Drive-Through Jesus
Welcome to Word for the Week, the series in which I:
share my experience of hearing God’s Word in Mass last weekend,
explore what I believe the Lord is calling me to do about that Word, and
ask how this Word might impact your life, as well.
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I’ve attended a fair number of weird Masses before. Like when the groom left the altar as the bride entered the church. Or when there was a giant paper mountain surrounding the altar, to facilitate a theatrical play during the liturgy. Or when the priest started a second homily in the middle of the consecration. I’m not sure I’ve experienced a weirder Mass than I did last weekend, though.
Our Bishop gave permission for us to receive communion in person at church, provided we first view our parish’s live-streamed Mass. The parish website listed a number of precautions. What I envisioned was a mostly-darkened church: we parishioners would shuffle quietly up and down the aisles, we would all wear face masks and reverently maintain 6 feet of distance between us. What I got was a rude awakening.
As I pulled into the church parking lot, masked attendants directed me toward the parochial school. A large sandwich board displayed the bold text “Drive-Up Communion” along with a big blue arrow. My jaw dropped in disbelief. My sister was with me and she made the obligatory comparison to fast food. We both laughed.
But we fell silent as we pulled up to the Communion station. On either side, a lay volunteer (wearing a face mask) waited to administer the Eucharist. I shifted the van into park, rolled my window down, and stuck my hands outside with my palms open to the sky. After I received, I rolled down Veronica’s window and she did the same.
Before we could take a moment to pray or to reflect, another car became visible in our rearview mirror. “Thanks!” I said awkwardly to the volunteer as I shifted the gear back into drive. At the exit, our pastor exchanged a laugh with us from behind his N-95 mask. He inquired after David and the kids and he handed me a carnation for Mother’s Day.
“What am I learning through this?” I asked myself. (On the drive home, Veronica and I stopped at an empty parking lot for a few minutes so I could alternate between tears and laughter.) In the past few days, an answer has come to light.
Mass was weird last Sunday. But isn’t everything weird lately? Yet Christ descends into our weirdness! He doesn’t wait for us to be normal, healthy, or calm. And somehow God’s tangible love transforms the weirdness into something deeply meaningful.
In closing, my word for the week is, “Let yourselves be built,” from 1 Peter 2:5. So I’ve been lifting weights with extra intensity since Sunday. Not joking.
How are you finding God’s love in the midst of weirdness this week?
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