The Gospel seems to be scarring at times!
We would probably do our best to strive for perfection, but most of us know that it is impossible.
Love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you.
When these words were spoken for the first time, it was into a world with much animosity, many wars. It was a world as we know it - a place where the mighty try to trade nations, cultures and people. A place where one nation triesto scare another nation and threaten nations to submit themselves. The world is sometimes a place of dangerous fights of those who do not care about righteousness.
However, sometimes I look at history and think that there are good reasons to be optimistic.
Humanity learned a lot from the 20th century where terrible bloody wars were fought. We learned something from Auschwitz, from Gulag, from Nagasaki and Hiroshima. We learned something about authoritarian societies. We established international courts. We have realized that transparency is important if we want durable solutions.
First and foremost, we learned that hate and persecutions only create more hate, and the realm of chaos and darkness will not surrender, but develop uncertainty and fear, - and revenge will be the power of terror.
Here my optimism stops, and I must listen to the Gospel of birth, of Christmas, and the Gospel of resurrection. Resurrection is not a happy ending, but the never-ending story of God speaking in the darkness of the world.
Optimism stops - and we reach out for hope. Optimism comes from within our common knowledge. Hope comes from Outside. Hope is Easter and Christmas reenacted. We are being taken into the sphere of a new creation. Christ speaks to us in the hope that we may become human. He offers us the new beginning when darkness becomes light, when death becomes life. He is striving for the transformation of our lives, for transformation of society and of concord between nations. History cannot be wiped out, but it can be transformed.
This year we are celebrating that it is 1200 years since Ansgarius, Apostle of the Nordic countries, came to the high North. He was striving his whole life to witness about Christ.
Poor man, our forefathers gave him a tough time. He really had to suffer a lot of hardship and had to begin from scratch a few times.
He did not give up - neither did he give in to the Vikings. He hoped for a renaissance, or call it a reformation, or call it a transformation of our ancestors.
May we take up the hope for this reformation, this renaissance which is being expressed through Christians who are living with the benedictions as a guideline in life, in culture, in politics and remembering that blessed are the righteous, the mourning, the meek, the merciful, the peacemakers and the pure of heart.
Blessed are those who try to transform society into a listening community.
Ansgarius taught us that life begins when we look at Jesus Christ and believe that in him our life begins afresh day by day, because he is, and always will be, God with us! (Rowan Williams).
We would probably do our best to strive for perfection, but most of us know that it is impossible.
Love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you.
When these words were spoken for the first time, it was into a world with much animosity, many wars. It was a world as we know it - a place where the mighty try to trade nations, cultures and people. A place where one nation triesto scare another nation and threaten nations to submit themselves. The world is sometimes a place of dangerous fights of those who do not care about righteousness.
However, sometimes I look at history and think that there are good reasons to be optimistic.
Humanity learned a lot from the 20th century where terrible bloody wars were fought. We learned something from Auschwitz, from Gulag, from Nagasaki and Hiroshima. We learned something about authoritarian societies. We established international courts. We have realized that transparency is important if we want durable solutions.
First and foremost, we learned that hate and persecutions only create more hate, and the realm of chaos and darkness will not surrender, but develop uncertainty and fear, - and revenge will be the power of terror.
Here my optimism stops, and I must listen to the Gospel of birth, of Christmas, and the Gospel of resurrection. Resurrection is not a happy ending, but the never-ending story of God speaking in the darkness of the world.
Optimism stops - and we reach out for hope. Optimism comes from within our common knowledge. Hope comes from Outside. Hope is Easter and Christmas reenacted. We are being taken into the sphere of a new creation. Christ speaks to us in the hope that we may become human. He offers us the new beginning when darkness becomes light, when death becomes life. He is striving for the transformation of our lives, for transformation of society and of concord between nations. History cannot be wiped out, but it can be transformed.
This year we are celebrating that it is 1200 years since Ansgarius, Apostle of the Nordic countries, came to the high North. He was striving his whole life to witness about Christ.
Poor man, our forefathers gave him a tough time. He really had to suffer a lot of hardship and had to begin from scratch a few times.
He did not give up - neither did he give in to the Vikings. He hoped for a renaissance, or call it a reformation, or call it a transformation of our ancestors.
May we take up the hope for this reformation, this renaissance which is being expressed through Christians who are living with the benedictions as a guideline in life, in culture, in politics and remembering that blessed are the righteous, the mourning, the meek, the merciful, the peacemakers and the pure of heart.
Blessed are those who try to transform society into a listening community.
Ansgarius taught us that life begins when we look at Jesus Christ and believe that in him our life begins afresh day by day, because he is, and always will be, God with us! (Rowan Williams).