A Return to Tradition
Exodus 12: (1-4) 5-14
Although clergy are urged to not talk much about family, I’m going to break that rule today, because our son Dr. Douglas Palmer had something important to say for his first Convocation speech as President of Culver-Stockton College. It was the first virtual convocation ever held there in these “strange times in our history,” as he noted.
Dr. Palmer chose for his first convocation to talk about traditions in the midst of the issues facing the students, ranging from Covid-19 to social justice. He pointed to his academic robe – a tradition held for 1,000 years. Robes told others your rank and status as well as provide warmth in the cold hallways of the institution. As for my robe, many reformers were scholars, so they wore their daily clothing which happened to be a long black robe. Pastors still wear those robes as part of that tradition.
Tradition ties us to a web of relationships. Like a contract (or covenant) with your community, they affirm shared values that call forth the best of our faith and spirit.
However, not all traditions fulfill that contract/covenant and should not be sustained – slavery being one (as we see in Exodus). Theologians have called it an “original sin” that has had repercussions throughout history.
Dr. Palmer called upon Hebrew tradition with the words: Tikkun Olam – to repair the world. Our work on earth is to repair, by our faith and treatment of others, the damage found in our world. Tikkun Olam offers the best of tradition to act constructively and establish godly qualities that will benefit the world.
And so, when rhetoric is out there saying tradition is disintegrating, Dr. Palmer did the unexpected: he called for a return to tradition – a return to the best of who we are and who we can be, a return to the values of our faith as a community that works to repair the world.
As Dr. Palmer was addressed a Christian college community, Doug reminded me of the power of tradition for the Church community. Traditions “to the Lord” can speak to each generation about what God has done and can do through us to repair the world, and in the process, transform our lives.
Jesus gathered his disciples around a Passover table according to the tradition established by the Lord in Exodus 12 as a “festival to the Lord – a lasting ordinance”. There he established a new tradition, a new covenant, that would connect his followers for generations to come – and he himself would provide the sign of blood and bread as a pledge of God’s grace and peace.
Today marks the beginning of the Season of Peace in the church calendar. For many, it begins with the Lord’s Table, our tradition that calls for peace in the midst of a hurting and violent world. At this table we commemorate God’s mercy and grace in Jesus Christ. We eat and drink together as a sign of God’s covenant.
But it is also a season of political unrest in the midst of a pandemic. Amid calls for peace and promises to battle for our souls, we People of the Table, understand that only this tradition points us to a real peace beyond what the world can give. With the Word proclaimed, this Table puts us in the presence of the only Savior who fought for and saved our souls. Only this tradition spiritually forms us and feeds us, repairs us and unites us to become Repairers of the World. As we share spiritual bread and blood of the Covenant, we show our readiness to share God’s healing and liberating love with a hurting world.
And so, I agree with the spirit of Dr. Palmer’s words as I address the community of faith: Now is the time to return to tradition. Share this Table and be transformed!