09 April 2020 - Plague Journal Day 28

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

You may remember Sunday's post about missing Communion (if not, why not go review it? I'll wait here for you to get back. Right, here we go.), well today's is a bit of an extension of that, while also being a blast from the past. This is a devotion I wrote years ago for the GPUMC Lenten Devotions. I don't remember for sure when it was written, but it has reappeared a few times, and here it is again.
Why? Because today is Maundy Thursday, again, a day when I'm missing Communion.

Bread and Wine

Read: John 6:35-58, Hebrews 10:1-25

    Bread of the world, in mercy broken
    Wine of the soul, in mercy shed,
    By whom the words of life were spoken,
    And in whose death our sins are dead
    (from "Bread of the World" by Reginald Heber, UM Hymnal #624)


Communion. The Eucharist. The Mass. The Last Supper. The Passover.

What is it that happens when we participate in Communion? Are we commemorating the Last Supper? Are we looking forward to that Heavenly Feast? Are we celebrating a special closeness with the Lord Jesus?
Yes, we are.

The elements, the bread and wine, are taken from the Passover meal celebrated by Jesus with His disciples before His Crucifixion. They are a part of the tradition of the Jews from the days of the Exodus down to our own day, and they truly foreshadowed the sacrifice Christ was to make for us. So when we take Communion, we take part in that long line of history; but that's not the whole story!

"This is My Body" "This is My Blood" The ceremony, as completed by Jesus, not only took in the Passover, but the whole sacrificial system under which His people had been living since the days of Moses. Think what a devout Jew would have seen at the Temple: the sacrifice was literally a bloody affair. The blood of the sacrifice was sprinkled on the altar, and covered the sins of the people.

But what happens in Communion? The blood of Jesus doesn't merely cover our sins, leaving us needing another dose later. The blood of Jesus cleanses us from our sins; and the word in the Bible is in a tense that lets us know that it not only has cleansed us, but it keeps on cleansing us of all unrighteousness.

What is it that happens when we participate in Communion? We celebrate the amazing Love of God for us; a Love expressed in the life, death, and resurrection of His Son, our Lord – Jesus Christ. Feed on Him, and know that in Him you are forgiven.

Prayer:
Heavenly Father, I come to You confidently in prayer, knowing I stand cleansed by the blood of Your Son, Jesus. In His name I ask that the Holy Spirit who indwells me will make me ever more aware of the fellowship I share, both with You and with other believers. Thank you for the sacrament, and for allowing me to share in it.
Amen.

Thought for the Day:

    Too soon we rise; the symbols disappear;
    the feast, though not the love, is past and gone.
    The bread and wine remove; but thou art here,
    nearer than ever, still my shield and sun.
       (from "Here, O My Lord, I See Thee" by Horatius Bonar, UM Hymnal #623)

  Charlie van Becelaere

Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.

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05 April 2020 - Plague Journal Day 24 - Missing Communion

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

This Lent, in addition to the devotions found here, I've been going through a little book titled "40 Days with Wesley" by Reuben Job, and it's been a really delightful journey so far.

As you likely know, churches around the country are busy creating virtual worship services through YouTube and Vimeo and Facebook Live and probably Twitch and everything else remotely useful out there.
One thing that just doesn't seem to work virtually is Communion - the Eucharist - The Lord's Supper, and I'm not sure I understand why. Growing up, I remember always seeing in the TV Guide (gasp! how old are you?! You remember a printed TV Guide?!) that there was always a show on Sunday mornings called "Mass for Shut-Ins" on some channel or other. The Roman Catholic church at least thought that was something worth doing, but the current United Methodist leadership disagrees. We are enjoined from doing any kind of "virtual communion" services.

John Wesley encouraged the early Methodists to take communion weekly, and apparently took communion even more frequently than that. He urged us all to take advantage of all means of Grace available to us.

I've long had trouble understanding the difference between communion and an agape feast (or love feast). We have only two sacraments in the United Methodist Church - baptism and communion - and any Christian can perform the former at need, but only ordained clergy can perform the latter. Why is that?
As a church we affirm the priesthood of all believers, but in this one particular we don't. Do we believe that ordination - with the laying on of hands by a bishop - endows our clergy with magical or mystical powers? Perhaps.
Still, that doesn't really comport with the general tenor of Methodist belief. We have a "representative" clergy in our polity, and while we do have an episcopal model, there are real threads of congregational and even (shudder) democratic governance in the church. I have a feeling that the term "Methodist Mystic" would be seen as an oxymoron (I certainly don't feel that way, and would describe myself as one). So if there's not some magic going on, why can't we gather virtually around a virtual table?
Is it that - as a creed I can't quite remember said - communion provides a way to grace which only the church provides? (I'll update that if I can find the real line.)

In John 6:32-40, Jesus tells us that He is the Bread of Life. It is Christ whose grace we receive, not the church's. Further, while there is no question that communion is - at least in part - about coming together as a single body (the Body of Christ) to share a commemorative meal, it is also where each of us meets Christ individually and intimately. It is our taking part in His sacrifice for us that sanctifies our sacrifices for Him.
We are all - all of us - invited to the table of grace. As Reuben Job puts it, "The Lord's Supper is built on our oneness with Christ and with one another. At this table power flows equally to all; none is excluded, and none need go away empty." Later in this same reflection he says, "At the Lord's Table there is enough for all. No matter how broken, hungry, or needy I am, there is always enough of the bread of life for me. And my need does not prevent another's need from being recognized and met. No one is shortchanged or denied what is needed. My great need does not jeopardize the resources for my sister or brother. At the Lord's Table there is enough for all...."

So how are we to access this Grace? this Bread of Life? Is it only at the organized communion service of a church? I find that incredible, frankly. God offers us His Grace, His Life, His Love, and His Joy through Jesus at all times and in all places.
If our communion services are simply a reminder of this, then there is no reason to avoid it in a virtual meeting.
If our communion services are actually a mystical encounter with God in Christ through the elements, then there is no reason to avoid it in a virtual meeting: it is God who meets us, not the pastor who commands that the Holy Spirit endow the elements with their significance.

If you've read this far, I apologize to you for the sort of rambling presentation here, but I simply don't understand this, I guess. I've struggled with it before (see this posting from 2015), and I think I'll continue to struggle with it.

So, until we can meet together again and share the bread and wine, may God the Father grant that the Grace, Peace, and Joy of Christ rest with you through the power of the Holy Spirit, now and always. Amen.

Now, Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.