the foundations of our new church building as are the concrete and the steel that are being put in place today.
The Church's One Foundation
As a famous hymn reminds us, all of these subsequent tiers stand on the one true foundation: Jesus Christ our Lord. Another one, we chose it as the first for our wedding (all those years ago!), suggests a more comprehensive contribution by Christ:
Christ is made the sure foundation,
Christ the head and corner-stone,
Chosen of the Lord and precious,
Binding all the church in one...
St. Paul did vary his civil-engineering metaphors, it is true. In Ephesians 2:20 he says to that primitive church,
You are built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the corner-stone. In him the whole building is bonded together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built with all the others into a spiritual dwelling for God.
We might want to return to that as we see steelwork and brickwork being erected. Remaining in the foundations, however, St. Paul can still inspire. To the Corinthians he wrote,
According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building on it. Each builder must choose with care how to build on it. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one that has been laid; that foundation is Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 3:10-11)
Here, ultimately is the foundation of our new church. This foundation is more enduring than any building material can ever be. Any church community that would be founded on anything else is at a disadvantage; missing both the point and the blessings. This is to build on sand rather than rock. As we see our new parish church rise up, so we pray to be built up as a Christian community on the foundation that is Christ. In him we put our trust; to him we bring our concerns and prayers; with him we find our unity; on him we feed spiritually; and his risen life we seek to show to the world.
With my very best wishes.
John