Now Serving

Continuing where we left off yesterday with accusations against the Church about ritual, today I want to discuss what I sense is a growing conflict between being in Church for Divine Liturgy and being outside the Church service others. There appears even among leaders of the Church that serving others is more important than attending the Divine Liturgy on Sunday.

At that time, Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days, and have nothing to eat; and I am unwilling to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.” And the disciples said to him, “Where are we to get bread enough in the desert to feed so great a crowd?” And Jesus said to them, “How many loaves have you?” They said, “Seven, and a few small fish.” And commanding the crowd to sit down on the ground, he took the seven loaves and the fish, and having given thanks he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And they all ate and were satisfied; and they took up seven baskets full of the broken pieces left over. Those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children. And sending away the crowds, he got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan.

Matthew 15.32-39

There is no doubt based upon today’s reading that God has placed great importance on serving the physical needs of others. His compassion in their hunger was the source of another great miracle, but that does not negate the reality that the crowd was with Jesus at the time.

When we are in the Church for services, especially the Divine Liturgy, we are with God. When we receive Holy Communion, which can only take place (with rare exceptions) in the context of Divine Liturgy, we are with God.

Serving others cannot replace being with God. Serving others is a result of our time with God. When we live in communion with God, we can’t help but have the same compassion on the needs of others that He has.

Serving others may strengthen the sense of communion we share, but it does not and cannot replace the communion we share with God. Lest we forget, even nonbelievers can serve others through soup kitchens and shelters. Serving others doesn’t make us Christians. It makes us helpful.

It also must be said that we cannot be in communion with God and not serve others. How can we love God and hate our neighbor? A Christian is in Church with God and outside the Church serving others. As I used to be told, “Just sitting in a car doesn’t make you a car. Sitting in Church doesn’t make you a Christian.”

I would add, “Just serving food doesn’t make you a Christian. Serving food makes you a restaurant.” We don’t want to be restaurants. We want to be Christians.