Journeying from past to the future

The other night, I decided to stop into a Bible Study that is led by Pr. Gary. We were talking about the Last Supper, it's Jewish roots and the way that it has been celebrated throughout the centuries in the church.

When Jesus celebrated the Lord's Supper, it was really a celebration. Passover was a commemoration of God's deliverance of the Jews from slavery in Egypt. There was wine and food, and ritual, and good conversation. The wine was there, so was the flat bread and the sacrificial Lamb. When Jesus picked up the bread and said, "this is my body" everything changed. The ritual was broken and something new was begining the past was becoming the future for those that followed Jesus.

One of the components of Passover was the empty seat at the table that was reserved for Elijah, who it was said would come to usher in the time of the messiah. It was the cup reserved for Elijah that Jesus picked up after supper and who said, "this cup is the new covenant in my blood, shed for you and for all people for the forgiveness of sins." Jesus claim was that the messiah had come, in spite of Elijah's absence from the Passover.

Yet, there was a time that Elijah came, with Moses, who led the people out of Egypt. They met Jesus and a few of his disciples on the mountain at the transfiguration. In that event, God was drawing together the past, present and future into a single scene. God's blessing was on Jesus to bring the past and the future together.

The people of Israel celebrated their deliverance at the time of Jesus, in spite of the fact that they again were occupied and again were under another power's political authority. This is a miracle of faith.

We have much to learn from the Jewish people, when we reflect on our own lives and our hearts are heavy. There is strength in weakness, there is light in darkness.

The other night I was talking with some people and a question arose about where people get their hope. What came out of that conversation was an incredible witness to the power of hope when things are very discouraging, dark and when weakness is all one can feel. Stories flowed freely and the depth of pain expressed was almost tangible. At the end of each story emerged an inexpressible sense of hope. It was against logic and reason, but it was real. God was in the middle of all of it. It was as though God's own hand carried us through these stories into hope and light.

I felt so alive, so connected to everything. I only pray that I may have the courage to go to those places with others so that new hope may emerge. It is in confronting and confessing the darkness of our past that the future may show hope and promise, as God showed to us in the night in which the Lord was betrayed.

Peace to your house.