LET THE BELLS RING
South Delta has a municipal bylaw prohibiting the ringing of church bells. No such law exists in the Swiss city of Zurich where Cathy and I are spending our vacation hosted by clergy friends. Daniel's church has five large, magnificent, melodious and loud bells.
They ring on the hour and the quarter hour - 24 and 7. They ring for 15 minutes before lunch, at the end of a normal workday and on Saturday night to remind people that Sunday - the day of rest is coming.
We often identify our greatest life challenge as having too much to do and not enough time. What if our real problem is having lost the eternal perspective, we make poor choices with time and priorities.
I have been thankful for the bells of Zurich. They have called my attention to things eternal and spiritual. They have called me from what I think is important to reflecting on God's priorities.
Their melodious chimes have moved me to offer a prayer, to express my thanks or to reflect on a particular issue.
They remind me that to live and love effectively and to make good choices I do need sleep, Sabbath and sustenance.
As the gospels record the life of Jesus, it was clear that he knew that life was more than "busy" work. Prayer, rest, food, Sabbath, meaningful work - they were all important to his accomplishing God's mission. Perhaps it is time we had some church bells a ringing in South Delta.
Jim Short can be reached at [email protected].
