I love it when Bible study and world events collide, as was the case with the sermon by Bishop Michael Curry in the Royal Wedding of Harry and Meghan, now the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. It was a sermon the world needed to hear.
Bishop Curry diverted a bit from usual royal pomp to deliver a spirited sermon you are more likely to hear in an American church on Sunday morning rather than in an English castle at a royal wedding (especially given it went longer than the allotted time). It was heartening to see the biblical message of love preached in St. George’s Chapel to royals and entertainment icons as well as to a viewing world. The bishop pulled from the gospels, Paul’s letters, and Song of Solomon to challenge the world that if it discovered love in the same way it discovered fire, the world would change. He asked us to imagine a world, a home, a community, a neighborhood, where love is the way.
We need that discovery.
As I watched video of the sermon (I did not get to see the wedding ceremony) and absorbed Bishop Curry’s message of love, I couldn’t help but juxtapose this message over lingering news reports of the Santa Fe shooting where 10 lives were lost in a senseless act rooted in evil and hate. And you wonder: Is hate winning? If we were to somehow weigh the amount of love in the world and the amount of hate in the world, which outweigh the other?
Of course, this question is nothing new. It was posed by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in 1863. He was listening to Christmas bells (pealing out a message of love) while receiving horrific reports from the American Civil War (a definite representation of evil). He later penned the words that have come be a beloved Christmas carol. Here are the stanzas that measure the balance between love and evil:
And in despair I bowed my head;
“There is no peace on earth,” I said;
“For hate is strong,
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!”
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The Wrong shall fail,
The Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men.”
There is great resolve for us to imitate in the line “Then pealed the bells more loud and deep.” We cannot control the worldwide scales between love and evil. We can only add our contribution to the love’s weight by obeying loudly and deeply the love that Christ compels us to live and show.
Barry Shafer
InWord Founder/Director
For your ready reference, here is Bishop Michael Curry’s sermon: