Letter from the Rector
What is it that motivates people to live the way they live? Abraham Maslow, the twentieth century psychologist suggested that we all have a hierarchy of needs. At its root are the basic requirements for life: food, water, and shelter. Once those needs are met, he says, we are then able to move on to other things such as relationships, achievements, and what he called ‘self-actualization,’ which simply means fulfilling our potential.
How might a Christian worldview complement or challenge this? St Augustine of Hippo was a bishop in north Africa in the fifth century; the Church celebrates his feast day on 28th August. He is arguably the most important and influential thinker in the history of Christianity. Among his many insights into human life was the notion that, when all is said and done, we are shaped by what we love. It is desire that determines the choices that we make about how to live our lives. Not ideas. Not obedience. Augustine says that you are what, or whom, you love. This is important because we are often tempted to believe that to change behaviour we simply need to be convinced to change by force of argument.
But the reality is otherwise. What matters most is what, or whom, we love. This is why worship matters. When we talk about worship, we’re not talking about something only some religious people do, everybody does it. Everyone elevates something, or someone, to a position of supreme importance and organizes their life around that. St Augustine, following the teaching of the Bible, says that we will only be truly happy, truly satisfied, truly fulfilled in life when we worship God. Speaking to God, Augustine says, “You have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in you”.
People come to church for all sorts of reasons. For some it’s chance for a moment’s peace in a noisy world. For others it’s the sense of community they find. For some it’s a chance to spend an hour nostalgically basking in the sixteenth century, or the nineteenth century, or the 1950’s or the 1990’s. For some it’s chance to be entertained by excellent musicians or skillful preachers. However, beneath all the differences in emphasis and style that you find in different churches, the bottom line is that we are bringing our restless hearts to the One who alone can fulfil our longing.
Rev.Trevor
