Steal Away To Jesus

Over the weekend, this happened. Not knowing many details, such as whether the man was acting in threatening or dangerous ways, it is difficult to fully comment on it. However, it made me wonder how, as a pastor, I would react in such a situation.

If it was obvious this man was a danger to those around him, then the congregation's efforts to contain him seemed like the correct response. However, my hope is that getting the police involved was for safety reasons rather than because this man stole some body of Christ wafers. There's nothing inherently "un-Christian" or sacreligous about wanting to be fed by the sacrament of Holy Communion, even if it is misunderstood as a "snack time" rather than an outward and visible sign of the grace of God freely given to us.

If the man was in fact just hungry, and not endangering those around him with threatening behavior, then I would not have held him down or let others do so. I would have made sure there was still enough of the elements for everyone else, tried to calm him down enough to finish the service, then taken him into my office for counsel and to help him find food. I'd make it clear to him that whatever communion is, it is not "free snack time." Then I'd make sure his immediate needs were met.

Now, this is not meant as a condemnation of what this congregation did. The fact that this was a Catholic church cannot be overlooked. Their theology of the sacrament of Holy Communion differs from my own Wesleyan theology. They consider the elements to be the body and blood of Christ in a way different than I, so to them this man was acting irreverently towards Jesus Christ our Lord. In their mind, he was committing a monumental transgression, and they responded according to their theology, whether they realized it or not.

Still, the image of this man stealing the wafers, desperately hungering for that which is the body of Christ, is a powerful one. What if we approached the table with such passion and desire to partake of Holy Communion, even if we misunderstood and tried to "take" communion rather than receive it? What if we desired Christ so fervently that we were willing to risk being held down, risk being arrested?