Sacred Remembering
“Then he took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks he broke it and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.’ And he did the same with the cup after supper, saying, ‘This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.’”
Luke 22:19-20, NRSV
I was in the third grade when the Twin Towers fell on that crisp September day. Like everyone else, 9/11 shaped much of my early life and its memory continues to linger. A few years ago, I visited the 9/11 Memorial and Museum at Ground Zero in New York City. I was overcome with emotion. So much came flooding back from that awful day. If you haven’t been, there is a room filled with pictures of each person who died, and many of the visitors silently walk through with a tear in their eyes as they try to take in every face on the wall.
Today, as Americans, we are called to remember. As hard as it is to reflect on some of the most tragic moments in the history of our country — or even in our own life — we must never forget. Facing the darkness is the only way to truly know the goodness of the light.
In our Eucharistic prayer, the priest repeats Jesus’ words, “Do this in remembrance of me.” We come to Church every week to participate in the sacred act of remembering. We retell the story of the Last Supper and the great sacrifice Jesus did on our behalf. We are reminded that His great sacrificial action is the means of grace and hope of glory for all who turned to Him in faith.
And so, when we participate in the Eucharist, we do it in remembrance of Him.
The Christian community is called to be a people who remember, who never forget to tell this sacred story from generation to generation.
As we reflect on those who lost their life on that September day in New York City, Washington D.C., and in that lonely field in Pennsylvania, may we also ponder our duty as Christians to come alongside those who mourn and grieve. We know all too well through the Passion Narrative that our God is one who suffers for us, and who died for each of us. Even amid tragedy, we as Christians, have something to say.
We are a people who remember.
