“The Olympic ideal emphasizes excellence, friendship and respect while bringing the world together through competition that transcends politics.” 

I have been thinking about the Olympic flame, and how the torch is carried by a series of runners until it reaches the site of the competition (this year the Winter Games in Italy).

This week I listened to an interview featuring actor Sir Patrick Stewart, who said that his experience carrying the flame was one of the great moments of his life. “I was not prepared for how emotional it was,” he said.

I can understand how it affected Stewart so deeply. Because the central ideals of the Olympic Games are so powerful and so needed in today’s world, and the flame shines out as a bright symbol – not just of excellence and competition, but of peace and of community, and of the ascendency and the resilience of the human spirit.

What a thrill for those who get to carry the torch!

We have a light to carry too:

So now I can’t help but think about the beautiful symbolism of all that candlelight – torches – spilling out of our church doors and onto Saint Patrick Street Christmas Eve. And we all stand together, outside, still holding our flames, singing “Joy to the World!”

Symbolism, yes, but also a very real and powerful invitation.

I see videos of Olympic Torch Bearers jogging along past thousands of people lining the streets, cheering. Cheering not just the runner but the ideal and the dream.

What if we all were more deliberate about taking our light from the church this morning after worship, and holding it up in defiance of the darkness? What if we lived in and with such radiance that people cannot help but notice whose torch we are carrying and what message we are representing?

The mandate of the Gospel is clearly light and life and it is – as Jesus still says – the best of good news. Let’s make sure such an invitation into light is the message we take to the streets.

Jesus said: “The Spirit of the Lord is on me.
    He has chosen me to tell good news to the poor.
He sent me to tell prisoners that they are free
    and to tell the blind that they can see again.
He sent me to free those who have been treated badly
    and to announce that the time has come for the Lord to show his kindness.” – Luke 4:18-19

Taking it to the Streets – DEREK