The Archbishop Does it Again!

Whether or not our Archbishop of Canterbury manages to pull a rabbit out of the hat in Tanzania remains to be seen.

In the meantime, however, he is publishing a new book which is being serialised in the Church Times. The book is to be called 'Tokens of Trust: An Introduction to Christian Belief' - and if the serialisation is anything to go by, promises to be an absolutely fascinating read.

In this week's edited highlight, he sets forth the theory that God's entire agenda for the world can be summed up in two words...just two... "peace" and "praise" (drawing from the letter to the Ephesians).

It's a fantastically clear thought...and seems to me to sum up Christianity just beautifully...

Peace: First of all the peace between humans and our creator, brought about by Jesus on the cross. Secondly the peace which exists - and must exist- between human beings themselves if they will but grasp the nettle of 'peace on earth and goodwill to those on whom God's favour rests'. In Williams' words:

"The world he (God) has made is designed to become a reconciled world, a world in which diverse human communities come to share a life together because they share the conviction that God has acted to set them free from fear and guilt."

Read that again! It's worth letting it soak in!

Then Praise: Williams says: "This reconcilliation [i.e. between God, humans and each other] liberates human voices for praise, for celebrating the glory of God who has made it possible from the beginning. This is what God is after, and there is no hidden agenda - nothing is kept back"

Think on these things. Williams' mind is worth the effort!