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“Oh My, Oh My” – A Christian response

wind in the willows 380CWRegular columnist John Myhill responds to what he sees as some of the good, and not so good, things happening in the world.

“Wind in the Willows” starts with the light and the smell of Spring reaching the Mole in his underground home, so he comes out, meets the Water Rat and discovers the delights of boating on the river. All he can say is “Oh My, Oh My!” 

For me, this is the starting point of being a Christian.  When I attended the Waterfront in Norwich, to support a disabled friend at an Under One Roof event, I was taken with all the fascinating people I met there: “Oh My, Oh My” - what wonderful diversity, what hidden talent is being wasted by our free-booting multi-nationals.  Christ did not patronise the despised and rejected, He was one of them, and they are the easiest people in whom we can find that of God shining forth.
 
When I heard of Jeremy Corbyn’s victory, all I could say was “Oh My, Oh My”.  At last we have a younger generation who relate to those forced to use food banks, those forced to live on our streets, those working long hours just to survive.  Matthew 25: 31-46 is taken seriously, and the rich goats will be cleared from the Temple.  We recognise a fellow Christian by their compassion for those in need.
 
I hope the Ecumenical service on the tenth day of tenth month at 2-30pm at St Stephen’s to mark World Mental Health Day, will be an opportunity for the churches to give a voice, and thus dignity, to all those suffering distress.
 
I am sure most of us are, like Mole,  full of wonder for the achievements of science, from my new hip to the decoding of DNA, but the greatest wonder is discovering the remarkable fact of consciousness - that of God found in everyone we meet, that Emmaus moment when we truly recognise one another - “Oh My”.
 
So when I heard a rather depressing talk on how our country is falling from the middle to become one of the lowest providers of renewable energy in the world (well below China), I was able to hold back my cynicism and simply wonder at the knowledge and experience of our speaker, allowing my Mole “Oh My”.
 
When I discovered that Norwich has an arms manufacturer (MSI) who participates in the world,  ‘weapons of war’ fair in London, (the source of all the refugees not produced by climate change); I concentrated on the workers, who could be producing something useful like agricultural machinery; but who do not even have a Trades Union: “Oh My”.

People I know think of OM as the Order of Merit (highest award in the British honours system) whilst for most young people it is the start of OMG!  But, if you want to hold back your cynicism and connect to the Light, remember that “Oh My” is the start of the Buddhist meditation “OM”.
 
The above image is courtesy of Paul K via Wikipedia Commons
 


 

JohnMyhill450John Myhill is a Norwich Quaker, retired magistrate and author. His blog is at http://johnmyhill.wordpress.com/

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