Over the summer I read Peter Frankopan’s The Silk Roads. I found it awesome in scope, fascinating in its detail and ultimately without hope. It is the story of humanity’s lust for power, greed to own the current fashionable abundance of the world; from silk and spices to fuel and nuclear capability; tendency to build dynasties that restrict the wealth and the power in a few hands, and deceit, to get the ‘goodies’ as cheaply as possible. As Angela said in her sermon last week, the noble who forgave his slave’s debt couldn’t trust him to pass that forgiveness to another. What I kept finding myself saying, as I read through the book, is ‘Where is the hope?’.
I have found it in another book I have started to read. This is the present-day story of a group of people who have pledged to live simple lives in a multi-cultural capital city. They commit to silence, service, scripture, sacrament, sharing sabbath and staying with. If you were in church a week or so ago, you will have seen them re-committing themselves. The book, of course is Richard Carter’s Letters from Nazareth.
And in St Martin-in-the-Fields, I have found a community of people who want to trade in the real ‘goodies’ of the world: being with creation, God, each other and self. Demonstrating that ‘business’ can be conducted in a way that deals honestly with consumers, treats staff with respect and dignity and still flourish.
In this giving month, I’d like to paraphrase Matthew 6: 21:
‘For where your heart is, there should your treasure be also.’
Wendy Quill
