Notes from a Sojourn
May 3, 2020
Crumbs and Scratches: A Community of Grace
Sermon for the Fourth Sunday of Easter, Year A
(Psalm 23; Acts 2:42-47)
The early chapters of the Acts of the Apostles describe what might fairly be described as the golden era of the church. Not yet tainted by the power of empire or the influence of state religion, still within memory of Jesus earthly ministry, the earliest followers of the risen Christ, who assembled in Jerusalem during those first weeks of the first Easter season, are sometimes thought of as the most genuine expression of the Christian church.
Acts 2 describes this community of believers as living together, constantly praying, sharing resources, caring for those in need, expressing gratitude, and generally living the life of Christ together. To many of us, they sound like the community wee all wish we were part of. Would that we all lived our faith with such urgency and passion, so as to count nothing else as important!
And in a phrase so familiar to us, even today, the presence of Christ is experienced by the faithful through "the breaking of bread".
Bread is an important part of our common spiritual practice. As a sacramental church, we give thanks as we encounter Christ's presence in the gathering of the community, in the scriptures, and in the bread and wine of communion. Some time ago, a mentor and colleague was telling me about her preference for using a small loaf of bread in the celebration of the Eucharist. I just about interrupted her, complaining that baked loaves can be so messy, compared to the pressed flour wafers we generally use in this parish. When I was finished speaking, she very patiently reminded me that when it comes to the community of believers who make up the Body of Christ, messiness is sometimes the point!
When I was growing up, my family home had a large dining table that just about formed the centre of our home. Though the table itself was really quite average, I always knew that it was somehow important that I should treat it with respect. Looking back, I have many memories of my family gathered around that particular piece of furniture. Several years later, I would find myself acquiring a table for my own young family. At first, I was very cautious with the new piece of furniture. I didn't want to scratch or dent it. But of course that level caution cannot last forever. Now, due to a few years of regular use, the table no longer looks new. It has some scratches, dents: signs of it having being used for it's intended purpose. Speaking with another friend recently, she casually observed that it is good to have a well worn table. I instantly recognized a simple concept that I had yet to articulate myself! Why shouldn't the tables of our household should bear the marks of their use?
A famous phrase from Psalm 23 says "You spread a table before me in the presence of those who trouble me." As the earliest followers of Jesus met in Jerusalem after the resurrection, their community was anything but perfect. If we read on, we will hear stories of rivalry, mistrust, infighting, and fear, as they face pressures from inside and outside their community. The early Christian movement was not utopia.
There were crumbs. There were scratches.
But maybe that's the point!
As the followers of Christ begin to articulate their faith, they begin to encounter God's grace in the midst of their community. The same is true for us. The revelation of God's love through Christ is experienced in all the messiness and imperfection of our own lives and those of the people around us. Together, broken and marked, we are the Body of Christ!
If during this time of struggle, we are feeling the difficulty of isolation, if we feel like we gather at the table with those who trouble us, if we begin to notice the crumbs and scratches of our shared life in community, Let us invite Christ into those places. Let us encounter Christ in the messiness and imperfection of each other, that the crumbs and scratches of our community may be transformed into symbols and signs of grace in our midst. Amen.
Patrick+
