Melodies of Heaven
My home country, New Zealand, is often called “the land of birds.” As an archipelago of lush and isolated islands in the far corner of the South Pacific, New Zealand is free from most land-based predators, which has enabled birdlife to flourish. When Captain James Cook arrived on its shores in 1769, he observed that the birdsong was deafening.
Within this symphonic mix, an especially interesting native bird is the tui. Physically beautiful, its dark, iridescent feathers are offset by a dramatic white tuft nestled under its throat. But what is most striking about the tui is its song. Regardless of where you are or what you are doing, it is difficult not to stop and tune in to its exotic and mesmerizing harmonies. This rich sound arises from the fact that the tui has two voice boxes that work together to create what could be mistaken as music from another world. The tui is literally “one flesh” with two voices. Like two instruments in conversation, a tui in song is essentially playing a duet.
This, I believe, is compelling imagery for envisioning the nature and vocation of Christian relationships. Men and women are created in God’s image; they are complex, relational, and complementary beings. The bold assertion of the Christian vision of life is that human flourishing—indeed, our very telos—is to live in deep and harmonious relationships. This vision is not just the reserve of marriage but extends to social relationships within the wider community of faith and beyond.
This vision for relationships connects to the incarnational mission of the church in the world. As we pursue and progressively come to embody tender, trusting, and committed relationships, we effectively play the melodies of heaven. It is this distinctive music that causes others to stop and pay attention within the jaundiced romanticism of our culture’s quest for intimacy with no strings attached.
Stewarding this journey within the church is a challenging vocation for Christian leaders, who need to be more than spiritual “tour guides” on a Sunday. It involves creating, nurturing, and encouraging contexts in which people can become known within the community of faith. Moving from good intentions to practical reality in this area will constitute a significant prophetic statement within a culture that heralds privacy and personal autonomy as cardinal virtues. Indeed, in order to protect the relational life of the church, we need to name these seemingly benevolent predators. In other words, in forging relationships of honesty and trust, we first need to acknowledge that church communities are not immune to the cultural zeitgeist.
Jesus has swallowed up death, and one day—as Paul says—we will be swallowed up by life.1 It is the privilege of Christian leaders, indeed of all disciples, to foster communities of faithfulness and joy that begin to live into that future reality now.
1. 2 Cor. 5:4.