In the book of Joshua we read that the people took stones and used them as markers to memorialize God's movement and action in their lives. (Joshua 4)
In the Eucharist, we are doing the same thing. We have this gathering, this meal as a family, to help us remember Jesus' saving acts in the world. But, it is more than a remembrance; it is a sacrament. It is an anamnesis. Anamnesis means to make present again; it's more than remembering. It is re-membering (putting the pieces of the story back together) in order to bring the past into the present. We do not just talk about what Christ did in the past. By gathering, recalling God's actions, re-living Christ' instructions from the Last Supper, and through the power of the Holy Spirit----Jesus is present among us. Just like at Emmaus in Luke 24, Jesus is known to us in the breaking of the bread.
In our personal lives, perhaps we should take a page from Joshua's playbook and consider how to mark God's movement and action in our lives in order that we might not forget. How can we "make permanent" God's work in our lives? Perhaps our stone markers are changes within us----within our minds, our spirits, our hearts---turning our hearts of stone to flesh. Where in your life will you place a marker today?
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