Govan and Linthouse Parish Church Magazine

‘It’s not about the Bunny, Honey!’ March 2013 Mar 13

Sidelines

It is time for an update, I think. From the front, obscured by hoardings, it doesn’t look as though much is happening with the shop/café refurbishment. In fact quite a lot has happened behind the scenes. The special glass frontage is now made to order and waiting to go into place, as are the stripy awnings to give respite from the hot sun when we sit, continental style, out on the square or the pavement. I think it is going to look stunning. This part of the refurbishment has been funded through the Townscape Heritage Initiative and the City Heritage Trust. After it is finished, it will be used, for a short while, by the Central Govan Action Plan as a ‘show shop-front’ in the way that developers always have a ‘show flat’. We have several prospective tenants, although no final decision has been made. Eight pews have to be taken out of Govan Old to allow room for the re-display and re- lighting of the Govan Stones. At this moment I am hoping that those pews will form the seating inside the café. The Govan Stones Project involves moving some of the Stones to new locations within the church, creating a level display area, designing information boards, and there is a master plan for restoring the graveyard. The funding for this work comes largely from Historic Scotland and the Heritage Lottery Fund as well as Glasgow City Council. Historic Scotland and the Heritage Lottery Fund have also ear-marked £248,600.00 towards the restoration of the roof of the sanctuary at Govan Cross. This does not mean that we have that money, but have a 12 month period to give them a detailed plan of the work, other funding required and its community benefits. We will need other funding once we come to the restoration of the sanctuary – and to all those who have been giving towards the restoration fund I express my deepest thanks for your faithful interest. Those of you who have made funding applications in the recent past, should know that funding can only be used for the project for which it was given. We cannot switch money from one project to another, but all of this external money coming in to Govan, being used to improve Govan’s historic assets and shops will, we hope, bring new people and opportunities into the community. Before you read this, I hope that the contractors will be on site to restore the Hall roof at Govan Cross. This part of the work is non- grant fundable, and will be paid for in part from the sales of the two manses from Linthouse and Govan Old. So much for buildings! Paul has begun a new, all-age worship on Monday evenings in Linthouse. It is called Messy Mondays and has drawn in surrounding families from that part of the parish. It has now been running since October and is very encouraging, with new children and their parents around the church every week. And in June 2013, my own special project, we are jointly hosting a puppet festival with Cran Theatre Company. Already the workshops have begun, Pirie Park children are busy making their puppets to tell the story of the ‘Great Silkie’. Silkies are mystical seals from Orkney who, when on land, turn into people. Govan High children have also begun work on their puppets, and in March we begin workshops with the children from Little Branches Nursery. As well as the children, there will be professionals taking part and a whole range of different stories told, from traditional folk tales to the shaping stories of faith. I should say we have raised separate money for this too, about £5,000 to date.

We continue to be extraordinarily fortunate in the things we have chosen to do. The work we embarked upon is a huge task, perhaps much more than any one church could hope to accomplish, and yet we weave in and out of our community, salt and occasionally light, from our part in the townscape of Govan to our involvement on the ground – with people. I do hope God continues to bless this remarkable, hard-working and imaginative congregation.

Moyna

A few thoughts.

Well it has been a year since I first appeared in the magazine for Govan & Linthouse, and it has been a busy year. During this time, I have been due to move on at a couple of occasions, however I am still here, and will be until I can secure a new post within the Church through the planning process that has run for so long now.

I have had the opportunity to learn about Govan, a place that has family connections for me. As well as the people who make up the parish and congregation.

It has been a year of challenges and varied jobs and tasks. Of course, I now have a reputation for keeping my Sunday services on the short and sweet side.

However looking forward, Govan & Linthouse has several challenges, building works, changes to the team, and new developments in the ministry with the growing success of the Messy Mondays. I hope and pray that all these sings grow and come to their full potential for you all.

As for me, as I said, I will be leaving at some time in the near future, but you have not got rid of me yet.

All the best and blessings, Kenneth Naismith. Parish Assistant.

Dear friends,

Hope you all started this New Year 2013 with some sense of hope. I’d just like to let you know that my maternity leave is now over. Even though motherhood is extremely satisfying and absorbing – it is a privilege to be able to fulfil a task, which is totally different and set apart from family life. I am looking forward to dealing with some new challenges. Our son Raphael goes now to nursery for two days a week. Since I work part time we will have to redefine my responsibilities. During my maternity leave I attended a few team meetings to stay in touch. It was helpful to get an update about some of the things which have been going on. Throughout the past year many aspects of the church and parish life have gone through significant changes and it feels like I have missed out on quite a few things. There are piles of letters I have to work my way through in the next few weeks.

I cannot believe how quickly time passed in 2012. Someone once said to me, that the older you get, the quicker time passes. I think becoming a mum made me feel a bit older. Since Raphael’s birth I feel older not only because I have to cope with less sleep, but also because I have the responsibility to look after a wee person, who is fragile, dependant and increasingly on the move. At the moment he constantly looks for opportunities to pull himself up and he practices eagerly standing and walking with some support. At this occasion I would like to thank you again for all your generous gifts and congratulations to our little man’s birth. We were totally overwhelmed when Moyna and Gillian arrived in our flat with dozens of gift bags and we really appreciated your kindness. Raphael loves playing with the toys and all the beautiful clothes suit him really well. We have received many compliments for the handmade shawl and knitted cardigans and some of my friends even wondered if they could order such a pretty designer object for themselves. I wish you all a very happy and richly blessed New Year!

With love, Judith Breakey

The World Unchained

Last week I had the opportunity to go to a screening of the latest Quentin Tarantino film, Django Unchained. If you’ve never seen a Tarantino film, they are known for their excessive violence, brutality and coarse language. Django Unchained is no different. I’m not suggesting you see the film, that is, unless you’re willing to endure 165 minutes of brutality (but it’s brutality with a point). If you are planning on seeing the film, I warn you that this article will contain some spoilers. The film is made out to be a western epic. It takes place in the pre-Civil War United States. The main protagonists are Dr King Schultz (played by Academy Award winner Christoph Waltz), a German immigrant and former dentist who works as a bounty hunter, collecting rewards for the bodies of federal outlaws, and Django (played by another Academy Award winner, Jamie Foxx), a black slave who has been separated from his wife, another slave called Broomhilda (played by Kerry Washington). Schultz first ‘unchains’ Django as he is being transported by slave drivers through Texas. Previously, Django had been a slave on a plantation where three murderous outlaws, the Brittle Brothers, had worked as farmhands. Schultz wishes for Django to assist him in identifying the Brittle Brothers so that he may collect the reward for their bodies. Schultz, who throughout the film demonstrates his utter distaste for the institution of slavery, offers Django his freedom, $75 and a horse in exchange for his assistance (and feels awful for not simply giving Django his freedom straight away). After the slaying of the Brittle Brothers, Schultz asks Django, who demonstrates great skill in the ‘art’ of bounty hunting, if he would join him as his business partner for the winter and Django accepts his proposition. Django reveals that once he is finished with their winter’s work, he is going to try to find his wife and rescue her from slavery. Schultz, who has developed a very close friendship with Django, insists that he helps Django, as they discover that Broomhilda is a slave on a large plantation outside of Greenville, Mississippi, a particularly dangerous part of the States for a black man, free or not.

After the winter they come up with and carry out a complicated plan to reunite Django and his beloved Broomhilda. But after their plan is uncovered, Schultz and Django are given an ultimatum: either they pay the exorbitant amount of $12,000 to purchase Broomhilda or she will be killed by her owner, the ruthless and bigoted plantation owner, Calvin Candie (played by Leonardo DiCaprio). After they comply, Candie proposes that the transaction is not official until Schultz shakes his hand. Schultz, who has been having flashbacks of an event during which Candie ordered a runaway slave to be torn apart by dogs, refuses to shake hands. This is the point in the film which I believe carries the most moral weight. As we, the audience, have been battered with the injustice and brutality of racism and the institution of slavery throughout the film, we feel something of that same moral weight. Ultimately, Schultz’ refusal ends up costing him his life.

The film continues from there, but it’s at this point that I want to ask a question: what does Django Unchained have to teach Christians? Our two main protagonists exhibit many Christ-like qualities throughout the film, but the one which I think is most profound, as a result of the build-up of the film, is Schultz refusal. On principle, Schultz sees shaking Candie’s hand as some sort of approval of Candie, his vicious treatment of slaves and the whole of institutionalised racism that still, even in the age of a black President, finds expression in some parts of American culture. Although some Americans, particularly the Quakers in the North, were opposed to slavery during the first half of the 19th century, the institution was still regarded as rather normal for most Americans. Still, Schultz refuses to betray his strong sense of justice, even a sense of justice perhaps rather clouded by his recent career as a bounty hunter. He demonstrates this passion in his last great speech immediately preceding his refusal to shake Candie’s hand. After completing the paperwork for Broomhilda, Candie offers Schultz some rhubarb pie, but Schultz declines.

CANDIE: ‘Are you brooding ‘bout me getting the best of ya?’

SCHULTZ: ‘Actually, I was thinking of that poor devil you fed to the dogs today, D’Artagnan. And I was wondering what Dumas would make of all this.’

CANDIE: ‘Dumas…?’

SCHULTZ: ‘Alexander Dumas. He wrote The Three Musketeers. I figured you must be an admirer. You named your slave after that novel’s lead character. If Alexander Dumas had been there today, I wonder what he would of made of it?’

CANDIE: ‘You doubt he’d approve?’

SCHULTZ: ‘Yes, his approval would be a dubious proposition at best.’

CANDIE: ‘Soft hearted Frenchy?’

SCHULTZ: ‘Alexander Dumas is black.’

The weight of the tone of the speech can only be captured if you see the film, but written out here, we can see that Schultz is able to undermine Candie’s ignorant racism with his poignant and authoritative presentation. Candie, a self-professed Francophile who, although he does not know the language, insists on being called Monsieur Candie, is left stunned and confused. Schultz’ words here remind me of the Parables of Christ. Taking something trivial such as the raw materials of everyday life and turning it on its head in order to shift the worldview of his listeners toward that of the truths and values of the kingdom of God. Unfortunately, Candie did not have ‘ears to hear’ the truth that Schultz uttered. Do we?

Of course, our context is quite different. The context of slavery-era Southern United States is a far cry from present day Govan and Linthouse. I’ll even say that we live in a fortunate part of Scotland with a long heritage of fighting for social justice. But have we grown complacent? Perhaps we don’t have slaves in our context, but throughout our congregation and parish there are new battles to be fought. Among others, the people who suffer in poverty, the people who struggle with addiction, the people who have immigrated from other countries, the people who seek asylum – they all suffer under various institutions of injustice here. Maybe we’re responsible for some of that with our behaviour. In Django Unchained, white people are appalled at the scandal of a black man on a horse. I’ve heard people express their shock about the scandal of a recent immigrant with a bankcard or a mobile phone. No matter how much we try—and we do try—justice is not the way of Scotland, the United Kingdom or any other nation. Nations are made up of all kinds of people with very different ideals, some of which propagate institutionalised oppression. In reality, the Church looks very much the same, and while I am grateful to God that the and that Govan and Linthouse Parish Church are very much composed of a diverse body of people, I think we can unite in discipleship under the leadership of one man, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

The words found within our Gospel readings for the month of February have a great deal to teach us about the way that being a Christian turns the institutions of this world on its head:

He came down with them and stood on a level place, with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea, , and the coast of Tyre and Sidon. They had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. And all in the crowd were trying to touch him, for power came out from him and healed all of them.

Then he looked up at his disciples and said: ‘Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.

‘Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. ‘Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh…

‘But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again. Do to others as you would have them do to you.

Luke 6:17-21, 27-31 As Christians, it is our daily challenge, not just in the month of February, but for the rest of our lives, to seek the values of the kingdom of God. And we are not called to do this simply because we are good people or we think we will get a box of treasure in the future. We are called to love because God loves this world. God desires that we ‘unchain’ the world from oppression — what an unworthy honour for us!

May we be inspired by the love and grace of God and empowered by the Holy Spirit to do the works of the kingdom and fight with great conviction, as Dr King Schultz fought, the injustices in our community and beyond its boundaries. It’s no simple task, but maybe we could keep each other accountable. Next time you see me, I’d appreciate it if you reminded me to be more like Jesus and Dr King Schultz. Many blessings,

Elijah

Support for Charities

In these days of belt-tightening, and with an enormous refurbishment project in front of us, to which we are donating as and when we can, it would be easy to say that we should draw back from supporting other charities and concentrate on ourselves. Easy – but un- Christian. Which is why I am so glad that our congregation continues its generosity towards all sorts of good causes. Take a look at the notice board above the milk and sugar table when you are getting your tea on a Sunday. There are always letters and certificates praising the donations from the tearoom. Rose McLoughlin is very good at keeping us up to date with the responses from Mary’s Meals and Action Aid, but sometimes the congregation does not hear of the letters of thanks that come to the Kirk Session. So I thought I would share some excerpts from recent letters with you.

From the Beatson Institute for Cancer research:-

“This donation is very much appreciated and we are extremely grateful for your continued interest and support of our research.” From Erskine:-

“Donations from our supporters play a vital role in enabling Erskine to make life better for the brave men and women for whom we have the privilege of caring. They pay for everything from large items like specialised medical equipment to smaller things like coloured door handles to help veterans with dementia find their way around the Home.”

From the Leprosy Mission Scotland:-

“Your donation helps bring healing and empowerment to people affected by leprosy. [… ]Your continued donations and prayers will make a huge difference in the lives of people like Abdulsukkur, who is currently being treated for leprosy and leprosy reaction in Chittagong City, Bangladesh. He is a welder, but cannot work at present because of weakness in his hand caused by his leprosy. Once the leprosy reaction is dealt with, TLM staff will arrange reconstructive surgery for him, and hope to link him with an existing Self Help Group in his local area, to help him earn money and restore his confidence.”

So you see, those second offerings at Communion and occasional other times really do make a difference to people at home and abroad. Long may your generosity continue.

Elsie Donald

Session Clerk

The Guild

For the Guild this is a period of quietness. We had a great session leading up to Christmas and now spend until March repairing. One of the reasons for no meetings in January and February is a practical one. The weather can be very unkind and it means difficulties can arise when travelling. Leading up to Christmas we were very busy not just with meetings but with other duties that come to being when involved with the Presbyterial Council as I am.

Thank you all for supporting the Guild Service, it was so well attended and it is good to again dedicate ourselves to God and the Guild witnessed by the Congregation. The Cathedral Service on 25th November was well attended, around 300 people worshiped and we were so privileged to have David Lunan former moderator preaching. He has always been a strong supporter of the Guild. We were well catered for and well received by minister and ladies of the Cathedral. Bible study was appreciated by us all from Andrew, it’s so good to share with our own ministry team.

Please accept my thanks for all the variety of goods given for us to send to homes and hospitals in our area. You as a congregation always rise to the occasion. We had an amazing amount of goodies to deliver. Many of us spent two half days sorting out goods before delivering them to appropriate homes, I delivered to three homes in our area and I know how well they were received. On the 10th December we enjoyed our Christmas Dinner when 50 of us sat down to indulge. It’s always great when none of us had to set up, serve or wash up. We enjoyed a lovely evening and we do thank Andrew for making it so relaxing. We resume in March and hope our first meeting will be a trip to the Theatre. We have many good evenings ahead and anyone wishing to come will be very welcome. A few of us will be busy on a couple of days this month armed with a potato peeler to attack carrots, potatoes and anything else which help the staff at the Lodging House Mission. May I thank everyone for the support and invite anyone of any age to share the Fellowship of our Guild.

Every Blessing

Elspeth

Funerals

Mrs Alice Lang – October 2012 Mrs Betty Wilson – November 2012 Mrs Betty Stirling – November 2012 Mrs Marjory Allen – December 2012 Mrs J Purves – January 2013 Mrs Bethia Stewart – January 2013 Friends of Govan Old

Last year was the first full year that Govan Old was open to visitors 5 days a week from Easter to October, and the number of visitors rose to well over 2000. The Friends wish to thank all those who gave their time and energy to welcome people, to keep the place safe and to show visitors around. It’s a great opportunity to tell people about Govan, not just its illustrious history, but all the activities going on here nowadays. When people ask about the church and I explain about our 3 buildings with all the groups that use them, the two other congregations that we shelter and the range of worship activities, they are inevitably impressed. Once again the Friends have generously passed on a large proportion (about two thirds) of the donations they received, gifting Govan and Linthouse £1,000. They also paid for repairs to one of the stained glass windows and agreed to make a small donation to repair of the steps at Govan Old.

The next annual lecture will take place at 2pm on Saturday 9th March, following the Friends’ AGM. This year the speaker is Professor John Hume and his subject – a bit more contemporary than is often the case – will be “Govan Shipbuilding – Disentangling the Evidence”. The lecture is free and is open to anyone interested.

Elsie Donald

Messy Mondays

Messy Mondays started back after the Christmas break on January 21st. We had hoped to restart a bit sooner but felt it was important to take some time to think about how it was going, and if any changes needed to be made. The consensus was that it was going well and the folks who are coming enjoy it. We have made some minor adjustments to the format but the essence of what we do is the same. It has been great to be part of Messy Mondays as each week is different and the energy it produces is fantastic. There are around 30 people each week, both adults and children, and together we are exploring what the Bible has to say to us today in our context. Our main emphasis is on doing things together, so we enjoy fellowship together, we learn together, and we worship together. To anyone who thinks they know what church looks like, Messy Mondays would come as quite a surprise because it is not what we might consider to be traditional. It's called messy because it seeks to be reflective but busy, noisy but still, chaotic but organised. It recognises all these tensions that are part of our lives and brings them together before God who sorts them out. We are a group of individuals brought together in community by the God who enjoys when we join together. As I reflect on the past few months, I am so encouraged. When we tried to do something different on a Sunday at Linthouse it didn't work out as we had hoped. It would have been easy to give up but we decided to persevere and I'm glad we did. There has been a real sense of togetherness on Mondays which is uplifting. I'm thankful to Christine and June who have kept us fed! And to the folk who provided us with Christmas dinner on our last night in December, thank you. It was lovely to be able to eat a festive meal and then do our Christingles together. The hall looked amazing when all the Christingles were lit and the lights were turned off.

There are photographs of what we have been doing on the church website and the banner outside the church advertising Messy Mondays points people to the website so they can have a look for themselves, and hopefully decide to come! The logo was designed by Elijah who provided it within hours of first hearing that we needed one. Man of talent! One of the great things about Messy Mondays is that everyone is bringing something unique to it that only they can bring. All of the gifts people have are coming together to make something truly great happen and we are seeing the beginnings of something big in Linthouse, something inclusive, energetic, life giving. It is a joy to be part of and I would encourage you to come and try it. Regular updates will be given in the magazine of course, and on the website, but there's nothing like being there. If you are talking to anyone you think might enjoy it, we will be producing cards which you can give out which just signpost people to Messy Mondays and let them decide for themselves. You will be able to pick these up and hopefully they will be helpful for you to invite people. We're looking forward to the future which is looking bright.

Messy Mondays in case you didn’t know is at Linthouse on Monday evenings (the clue is in the title) from 5.30-7pm.

Paul

Signpost drop in

Some months ago we talked at the Govan High chaplaincy team about the possibility of doing something at lunchtime for the pupils. Initially we thought about finding a space in the school we could use, but the feeling was that it would be better away from school premises. We wanted to model it on the Church of Scotland's cosy coffee house idea which has been around for years now. The idea is simple, provide refreshments for young people as well as a place to come. The closest building to the school is the Church of the Nazarene building which sits just outside the school boundary, and the pastor there was keen to help out. So in October last year we started what we call Signpost. The name comes about because we want to point young people to what is happening in the church in the area they live in. We would be very limited in what we can do in one lunchtime, but the contact we are able to have with the pupils is simply about building relationships. We make them hot chocolate and while they drink it we have a chance to chat to them. Often the hot chocolate comes with marshmallows and cream which always goes down well. It takes place every Wednesday lunchtime during the school term and the young people now know it is on. We keep a register every week and have 63 young people on the register, which is fantastic. From my own point of view it is brilliant to meet former Pirie Park pupils who love to chat about their old school and how they used to come to the church for services. Signpost has opened up the possibility of us being able to do more together as a group of churches in the area. We will be talking a bit more about that in the months to come, and I have several areas I would like to explore where I think we as a congregation could be working. I feel that God is doing something new with us at the moment and it's exciting to be part of it. God definitely has a vision for our church, if we can see and catch that vision we will see revival coming in our time. The signs are there in the way that opportunities are opening up for us. Signpost has been one such opportunity where we can meet with young people in a place which is comfortable to them and us. Who would have thought that hot chocolate would have been so powerful!

34th Glasgow Girls’ Brigade

We are now back after our Christmas break and we are already very busy completing badge work.

Our group of Brigaders are doing silk painting, which they seem to be enjoying very much. As part of their badge work the Junior section are learning about Health and Hygiene. They are learning how to take care of their teeth, hair, nails, body etc. Over the weeks as they cover each part of the body, they will fill up a wash up bag with all the necessary things they would use soap, facecloth, shampoo, toothbrush, toothpaste, nail brush, deodorant etc.

We will be attending the Girls’ Brigade Glasgow Divisional Parade on Sunday 17th March at Renfield St. Stephens Church.

The date for our Display this year is Friday 17th May in the Govan Campus next to the Fire Station on Govan Road. Tickets will be on sale nearer the time and we hope to see you there!

On Friday 24th May we will be off to the PGL Outdoor Centre at Dalguise. We stayed there last year and the children had a great time. They were kept busy from the moment they woke up until their bedtime and had a fantastic time. The girls who are going this year are already very excited about our trip.

Sandra MacDonald

Weekly Free Will Offering Envelopes

We still have some of the Weekly Free Will Offering Envelopes available. These envelopes mean we as a church can claim back the tax on your offering which means if you put £1 in the offering bag, we get £1. If you are a tax payer and put £1 in an envelope we get £1.25! This makes a big difference to our offerings so if you have been wondering why some people have envelopes and some people don’t, that’s why and if you would like to join the gang please speak to either June Little or Sandra Harvie. And if you decide to take them we thank you in advance .

Renovation Fund

Thank you to everyone who has donated to the above fund. At the time of writing we are approaching £4,400. Our next venture is the Table Top Sale. We have had lots of interest and by the time you get the magazine I am hoping we will have reached £5,000.

Our fundraising efforts will continue, so if you have any filled Smartie tubes or donations then please hand them to me on a Sunday.

Thank you for your continued support, Sandra

Tearoom

The Saturday tearoom opens up again on Saturday 16th February. If you would like to help out at the tearoom just speak to one of the gang, you will be more than welcome.

Kids Corner

Luke 5.1-11 Holocaust Memorial Sunday G&L 27th January 2013.

In the passage we heard today, we encountered the well-known story of Jesus calling his first disciples. He had walked along the shore-line towards Capernaum, a fishing village. And when he got there, crowds gathered, wanting to hear him speak – so he got a local fisherman to push his boat out a little onto the lake. And with the hills forming a natural amphitheatre, he was able to speak to the crowd and be heard. That was important. But equally important were Jesus’ plans for the fishermen, especially the one who had pushed out his boat.

When the talking was over, instead of asking the fisherman to return to the shore, Jesus told him to push the boat out further into deep water, and to let down the nets for a catch. Peter was a fisherman. He knew the lake. He knew where its feeding runs were, where the shoals gathered like clouds, looking for plankton. He had been out all the previous night and they had caught nothing. But when Jesus told him to let out the net, even in daylight, the net was filled to breaking point by teeming, glinting fish.

And Peter, recognising the gulf that lay between him and Jesus, said’ Depart from me Lord, for I am a sinful man.’ But we know also that Jesus asked him to follow, and for him and his fishing partners to learn to catch men. And from that moment, when they left their nets, a whole world opened out before them. It was a world their fathers, Zebedee and John, never dreamt of, as they fished the lake all their working lives, but for Peter and Andrew, James and John, it was a new life, the kingdom coming to them, and nothing would ever be the same again.

So this is a story about following, without knowing where; and the harvest of the sea as a promise, a symbol, of the fruit of God’s kingdom. And it is about knowing ourselves and, tragically, how immeasurably cruel and base humanity can be. ‘Cast the boat out into the deep waters’. Into the place where we do not know what we are capable of, where the weather around us hurls up the huge waves that threaten our destruction, where we are told continuously that the boat on which we sail is perishing, then the unspeakable becomes permissible.

They say that people do things for only two motives: love and fear. And if you create an atmosphere of fear; if you raise the spectre of greed and self-interest and tell people they are its victims; if you create, on the one hand, a picture of blood-sucking disloyalty and set it, on the other hand, into spiralling poverty, humiliation, and deep seated insecurity about the future; if you do all this, deliberately and cynically, no-one knows how they will react.

All across Europe, there were those who were enjoying the discomfiture of the Jews: when their property was confiscated, when they were removed from the top jobs and the best schools; when they were sealed in the ghettoes, and when they were taken to the camps. And all over Europe, even in Germany itself, there were those who saw what was ahead, and did their best to shield the Jews from the coming destruction. Many of them died in the attempt: the professional and influential men of the Kreisau circle who were hanged on meat hooks; Jane Haining, the Scottish , who went into the camps with her Jewish, orphaned children from Hungary; , who was a member of the Nazi party, who saved 1200 Jews by setting up factories where he said he needed their skills for the war effort. He survived until the 1970s and after he died was taken to Israel to be buried in Jerusalem – one of the righteous among the gentiles. He had requested a burial there –

He said, ‘My children are there’.

So, following: one of the key responses of our bible passage, would we have followed those we have just named, the resistance, or would we have followed the crowd, happy to have someone to blame for all the problems of economic disaster, ready to join our voices to the prejudice and hatred that was building around the Jewish community, turning a blind eye when they came for them at night, refusing to believe, as was rumoured, that they were being systematically destroyed. Perhaps they couldn’t believe it because it was just too great an offence to take in.

‘And they left their nets and followed him’. We can follow to a whole flowering of life, to a harvest that glitters and grows before us, as the disciples did, or we can follow to the destruction of life. We can set our motivation on the love of Christ – or we can set it on the fear that fosters and relishes every ill and imagined ill caused by those who are different from us.

Cast your boat out into the deep waters, and look at your reflection there. You do not see Nazi supporters, of course not, no-one is suggesting that.

So what do you see? What do you see?

Let us pray.

Lord forgive us for the seeds of fear we allow to germinate, for the spoken and unspoken prejudices we nourish. And as we remember all those who died in genocides across the world, for reasons of creed or race, for being different from their oppressors, may we commit ourselves again to the nothing of small kindnesses, to hope for our neighbours, to justice and to love, for Christ’s sake. Amen.

Contacts:

Rev Dr Moyna McGlynn Rev Judith Breakey Minister Associate Minister 01414190308 07858507282 07908860997 [email protected] [email protected] Rev Andrew Thomson Paul Cathcart Pastoral Assistant Youth & Children's Outreach & 0141 641 2936 Development Worker [email protected] 01355 243970 07708396074 Elsie Donald [email protected] Session Clerk 0141 883 0995 Gillian McIlreavy [email protected] Communication Co-ordinator 07811332632 Frank Brown Church Office Tel: Treasurer 0141 445 2010 0141 892 0283 [email protected] [email protected]

Kenneth Naismith Parish Assistant 07789764105 [email protected]

We now have a website which is: www.govanlinthouseparish.org If you have any feedback on the site we would be delighted to hear from you.