January 18, 2022
Tuesday’s Thoughts on Scripture comes from Luke 4:16a: When [Jesus] came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was his custom. (NRSV)
Have you ever thought of church attendance as a “custom?” The dictionary defines custom as "a widely accepted way of behaving." Jesus was Jewish and for hundreds of years, Jews had attended synagogue regularly. It was part of their faith, yes, but also part of their life. It was a custom handed down from generation to generation.
For me, church attendance was less a custom handed down by my immediate family. I became a regular attender (and was baptized) at age 19. But then it did become a part of my regular life, almost as much as breathing.
However, just attending is not enough. I would hasten to say that it even means very little unless God permeates and transforms the rest of our lives. Perhaps the “widely accepted way of behaving” can be a way of describing who we are as Christians, not simply which church we attend, or even if we attend.
Something to think about.
Blessings. And prayers.
No comments:
Post a Comment