Your Family, Our Family

            So here’s Jesus and his followers are resting in the house after a very long day.  There’s a knock at the door, and a message is delivered: “Jesus, your mother, brothers and sisters are outside asking to see you”.  And Jesus responds in an unexpected way. He gestures at all of the people in the room, and he says, “These are my mother, my brothers and sisters.  Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother”.  The first time you read this story, it sounds disrespectful, but as you think about it you realize that from the very start Jesus was trying to inspire a new consciousness about the meaning of family.  It’s not a put-down of his relatives; it’s an invitation to experience your family, our family, in a new, expansive way.  Your family may be the group that lives in your house, but our family is something much larger than we ever imagined. 

One big family of faith gathered in peace at the world table, it’s a beautiful experience,  But the truth is that our usual experience of the world is disunity.  Among Christians, between nations, in our own community, and sometimes even in families.  And the saddest part of this is that instead of joining with Jesus to overcome disunity we accommodate ourselves to it, drawing dividing lines, building walls, living with suspicion and distrust.  

            Let me tell a story about New York City, where I saw the separation of people overcome by what I can only credit as the work of the Holy Spirit.  It was while riding on the subway.  In case you haven't heard, many people consider the subway to be one of the worst places to be in New York, the kind of place where your eyes are always ready to spot danger.  Beyond the danger, the underground trains are frequently very crowded, especially during rush hour.  Do you know the unwritten rule that all subway passengers must follow?   Never look anyone else in the eye.  Read your paper, read the advertisements on the wall of the train over and over again, anything but look at anyone else.  [Instruction:  Look all around the room but without actually looking at anyone]

            One subway ride gave me a brief look at what life could be like.  It was a steamy hot day up on the streets, which meant that it was even hotter down below.  And the heat became intolerable when our bodies were crushed together.  When the train began to move out of Times Square, it began to careen back and forth and we nearly fell over each other, for there were many more people than seats or handholds. 

We had just left the station ... when the train stopped dead in the dark tunnel, broken down during rush hour.  Many words in many languages were said in the dim glow of the emergency lightening, all expressing the same frustration:  hot, crowded, and going nowhere.   But then the voice of the train conductor spoke to us from the loudspeaker above our heads.  He knew exactly how we were feeling.  "Good afternoon, folks,"  he said in a cheerful voice that seemed way out of place, "we've got a little delay, so why don't you take a moment to get acquainted, smile, introduce yourselves."  It was like a magic spell had been broken.  We began to laugh and chat with our neighbors, and suddenly things weren't so bad anymore.  [Instruction:  Now, look all around the room and make eye contact with as many people as you can!]

            It was a gift, an amazing, spiritual gift on the subway that day.  For a brief moment, we recognized not only how much we had in common, but also how easy it was to bring us together.  The insight broke through the heat and the frustration, it broke through the fear and the prejudice.  It was a new experience.  We laughed and made friends with complete strangers.  What fun to be on the subways of New York with our family!  

            In a traditional church communion is a designed to be an intensely private moment between you and God.  We close our eyes, hold our hands together in prayer, and try to shut out the distractions of the world. 

But today on World Communion Sunday our instruction to you is different - as you share the bread and cup – look up, look at the people around you, make eye contact, smile, laugh, and enjoy this knowledge that you belong to a big family in Christ.  That’s what the Lord’s Supper is on World Communion Sunday.    A celebration of the family of faith – pull up a chair!