October 7, 2022
Gathering: From Sweden to Corinth to First Covenant—Part 1
I am currently teaching a study on 1 First Corinthians at the Shores. The church at Corinth was probably the most diverse church in the first century. That church’s diversity became particularly evident when they gathered, manifesting itself in divisions. Preparing for this study has brought gathering to my mind. It also has brought back to mind one of the most profound experiences of gathering I have ever had. It was when Susan and I visited Sweden for the first time. My father’s relatives took us to the Johansson homestead. They arranged with the current owners to take us onto the farm that my great-grandfather once owned, and into the farmhouse in which my grandfather was born. After visiting the homestead, they took me to the grave where my great grandparents were buried. There I stood at the head of their grave, surrounded by my father’s cousins, their spouses, and their children; none of whom my father ever met. In that moment I had a profound sense of identity that I can only describe as feeling at home.
The painting of the Johansson farm, given to me by the Johansson clan, shows the farm house, second from the left.
I think that’s the way Paul wanted the people of the Corinthian church to feel. Of course, Paul wrote to them because he thought they were missing the mark. Paul used two words in particular to describe what gathering in Christ should be like. The first is anamnesis. It is the Greek word that sits behind our English term “amnesia.” It is usually translated it as “remember,” which is accurate. Except that the opposite of this kind of re-membering, is not forgetting, but dis-membering. When the Jews gathered for the Passover they were re-membering the Jewish community, present and past. At that time, they often gathered in Jerusalem, coming from far and wide, to celebrate the Passover. But they were also gathered as those people who left Egypt after eating a meal, and moved forward with hope in God’s promises. This was communicated by their re-enactment of the first Passover meal. So when Jesus said to gather in anamnesis of me, when was inviting the people who shared at the table in his name to gather as the Body of Christ, the church, physically together and connected with the faithful throughout time. (1 Corinthians 11:24-25)
The other word Paul used was koinonia. This word is translated in many different ways in the New Testament. It is often translated as the English word “fellowship,” but is translated in 1 Corinthians as “participation” or “sharing” when referring to our experience of receiving the cup and the bread of the Lord’s Supper. (1 Corinthians 10:16-17) It literally means “joint sharing” or “co-owning.” When we gather in Christ’s name, we are sharing in the life of God in Christ through the Spirit, even as we participate together as the Body of Christ in the Spirit. So when we gather in Christ’s name we are connected to our sisters and brothers in Christ, and regardless of what categories the world may put on us individually, we gather as one in Christ. And that not only makes us feel at home, encourages us to invite others to come home to Christ.
Of course this is not easy, and—then and now—we fall short. But we continue to gather in Christ’s name to build up the community. Both by growing in faith and love, and by adding new members to our community.
Autumn is a season of gathering. Let us strive to gather well, with God’s help.
Pastor Todd