It was when the National Lottery was introduced and the Church of Scotland’s Board of Social Responsibility was discussing gambling at one of its conferences. I pointed out that since the War there had been a succession of reports to the General Assembly opposing gambling in principle. One young buck chimed up: ‘What war was that?’ Cue much laughter. If he was trying to make me feel old he succeeded.
But there is a serious point here. For most people of my generation there was only one ‘War’. Our parents served in it or at least lived through it. They had memories of friends and relatives who had suffered or died. And it became a big element in the consciousness of those who came after them. My father rarely spoke of his experiences in the Royal Navy but the War was in the books and comics I read and in the movies I watched. War heroes were held up to us in Church and school as role models. So for me it will always be the War and why I appreciate times of commemoration like today. It’s an opportunity for grateful remembrance but also for wholehearted commitment to work and pray for peace.
Much has been written about the effects of the war on the British people, leading some commentators to speak of ‘The Greatest Generation.’ Others have respectfully offered some caveats but no one could deny that six years of austerity, danger and loss can shape a people in some way. Perhaps not everyone came through it well but it was a time when many were challenged as to future priorities and aspirations.
Endless comparisons have been made between the War experience and what we are going through now. A few voices are cautioning us not to push this too far. But there is surely no doubt that there has never been a time since the War when the UK as a whole has been under such pressure at so many levels from a single source. What will be the effect upon us?
An American comedian Alex Watt wrote and article for a recent New Yorker magazine entitled ‘When This Is All Over.’ It’s one of those light hearted pieces that makes serious points. Here is his opening paragraph:
‘When this is all over, I will never turn down an invitation to a party. Not that I get many, but, hey, maybe that will change when everything is back to normal. Well, not normal. Back to different? The new normal I guess.’
He has certainly got something right. When this is all over it will be ‘back to different’. The interesting thing throughout the article, however, is how he sees himself changed. Some of it is frivolous and good for a laugh but the message is he cannot avoid being changed by this experience.
His final words:
‘When this is all over, I will appreciate everything . . . the little things.’
We will be changed. No doubt about that. But what kind of ‘changed’? Getting back to that man Paul again. He did not just speak about the possibility of men and women being changed, he spoke about men and women becoming a ‘new creation.‘ In 2 Corinthians 4: 6 he takes us back to the dawn of Creation when God said: ‘Let there be light.’ He sees the follower of Jesus as someone who has received this light in their hearts in order to see the revelation of God in Jesus. This is as much an act of Creation as that which brought about the Creation of the Universe. Something new has happened in the inner life of the believer, a new relationship with God and the blessings that flow from that, not least the possibility of transformation in their lives. It is on this basis that Paul can say:
‘If anyone is in Christ they are a new creation.’ (2 Corinthians 5: 17)
There will inevitably be many visions of what the future holds post-Covid-19, many of them hinging on political change. What must not be forgotten is that vision that comes from the promise of the Lord Jesus. It reveals the purpose of God through the whole of human history, what might be called the Great Project. Jesus said:
‘I will build my church and the gates of Hell will not overcome it.‘ (Matthew 16: 18)
We’ve been singing about this for decades. Sometimes we get carried along by a tune without reflecting on the words. But Julia Ward Howe has entered into the purpose of God in ‘Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord’ when she has us sing: ‘His truth is marching on . . . Our God is marching on.‘ As Paul might put it the labour pains are now being experienced throughout this ‘old and weary earth’ but a New Creation is coming in which a new humanity will dwell.
In a recent press briefing Andrew Cuomo, governor of New York, said: ‘The bad news isn’t just bad. The bad news is actually terrible.’ The followers of Jesus may have said something like this on Good Friday. But Easter was coming.
