Saturday Night Life (for the preacher)

New Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell’s recently published On Priesthood belongs with a few other Saturday Night reads for the preacher. There are times when the sermon is ready (or as ready as it will ever be), but the preacher isn’t ready. On Priesthood will gladly take its place alongside Bishop Bo Giertz’ Then Fell the Lord’s Fire, a series of ordination sermons from one of Sweden’s great bishops. Both of these works are enCOURAGEment. They both speak gospel courage straight—direct to the heart. They put the voca into our particular vocation. This is important because we are messengers who have received a message. Before we dare speak on behalf of God, we hear from God. 

The shape of Cottrell’s book is determined by the ordinal, the ordination rites from the Book of Common Prayer. The exhortation in the service for ordaining priests (presbyters) includes “the five-stranded cord” (Cottrell, 25) of servant, shepherd, messenger, sentinel, and steward. Cottrell’s reflections on each are biblical, beautiful and broad. Each chapter is grounded on the biblical witness, and supported by the breadth of Christian witness across the various streams in the Anglican Communion as well as the church catholic. 

My Saturday night’s will now include alternating between the current Archbishop of York’s book and the former Bishop of Gothenburg’s book. Both will remind me of the those who stand behind me.

In Giertz’ great book, The Hammer of God, a young preacher finds himself late for the worship service because of a series of events beyond his control and even standing in the pulpit without his own sermon. Just in time he finds a book of sermons from another preacher. After the service a lay leader comes up to him, "Thank you Fridfeldt, thank you! Today you were a powerful preacher." The curate reddened. "Not I, sir." "No, of course not, my boy. I know that. Schartau stood behind you, and behind him stood Jesus only. A good preacher must always have someone behind him. And everything must come from that One. If it can then take its way through the preacher's heart, so much the better. And this sermon went through the heart."

These two books are great reminders of those who stand behind you.