As I was sitting in church last
Sunday, I was struck by our altar at St. Mary’s. It’s circular and although I’ve looked at it
hundreds of times, the circle just captured my attention. At St. Mary’s, when you kneel for communion,
you are always facing others like the disciples must have done when they
gathered around the table for that last supper.
Contrary to the DaVinci painting that shows all the disciples
conveniently sitting in a row for our viewing pleasure, they were likely
sitting around the table looking at each other.
Occasionally, smiles and nods are exchanged as we receive communion together, not as a singular act in a
single file line. We are communing.
The night before, we held a
special worship service in observance of National Recovery Month. We especially wanted to reach out to those
affected by addiction in all its many forms.
This Eucharist integrated the 12-Steps of recovery as defined by Alcoholics
Anonymous and other such groups. You may
or may not know that the co-founder of AA wrote that nearly all the principles he
later formulated into the 12-Steps were passed on to him through Dr. Sam
Shoemaker, an Episcopal priest. The
Episcopal Church: steeped in tradition but always blazing a trail even back in
the 1930’s.
As I looked at the freestanding
altar with its circular railing, I envisioned everyone that has gathered around
that table for so many years in all their brokenness and joy. All the different sorts of souls that have
come to that circle of healing. I was
remembering a former clergy who, during a sermon, invited anyone who wished
to come inside the altar rail, to lay a hand on the altar, and to see each
other as Christ sees us. It was a very
moving gesture and there were some tears shed.
[I discreetly took this photo nearly a year ago.]
During the Recovery Worship on
Saturday, there was a sense of healing in the church that night. The stories were varied – some came because
they are the only sober person in their family; others still struggling with
their disease; others to support those touched by addiction. One guest
came after receiving the news article about the service from her mother. She shared that her mother doesn’t speak to
her; we hugged and I could feel all the pain she carried with her.
There was wonderful music, a
hopeful message, and anointing for healing.
We recited each of the 12-steps throughout the service as a sort of
prayer. Our liturgy actually reflects
the 12-Steps - no surprise if you know about relationship between the founders
of AA and the Episcopal Church. Step 12 is about taking the message to others
as a result of your own spiritual awakening.
Likewise, each week, we are sent out to the world to serve others. Perhaps the most healing part of the service was
just the simple fact that we acknowledged this disease and the pain it causes
without shaming.
Yesterday, a thoughtful priest
shared a concept of how people grow in their faith. It was based on circles. Jesus is at the center, then there were Peter,
James, and John in the next circle. Then
the 12, then the 72, then the crowds at the outer circle. The idea was that we likely start as one of
the bystanders listening in the crowd and as we walk in our faith, we are moving
toward the center of the circle towards Jesus.
And, we do that at our own pace.
At St. Mary’s, one of our core
beliefs is that we value all people and that means all people. We welcome all
to join the circle. Years ago, when the
church was built, our core values and mission were different than they are
now. But as I looked at that altar on
Sunday, I thought, “we’ve grown into our altar.”
Years ago, I didn’t know if my
addicted son would make it to Christmas.
Yesterday, he turned 21 and I am inspired with the way he has turned his
will and his life over to the care of God (Step 3). A full circle, indeed.
