Given that the name St George is probably one of the most well-known on
the lips of English people, surprisingly it is unlikely that most of those same
lips would be able to tell you anything about him. He is the patron of our
country and countless organizations. Yet in spite of St George having parades,
a national day in his honour, together with a flag and medal named after him he
lives a somewhat reclusive life in the minds of most. This of course isn’t
helped by the countless legends that have grown up around him. Over the decades
even the Catholic Church in England appears to have been uncertain as to what
to do with him, as we have watched his ranking in the Church calendar move from
one position to another.
The truth is we know very little about St George, but what we do know
and what he symbolizes is sufficient to give us plenty to reflect on. He was a
Roman Military officer under the emperor Diocletian and was Martyred by
decapitation as far as we know on April 23rd in the year 303. This
was part of the pre Constantinian persecutions aimed specifically at Christian
military. Miracles surrounding St George started to be collected and he was
canonized in the year 494 by Pope Gelasius.
While the image of George slaying the dragon persists, his true legacy
of course lays in his unwavering faith and martyrdom. Is it time then to
dismiss and bury the image of this mythological creature? Well perhaps George
and his dragon have more to teach us than we might at first suspect.
Dragons still roam our world today in the guise of sin, hatred,
violence, poverty and greed. We find them embedded and breeding fast within
secularism and of course a glance in the mirror will confirm that we also can
all too easily grow dragons’ scales that can only be stripped away by divine
power.
Today’s Gospel doesn’t beat around the bush. ‘If the world hates you, be
aware, that it hated me before it hated you’. James in his letter re enforces
this warning ‘Happy the man who stands up to trial’. We are being warned that
following Christ is a difficult path to tread and one that daily requires us to
re ask the question ‘am I truly ready to follow him’? It may involve upsetting
or alienating people along the way. Of course, this should never be our
intention but may very well be the end result. Following Christ can sound and
appear very romantic. The truth is however, behind the bells, incense and
glitter lays a harsh reality and one that George knew to his cost. If we choose
to wholeheartedly follow Christ it will require more than lip service. Like
Jesus we as his followers will find ourselves becoming more and more
countercultural. Are we prepared to face the possible anger, rejection and
alienation that comes from following Christ? Do we trust Christ sufficiently to
give us the strength we need? Do we simply follow the crowd or like St George
make a conscious decision to follow Christ and Gospel values.
Please God none of us here this morning will ever have to face laying
down our lives for Christ as George did. We will however on a daily basis have
to be prepared to give up large chunks of it. Only we can choose. Will we
through grace slay the dragon or will we follow the crowd.