Funeral Sermon for Bob Leeson

Written and preached by
Pastor Dennis Hendricksen and Pastor Lynn Robertson

Intro:

Today the sermon for this funeral will be done a little differently, Pastor Lynn Robertson and myself will share some thoughts with you from different perspectives.  Both Pastor Lynn and myself have been serving in a pastoral team with Bob Leeson – Lynn for over 5 years, and myself for close to 28 years.

Bob and I have shared much over the years, but that didn’t mean we always appreciated or enjoyed the same things.  In many ways we were quite different from each other, but one thing we had in common was a deep appreciation and love for the writings of British author C.S. Lewis.  For my portions of this message I will recount a scene from one of the books in the Chronicles of Narnia, and then make a few comments about Bob’s faith, life and ministry related to that story.

For those not familiar with the 7 books that make up the Chronicles of Narnia, Lewis wrote them imagining what Christ might be like in a different universe.  The great lion Aslan, who shows up in every Narnia story, is the Christ figure of Narnia.  Bob was such a fan of Aslan, and what Aslan represented, that he had an image of the great lion tattooed on his arm. It was a permanent mark of faith.

Dennis – Segment 1

I begin with a scene from The Magician’s Nephew.  I have edited these readings to include only the necessary material.  In this first scene Aslan the great lion brings Narnia into existence in a most creative manner:

In the darkness something was happening at last. A voice had begun to sing… Its lower notes were deep enough to be the voice of the earth herself…

Far away, and down near the horizon, the sky began to turn grey. A light wind, very fresh, began to stir. The sky, in that one place, grew slowly and steadily paler. You could see shapes of hills standing up dark against it. All the time the Voice went on signing…

The earth was of many colours: they were fresh, hot, and vivid. They made you feel excited; until you saw the Singer himself, and then you forgot everything else. It was a Lion. Huge, shaggy, and bright, it stood facing the risen sun. Its mouth was wide open in song…

The Lion was pacing to and fro about that empty land and singing his new song. It was softer and more lilting than the song by which he had called up the stars and the sun; a gentle, rippling music. And as he walked and sang the valley grew green with grass. It spread out from the Lion like a pool…

With an unspeakable thrill, [Polly] felt quite certain that all the things were coming (as she said) ‘out of the Lion’s head’. When you listened to his song you heard the things he was making up: when you looked round you, you saw them.

Bob Leeson loved two things woven together in this scene – creation and music.  Bob experienced the presence of God in the beauty and power of nature.  Often he would drive out to the Qu’appelle Valley, park his vehicle and simply soak in the peace and wonder of creation – sitting in this natural setting he would write letters to God – his most meaningful form of prayer.

Bob also sensed the presence of God in music, and he understood the healing and transformative power of music.  His guitar was an important tool in his ministry – whether he was singing at a Senior’s Care Home, or in a hospital room, or at a funeral, or with Prairie Spirit during a Country Gospel Service – Bob knew the power of music to change things for the better, to bring consolation or healing, or to be a prayer for those who were having trouble finding the right words to express their thoughts and feelings.Like Martin Luther, Bob saw both creation and music as great gifts from God, and he sought to be a good steward of these gifts, in both his life and his ministry.

 

Lynn – Segment 1

The scripture reading from Psalm 40 also speaks of a song, a song of praise to God for God’s help. Bob experienced God’s help in many ways in his life and through his many families: his clergy family, his church family at Christ Lutheran, his AA group, his family at the Christian Motorcyclist’s Association, and of course through his immediate family.

In Bob’s own words that he wrote down for his funeral notes he refers to each of these families, in turn. Bob experienced God’s help, as reflected through Psalm 40, through the people he describes as the important and formative clergy in his life who he named as: Bill Nelson, Marvin Gertz, Ralph Odegaard, Wally Kurtz, and Orville Kaminski. Bob also experienced God’s help through the people of Christ Lutheran who he describes as his second family who were very caring during his illness, as well as  Prairie Spirit, a family within the church family. In addition, Bob wrote, “A.A. gave me a new life – God worked through the program to rebuild my life. Doc Woolsey was a great sponsor and the Lumsden Valley AA Group made a life with some serenity possible.” He also mentioned how much his biker friends meant to him who were too numerous to name.

Bob’s own immediate family was, of course, also a tremendous help and support, particularly in the last weeks of his life.  During one of my visits to Bob and his family while he was in hospital, I shared with the family how touched I was by how generously they shared their dad with everyone who walked in that hospital room, stepping aside so visitors could sit beside Bob and even offering to leave the room if anyone wanted time alone with Bob. You shared you dad (and Sandy, your husband) so generously with everyone in the last days of his life and you obviously must have shared him equally as generously your whole lives to have enabled him to spend so much time ministering to so many others. It is partly through your own love and generosity that Bob was able to touch so many lives, do so much for so many, and to be there so often for others during the times of crisis in their lives.
 

Dennis - Segment 2

The most loved book in the Narnia series is The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.  The dramatic final chapters tell of Aslan’s deal with the White Witch, allowing for the traitor Edmund to be freed from the White Witch.  Aslan ends up bound, tortured and killed on a great stone table, a terrifying event witnessed by two sisters – Lucy and Susan.

‘I’m so cold,’ said Lucy.

‘So am I,’ said Susan. ‘Let’s walk about a bit.’

They walked to the eastern edge of the hill and looked down… The country all looked dark grey, but beyond, at the very end of the world, the sea showed pale. The sky began to turn red. They walked to and fro more times than they could count between the dead Aslan and the eastern ridge, trying to keep warm…Then at last, as they stood for a moment looking out towards the sea… the red turned to gold along the line where the sea and the sky met and very slowly up came the edge of the sun. At that moment they heard from behind them a loud noise – a great cracking, deafening noise….

The rising of the sun had made everything look so different – all the colours and shadows were changed – that for a moment they didn’t see the important thing. Then they did. The Stone Table was broken into two pieces by a great crack that ran down it from end to end; and there was no Aslan…’Oh, it’s too bad,’ sobbed Lucy; ‘they might have left the body alone.’

‘Who’s done it?’ cried Susan. ‘What does it mean? Is it more magic?’

‘Yes!’ said a great voice behind their backs. ‘It is more magic.’ They looked around. There, shining in the sunrise, larger than they had seen him before, shaking his mane… stood Aslan himself…

‘But what does it all mean?’ asked Susan when they were somewhat calmer.

‘It means,’ said Aslan, ‘that though the Witch knew the Deep Magic, there is a magic deeper still which she did not know. Her knowledge goes back only to the dawn of time. But if she could have looked a little further back, into the stillness and the darkness before Time dawned, she would have read there a different incantation. She would have known that when a willing victim who had committed no treachery was killed in a traitor’ stead, the Table would crack and Death itself would start working backwards.

This is the story of a resurrection.  Like Aslan, Jesus rises from the dead, and by this wondrous event changes the course of human history, of human destiny.  It was his faith in the resurrected Jesus that enabled Bob to bring hope to so many people over the years.  It was his trust in the promises of Christ that shaped his life and his ministry – it even allowed him to say to me on a number of occasions “I’m not afraid to die, I know where I’m going” – but this confidence was tempered with a desire to not cause grief or hardship for his family.

Today we can celebrate, even while we grieve, trusting that Bob, even though he has died, will live again. That he has been joined to the death and resurrection of Christ, and that he now has entered into that glorified existence where there will be no more pain, no more illness, no more suffering, where death is working backwards.
 

Lynn - Segment 2

The return of Aslan in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is a reflection of the hope in the resurrection, a hope that Bob believed in and that sustained him. This hope is reflected in the scripture reading from Romans that Bob chose and it reminds us that this hope is not something that we have to wait for, but a hope that we have in the present. It is a hope that assures us that we have complete victory now through God who loves us. We are assured that nothing can separate us from God’s love, neither death nor life, or anything in all of creation.

This hope and how we live it out is one of the ways we live out our baptismal mission and let our lights shine so that we reflect God’s glory in our lives. At baptisms, baptismal candidates receive a candle that is lit from the Christ Candle that today is at the head of Bob’s casket. Every time Bob would hand a baptismal candle to the family of a child being baptized, he would talk about how important it is to live a life of faith because our children watch what we do more than they listen to what we say. Our actions are how we shine our lights, how we glorify God in our day to day lives by what we do, not because we have to or are supposed to, but because we desire to live lives in response to God’s love for us.

Bob had many passions, but what he was most passionate about was letting his light shine through sharing his faith and living out his faith in many pastoral and practical ways. It was this legacy of living out his faith helping others that resulted in him receiving a Queen Elizabeth the 2nd Diamond Jubilee Medal this past year.  And for those of you who read the Leader Post yesterday, Bob was also included in a list of 32 fascinating people that Regina lost this past year. The newspaper recognized Bob as someone who did enormous work as a Lutheran minister, but also touched many others through his counselling and warmth.

Bob’s light continues to live on in each of us whose lives he touched.
 

Dennis - Segment 3

The brave mouse Reepicheep is first encountered in the book Prince Caspian, but it is in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader that he has a significant part. Remembering a prophecy spoken over his cradle – that he would find what he sought in the Utter East – Reepicheep joins the crew of the Dawn Treader which is sailing east. Near the end of the book, after entering a sea of sweet water, and covered with white lilies, Reepicheep’s journey reaches its conclusion.

Then up came the sun, and at its first rising they saw it through the wall and it turned into wonderful rainbow colours. Then they knew that the wall was really a long, tall wave – a wave endlessly fixed in one place as you may often see at the edge of a waterfall…  now they saw something not only behind the wave but behind the sun...  What they saw – eastward, beyond the sun – was a range of mountains… And the mountains must really have been outside the world. For any mountains even a quarter or a twentieth of that height ought to have had ice and snow on them. But these were warm and green and full of forests and waterfalls however high you looked…

No one in that boat doubted that they were seeing beyond the End of the World into Aslan’s country.

At that moment, with a crunch, the boat ran aground. The water was too shallow now even for it. ‘This,’ said Reepicheep, ‘is where I go on alone.’…

They helped him lower his little coracle…  He bade them good-bye, trying to be sad for their sakes; but he was quivering with happiness… Then hastily he got into his coracle and took his paddle, and the current caught it and away he went, very black against the lilies… The coracle went more and more quickly, and beautifully it rushed up the wave’s side. For one split second they saw its shape and Reepicheep’s on the very top. Then it vanished, and since that moment no one can truly claim to have seen Reepicheep the Mouse. But my belief is that he came safe to Aslan’s country and is alive there to this day.

Like Reepicheep, Bob has gone on before us, crossed over into Aslan’s land, or as we would say in this world ‘into the eternal Realm of Christ.’  For those left behind on the boat it is a sad parting, for Reepicheep has been a good companion on the journey, he has helped them through many difficult situtations.  In a similar way, we too are sad at this parting of the ways. Bob who has been a good companion in our journey of life and faith now leaves us, and we are sad to see him go.  But the sadness is ours, not Bob’s – he is free from pain, he is receiving his reward, he is meeting his Lord and Saviour fully and freely.

Our journey must continue here however, we still have a mission before us.  Like the crew of the Dawn Treader who still had more to do in Narnia, we also have more to do.  But we will be able to do the mission ahead of us better because of the legacy that Bob leaves us.  As we remember his faith, his acceptance of all people, his caring and compassion for those in the midst of struggles, his generosity of time and resources, his commitment to truth, his concern for those less fortunate, – as we remember his example, and how his life reflected the grace and mercy of God – we will be encouraged to press on, to be more committed to the things of God, to be brave and to make a difference, even if we feel we are little more than a mouse in the big scheme of things.  Bob made a big impact in the lives of many, you here today are a testimony to that – but he never saw himself as something grand and wonderful – he was simply an average person with a calling – just like you and I.
 

Lynn - Segment 3

Just as Reepicheep crossed over into Aslan’s land, so now Bob has crossed over to a new life with God, leaving the rest of us behind, for now. We hear about this in our reading from John when we heard, “I am telling you the truth: those who hear my words and believe in him who sent me have eternal life. They will not be judged, but have already passed from death to life.” This passage is actually reminding us that we receive eternal life even before we die, that it is through our belief in Jesus that we pass from death to life.

Few of you would know that Bob had a vision of this about a month before he passed away. At our weekly staff meeting, after his recent trip to Calgary to visit his brothers, Bob was telling us about a unique cloud formation that he saw while him and Sandy were travelling to Calgary. He described the clouds opening up and rays of sunlight coming down in such a way that it looked like a staircase or a ladder. He said he had never seen anything like it before and at first it was disconcerting but then he took it as a sign of comfort from God. Pastor Dennis refers to this vision as the Highway to Heaven. I’d like to think that Bob is travelling that highway as we speak.

Even though we can take comfort that Bob is at peace and finally free from cancer, some may wonder why it is that God took Bob at such a relatively young age when he did so much good for so many people. I want to be very clear that God did not take Bob from us, cancer took Bob from us. Cancer is one of the diseases that are part of our hurting and broken world. God didn’t take Bob from us, but God is present through the positive impact Bob had on our lives. God is with us comforting us, upholding us, enfolding us, and giving us peace. God is crying with us. That is where God is and what God does. The passage from Luke that was read, that is known as the parable of the loving father, and better known as the parable of the prodigal son, reminds us of this God who never turns his back on us, who always welcomes us home and desires for us to be with him in his loving and forgiving arms.

So it may feel as though Bob has left us, but he will continue to live on in our hearts and minds, in our memories and in our conversations. But because Bob has crossed over to a new life, we grieve losing him in this life with us. The deeper we love someone, the deeper we will grieve the loss of that person. Bob touched so many lives in so many significant ways his loss is deeply felt by us. Grieving will not be easy and it will not be quick, but Romans promises us that God is with us and that nothing will separate us from God's love. There is no quick way around or through grief and it is important to remember that we will grieve differently. Some will enjoy sharing stories about Bob with others, while others would rather be alone in their grief. Some will shed many tears, while others will shed none. Some will appear to move on quicker, while others will seem to re-visit the different stages of grief. The wisdom that Pastor Bob would give us is to be patient and accepting of each other in the different ways we grief.  The only thing that is the same for us is that grief is a valley through which we each must travel in our own way, at our own pace. It is equally important to remember that we do not travel this road of grief alone. We have each other for love and support.
 

Dennis - Segment 4

The last book of the Narnia series is The Last Battle – what seems to be a terrible defeat in a battle on Stable Hill instead becomes a gateway into Aslan’s land. There the Narnians and Children are greeted by none other than Reepicheep who says “Welcome, in the Lion’s name.  Come farther up and farther in.”  Farther along the group meets Aslan.

Then Aslan turned to them and said:

‘You do not yet look so happy as I mean you to be.’

Lucy said, ‘We’re so afraid of being sent away, Aslan. And you have sent us back into our own world so often.’

‘No fear of that,’ said Aslan. ‘Have you not guessed?’

Their hearts leaped and a wild hope rose within them.

‘There was a real railway accident,’ said Aslan softly. ‘Your father and mother and all of you are – as you used to call it in the Shadowlands – dead. The term is over:  the holidays have begun. The dream is ended: this is the morning.’

And as He spoke He no longer looked to them like a lion; but the things that began to happen after that were so great and beautiful that I cannot write them. And for us this is the end of all the stories, and we can most truly say that they all lived happily ever after. But for them it was only the beginning of the real story. All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia had only been the cover and the title page: now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story which no one on earth has read: which goes on for ever: in which every chapter is better than the one before.

May we who have yet to cross into the promised land find comfort and strength in one another, may we find enjoyment and encouragement in our memories of Bob, and may we find hope to carry on in the promises of God.  A God who Bob believed is faithful and gracious.  A God who welcomes home all - with a loving embrace and a forgiving heart.  A God who is generous – one who gave us the gift of a beautiful creation, the gift of writers like C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien, the gift of Bob Leeson – father, pastor, friend, and much more.  Bob believed in a God who came to be Emmanuel – God with us.  May God’s presence bring peace and comfort to our hearts.

Bob Leeson has turned the page and has now begun the Great Story.

Thanks be to God!

Crazy for Crèches (or Nuts about Nativities)

I am a collector by nature – if you saw my CD collection, or my personal library of books, you would know what I mean.  I married a woman who also is a collector, but it wasn’t as obvious at first.  A number of years ago I realized that Beth had a number of crèches that she would set up around the house during the Advent and Christmas seasons.  As each year went by she would acquire more and more of these nativity scenes – each one different from all the rest in some way.  When we travelled she would look for nativity scenes unique to that region and if such an item was found she would purchase it and add it to her collection.  She eventually acquired so many that she has begun to put on a special display at our church every Advent.  While other members of the congregation also bring their crèches to put on display, Beth’s nativity sets make up the bulk of the display.

Upon seeing this collection many folks have asked where we have room for all these crèches, and indeed storage is a challenge.  We have a number of plastic totes that are dedicated exclusively for this crèche collection. I realize that at some point in the future down-sizing will be another challenge to face, but for now the collection continues to grow with a few new nativity sets added every year.

You might think that such an obsession might be a source of tension in our marriage, that I would be frustrated with this growing collection of items that typically only get displayed once a year.  But that is not the case at all – I don’t mind my wife’s enthusiasm for nativity displays, in fact I rather enjoy them myself.

Some might suggest that Nativity Sets make a terrible mish-mash of two very different incarnational stories, that they tend to romanticize the Christmas story, that they are nothing more than Christmas kitsch. On one level each of these accusations are legitimate observations, but they are not enough to over-ride my enjoyment of this crèche collection and what they represent.
 

The reason I enjoy looking at nativity sets from around the world is that they reflect in some way the culture and customs of the people who created them.  A few of my favourite crèches from my wife’s collection include:

• From Venice, Italy - the Holy Family in a gondola, crafted by a local glass artisan.
• From Mexico - brightly painted figures on embossed metal of some sort.
• From Switzerland - hand carved wooden set, complete with a music box mechanism.
• From Peru - hand painted clay set, the whole nativity set held in a pair of hands.
• From Africa - carved black wood, the Holy Family as black skinned people.

What these nativity sets represent to me is an expression of the truth that Christ is for all people, that all races and cultures can claim Jesus as one of their own.  The variety of crèches in this collection attests to this diversity. Jesus is not relegated to one place in time and space, rather Christ transcends all culture and history.  The incarnation means the God took on human flesh and came to be one of us, the incarnation means God identifies with us deeply - regardless of our cultural, racial, or historical identities.  I can’t think of a simpler way of expressing that message than to show the Christ child in a variety of settings, and our crèche collection does just that.

A Carol Festival Invocation

I was invited to give the invocation at our local Carol Festival, which has been run by the Rotary Club and held at Knox Metropolitan United Church since 1941.  I put the following prayer together using some lines from a Christmas prayer by Robert Louis Stevenson.

Gracious God, Creator of us all,
Help us to remember the birth of Jesus,
     that we may share in the song of the angels,
     the gladness of the shepherds,
     and the worship of the wise men.
Bless us with your presence this evening,
     as the music of this season lifts our spirits,
     as voices unite in praise and prayer,
     as the breath of your Spirit warms our whole being with hope and joy.
May the music shared this evening draw us closer to the Prince of Peace.
Close the door of hate and open the door of love all over the world.
Let kindness come with every gift and good desires with every greeting.
Deliver us from evil by the blessing which Christ brings,
     and teach us to be merry with clear hearts.
These things we pray in the name of the baby born in Bethlehem.
Amen.

C.S. Lewis Quote #6 - The Narnia Code

In 2009, when Beth and I vacationed in Europe to celebrate our 25th Wedding Anniversary, we spent a few days in Oxford.  A couple of my friends who both attended Oxford as students told me to be sure to check out Blackwell's Bookstore.  That was a great suggestion, and I came home loaded with books.  The story is recounted in my blog Being There - a Pilgrimage.  One of the books I picked up that day was Planet Narnia by Michael Ward.  This scholarly work, subtitled "The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C.S. Lewis" puts forth a theory that Lewis used the medieval understanding of the cosmos, with its planetary personalities, to give shape to the Chronicles of Narnia.  It is far too detailed of a premise to get into in this post, but if you would like to read more check out Michael Ward's website.

The Reverend Doctor Michael Ward began developing this idea after he noticed a particular verse in a poem written by C.S. Lewis.  While working on his doctoral dissertation Michael Ward was reading the section of The Planets that deals with Jove, or Jupiter, when he was struck by its resonance with The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. The poem speaks of "winter passed / And guilt forgiven" and goes on to give what Ward contends is "essentially a plot summary" of this Narnia book.

For this post's Lewis quote I thought I would share that section of the poem The Planets that set Michael Ward's imagination and scholarly pursuit racing.

Joy and jubilee. It is JOVE's orbit,

Filled and festal, faster turning

With arc ampler. From the Isles of Tin

Tyrian traders, in trouble steering

Came with his cargoes; the Cornish treasure

That his ray ripens. Of wrath ended

And woes mended, of winter passed

And guilt forgiven, and good fortune

Jove is master; and of jocund revel,

Laughter of ladies. The lion-hearted,

The myriad-minded, men like the gods,

Helps and heroes, helms of nations

Just and gentle, are Jove's children,

Work his wonders. On his white forehead

Calm and kingly, no care darkens

Nor wrath wrinkles: but righteous power

And leisure and largess their loose splendours

Have wrapped around him – a rich mantle

Of ease and empire. Up far beyond

from "The Planets" (1938)

The picture is from the front sitting room of The Kilns, Lewis' home in Oxford.

C.S. Lewis Quote #5

Just a short quote today - one on offerings.  The picture is of The Kilns, the house that C.S. Lewis owned and lived in from 1930 until his death in 1963.  It is located in Headington, a suburb of Oxford.

All our offerings, whether of music or martyrdom, are like the intrinsically worthless present of a child, which a father values indeed, but values only for the intention.

from "Christian Reflections - On Church Music"

C.S. Lewis Quote #4

The greatness of C.S. Lewis is measured by his words and the impact they had on many, many lives.  However Lewis was wary of greatness as evidenced in today's quote.  When reading these words of Lewis I thought of the many extremists functioning in our world today, as well as the terrible behaviour of many human leaders throughout history.  Humility is the essential balancing agent needed. 

It seems that there is a general rule in the moral universe which may be formulated "The higher, the more in danger." The "average sensual man" who is sometimes unfaithful to his wife, sometimes tipsy, always a little selfish, now and then (within the law) a trifle sharp in his deals, is certainly, by ordinary standards, a "lower" type than the man whose soul is filled with some great Cause, to which he will subordinate his appetites, his fortune, and even his safety. But it is our of the second man that something really fiendish can be made; and Inquisitor, a Member of the Committee of Public Safety. It is great men, potential saints, no little men, who become merciless fanatics. Those who are readiest to die for a cause may easily become those who are readiest to kill for it.

  from "Reflections on the Psalms"

The above picture is of the very typewriter that most of Lewis' books and letters were hammered out on - not by C.S. Lewis himself, but most often by his brother Warnie, who functioned as secretary, turning Lewis' handwritten manuscripts into typed pages.

P.S.  The Committee of Public Safety mentioned in the Lewis quote refers to a group that functioned within the French Revolution.

C.S. Lewis Quote #3

Ever since the infamous 13th man debacle at the end of the 2010 Grey Cup I must admit that I have a certain amount of anxiety whenever the Saskatchewan Roughriders are playing a significant game.  Thankfully by the end of the Grey Cup game yesterday, the Riders had the game thoroughly in control, and my anxiety was minimal.  In honor of the great Grey Cup win by the Roughriders yesterday today's quote from C.S. Lewis is about anxiety.  The picture in the post is an exterior shot of Holy Trinity Church in Headington Quarry, where Lewis worshiped regularly.

The first thing, when one is being worried as to whether one will have to have an operation or whether one is a literary failure, is to assume absolutely mercilessly that the worst is true, and to ask What Then? If it turns out in the end that the worst is not true, so much the better: but for the meantime the question must be resolutely put out of mind. Otherwise your thoughts merely go round and round a wearisome circle, now hopeful, now despondent, then hopeful again – that way madness lies. Having settled then that the worst is true, one can proceed to consider the situation.

from "The Letters of C.S. Lewis to Arthur Greeves"

The One Sunday that I Hoped No One Would Come to Church

The date was November 26th 1989.  I was in my fourth year of ministry at Christ Lutheran Church in Regina, Saskatchewan.  At that time our church was holding three worship services each Sunday, two in the morning and one in the evening.  The evening services were intended to provide an opportunity for those who couldn’t make it to the morning services to still worship on a Sunday.  These evening services were more informal by nature and, truth be told, not that well attended.  The responsibility for presiding at these evening services simply rotated between the three pastors on staff.  Sunday November 26th was my turn in the rotation.

When the preaching schedule was drawn up for November I didn’t anticipate any conflicts, however that month the Saskatchewan Roughriders went on a tear through the playoffs, beating the Calgary Stampeders in the Western Semi-final, and then surprising everyone with their defeat of the dominant team of the league that year, the Edmonton Eskimoes (who were 16 wins, 2 losses in the regular season) – thus advancing to the Grey Cup game as the best of the west.  November 26th was the Grey Cup game!

It must be mentioned at this point that prior to 1989 the Saskatchewan Roughriders had only won the Canadian Football League championship once, in 1966 – even though they had been in existence since 1910.  They had not advanced to the Grey Cup game since 1976, they hadn’t even made the playoffs between 1978 and 1987 – this happening in a 9 team league where only the absolutely worst teams in a division don’t make the playoffs.  Thus to be playing in the Grey Cup game in 1989 was cause for great excitement in the province of Saskatchewan, it was a rare event in those years.

By this time I had become a fan of the Riders. Perhaps this was because I liked cheering for the underdog, and in those years the Saskatchewan team was a perpetual underdog, or perhaps there is something in the air in Regina, and the Riders simply get into your blood. For whatever reason by 1989 this Alberta boy was a true Saskatchewan Roughriders fan.

I was frustrated that I had to lead the service that evening, and I would have to miss the end of the Grey Cup game because of that, but I told myself that my call to ministry was more important than any activity of a sports team.

In the early part of the game the Roughriders fell behind, and I consoled myself by saying “Well maybe it’s better to have a reason to miss the end of the game, and not have to suffer through watching a heartbreaking loss”.  That feeling was replaced with rejuvenated hope when just before half time Saskatchewan scored their second touchdown of the quarter, drawing within a touchdown to the Hamilton Tigercats.  In the first minutes of the second half Dave Ridgway kicked a field goal pulling the Riders within 2 points of the Tigercats.  This was about the time I had to head over to the church to get ready for the service.

On the drive over to the church the streets were absolutely quiet, everyone was glued to their television sets, no one was going anywhere… except me!  I got to the church where the first thing I did was place a radio in the pulpit so I could listen to the game while setting up for the service.  The game was getting more exciting by the minute, and I was getting more frustrated that I had to miss it.  Five minutes before 7:00 PM the church was still empty, no one was showing up for the worship service. Secretly I hoped that no one would – I wanted to go home and finish watching the game.  I felt a little guilty about this, shouldn’t a pastor want people to come to worship?!  But not that night, I wanted people to stay away!  At the appointed hour still no one had come through the doors, and I became hopeful that I would indeed be able to watch the end of the game.  I couldn’t leave yet, there might be late-comers, so I set a deadline – if no one showed up in 10 minutes I would assume no one was coming and I could leave my responsibility with a good conscience.

A few minutes after the hour a car pulled into the parking lot, and my heart sank. I was going to have to lead a worship service after all.  I began to resign myself to missing the rest of the game. It was not a good feeling.

Into the church walked a woman with her teenaged daughter.  They looked around a little and spotted me at the front of the sanctuary.  The mom called out “Isn’t there any youth group tonight?”  My heart leapt up!  They weren't here for worship after all.  “No, not tonight!” I cheerfully replied.  And with that they waved goodbye, and walked out again.  I was free, by this time it was 10 minutes after the hour and no one had shown up for worship.  I quickly packed up, locked up the church and drove home.

As any Saskatchewan Roughrider fan knows, 1989 the second time in franchise history that the Riders won the Grey Cup.  It was quite a game, with the winning points coming on a field goal with no time left on the clock.  Many CFL fans have identified the 1989 game as the best Grey Cup contest ever.  There was much rejoicing in Riderville that night, and maybe even lots of prayers of thanksgiving.  It may be only a game, but in Saskatchewan the Roughriders are almost like a religion, even for pastors.

Dave Ridgway kicks the winning field goal with no time left on the clock in the 1989 Grey Cup game.

C.S. Lewis Quote #2

The picture I share today is of the pew in Holy Trinity Church in Headington Quarry that C.S. Lewis and his brother Warnie sat in every week for many years.  Once Lewis moved into The Kilns this was the church he attended, this was the church he prayed in Sunday after Sunday. He rarely missed a service here, except when he wasn't home.  This pew allowed Lewis both some privacy (since only 2 or 3 people could sit in it, and it was partially hidden behind the pillar) and yet gave Lewis full view of the pulpit and altar.  Lewis didn't want his attendance at this church to distract from worship - they were there to give God the honor, not to have people fawn over this celebrated author.  When I sat in this pew I had an unexpected range of feelings wash over me, everything from grief to awe - it brought me to tears. It was the most mystical, surprising and powerful moment in my visits to Oxford.

In conjunction with this picture I offer this quote from C.S. Lewis on prayer:

"There are, no doubt, passages in the New Testament which may seem at first sight to promise an invariable granting of our prayers. But that cannot be what they really mean. For in the very heart of the story we meet a glaring instance to the contrary. In Gethsemane the holiest of all petitioners prayed three times that a certain cup might pass from Him. It did not. After that the idea that prayer is recommended to us as a sort of infallible gimmick may be dismissed."

from "The World's Last Night and Other Essays".

The Legacy of Lewis

50 years ago today a great man died, but his passing went unnoticed by most simply because it coincided with the assassination of John F. Kennedy.  The man I am referring to has been on the cover of Time magazine, he has been one of the world’s most popular and best-selling authors (in many genres), he is acknowledged by many as the most significant Christian writer of the English speaking world in the past century.  This man has had some of his books made into successful Hollywood movies, and together with his friend J.R.R. Tolkein he created a resurgence of interest in fantasy literature.  By now many of you reading this entry will recognize that I am referring to Clive Staples Lewis, or C.S. Lewis as he is better known.

I was first introduced to Lewis’ writings by Pastor Dan Berg.  While tagging along with the Berg family on a trip to Kinasao camp at Christopher Lake in Saskatchewan I was able to enjoy the nightly reading sessions when a chapter or two from the Chronicles of Narnia were read out loud to the whole clan.  I remember being captivated by this imaginative world with its unforgettable characters, especially Aslan the lion.

In college I found others who appreciated C.S. Lewis, and we would often talk about what we had read, and how that had opened our minds to new understandings, new perspectives and new questions.  It was at this time that I first read Lewis’ space trilogy, having become a Science Fiction fan in High School, and once again I was drawn into Lewis’ world of layered meaning and Christian significance.

C.S. Lewis was never trained as a theologian, and never claimed to be one, yet his way of discussing matters of theology and spirituality shaped my theological thinking. Thus while Lewis was never referred to in my Seminary training I find that whenever I  attempt to discuss matters of the Christian faith with another person it is significant how often I  will refer to an example, or quote from Lewis.  This is not to say that I always agree with Lewis – there are plenty of points of contention, but these areas of disagreement are only a small percentage of what Lewis has set forth, and most of them are created by a cultural difference that comes from living over half a century apart.

Over the years C.S. Lewis has become so significant to me that when my wife and I travelled to Europe a few years ago, to celebrate our 25 years of marriage, it was important to me to include Oxford in the itinerary.  While in Oxford we took a C.S. Lewis Tour with Ron Brind, who was a childhood friend of Lewis’ step-children. We got to see Magdalen College where Lewis taught, the Eagle and Child pub where Lewis met weekly with a group of friends known as the Inklings, Holy Trinity Church in Headington Quarry where Lewis worshiped every Sunday for most of his adult life, and most significantly The Kilns, the home of C.S. Lewis from 1930 until his death in 1963.

Three years later the whole family went to Europe, and again we made our way to Oxford where I took in a week long course at Wycliffe College and the family took in the sites of Oxford.  Once again I was able to visit these significant sites for C.S. Lewis.  Also on that trip we visited Westminster Abbey in London, and I was surprised to discover that C.S. Lewis was not commemorated in Poet’s Corner – an oversight that is happily being rectified this very day.

Thus today, 50 years after his death, in honor of Lewis’ memorial being dedicated in Poet’s Corner in Westminster Abbey, and in my small way to help Lewis’ significance not get totally lost in all the hype and nostalgia around J.F. Kennedy’s assassination (conspiracy theories et al.) I intend to daily post a quote from C.S. Lewis, along with a picture from Oxford related to Lewis’ history for the remainder of this year.  I thought it appropriate today to post a picture of Lewis’ grave along with this quote from Mere Christianity:

There is no need to be worried by facetious people who try to make the Christian hope of “Heaven” ridiculous by saying they do not want “to spend eternity playing harps.” The answer to such people is that if they cannot understand books written for grown-ups, they should not talk about them. All the scriptural imagery (harps, crowns, gold, etc.) is, of course, a merely symbolical attempt to express the inexpressible.  … People who take these symbols literally might as well think that when Christ told us to be like doves, He meant that we were to lay eggs.

Thank you C.S. Lewis for your wit and wisdom, your imagination and insight – may your legacy continue to flourish for fifty more years and beyond.