Remember

Exodus 12:1-14; Matthew 18:15-20

Each year at Thanksgiving many families tell the stories of past Thanksgivings. “Remember when Uncle tucked the tablecloth in his waist instead of the napkin? Wasn’t that a disaster?!” “Remember when Mom forgot to make the stuffing?” “Remember … ?” as we make lists of those who are now missing from the table.

We tend to forget things, events, people, so we have established rituals to help us remember the events and the meanings behind the events.

… It was just so in ancient Israel. Before they even left Egypt, God ordained a ritual to help them remember. God said: “Prepare a meal. Take the blood and paint it on your doorway. Share the meal, but eat it standing up. Do this every year, so you remember how I took you out of slavery and into your own land.”

Anyone who has attended a Seder meal knows how this story is told at length, with symbols to help them remember. A lamb bone, a dish of bitter herbs, a bowl of water, 4 glasses of wine, a basket of matzoh. As the meal is shared, it is as if the Passover were happening again, at that moment. Remember.

… As a Lutheran Church, we follow a Lectionary, a set pattern of readings. Some texts we read every year – Luke’s telling of the birth of Jesus. John’s telling of the crucifixion. Other readings are chosen to tell the story of Jesus and his teachings, so we get to know a lot about him. We read in this pattern, so we remember.

One of the things we tend to forget is how to get along together as a community. We want to take sides. We think we are right, and you-all are wrong. We draw lines in the sand. Our partisan politics, our redness-or-blueness, gets in the way of our remembering we are all family, God’s family.

So, this reading of Jesus’ instructions for making peace in congregations and other organizations serves as a welcome reminder for us. As we read through the step-by-step process, I suggest we are all pretty good, but not perfect, with the one-on-one step. Most of the time, we can say to another, “You hurt me.” And work together to find a solution.

We are perhaps better with step 2, working in a group. “You hurt us. Let’s see how we can find a way to reconcile our differences.” Maybe we can work our way to a win-win, or even a win-win-win. Step 3 involves more people, the church council or even the whole congregation, always with the same goal, resolving the conflict for everyone.

But, what if we can’t find a solution? Jesus says we are to treat that person like a Gentile and a tax collector. “Aha!” we think, “we can just ask them to leave.” But wait a minute. We are caught remembering how Jesus treated Gentiles and tax collectors. He talked to them, welcomed them, helped them become part of the group. Now we are stuck. We have to find ways to bring this person back into the congregation. We are required to keep trying. We have to remember.

… I know it is not easy to do this. In a previous congregation, John was a handful. He really meant well, but he was persistent in getting his own views across. He prefaced everything with four letters: IMHO. In my humble opinion. Except his opinion wasn’t so humble!

People began to complain and threatened to use this Gospel text “on him,” as he put it. John felt threatened that the council would vote to remove him from the congregation.

I believe that John mostly wanted to be valued. So, I did my best to pay attention to him. I was just being myself, doing what I always do. Unconsciously, I was working on the third step in Jesus’ process. I was helping John feel like a child of God, with his own ideas and idiosyncrasies.

When we have disagreements in the congregation, in the denomination, or even in our families, it is important to remember that Jesus has a recommendation for conflict resolution. It doesn’t fit all situations, especially abusive ones, but it does apply to most conflicts.

… These days we are remembering what it used to be like when we worshiped. We were all together, we touched and hugged, we sang with our beautiful and not-so-beautiful voices blending together to make a very joyful noise. I promise, it will be that way again, some day.

Worshiping together through computers is not the same. It does feel different. But when we gather today in front of computers, we are also together in Jesus’ family. Sunday comes with its rituals, its songs, its readings, and its prayers. We gather each week so we remember that we belong to God, and God wants to be with us. This has been true since creation and it will continue long after this virus ends and we can be together in person.

We remember that God was with Noah, and Abraham and Sarah.

We remember that God spoke to Moses and Samuel.

We remember that Jesus is God incarnated, God-with-skin-on.

We remember that an un-named woman anointed Jesus with fragrant oil. We remember that the tomb is empty.

We remember that God hears, pays attention to, our prayers. At the end of Matthew, Jesus says, “And remember, I am with you always.”

Let’s remember that we are family, ancient and modern, together in our love for God, and loved and cared for by God. Let’s remember that we are not alone, even in these strange times. Let’s remember that we believe in an amazing God.

Now is a good time to remember. Amen