We live in a sharply visual world. On our computers WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get). News selection is often dominated by what news editors can illustrate. It is said that we take in much more of what we see than of what we hear and this fact is sometimes used to criticise lectures and sermons as poor methods of communication. Why is it that what we see is often so much more convincing that what we hear or read? And how does this connect with Jesus saying ‘Come and see’?

This week's news 

TV reporters are sent out in terrible weather to stand in front of an empty Palace of Westminster (or wherever) to add pseudo-realism to a story about MPs who may actually be miles away. Reporters are flown into disaster zones, perhaps using helicopters that could deliver relief, to make the story live; yet until we see such pictures, will we respond to appeals to help? Recently reporters went in, sometimes in boats, to stand in their Wellington boots in the midst of floods in the Somerset Levels and to explain that people were having trouble getting out to shop or visit the doctors. Such flood stories are still in the news this week. But however ridiculous some of this may be, news reporters don’t do it for fun; they do it because we, the consumers of news, believe what we see, and don’t always believe what we can’t see.

Some things are more visible than they once were. People with mental health issues frequently live ‘in the community’ and are visible rather than being hidden in ‘asylums’. On the other hand, while it was once expected that relatives would wish to view a body before burial, today that is rare. It seems that there are some circumstances in which we do not want to be invited to come and see!

Jesus said ‘Come and see’ in today’s Gospel; but in John 20.29 he also spoke to Thomas about the blessings of faith without seeing.

Reflection

Consider how seeing is often believing. Last year, an acquaintance encouraged me to ‘Come and see’ the Kirchentag – a huge gathering of German Christians that takes place every other year. Until he told me that there was a significant English language stream, it had not occurred to me to go, but I went and saw; and I plan to go again in 2015!

Anyone looking for a house can now go onto Google Street View and find an image. My wife and I know from recent experience that this has changed the process of finding a new home significantly; the house with an untidy car repair operation next door was taken off the list in seconds!

When do we say ‘Come and see’? Perhaps when we are going to a film or play; or perhaps because describing something is hard.

When people were challenged to ‘come and see’ Jesus, what did they find? Do you think that it was easier to say ‘come and see’ in first century Palestine than it is in twenty-first century Britain (or wherever you are reading this)? What do you envisage to be the significant differences between the culture of ‘then’ and of ‘now’?

In what contexts might you be embarrassed or even ashamed to say ‘Come and see’? Why might that be?

Prayer

This is the Sunday in the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Consider making use of this year’s downloadable CTBI resources from Christians in Canada which use today’s epistle reading as a focus.

In your intercessions, remember those who find it hard to ‘come and see’ and those who find faith hard because of their experience with people of faith have let them down.

A theme prayer for use in place of the collect or to sum up intercessions:

Creator God,
help us to find a faith which is confident but inviting,
and help us to say ‘Come and see’ to our friends and neighbours
in ways that will draw them to Jesus, and through Jesus, to you,
our Creator, our Sustainer and our Life-giver,
revealed in many ways: God who was, and is, and is to come.
Amen.
 

Questions

• Consider the use of visual  in our news culture, using the example of reporters standing in flood water or similar. Consider together whether this may distort what we call news?
• Do events in conflict zones slip from our news when there are few pictures to show?

Action

To whom could and should you say ‘Come and see’? Think about these people? What will you invite them to come and see? And when will you do it? If possible, discuss these questions and your various answers in a group. And consider whether together you might have more courage to follow the ideas up.

Young People

When might you say ‘Come and see’? A YouTube clip? An unusual bird or butterfly? A glorious sunset? A wonderful view? Or a film? Have you said to a friend who does not go to church ‘Come and see’, inviting them to experience what your church is like? And, if you are reluctant to do it, why is that?

Dudley Coates is a Local Preacher in the North Dorset Methodist Circuit and a former Vice President of the Methodist Conference.

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