Keep Calm and Carry On
Category: Sundays after Pentecost
Speaker: The Rev. Shearon Sykes Wiliams
The Very Rev. Shearon Sykes Williams
Saint George’s Episcopal Church, Arlington, Virginia
Twenty Second Sunday after Pentecost
October 20th, 2013
KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON
A few months ago, our parish administrator Melanie Gray came into my office on a particularly full day. I was busy answering emails between meetings. In the distance all morning I had heard people coming and going, bulletins being collated, and the phone ringing. In the midst of all this she came in and held up a poster that said in big bold letters, “KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON.” We had a good laugh and she said she was going to put it up in our volunteer office. I told her I thought that was a great idea.
The poster made me wonder about its history. I knew it originated in WWII England and that the slogan had been popularized a lot in the last few years, but that was the extent of my knowledge.
So, I googled it and found a very interesting You Tube video about the history. ‘KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON” was the third of three posters produced by the British government in 1939 during the build-up to World War II. The first two were displayed in public places all across England at the outset of the war, but the last one, the simplest, and most direct one was held in reserve. It was only to be disseminated in the event of a full-scale invasion. Thousands of “KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON” posters were waiting in the wings for just such an emergency, but they were never used.
One of the posters was rediscovered in 2000 when a book dealer found one in a box of books that had been bought at auction. She thought it might have vintage appeal, so she put it up in her bookshop and it was so popular with customers that she had them reproduced for sale. And the slogan immediately went viral. There was clearly something about this old message, from another time and vastly different social and historical context that captured the popular imagination. “KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON.” My hunch is that we like it because it is quintessentially British.
But I think that there is something much deeper at play. Even though we live in very different times, we do live in tumultuous times. “KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON” is a timeless message. It reminds us that when the world around us feels chaotic, we are called to stay grounded, put one foot in front of the other, and work for the common good.
The first century Christian version of “KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON” is today’s reading from the Second Letter of Paul to Timothy.
“But as for you, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it…I solemnly urge you: proclaim the message; be persistent whether the time is favorable or unfavorable…carry out your ministry fully.” 2 Timothy 3:14-4:5
The author of Second Timothy is either the apostle Paul (who did more than any other person in the history of Christianity to spread the good news of Jesus,) or a close colleague of Paul’s. Whomever the author, he speaks with great authority. He is speaking out of years and years of experience of founding and leading churches. He shares his accumulated wisdom with Timothy, a younger church leader, about how he should respond to trying circumstances. He tells Timothy to stand fast, to continue to do what he is called to do and not to get distracted. “Proclaim the message” of Christ. “Be persistent.” “Carry out your ministry fully.”
This is a timeless, foundational Christian message. When the things that give us a worldly sense of security are in doubt, our faith is not in doubt. Whether the time is favorable or unfavorable, whether the government is open or closed, we do what people of faith have always done. We pray, we worship, we serve, we hold the light in the darkness for one another and we remind ourselves that all will be well. We keep calm and carry on. We put one foot in front of the other, continuing to do what God is calling us to do. And we do that knowing that we are walking into God’s vision for us, one step at a time.
The vision that God has called us to at Saint George’s is a beautiful one. In the last few years, God has inspired so many wonderful things in us. We have strengthened our outreach ministries, expanding our long-standing Food Pantry ministry that has continuously fed people every weekday for many years and well as deepening our partnership with ASPAN to offer HOST, our evening feeding program. And just last month, our vestry voted for us to become provisional members of VOICE, an organization that enables Christians, Jews and Muslims to work for the common good on important social concerns such as affordable housing. This work allows us to address some of the root issues that bring people to our feeding ministries.
God’s vision for us has inspired a new Montessori formation program for our youngest children. Catechesis of the Good Shepherd has required extensive preparation of materials and yearlong training for our teachers. It has required commitment and persistence, and so many people are carrying out their ministry fully in order to help our youngest know that Jesus loves each of them deeply and tenderly. This understanding will take them through times in their lives that are favorable and unfavorable. They will always, always know that the Good Shepherd is there leading and guiding them no matter what. And that is the best gift that any of us can possibly receive.
Gods’ vision for us enables people to feel the love of God when they come to Saint George’s. Week after week, newcomers tell me how energized and welcoming Saint George’s is. They appreciate our emphasis on inclusion and are amazed at the depth and breadth of our ministries-from the contemplative richness of the Urban Abbey to the strength of our pastoral care to the quality of our music ministry. ALL of these things work TOGETHER to form a beautiful whole. Newcomers feel inspired and want to be a part of what God is doing here. And long-time members have the profound joy of sharing our life with others.
We are richly, richly blessed my friends. We come together to pray, to worship, to care for one another and to serve- to serve God, to serve each other, and to serve the world in Jesus’ name.
Serving the world in Jesus’ name is what the church was called to in Timothy’s day and it is what we are called to in our day. And that knowledge is deeply grounding as we each prepare to carry out our ministries in the coming year.
Today begins our fall giving focus, and each of us will receive a packet from our Stewardship Co-Chairs, Bob Clarke and Rebecca Argon as we leave church today. Inside is a sheet that asks us to consider our gifts of time, talent and treasure as we go forward- in confidence- living out God’s vision for us.
The time, talent and treasure pledge form is an invitation to go home, light a candle to remind us of God’s never-failing presence, give thanks for all of our many blessings, and make our offerings. We make those prayerful decisions based on what we know RIGHT NOW, not allowing anxiety about the future to take hold. And the most important thing that we now RIGHT NOW is that God is with us and that God has always been with us, and will continue to be with us. Each one of us is very important in making God’s dream for us a reality. And we know that TOGETHER, as the people of God at Saint George’s, we can make a profound difference in the world. As we look forward to the coming year, we stay focused and grounded, “KEEPING CALM AND CARRYING ON,” knowing that we have important work to do and that God is with as we do it.
“But as for you….proclaim the message, be persistent, …carry out your ministry fully.”
References:
1. “The Story of Keep Calm and Carry On” at www.youtube.com
2. Feasting on the Word, Year C, Volume 4, Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010. Editors David L. Bartlett and Barbara Brown Taylor, 2 Timothy 3:14-4:5, page 182-187.