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PREACHING WITH A TERMINAL ILLNESS
Michael Wenham
Michael was an Anglican vicar, most recently serving in Oxfordshire. He preached for 25 years until he was forced to retire in 2009 due to a version of the terminal illness, Motor Neurone Disease, which causes progressive muscle weakness, affecting speech and ability to walk among other things. He was diagnosed in 2002 and continued to preach as his disability worsened.
The illness affects Michael’ s ability to speak, but he found ways to accommodate this while he was preaching.‘ Is it too glib to say the Holy Spirit helped me? I would always ask,“ Father, what do you want to say to these people today?” As my illness progressed I used Powerpoint more, for obvious reasons. People could see what I was trying to say. It wasn’ t the easiest thing for me because I tend to be more informal, rather than preparing a lecture. Lecturing is a dreadful way to teach. The Latin word‘ sermo’ means conversation, so I believe that sermons should not be lectures; they should be conversations between the preacher and the people. I try to do less talking down to people and more talking with people.
answer, but what I have found is that God is faithful always.
‘ I was supported by my congregation. They wept when I wept, and they laughed when I laughed. With Motor Neurone Disease, you can’ t control your emotions properly. Eventually as a vicar, they saw my weakness; they didn’ t see me as a leader on a pedestal. They were seeing me.
‘ So the diagnosis made me more vulnerable in preaching. I think that’ s very important now. Writing or preaching where we are not vulnerable … it’ s not honest.’
‘ The first time I preached after my diagnosis, I broke down and cried – howling uncontrollable sobs. Really I was telling my congregation about my diagnosis [ rather than preaching ]. I was very fond of them and it upset me. I had been processing the information before then with my family, my wife and so on – but not yet with my church.
‘ I told them that, although I was ill and struggling, I still believed that God is love. I still believe that God loves me today. I think adversity itself is the best sermon.
‘ After the diagnosis, I was very open with people about what I was feeling; I was more honest in my preaching. I didn’ t worry about giving people the right answers. I had been a rather conservative teacher who didn’ t want to get it wrong. I didn’ t want to teach heresy or something. The congregation discovered that their vicar found life a struggle, and I was just like them. Everyone finds life a struggle, but too often preachers give the impression that there are neat answers for everything. But we don’ t know all the answers. I am now content to say: I don’ t know the
THE LATIN WORD‘ SERMO’ MEANS CONVERSATION, SO I BELIEVE THAT SERMONS SHOULD NOT BE LECTURES; THEY SHOULD BE CONVERSATIONS BETWEEN THE PREACHER AND THE PEOPLE. I TRY TO DO LESS TALKING DOWN TO PEOPLE AND MORE TALKING WITH PEOPLE.