Abbot Cuthbert Madden
Dedication of the Abbey Church
1 Corinthians 3.9-11, 16-17; Luke 19.1-10
We have just listened to the story of the tax collector, Zacchaeus. It is the Gospel which for many centuries has been read on the anniversary of the Dedication of a Church. At first sight it seems rather a curious choice: it has nothing to do with a building, rather it is the story of a man who in his own time was known to be a public sinner. So why is this Gospel put before us today?
Luke tells us five things about Zacchaeus: first that he was a senior tax collector. This meant that he was a Jew working for the Roman occupying forces and so was regarded by his own people as a traitor and a public sinner. Secondly, we are told that as a result of his collaboration he had become wealthy: his money was tainted; it was not acquired honestly. Thirdly we are told that he was short of stature: he could not see over the heads of those in front of him in the crowd. Then we are told that Zacchaeus was reasonably fit: he was able to climb up into a sycamore tree. Finally we are told that he wanted to see Jesus.
This last quality is his most important quality – and it should pose a question to you and to me. Zacchaeus really wanted to see Jesus. This was very important to him. It was so important that he was prepared to look foolish if only he could look at and so come to know this man everyone was talking about. When the man in the sycamore tree set eyes on Jesus his life was transformed: ‘Zacchaeus, come down. Hurry, because I must stay at your house today’. And for Zacchaeus life was never the same again. I think that this is the reason why this gospel passage is used today: the Church is the place where you and I, using the eyes of faith, can see Jesus Christ.
But do we really want to encounter Jesus? Do we want to know Jesus? And if we do, how is that to be achieved?
This building has been dedicated to the service of God: we regard it as a holy place and treat it with respect. It is a place of peace and quiet. But peace and quiet is not what makes this Abbey Church holy. This Church is made holy by what happens here. So what does happen here? First of all people, Christian believers, meet here to pray. Jesus tells us in the Gospel that where two or three meet in his name he is present in the midst of them. When we meet: monks, students from the College, staff, parents, friends; when we meet here for prayer Christ is present among us: we encounter Christ. Today we have come here for Mass. At Mass we listen to the Scriptures being read to us: and when the sacred Scriptures are proclaimed in the gathering of the faithful God speaks to us as directly as he spoke to the prophets of old, as directly as his beloved Son spoke to his Apostles. This is why it is important that those who read should prepare the readings and proclaim the words as clearly as they are able. Here we listen to the Scriptures being explained and, perhaps, in that explanation discover something more about Jesus. Most importantly, in this Church we come to the sacraments and, most especially, to the Eucharist in which we receive the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ who suffered, died and rose from the dead in order that you and I might be saved from the power of sin and might live with the new life of Jesus Christ.
And, finally, this is a place where we can encounter Jesus when we are alone: when we have a particular difficulty or a special joy which we want to share with our Lord and Saviour. For in this Church we reserve the Body of Christ in the tabernacle. Even when the Church appears empty, when we come into the Abbey we are in the presence of God. In short this Church is a privileged place in which you and I can encounter God; it is a place where many generations of people have encountered the God who loves them.
As we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the dedication of this Church I would like to invite all of you here to make good use of our Abbey. Try and set aside time to visit the Church and pray here. This is our Church: it belongs to all of us gathered here. It becomes our Church more and more as we use it as a place in which to discover the Lord who loves us.