Richard Dawson, 4 December 2015

I’m speaking about the art of being gentle today. It seems like such a simplistic notion when put this way and surely not something that might be at the heart of what it means to be a Christian, and yet my belief is that it is neither simple nor unimportant. Indeed given humankind’s penchant for violence it may be one of the hardest things to establish in our culture here at Leith and in the Church. Make no mistake about it, however, gentleness is a quality that speaks of Christ more than just about anything else for it is the larger part of grace. Gentleness is the ’softness of God’s ways with us’ in the face of God’s grace. As the prophet Elijah was to discover, God doesn’t come with the great wind, fire or earthquake but in the stillness of the night—the softness of God’s touch. And the great question that we must continually ask ourselves is—are we like this? As God’s people and as children of Christ this is what we must aspire to because this is what Christ was like. He was One who wouldn’t ‘break a bent reed or snuff out a smouldering candle.’ And He is like this with us. He is not our accuser. He is not our punisher and He is not our critic. Jesus is, rather, our friend. Those who made the greatest impression on me in childhood for the Gospel were just that; friends, and I am so grateful for their soft touch. You see it was something that really made me sit up and take notice for I could not understand it. I could understand those who disliked me and who told me off and who punished me but those who were patient and loving and gentle—they were a complete mystery! How do we think others see us? Are we considered gentle? Do they trust us? Is our presence welcome? Are we considered someone with whom others can share deeply and expect understanding rather than criticism or rejection. Think on it. We are called to be gentle.