War Souvenir
Originally scheduled for December 15
Mention the word “souvenir” to most people and
they begin to think immediately of something they purchased at a
place like Disneyland. Souvenirs, in this context, share some common
characteristics:
·
We purchase them to remind us of good
times. That’s why Disneyland has a large number of souvenir stands
and the local municipal traffic court has none.
·
We often purchase them to remind us
of good times we had with friends. Souvenir is not so much a
souvenir of Disneyland, but of the friends we took with us. After
all, no one goes to Disneyland alone.
Sometimes, however, our souvenirs are not
purchased but picked up along the way. Sometimes they are war
souvenirs; these serve the purpose and jogging the memory but in a
very different way.
What kind of war souvenirs do we keep?
·
Some souvenirs are simply reminders
of the war itself. We might keep a jacket or some trinket we picked
up along the way.
·
More commonly we pick up souvenirs
that remind us of those who suffered with us during the war. The
jacket will often have a unit patch on it, reminding us of our
buddies.
·
More rarely, the souvenir will remind
us of something extraordinary which happened during the war. More
than one soldier has come home with a hat which has a hole in it.
Communion is, in a sense, a souvenir of the war
between good and evil.
·
It is reminder that the war exists.
Many of us would like to believe that there really is no such thing
as evil. This reminds us that this war has been going on for a long,
long time.
·
Is it a reminder that this war has
been won; it is a souvenir of Good Friday.
·
Is also a reminder of the suffering
needed to win that war; the suffering of Christ on the cross.
So as you partake today , remember: it was to
bring his suffering, sacrifice and victory to your mind that he
instituted the Lord’s Supper.
