By FRANK REMKIEWICZ
Columnist
What makes Christianity work? Just for a change, let’s get practical. In this case, I am not talking about theology or philosophy. I am not writing about what ifs or why or why not. Today I am going to get personal. The thing that works for me on a very real and practical level. The mechanisms of how I live my life as a Christian. What would I like to get out of this column, for you, my readers? I think it is always a good thing to stop every once in a while, and take a look at what is driving your spirituality. My hope is that you, my readers, will do the same. I am not looking for you to decipher my driving force. I would like you to decipher your driving force.
My spirituality is driven by the two great commandments: First, love God with all your heart, mind, and soul. Second is to love my neighbor as myself. And, if you are interested, my evaluation tool is found in Matthew 25:31-46. I use this for the following scriptural reason. “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.” It seems readily apparent that our Creator is using the same evaluation tool.
Using that evaluation tool, I can judge my progress, lack of progress, or the progress I have lost. My driving force in seeking to fulfill the two great commandments is found in my worship. I will try to use non-liturgical and non-ritualist terms. In worship, it is not so much where, as in a building with four walls, a roof, and a cross or bell tower or both on top. It is more in keeping with the ordering of worship.
I like to start my worship with about five minutes of silence, followed by an opening prayer that focuses my entire being on what I am about to do. The silence and then the prayer set me into a relationship with my Creator and Savior, aided by the Advocate, so I leave behind all the sorrows, pain, joys, and hassles that occupy my entire being. Rid my being of all distractions and focus sharply on why I am there. I have God’s attention, and God has mine. Next comes the community prayers. These are the prayers that unite all the worshipers present. The prayers acknowledge that we are alone in this together. It is us recognizing that we, you, me, my neighbor, the person fresh off the street, are in this “mess” together, but now with God present. We will individually and collectively worship our Father Creator.
We recognize that we are all sinners. We have fallen short of the mark. The mark is what God expects us to do, and the frequency with which we fail to do it. Along with that comes the request that God will forgive us, individually and collectively, and extend His enormous mercy upon us. In addition, we turn to our brothers and sisters with us and ask that they extend mercy to us for the many times we fail them. A ‘passing of the peace’ takes place. Each person turns to another, and a powerful exchange takes place. Here is an outward sign that we forgive each other the transgressions we have committed. Now, the deck is clear. Our actions and omissions that have offended God, and our actions and omissions we have committed against our neighbors, have, through the mercy of Jesus Christ, been cleared. What a powerful action in our worship service. The stage is set for our act of faith. Often, the Nicene Creed, the Apostles’ Creed, or the Athanasian Creed is recited by the entire group of worshipers. I am sure that any expression of faith that renews our belief without reservation in our Creator, Savior, and Advocate is acceptable. Those who have gathered now pray for the needs of the church, the world, our community, and anyone we know that God can provide comfort and blessings.
We have worked our way to reading the scripture and the homily (sermon, talk). The homily should take the readings and explain how those of us present can apply the lessons in scripture in our lives and in our community. It is the actions presented in the homily that make this part of worship so powerful. Anyone can memorize scripture chapter and verse, but at the time of judgment, God is not going to ask us to recite a passage from scripture. Matthew chapter 25, verses 31 to the end of the chapter, makes it clear our Father wants actions that promote Christianity. And God provides the fuel for us to get out there and get things done. What I refer to as the Service of the Table, or Holy Communion, is the part of the worship service that, in essence, fuels our daily actions. Christ, in His infinite wisdom and never-ending mercy, has left us with our daily food to provide the sustenance to bring Christ from the worship service to the community. Grace is passed on to us so that we can bring the knowledge and love of Christ to our community and the world.
Last, but not least, we give thanks to God for the food and grace to renew our commitment to follow through with our actions in our community. In closing, God looks at us and says, “Why are you still here? Let’s get out there and get it done.”
Worship is indeed the driving force behind all Christian action. What I have described is an ideal worship construct. If any of my readers would like to submit their ideal worship structure, please email it to me. Peace and blessings to all.
Frank Remkiewicz is an area resident and contributes a monthly column focused primarily on faith and religion. He can be reached at fremkiewicz@gmail.com. Opinions expressed are those of the author.
