MARK 14:22-26
One of my favorite things about being Disciples of Christ is weekly communion.
It’s my favorite moment of worship, pretty much every time.
In the Disciples tradition, we uphold the idea of the “Priesthood of all Believers.”
In our church this means we all have an opportunity to serve one another at the communion
table. I’m amazed both by the depth of brokenness and the profound healing
that is shared in what we call our “show and tell time.” It’s simple, really; people bring
something that helps them see God, and they tell the story about how it helps them do
that. From there, peoples’ lives are broken open and shared in a way that allows all to be
nourished by that brokenness. We tend to think of being broken as a bad thing, which is
understandable, especially in a culture that holds up perfection as the only true ideal.
But whereas the world may suggest that imperfection is justification for an extreme
makeover, we as followers of Christ see that in that brokenness that we find the jagged
edges in ourselves that fit together with others.
Jesus was big on finding power in brokenness too. In fact, he took the bread at the
heart of the Jewish Seder meal and gave it new meaning in its broken-open state. He
took what was a part of each of their daily lives, blessed it with new meaning and shared
it with others. And we’re called to do the same.
“Remember me,” are two central words in the act of communion. For some, the
command simply means to recall, to think back and not forget. But “re-membering” at
its heart means to restore something that is broken to wholeness. It’s one thing to take a
piece of the bread offered to you with thanksgiving; it’s another to see it as a charge, a
challenge, as if each person in the room were given a piece of a puzzle and told to work
together to make something cohesive of the pieces.
This is the Gospel – the good news – to me. If we allow ourselves to be broken
open and shared, there was, is and will be enough. The people of my church are a blessedly
broken lot. There are addicts in recovery, felons seeking a new path, excommunicants
who vowed never to darken the door of a church again and life-long
questioners. Our stories are beautiful, heartbreaking, hilarious and profound. But they
have no power until uncovered, broken open and passed around.
In blessing others, we are blessed.
In feeding others, we are fed.
In being vulnerable enough to share the deepest parts of ourselves, we all become a
part of a greater whole.
That is what re-membering is all about.
Prayer: God, may I experience the re-membering of your of your love for me and
all my blessed-ly broken brothers and sisters today and always.
Amen.
Christian Piatt serves at Milagro Christian Church with his wife, Amy. He
is also co-convener (with sandhya and others) of the upcomingMissional
church conference called “Playing with Fire.”