The Gospel in the Middle of The Table

   Over the centuries, the church has given a variety of names to the meal that Jesus instituted as a commandment for those who follow him. We know it as the Lord's Supper, is breaking bread, the divine liturgy or mass, the service of table, or the sacrament of holy communion. It is known by all these names but none is more ancient than the name Eucharist. It is a Greek word that literally means thanksgiving. This sacrament, passed down directly from Jesus Christ to his followers and referenced throughout the Gospels as the center of worship for Christians, was named early on for the central prayer of thanksgiving, or eucharistia. The Eucharist is and means thanksgiving.
   When trying describe what the bible intends for our meals together, James White, noted United Methodist professor of worship, places thanksgiving at the top of the list. He writes, "It is hard to imagine thanksgiving as absent from the joyful action that bubbled over as the Jerusalem church broke bread with glad and generous hearts" (in Acts 2:46). In fact, Jesus lived out this thanksgiving with every meal he shared with his friends and followers. Thanksgiving is at the center of the Gospel.
   What we do this week, gathered around tables, is the very stuff of the Gospel. Thanksgiving is the good news. We sit and are thankful. We are nourished by what, for the most part, others have gathered and prepared. We suspend rivalries and enmity and celebrate. We slow down long enough to appreciate what we have and from where we have come. All of this is Thanksgiving and all of this is the life of faith. This is what it means to do life together as Christians. 
   You are in my prayers this week. Wherever you are, you are loved. You are forgiven. You are blessed and you are called to be a blessing. May these days find thanksgiving at their center. Grace and Peace, Scott

It is Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving, Norman Rockwell

   It is the Lord's Supper. It is breaking bread. It is the divine liturgy, or mass, or the service of table. It is the sacrament of holy communion. It is known by all these names but none is more ancient than the name Eucharist. It is a Greek word that literally means thanksgiving. This sacrament, passed down directly from Jesus Christ to his followers and referenced throughout the Gospels as the center of worship for Christians, was named early on for the central prayer of thanksgiving, or eucharistia. The Eucharist is and means thanksgiving.
   Beyond a variety of names this sign-act commanded by Jesus had nearly as many metaphors to describe it in the early church. They wanted to explain what the experience of breaking bread together meant to them. The New Testament contains at least six of their attempts: communion fellowship, remembering the historical act, sacrifice, mystery, the work of the Holy Spirit, and thanksgiving. James White, noted United Methodist professor of worship, places thanksgiving at the top of the list. He writes, "It is hard to imagine thanksgiving as absent from the joyful action that bubbled over as the Jerusalem church broke bread with glad and generous hearts" (in Acts 2:46). In fact, Jesus lived out this thanksgiving with every meal he shared with his friends and followers. Thanksgiving is at the center of the Gospel.

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   Which brings us to this week. What we do this week, many of us separated by miles but all still gathered around tables, is the very stuff of the Gospel. Thanksgiving is the good news. We sit and are thankful. We are nourished by what, for the most part, others have gathered and prepared. We suspend rivalries and enmity and celebrate. We slow down long enough to appreciate what we have and from where we have come. All of this is Thanksgiving and all of this is the life of faith. This is what it means to do life together as Christians. 
   You are in my prayers this week. Wherever you are, you are loved. You are forgiven. You are blessed and you are called to be a blessing. May these days find thanksgiving at their center. 
   Grace and Peace, Scott

Happy Birthday Church

   Birthdays are special times. 
   They’re times to remember, to celebrate milestones, and to have fun. I have a friend who celebrates her birthday all month long. She jokingly says, "it was a long labor." I think she is funny. I also think she has it right - birthdays should be bigger than one day. Birthdays allow for other days to follow.
   We celebrate the birthday of the church in worship this Sunday. It was around this week almost two-thousand years ago - possibly in the year 26 AD - that Luke tells us in the book of Acts that the Holy Spirit came down upon the people and the church was born. We call it Pentecost, because it was 50 days after the Resurrection. 
   A lot happened in those first days and weeks. The scriptures tell of thousands coming to believe in the story of Jesus. In a matter of days new believers were sharing the story in parts of the world that those first disciples would have never heard. A lot has happened since those first days. The church has spread around the world. It has changed the methods and means of telling the story over time in order to win more people to the love of Christ. 
   There have been rough patches, and not everyone got along, but we still believe that churches and denominations all over the world are working alongside of us to proclaim the Kingdom of God. Within the Methodist movement alone, there are approximately 75 million members around the world, who are a part of over 1.5 billion Christians worldwide. While we often feel isolated or fear that the great things we believe the church stands for are becoming things of the past, the truth could not be any different. The church in the United States is indeed undergoing massive shifts, but many of these shifts are more related to how much the American form of church has become tied to our American culture. Beyond the US, the church is growing and changing lives at a rapid pace. Our church has the chance to shine the light of Jesus into the lives of families and persons and share with them the very same power that first captured the hearts and dreams of those first disciples on Pentecost. 
   So Happy Birthday to the Church. There are a whole bunch of people celebrating today.
   Grace and Peace, Scott