Worship June 10, 2012

June 10, 2012
 The Pastoral Prayer
 Gracious and loving God, we gather here on this Sunday, the feast of Corpus Christi, not to remember a Jesus from long ago, but to celebrate his presence here among us in song, scripture, sermon, and wine and bread. We are thankful that in him, you too, are present with us. We are thankful for the gift of this glorious spring--even as our temperature has risen this week, and pray for those whose weather has not been so kind--especially for those in droughts in the Southwest United Sates and in sub-Saharan Africa. Rain down your love and your water on your children. We pray for our county and for its people. We pray for economic and spiritual renewal, and that you will use us to be a part of it. We pray for our state and those who serve it. We pray especially for our Governor John, our Senator Kris, and our Representative Jay. We thank you for their service and ask you blessings of wisdom, mercy, and justice be upon them. We pray for our church--your church--as we face difficult times. Help us to hopeful without being Pollyannaish. Help us to realistic without being fatalistic. Remind us that we belong to you, and that you love us very much. We pray for the sick and the suffering, that you will bring your healing touch--both for those named and unnamed. We pray for all who service our country at home and abroad, and that you will bring them all home safe and sound. There are things on our hearts and minds which we have not spoken. Hear us even in our silence, O God. We pray in the name of Jesus, our Savior. Amen.

 Mark 14:22

While they were eating, he took a loaf of bread, and after blessing it he broke it, gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.” 23Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks he gave it to them, and all of them drank from it. 24He said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. 25Truly I tell you, I will never again drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.” 26When they had sung the hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

 “This Is my Body…”
One of the options for this second Sunday after Pentecost is the observance of the feast of Corpus Christi--Latin for the Body of Christ. It is primarily a Catholic celebration and a chance to visit the doctrines of the Catholic Church as they pertain to the celebration of the Eucharist, Lord’s Supper, or Communion--three different ways to say the same thing about what happens at the Lord’s Table when we gather.

 Even though we are not Roman Catholic, I thought this would be a good occasion for us to visit some of the beliefs we share as Disciples about the practice of communion. This sermon will be a bit different that usual as it will be something of a doctrinal sermon--which is a neat trick in a church that has no official doctrines about anything!

The thing we can say, then about our doctrine of communion is that we have no official doctrine! We entrust our members to think for themselves, but we offer tools to enhance that thought and stimulate conversation. I hope that today’s sermon will provide such stimulation for each of you. We have no official theology of communion, but the Preamble to the Design for the Christian church offers this simple yet elegant sentence: “At the table of the Lord, we celebrate with thanksgiving the saving acts and presence of Christ.” The primary author of that statement was Ronald E. Osborn, one of the great thinkers of the church in the last century whom I was honored to know as a friend.

 With this statement, the church affirms several things about the Lord’s Supper. First of all, it is the Lord’s table, not ours. We cannot be territorial about what is not ours in the first place. More on this later. Secondly, communion is a celebration, not a morbid memorial. My two favorite communion hymns are, “I Come with Joy,” and “A Hymn of Joy We Sing,” which we will sing in a few minutes. The table is alive with thanksgiving and joy and is the place where we meet the Jesus of history and the Christ of faith, as we recognize his presence among us. More on this later as well.

Next, the nature of communion is covenantal and sacramental, not ordinal. In the Christian Church, we used to speak of baptism and communion as ordinances--things we do because Jesus ordered us to. Now we speak of baptism and communion as sacraments. What’s the difference? An ordinance is something we do. A sacrament is something God does in us. Sacrament is defined in various ways but the one that makes the most sense to me is that it is a “tangible sign of an intangible grace.” The bread and wine which we take are not necessarily a means of grace in and of themselves, but signs that we are already blessed by God and tangible signs and reminders of that grace. Ronald Osborn referred to communion (and baptism) as a covenant-sacrament--in which we pledge faithfulness to God, and God promises faithfulness to the church. 

Next, our celebration at the table is universal.  We believe that we are not alone when we gather at the Lord’s table. We share this table with others across the corner and around the world. It’s no wonder, then, that World Communion Sunday was founded by Jesse Bader, a Disciples minister who worked for the Federal Council of Churches--the predecessor of the National Council of Churches. We Disciples have held Christian Unity to be of the utmost importance (Barton W. Stone called it our polar star) from our very beginnings. The table is the most visible sign of that when the church gathers--even in our separate buildings.

At the table of the Lord, we celebrate his real presence--though not in the same way as our Catholic brothers and sisters. In Catholic theology, when the priest prays for the Holy Spirit to come over the elements of bread and wine, they actually become the body and blood of our Savior. You can bet they’re trying to explain that across town at St. Peter’s this morning. We can respect that belief, but we don’t share it. For Disciples, the real presence of Christ at the table is not in the elements of bread and cup, but in the community which gathers to partake of them. Remember what Jesus said in Matthew 18--“Wherever two or more of you gather in my name, I’m there with you.” At the table of the Lord, we celebrate his real presence.

And finally and most importantly, for Disciples, the table is always open and inclusive! We emerged as a Christian movement in the early 19th century when communion was the property of the clergy--to be granted or withheld on a whim. Alexander Campbell and others saw communion as too important to the life of the church to be held captive by anyone, and so we serve at a table at which we are not hosts. Christ is the host, and the elders, deacons, and minister are merely servants--here to help guide those who would approach the table to experience the presence of Christ. There’s and old invitation to the table with John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, used to offer which goes something like this: “All who have faith in Christ, and those who would have faith are welcome.” I like that, because it leaves the invitation out there for all, as I would believe Christ would.

 Several weeks ago, when we had our Children’s Sunday, our kids were sitting up here in the choir when the communion trays were passed, but they were bypassed. I know that it is our tradition to serve only baptized children, but I wonder if we ought to think about that some more. For me, I find it difficult to think that the Jesus who brought children close to him and blessed them would push them away from the table. Something to think about.

T his week, I received a pastoral letter from our General Minister and President, the Rev. Dr. Sharon E. Watkins. The subject of the letter was Sexual Orientation--on which she readily admitted that we are not of one mind. But the thrust of her letter was about the Lord’s Table, where we gather gladly as Christians gay or straight, conservative or liberal, or any other division you can think of. This is possible because what brings us together around the Table is not politics or views on social matters or even theology. What brings us together at the Lord’s Table as Disciples is our love of Jesus Christ. The table is more than just open--it is all-inclusive.

The celebration of Lord’s Supper is covenantal and sacramental in nature. It is a sign of the oneness of the church. It is a memory of Christ’s saving acts as well as a recognition of his presence. And the table is open and inclusive to all. This, my sisters and brothers, is good news for us, good news for Mansfield, and good news for the world. Amen.


Offering Invitation God is good. God works for the good. It is natural that we, the benefactors of all that God-given good, are grateful. We express our gratitude with our service, with our use of our time, and with our financial resources. Our offerings will now be presented.
Prayer God of goodness and generosity, thank you for everything you have given us. We worship and praise you with our gifts. Our prayer this morning is that through us the world will see Christ’s light and come to know your goodness. Please take our gifts and use them to strengthen the ministry of the Christian Church—here at home and everywhere in the world. Amen.

Benediction 
Go out into the world in love and peace--witnesses to what you have experienced in song, scripture, sermon, but mostly at the table of the Lord--in the name of the Father, Son, and Spirit. Amen.