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"This [the Last Supper] was the meal that was to be repeated "to keep his memory until he comes" (1 Corinthians 11:25-26).  The love meal (agape) was the home service by which the Christian gatherings expressed their unity in the mystical body of Christ.

Why, in the richness of this banquet tradition, would Benedict XVI, when he was Cardinal Ratzinger, say that it was unworthy to treat the Catholic Mass as a meal?  Why would he say that altars should not allow the priest to face his brothers and sisters in Christ as across a dinner table?  Why would he say that the priest should turn his back on the congregation and commune only with his God?  Why would he say that others should not share in this activity of the priest, who is alone responsible for what occurs?  Did he think that Jesus, at the Last Supper, stopped in the course of the meal, stood up, crossed a barrier separating him from his followers, and muttered to God in a language (Latin) neither he nor they understood?

The pope makes all these astonishing claims because he thinks the Mass is not a meal but a sacrifice, made by a priest.  Not for him the Epistle to the Hebrews, which says that Christ is the unique priest making one last sacrifice.  The pope, like his predecessors, is returning to the religion Jesus renounced, with all its paraphernalia of priesthood, separation from the laity, consecration of places and things, distance from the "unclean" life of those not privileged by consecration.  This is what led to the idea that priests can say private Masses, without any community at all, since their consecrating words are all that is needed to repeat the sacrifice of Calvary, and the more such Masses are said the more the pleasing results of sacrifice are accumulated.  In other words, we repeat what Jesus did at the Last Supper "to keep his memory" by doing what he never did there.  I began this book by noting that we cannot be "other Christs," since he is God and we are not.  But priesthood is an attempt to pretend that some men are other Christs, who can do what he did in his one sacrafice.  Religion is still trying to kill Jesus."

Next Sunday I was given the honor to share some thoughts in a ten-minute sermonette in correlation to freedom. This is dangerous for me because I'm convinced that Americans in general, and Christians in America in particular, use this "freedom" to hide behind. Now don't call me an Anti-American. Let me explain. What I will share is directed towards Christianity in America.

Since its conception, America has prided itself on being a free nation. We are free to basically do what we want: speech, press, bear arms, etc. That's great and I'm all for my Constitutional Rights. But what I fear is that we use this freedom and somehow make being an American synonymous with being a Christian. When Christianity was conceived, it was at the height of a very unstable Middle East. Rome ransacked Jerusalem in the Jewish Wars of 67-70 A.D.; the emperors had major issues-Nero in particular; and while its borders were expanding, Rome itself seemed to be shrinking. Why?  Because Christianity was booming. It exploded and while Peter and Paul both taught that we are to respect the government, Christians were being slaughtered. We do not know what it is like to truly be persecuted for our faith. Christians in America don't get it. And this is why you can have Your Best Life Now because we've decided that its best to remain consumers of everything and talk down to the rest of the world as if America was the Sheriff in town. Christians are called to submit to the authorities.  And what bothers me is that a lot of churches act like Jesus is a registered Republican and that he votes in every election. As if God were an American. It's really quite arrogant to insinuate such a thing.

All this to say: Christianity seems to grow most when the Church is being persecuted. Some would argue that when Constantine did his thing in the Edict of Milan in 313 A.D., this began the institutionalization of Christianty. It became a stagnant institution rather than a fluid movement. And this is why Christians in America are feeling a bit distraught. American Christendom is slowly fading away. I for one am glad. Others (typically the staunch fundamentalists who hold their King James Bibles all too closely) are freaking out. But maybe, just maybe that is what God is doing. He's crashing our finanical gods left and right. Maybe we need to learn that our freedom isn't wrapped up in our nation; rather our freedom rests in the finished work of Christ and Christ alone.

What is the Church by Mark Driscoll from Vintage21 Church on Vimeo.

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Last Friday, I returned from a 10-day Pilgrimage to Italy with my cohort from school. It was the trip of a lifetime. I've always wanted to go to Rome and felt compelled to do so (Romans 1:15)-sort of like the Apostle Paul I guess. Anyway, the trip was amazing. I was able to see the sights and do some learning on the ground during this journey.  Some of the time was spent in Sicily (Palermo, Agrigento, and Chefalu), but by far my most favorite place was Rome. Rome is an incredible city. Great food, tons of people, amazing architecture and deep history. This is where I had an incredible problem. I was stuck in a paradigm that I hadn't experienced before.

I was stuck between the crossroads of history and the present time. It was weird. There I was, standing in front of Constantine's Arch thinking deeply about his actions that changed Christianity in the West forever. To my left was the Colosseum-where thousands of people perished-Christians not the least. I remember just standing there thinking, "I'm standing at the center of the known world in the 1st Century; and people are walking around it as if it didn't even exist." Now, one small caveat. People did know that it existed because of course, they were taking photographs of these amazing structures. But I felt alone for a minute and I felt stuck between history then, and history now (a.k.a., "the present"). Words cannot describe what I felt, but I do know this: When we think deeply about history and the implications it has on Scripture, it can't help but move us.  To think that everything Jesus stood for was going against the Empire. The Vestal Virgins were at the time holding "the light of the world."  Then Jesus says, no, "I am the Light of the World" (John 8:12). The Empire says, "conquer by the sword, exploit the poor, dominate the others"; Jesus says, conquer with love, serve the poor and love your neighbor.

This paradigm is still there and it won't go away (not that I want it to, but you know).  I just can't stop thinking about it. I visiting the jail that Peter and Paul would have been in for holding before their execution under Nero.  I mean, seriously, what else am I to do but be blown away? Studying history and actually being there while thinking through the implications for the present time is a weird feeling.  But I'll never forget it.

Finally had a minute to post some pictures...

Vatican City & St. Peter's Square

In less than a week I will be roaming the streets of Rome, Italy. It's a dream come true. I've always wanted to go to Italy and for the first time I have the honor of doing so. The neat thing about it is that I get to spend twelve days with my cohort friends from the Seminary that I just graduated from. These friends of mine have been with me, and I with them, for three years and this trip is sort of the "capstone"-if you will-to my education. The goal is mission-minded, cultural exegesis. We are to go, learn the culture, try to understand the culture, and experience life in a Post-Christendom era. It should be awesome.

With American Christendom collapsing (for which I'm glad in a lot of ways), the Church could learn a thing or two from Western Europe and its collapse of Christendom.  While I'm thinking about it, read Mark Driscoll's response to the recent Newsweek article about this very issue (ironically, the article was published around Easter time...hmmm).

Anyway, while I'm in Italy, I intend on doing some micro-blogging (not as micro as twitter of course) and posting some pictures.  Hope you enjoy the journey as much as I will!

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