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Introduction:
Exile & Homecoming
Derek Poole
From
the Ardoyne Road...
Norman Hamilton
From
the Director
David Porter
Exile
and Homecoming
David McMillan
Be
Careful What You Wish For
Gareth Higgins
Bonfire
Reflections
Alwyn Thomson
Rights,
Relationships and Responsibilities
Kelvin McCracken
Wilson
On Suffering
Alan Wilson
Faith
and Practice - Debbie Watters
Ruth Hutchinson
Forgiveness
Janet Morris
EXILE
& HOMECOMING
The theme
of exile and homecoming invokes a rich biblical metaphor for the people
of God. The actual historical experience of exile was a defining moment
for Judaism and seen as a consequence of God’s judgement on the community’s
disobedience. Yet, paradoxically, the experience of abandonment and dislocation
did not result in despair but innovative theological reflection that enriched
Israel’s understanding of Yahweh and a deeper insight into the nature
of their divine vocation. The exile therefore represents profound loss,
which is deeply felt and cannot be minimised, but also startling recovery,
for hidden in the pain of defeat are the gifts of vision and the seeds
of restoration. The possibility of new fidelity, the rediscovery of essentials
and the energy to live differently are promises that are inextricably
bound to brokenness. As Walter Brueggemann suggests, “It is not an
overstatement to say that the exile became the matrix in which the canonical
shape of Old Testament faith is formed and evoked.”
It has been suggested that exile is an appropriate metaphor to describe the position and condition of the Church in a post-Christian world. The sense of marginalisation that the church feels in an increasingly secular pluralist society is just one symptom of a major shift in the Church’s location in the world. This sense of exile raises enormous issues for Christians in Northern Ireland who, as a result of the conservative effects of conflict, are encountering these changes relatively late. The issues, however, are now in our face and like Israel they raise for us a new set of theological questions. How can we make any ultimate truth claims in the ideological supermarket of pluralism? How does the story of an empty tomb resonate in a world of scientific reductionism? How do we speak of a value-based community in a culture of hedonism and individual greed? Or, to put it more biblically (and poetically), ‘How do we sing the Lord’s songs in a strange land?’
At the moment most of us are not sure as we watch the language of faith fall like the proverbial seed among thorns. However, in the movement towards answers is the future shape of out Christian witness as out of the judgement of exile the vitality of faith is reformed. I hope this issue of Lion & Lamb will be of some help on that journey.
Derek Poole - Editor
ECONI WELCOMES the submission of unsolicited articles, but does not guarantee publication, and manuscripts cannot be returned. Opinions expressed in the magazine are those of the contributors and do not necessarily reflect the views of ECONI. Permission to reprint any original article in Lion & Lamb should be sought from the Editor.
Editor
Derek Poole
Asst Editor Ruth Hutchinson
Design Colin Maguire
Cover Spring Graphics
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