What do pop song royalties and cathedral building tell us about how we could pray and think for our churches? 

Recently, the name Cat Janice has gained attention on social media for a heartbreaking reason. She is currently in hospice care, battling cancer. However, what’s amazing about Cat is that she is a talented songwriter, and she’s ensured that her son will be taken care of after she’s gone through the royalties earned from her music.

People worldwide have come together to support Cat by sharing, streaming, and playing her music, even though many of them have never met her. It’s a beautiful reminder that, as a community, we can come together to look after someone we’ve never met or seen.

This act of kindness reminds me of the concept of “cathedral thinking”. Cathedral thinking involves thinking beyond the present moment and considering the future generations who will inherit it. In the Middle Ages, people would construct cathedrals that took years and years to build, possibly well past the lifetimes of those who initially dreamed up the idea. Cathedral thinking asks us not just what we will get out of something now but what people will see in the future.

As Christians, to quote the Oscar Romero Prayer, “We are called to be workers, not master builders, ministers, messiahs, and prophets of a future, not our own.” We must take the long view and care for those we may never see with our words and actions. In Matthew 25:40, Jesus says, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.” This is a reminder that we must prioritise building God’s Kingdom where all are cared for, welcomed, and transformed by the grace of Jesus. Do we think about our churches and our faith as something on offer to people we may not know or never get to know because they are not even born yet? To care for those outside of our walls? To care for the strangers? 

Let’s pray that we build a cathedral of faith that survives long after we are gone, caring for those in need even when we may never meet them. May we, like so many supporters of Cat, inspire us to think beyond our desires and prioritise the well-being of others.

The Romero Prayer 

It helps, now and then, to step back and take the long view.

The Kingdom is not only beyond our efforts; it is even beyond our vision.

In our lifetime, we accomplish only a fraction of the magnificent enterprise that is God’s work.

Nothing we do is complete, which is another way of saying that the Kingdom always lies beyond us.

No statement says all that could be said. No prayer fully expresses our faith. No confession brings perfection. No pastoral visit brings wholeness. No program accomplishes the church’s mission. No set of goals and objectives includes everything.

This is what we are about.

We plant the seeds that one day will grow. We water the seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise. We lay foundations that will need further development. We provide yeast that produces effects far beyond our capabilities.

We cannot do everything, and realising that creates a sense of liberation. This enables us to do something and to do it well. It may be incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way, an opportunity for the Lord’s grace to enter and do the rest. We may never see the end results, but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker.

We are workers, not master builders; ministers, not messiahs.

We are prophets of a future, not our own.

Link to article about Cat Janice: 

https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/tiktok-musician-mother-cancer-song-b2484945.html

Link to Radio 4 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m000gl8n