We do not have the same culture as we did in earlier times. The Japanese culture is closer to that but it is really something we have lost along the way and that is the honour system. Rightly or wrongly the system fell by the wayside and is not as respected as it once was. Yet, some of it's aspects still remain inherent in our culture and in our faith. In some respects it is the poorer issues of the system that hang around rather than the richer nuanced understandings that have been lost. It is all wrapped around how we respect the other and how we engage with the other. If we think about the gospel of Luke's description of Christ's criticism of the invitees to a dinner we get a clear picture of what I am talking about (Lk. 14:7-14). You can just imagine everyone shuffling around trying to find the seat that they want rather than that which comes with who they are. Indeed I can just imagine that sort of thing happening at a gala function in this day and age when everyone wants to sit as close as possible to the guest of honour and shuffle their seats accordingly.
One of the Christian attributes is hospitality which is brought out a lot in Luke's gospel usually around the table or entertainment, for a better word. In the culture at the time of Christ this was of particular note especially when it came to hosting members of the community as the proper respect and honour had to be given. In the Christian faith this has translated across to the Eucharist, originally a simple meal which has been ritualised with the bishop at its head. Thus, the honour was found at the head in other words with the bishop as presider over the eucharistic meal. Yet, things have changed somewhat in that the pseudo honour is no longer a thing for us but is still somewhat present in our interactions with the other. It takes a lot of courage for an outsider to attend a worship service or a space of worship where there is already a congregation or at least a formative group. The reality is that the new person attending often will feel as if they are unwanted by the group and become 'honour' bound to sit away from the existing group. An existing congregation does this in a number of ways. Perhaps, the greatest manner in which this is done is through seating arrangements within the worship space.
I have been in numerous parishes and they all have the same challenge. People get used to sitting in the same place and when furniture is moved then people get upset because they do not know where to sit. Then when people from outside come to join the family of God at worship there is tension because inevitably there is someone who is sitting in "MY" seat. This results not only in loss of respect for the outsider but also a deliberate closing of ranks by those who are on the "inside" and thus the loss of opportunity to minister to the other. We fail in doing the good (Heb 13:16) as we shun our neighbour and deliberately exclude those who may indeed be more deserving than ourselves. We do ourselves no favours by insisting on "our" seats or "our" spaces as soon as we pull out that card of discriminatory behaviour we begin to turn away from Christ who is constantly with us (Heb 13:8). In turning away from Christ we turn away from God who then has every right to lament as he did in the time of Jeremiah (Jer. 2:4-ff). Indeed I wonder if God would also accuse us in our failure as Jeremiah reports (2:9), for our failures in caring for our neighbour. Each time we claim our seat in the presence of God we must be sure that we are worthy to be called if on the other hand we are hesitant about our own position then we should step back and allow others to go before us only seeking to do that which God is asking of us.
Our hospitality begins not in our homes but in the presence of God as we are invited to the Lord's table. This is where we learn the lesson of honour and find our place in God's world. It is when we go back out into the world that we announce the love that God has for all people and bring those who deem themselves unworthy into the presence of God's love through our own hospitality to the other. The other is not those we congregate with but those that are on the outside, who are feeling neglected as they feel not worthy to enter into God's place of worship. Let us remind ourselves to look at our own behaviours in our parishes and pews as we welcome those who are other.
No comments:
Post a Comment