People were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them, and when the disciples saw it, they sternly ordered them not to do it. But Jesus called for them and said, “Let the children come to me, and do not stop them, for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs. Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it.” – Luke 18:15-17
Our son, Nathan, is 30 now, but when he was just a baby I was serving a little 3-point charge in Western, PA. The third church on the circuit was so small that my wife had to play the piano every Sunday. When Nathan was tiny, we would perform a strange dance of handing him back and forth through the service depending on the task to be performed. For some reason, when Nathan was about 15 months old he was in my arms on a communion Sunday as I stood at the table. One arm raised, reciting the words of the Great Thanksgiving, the other filled with a child.
I probably shouldn’t have been having a conversation with myself during the Great Thanksgiving, but I did. I started to wonder when Nathan should take communion for the first time. I had long heard the arguments that a child should “understand” what was happening in this mystery that baffles the doctors of the Church and was totally unpersuaded. At the same time, when was right? For a brief moment, I came to the conclusion two years old seemed right. Then I wondered to myself (all the while still saying the words of the prayer), why 2? It was that day that Nathan first took communion.
This table isn’t ours to fence, ours to explain, nor ours to understand. This table is given to us by the one who would stop no child. This table is graciously open, and only when we come like the children welcomed so long ago do we understand the mystery of it all.
God of all grace, you welcomed the children, and you welcome us. Grant us such faith as to know your presence in this mystery and in the wonder of every face. Through Jesus Christ, Amen.
Rev. Tom Greener serves as the pastor of St. James UMC in Greenville, NC.
Our theme for this year’s Lenten reflections is Graceful Hospitality. 2023 marks the 70th anniversary of the Ten Dollar Club, now known as the New Room Society. We give thanks for our Conference’s ongoing commitment to co-creating new places for new people to gather in communion with Jesus Christ and extending graceful hospitality to all of God’s children.