Wilberforce Homily

Today we celebrate the feast day of William Wilberforce, a Member of Parliament or MP in Great Britain from 1780 until 1825. There are times in the course of this vocation when I am awed, humbled, and spurred to action by the stories of others; as I researched the life and work of Wilberforce all three happened. He was elected as an independent MP at the age of 21, and just short of his 30th birthday he introduced his first anti-slavery bill to Parliament. The three and a half hour speech that went along with the bill's introduction concluded with this sentence, "Sir, when we think of eternity and the future consequence of all human conduct, what is there in this life that shall make any man contradict the dictates of his conscience, the principles of justice and the law of God!"
Having been found by God in his mid-twenties and having been convinced to stay in politics by none other than John Newton, a former slave ship captain turned Anglican Priest and author of the hymn Amazing Grace, Wilberforce worked tirelessly to maintain his independence from the party system that was in place at the time. He voted by merit, making all decisions based on his Christian faith for the up building of the kingdom of God, not necessarily the Kingdom of Great Britain. In a time when "religious enthusiasm was generally regarded as a social transgression and stigmatized in polite society" (wikipedia) Wilberforce wore his faith on his sleeve. He championed such causes as the introduction of Christianity to the British colony of India, the establishment of a free colony for Africans in Sierra Leone, the development of the Church Mission Society (CMS), and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA); both of which exist to this day.
Every year for 18 years Wilberforce and his small group of abolitionists introduced a bill for the end of the British slave trade, which finally found popularity in the House of Commons in 1807. The final 26 years of his life were spent arguing for the complete end of slavery in the British Empire, which depending on which source you read happened either three days before his death or a month after he died. Either way, by 1834, the year after his death, all 800,000 slaves still held in the British Empire were set free.
Wilberforce's life puts to rest the idea that one can only serve God as a missionary or priest. As this august group is not doubt aware the kingdom of God is not the exclusive work of religious professionals, but the work of each and every follower of Jesus Christ. As Jesus described, "Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me" The Kingdom life is found in the service we offer to others, the way we spend our money, and the way we vote. William Wilberforce lived the kingdom life and the Church offers his servant ministry to us as an example of how we too might work to usher in the kingdom. As the collect said, "my we have grace to defend the poor, and maintaing the cause of those who have no helper..." Amen.