not loving Oxford

Today - Pentecost - was the occasion of the fifth Love Oxford event: a combined churches jamboree celebration/praise-up/open-air-preach/whatever. This year was the first time I deliberately stayed away. I've blogged before (and before) about the event. Indeed, re-reading what I wrote last year kind-of explains why I'm not there this year, to my surprise (the blog has value even if no one else reads it!). Our church supports the event (and cancels normal activities to allow people to attend) so missing it seems a little naughty.

To be glad of staying away is surely a symptom of a changed understanding in me: a few years ago, I'd have been exceedingly in favour of such a visible, open demonstration of Christian unity around the gospel. But today, not so much. Part of me wants to say 'why invest all that effort?': couldn't the time and money better be spent in serving this community and its needy? But that would perhaps to be to miss the point: extravagent acts of worship are not condemned by Jesus - when they come from the heart, that is. And it would be unfair to suggest that those leading the event are not also very active - much more than me - in practical aid locally and further afield. But the whole thing still leaves me uneasy: it's just a little too ebullient, a little too suffused with evangelical certainty, a little, well, to be honest, creepy.

So instead, I did my own ecumenical thing, and went to St Matthews, the church near where I live (they too are notional supporters of Love Oxford, but not to the extent of, well, giving up their normal activity to attend). I was struck by the fact that I was probably above the median age of the congregation (perhaps considerably so ... there were a lot of children, and many of their parents could be younger than me) - a novel experience. I was struck by the inclusivity of it all (though I've no idea really whether an 'uncurched' person would find it so). I was very struck to see young children participating in communion: it's something I've tended not to like the idea of, but it seemed to happen with much care and reverence from even the youngest, and so was rather lovely. I was struck by a certain timeless quality to the music . I was struck - as I always have been at St Matthews - by the sense of it being the community coming together to worship, rather than it being a 'service' provided by a 'clergy'. So, despite not loving Oxford, it was a morning of refreshment and renewal, and altogether a good way to celebrate Pentecost.