Article March 24, 2008 Issue

TRUE COMMUNION ...

THOUGHTS FROM JULIE'S FRIEND, D

D. Tomlinson

Julie introduced me to Christian Science three years ago. Ever since then, I've loved coming to church with her.

I'd like to share an insight I had about my church experience. One night, sitting in The Mother Church during the silent prayer at a Wednesday service, I was thinking about all the other things I could be doing and wondering why I was there. The word that came to me was communion, a word I'd grown up with and one that I used to associate with organ music, sitting still, and the excitement of receiving little wafers. (As a kid, I loved those "snacks" in church!) But I asked myself, What did communion mean to me now?

I remembered one of my favorite Bible stories—the story of the five loaves and two fishes (see Luke 9:10—17). After Jesus had preached for a long time, maybe right through lunch and even dinnertime, people listening discovered they were hungry. One brave little boy decided that even though he had close to nothing, maybe he could help. So he offered what little crumbs he had to those around him. In one interpretation of the story I'd heard, the little boy's generosity inspired those around him to share what little they had in their pockets. Soon a wave of giving radiated out through the crowd, and there was enough food for everyone.

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