SEPTEMBER 2003 REMARKS

The Feast of St. Michael and All Angels, September 29, 2003

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ:

Why do we gather for worship each Sunday? We might have many different answers, such as: being part of a community, the music, it’s a habit, for peace or healing. And all of these are legitimate reasons to bring us into worship, but the reason that we have worship is not about us at all, it’s about God. (yes, you can say “duh!”)

Worship is our response to God’s goodness and blessings and presence in the world and in our lives. I have gone into worship being needy and wanting a “cosmic hug” to feel better, and allowed the music and prayers to wash over me and heal me.

But worship is not about making me feel better, it is about giving praise and thanks to our God. Worship is more about our making God feel better -— adored, praised, thanked, enjoyed, recognized. (Sometimes I imagine an angel standing in the “wings” with a scorecard, rating our worship — did we get a 10? or a 5.6?)

We gather to worship because we are the church. We are the Body of Christ, “ekklesia” in Greek — for an assembly of people. So worship is not about a building, or any particular place or space, it is about God’s people gathered in God¹s name.

Worship is not just about an hour or so of our time each week, but part of the great sweep of God’s redemption throughout all time. As we begin our Eucharistic Prayer, we sing the Sanctus along with “Angels and Archangels and with all the company of heaven, who forever sing this hymn to proclaim the glory of your Name.” Our worship puts us in the great stream of eternal Creation.

And, our worship of God does give us something in return. We gather to give thanks for God’s presence with us, and for the salvation God has already given us. And, God’s generosity does not end there! We receive Body and Blood of Christ in our Holy Communion — we are filled with the power of Christ so that we can recognize God’s working in our lives, and can go forth as “faithful witnesses” into the world around us that thinks “church” means a building.

May each of us be “church” to our families and friends, showing them that God is active far beyond these marble walls. May we show God’s love so that they will want to become church with us, and gather in this beautiful and sacred space to be the Body that is constantly praising God and continually being filled with God.