Thursday Eucharist!

I want to start this post with an excerpt from Shane Claiborne's book Irresistible Revolution. To set the stage, Claiborne, while in college, began traveling regularly from his university to inner-city Philadelphia when the Catholic archdiocese tried to evict forty homeless families that sought refuge in one of the abandoned Catholic cathedrals in the city. Claiborne (& friends) continued their support of the homeless families until all had housing - and their support manifested through small acts of kindness. Essentially Claiborne spent time with the families and his acts proved to be a powerful sign of love and commitment to the community. Each Sunday, visitors and squatters in the cathedral would celebrate the weekly services together...and this is what Claiborne had to say:

"Every week, dozens of us piled into Sunday services at St. Ed's [Cathedral], where we sang old hymns and freedom songs. It was a revival of sorts...We shared communion...and many of us were experiencing true communion for the first time in our lives. The body of Christ was alive, no longer trapped in stained-glass windows or books of systematic theology...Church was no longer something we did for an hour on Sunday."

I think what Shane is saying is that when we stop thinking about church as this place we go to on Sunday mornings, and start thinking of it as this way of life we live everyday, we start to experience a greater communal connection with those around us. Then, when we share communion (or Eucharist) it becomes so much more than the body and blood of Christ - it becomes who we are as Christians, the sacrifices we make for one another and the loving support we pour out to everyone around us. If church becomes the way we live, then sharing communion is not just reminding us that we are all Christians together on Sunday morning, but we are Christians everyday and are willing to do great things for each other (even live in an abandoned cathedral to save some strangers "home").

So why all this rambling? It is my segway into a short post about our Thursday Eucharist Service at the Canterbury House...get it??

Every Thursday at 5:45pm we celebrate Eucharist/communion/the breaking of bread at the Canterbury House. Our service is a time for you to take a break from the craziness of your school week and be reminded of all that Christ did for us. We share the bread and wine with one another as a testament to our continued support of one another during our busy weeks. It is a wonderful time to simply breathe and revive yourself for the rest of the week. So come join us! Every Thursday at 5:45 - 1823 Laramie Street....and afterward we head down to Chipotle for dinner!

See you there
kiera.