Here After

Seeing how we’re all here after the Eucharist

08/25/2019

Isaiah 66:18-21 Thus says the LORD: I know their works and their thoughts, and I come to gather nations of every language; they shall come and see my glory. I will set a sign among them; from them I will send fugitives to the nations: to Tarshish, Put and Lud, Mosoch, Tubal and Javan, to the distant coastlands that have never heard of my fame, or seen my glory; and they shall proclaim my glory among the nations. They shall bring all your brothers and sisters from all the nations as an offering to the LORD, on horses and in chariots, in carts, upon mules and dromedaries, to Jerusalem, my holy mountain, says the LORD, just as the Israelites bring their offering to the house of the LORD in clean vessels.

Some of these I will take as priests and Levites, says the LORD.

An elderly friend of mine sent me a joke last week to help me understand that getting old ain’t for sissies. It’s a kind of letter and began: “Remember, old folks are worth a fortune with silver in their hair, gold in their teeth, stones in their kidneys, leads in their feet, and gas in their stomachs.” It continues: “I have become a little older since I saw you last and a few changes have come into my life since then. Frankly, I have become a frivolous old gal. I am seeing five gentlemen every day…

She went on: “As soon as I wake up, Will Power helps me out of bed. Then I go see John. (Ahem!) Then Charlie Horse comes along, and when he is here he takes a lot of my time and attention. When he leaves, Arthur Ritis shows up and stays the rest of the day. He doesn’t like to stay in one place very long, as he takes me from joint to joint. After such a busy day, I’m really tired and glad to go to bed with Ben Gay.” Sorry, little racy! But here’s the conclusion: “P.S. The minister came to call the other day. He said at my age I should be thinking about the hereafter. I told him, Oh I do all the time. No matter where I am, in the living room, the family room, the kitchen or down the basement, I ask myself, what am I here after?”

Well, now let me tell you what this homily is here after, and why I used that joke as an introduction. It’s not just people who grow old and don’t function as fast as they used to, so do church heating and cooling systems, commonly called HVAC. Travis Beshears said the current HVAC must have come over on the Mayflower; they’re so old. They have served us well, but you’ve probably noticed the church is not as cool as it used to get, and certainly not as cool enough for priest in our very holy but also very hot robes. In fact we spent $8,000 this past spring on repairs and the repairs are more frequent. Sometimes it’s smarter to buy a new car than to keep fixing an old one. This week you’ll receive a letter from me asking you to contribute to a 10-month campaign to raise $200,000 for a new system. I know that’s a lot of money, but it also includes asbestos abatement, which is not cheap. I am personally pledging $1,000 and giving $100 per month. I hope you can join me with a generous pledge or donation. So, now you know what this homily is here after.

But let me also add what our scripture readings today are here after, and in a sense, they are after the same thing. Both the Old Testament reading from Isaiah 66 and the gospel reading from Luke 13 speak about all the nations gathering in one place as one people to be blessed by God. Isaiah prophesies: “They shall bring all your brothers and sisters from all the nations as an offering to the Lord…to Jerusalem, my holy mountain.” In Luke’s gospel Jesus announces that’s exactly his mission as the Messiah, to fulfill Isaiah’s prophecy. He says: “And people will come from the east and the west and the north and the south and will recline at table in the kingdom of God.” The table where Jesus fulfills that ancient prophecy is the Table of the Last Supper, where Jesus instituted the Eucharist and fed his first followers with his Body and Blood. In other words, Jesus welcomes the whole world to enjoy the Eucharist without division or discrimination, everyone without exception.

When you think about it, isn’t that precisely the purpose of this church building? For over 118 years our church has served as the “mountain” of Isaiah 66 and as the “table” of Luke 13 where literally all the nations are blessed with the Body and Blood, the Bread and the Wine, that feeds the world. Recently, I gave a history lesson to our catechists and mentioned how many different ethnic groups have found a home at I.C. The Irish arrived and founded the parish in 1843. The potato famine drove them to Fort Smith where they found French fries. The German immigrants arrived in 1880 and Rudolph Metzger built the current church.

Italians and their pasta arrived in 1890 and they operated grocery stories and fruit stands. The Vietnamese came to Fort Smith in 1975 after the fall of Saigon, and introduced “pho food” to us. The Laotians arrived with their noodles and soups in 1980. In 1998 the Hispanics came with their tacos, enchiladas, popusas and carne asada. And in 2013 the Indians arrived with their curries and coriander! As great as all that gormet cuisine is, human being will be hungry again. Only one feast satisfies us eternally, the Bread and Wine of the Eucharist. All nations hunger for it, and all the nations have been fed by it here at I.C.

Why do I need your help in this capital campaign? Because we are all “here after” the same thing: not bratwurst, pasta, pho food, tacos, or chicken curry, but for the Eucharist, the Bread of Life. That food is what we are all here after, because that’s the only Food that will get us to the hereafter.

Praised be Jesus Christ!